The Orioles have signed veteran closer Craig Kimbrel to a one-year contract with a club option for 2025, the team announced on Dec. 6.
The New York Post‘s Joel Sherman first mentioned conversations between the Orioles and Kimbrel. The contract guarantees Kimbrel $13 million, as first reported by ESPN’s Jeff Passan.
Kimbrel, 35, has recorded 417 career saves dating back to 2010, eighth on the all-time list. The Orioles will be his eighth team. He pitched for the Phillies in 2023, earning the ninth All-Star selection of his career. He has a career 2.40 ERA, racking up 1,192 strikeouts in 757.1 innings with his trademark fastball-curveball combination.
The 6-foot, 215-pound right-hander posted a 3.26 ERA in 69 innings for the Phillies in 2023, striking out 94 and walking 28. Kimbrel did struggle in the NLCS against the Diamondbacks, allowing four runs on five hits before being removed from high-leverage work.
Kimbrel adds a veteran arm to an Orioles bullpen that was light on major league closing experience heading into 2024. Yennier Cano, Danny Coulombe, DL Hall, Cionel Pérez, Dillon Tate and Tyler Wells are candidates to receive high-leverage work in 2024, but those six pitchers have combined for 28 career saves. Kimbrel gives manager Brandon Hyde a veteran option at the end of the game.
Closer Félix Bautista, who recently won the Mariano Rivera American League Reliever of the Year award, will miss the entire 2024 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery to repair a partially torn UCL in his right elbow. He was in the midst of one of the best relief seasons in Orioles history at the time of the injury, striking out 110 batters in 61 innings.
This story was updated after Kimbrel’s signing became official.