Orioles’ pitching concerns grow after another rough start as trade deadline looms
Cole Irvin was never a threatening matchup for Cleveland.
The left-hander, who fills the strike zone but lacks elite velocity or strikeout-inducing movement, prefers pitching to contact, hoping the balls his opponents hit find the gloves of his defenders. The Guardians are one of MLB’s most aggressive teams at the plate.
That culminated in Irvin getting hit hard Tuesday night, allowing eight runs (four earned) in four innings in the Orioles’ 10-8 defeat. It’s the latest shaky start for the 30-year-old veteran in what’s become a disastrous month, a problem compounded by mounting injuries to the Orioles’ rotation.
Baltimore’s staff as a whole has floundered amid a season-high five consecutive losses. Irvin’s poor showing Tuesday proved again why the Orioles might not be able to wait until the trade deadline to acquire help.
“I’ve had a stretch of games here that I’m not happy with,” Irvin said. “I’m not happy with my performance as of late. Going to fix it, definitely. My mind is in the right place right now. Just trying to get to where I need to be.”
In likely his last start of June, Irvin capped the month by giving up the most runs he’s allowed all season. He entered June with a 2.84 ERA. He’ll finish it with a 3.74 mark.
Irvin blamed his effort Tuesday on missing too many pitches high in the zone, leaving balls elevated that Cleveland hitters could crush. The Guardians put six balls in play with exit velocities of 100 mph or higher against the left-hander.
“A lot of hard hits,” Hyde said. “It was in the zone, but it looked like it was thigh high and in the middle part of the plate. … Didn’t have his command tonight. Just way too many balls in the middle part of the plate elevated.”
Irvin’s slump isn’t isolated. Orioles starters have allowed 32 earned runs on 53 hits and 18 walks over their past eight games, a 7.26 ERA, while averaging fewer than five innings over that stretch. The Orioles allowed 10 or more runs in two of their first 74 games. They’ve now done that twice in their past five contests.
Right-hander Albert Suárez has similarly cratered, allowing eight earned runs over his past two starts. Cade Povich hasn’t eluded typical rookie struggles, which could prevent him from becoming a trusted option this season. Dean Kremer, who Hyde said Monday will likely need another minor league rehabilitation start before rejoining the major league rotation, might force one of Irvin, Suárez or Povich out of the five-man group.
Baltimore’s rotation has just two dependable starters right now, but even Corbin Burnes and Grayson Rodriguez haven’t been as strong since the pitching staff was depleted by injuries earlier this month. Burnes’ 10-game quality start streak ended in his last outing, and Rodriguez gave up seven earned runs the last time he took the mound.
Together, the unit has been at the forefront of the club’s five-game losing streak, the Orioles’ longest of the season and first of five or more games since May 2022. Baltimore left New York last week just a half-game back of the Yankees in the American League East standings. The Orioles have lost ground in that race despite their division-leading rival losing three of their four games since.
Even Baltimore’s offense, which has similarly slumped in the past week, hasn’t been able to overcome the struggles of its counterparts. The Orioles scored 11 runs Friday and eight Tuesday and lost both games.
“I’m not frustrated with our offense,” Hyde said. “Had 16 hits, scored eight runs on these guys, we should win the game. We just didn’t pitch well enough to win.”
The Orioles are in a setting unfamiliar to them over the past two seasons, but are also nearing the end of a grueling stretch of 29 games in 30 days. It could have simply grown too strenuous to fight through.
Still, the state of Baltimore’s rotation is in question, with Kyle Bradish, John Means and Tyler Wells out for the season after undergoing elbow surgery. The trade deadline, a chance to acquire outside help, is more than four weeks away while the Orioles’ current options stumble at each turn. The team is learning it might have to act sooner.
“We had rough patches last year, and we still won 101 games,” catcher James McCann said. “The minute you start doubting yourself, the minute you start taking a stretch of five games and making it seem like it’s more than that is when it starts to snowball. … It’s frustrating. No one likes to lose. But at the same time, we can’t freak out about a little stretch during what’s really our toughest stretch of the year.”