When the Orioles traded for Cole Irvin in the offseason, they expected him to play a key role in the middle of the rotation.
Now, he’ll get another opportunity to prove that he can be a viable starter.
With Kyle Bradish’s next start pushed back to Sunday, Aug. 13 in Seattle, Irvin will get the nod to take the ball as a starter the prior day against the Mariners. Manager Brandon Hyde could go with a six-man rotation this month to keep his rotation fresh.
“We’re going to try to give guys extra days as we go along here,” Hyde said. “We’ll try to keep our starting pitching as fresh as possible.”
After some early struggles, Irvin was demoted to Triple-A Norfolk in early April to work on his command. Irvin has pitched better since he was recalled on June 10 and there is optimism has found a groove.
Irvin was moved to the bullpen when Grayson Rodriguez rejoined the rotation on July 16. Irvin embraced that role and he has lowered his ERA from 10.66 on April 13 to a current 5.44. He has not allowed a run in his past three appearances (four innings) and now he’ll get another shot at being a starter,
“We’d definitely look at that, giving Cole more starts,” Hyde said. “Things happen quickly. That’s our plan right now with Cole there, to give guys extra days.”
Bullpen Shakeup
The Orioles’ struggling bullpen got some more bad news.
Left-handed reliever Danny Coulombe was placed on the 15-day injured list because of left biceps tendinitis retroactive to Aug. 9. In a corresponding move, the Orioles recalled right-handed reliever Joey Krehbiel from Triple-A Norfolk.
Coulombe has been one of the team’s most consistent relievers. He is 3-1 with a 2.77 ERA and a save in 47 games.
The loss of Coulombe will provide a further challenge for Hyde, who now only has Cionel Pérez as a left-handed option in the bullpen.
“He warmed up a couple of times two nights ago, just didn’t feel like his arm was getting loose,” Hyde said. “Danny’s pitched a ton this year. Usually, when you’re a left-handed reliever, there are nights when you get up and maybe you don’t get used to it. He’s just had a heavy workload so far this year, just got a little bit of soreness.”
This could mean an immediate role for Krehbiel, who has thrown 1.2 scoreless innings in the majors this season. He pitched 57.2 innings for the club last year.
Reinforcements For Stretch Run
The Orioles acquired two pitchers at the trade deadline — starter Jack Flaherty and reliever Shintaro Fujinami.
There were some questions about whether they did enough to continue their surge toward the playoffs.
However, the team should have some internal reinforcements on the way.
John Means made a rehab start at Double-A Bowie on Aug. 10, throwing two scoreless innings with two strikeouts. It was the first time Means pitched in a competitive game since April 2022. Since then, he has undergone Tommy John surgery and suffered a setback with a back injury.
This suggests that Means could rejoin the Orioles early next month for the final part of the stretch run.
MLB rosters expand from 26 to 28 players on Sept. 1. This also means that left-hander DL Hall could finally earn a promotion to Baltimore. Hall, 24, is a highly-touted prospect who throws in the high 90s.
However, he was sent down to Sarasota to rehab after dealing with a back injury this offseason. Hall made his first appearance for Triple-A Norfolk on Aug. 5 after a two-month hiatus, throwing two scoreless innings with one hit allowed and five strikeouts.
Hall has already pitched in one game for the Orioles this season and it was an encouraging debut against the Tigers on April 29. Hall allowed two runs and five hits with seven strikeouts in three innings. If and when Hall returns to the Orioles, he is likely to pitch out of the bullpen.
The Orioles could also look to promote the versatile Heston Kjerstad and Joey Ortiz for depth in the outfield and infield.
The team should be confident that help is on the way.
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