The Baltimore Orioles are off to a challenging start that has them sitting at the bottom of the AL East. Not exactly where they envisioned themselves, but also far from a death sentence this early. The division remains a gauntlet, but also will be one of the most unpredictable in baseball. That unpredictability gives Baltimore a narrow window to steady the ship before the standings start to pull itself apart.
Expectations were high entering the year.
The Orioles had momentum and a young core to build off of. The Red Sox opened their checkbook, the Blue Jays continued to load up, and the Yankees are angling at returning to the World Series for the second straight season. Simply put, there’s no room for a slow start in this division — and Baltimore is already playing from behind.
What’s made things more frustrating is that some of the Orioles’ early-season struggles stem from players who just haven’t delivered. Their presence on the roster is starting to raise eyebrows, and patience is already beginning to run out. Let’s take a look at the names who are making Baltimore’s climb back up the standings a steeper one than it needs to be.
4 Orioles who’ve already proven they don’t belong on roster after May 1
UTIL Jorge Mateo
Deserving or not, Jorge Mateo’s roster spot would’ve been in question if not for the injury to Gunnar Henderson. Instead, the Orioles were forced to thrust the 30-year-old back into his usual utility role, filling in around the diamond and offering lineup depth in a pinch. Known primarily for his elite speed, Mateo has long teased potential but has yet to deliver sustained offensive production — and the patience in Baltimore is wearing thin.
The Orioles are now entering their fifth season waiting for Mateo’s bat to catch up to his tools, but outside of a breakout 2022 campaign — where he posted 3.7 WAR, hit 13 home runs, drove in 50, and stole 35 bases — the production just hasn’t followed. He remains a legitimate weapon on the basepaths, but that’s about all he’s offering at this point. Through his first seven games this season, Mateo is just 0-for-11 with four strikeouts and three stolen bases.
His speed is valuable, but it no longer justifies a roster spot on a team trying to contend — especially with no minor league options left. That’s the real dilemma. The Orioles can’t send him down without exposing him to waivers, and it’s likely that another team would take a flier on his athleticism. A DFA could result in a total loss, and while a trade might be the ideal solution, his current form won’t exactly generate interest.
OF Ramon Laureano
The Orioles took a low-risk swing this offseason by signing veteran outfielder Ramón Laureano to a one-year, $4 million deal with a club option for 2026. A reasonable bet on a proven defender with flashes of offensive upside. Now 30 and entering his eighth big league season, Laureano has carved out a reputation as a steady contributor: a plus glove in the outfield, a career .247 hitter, and someone capable of delivering timely pop when needed.
After a slow start with Cleveland in 2024, Laureano turned heads during his late-season stint with the Braves, slashing .296/.327/.505 with a 127 OPS+. That late surge is exactly what Baltimore hoped to tap into when they brought him in — a veteran bat off the bench with playoff experience and defensive versatility.
But so far in Baltimore, the results haven’t followed. In a small early sample size, Laureano is just 1-for-9 with four strikeouts and a walk. While there’s still time for him to find his footing, the margin for error is slim. The Orioles are loaded with young offensive talent knocking on the door, and if Laureano doesn’t start producing soon, it’ll be hard to justify keeping him on the roster.
LHP Cionel Perez
Cionel Pérez is now in his fourth season with the Baltimore Orioles — and for a while, he’d earned the benefit of the doubt. His debut campaign in 2022 was nothing short of dominant, emerging as one of the league’s most reliable left-handed relievers. Pérez finished that year with a 7-1 record, a crisp 1.40 ERA across 66 appearances, and 55 strikeouts in 57.2 innings — all while serving as a stabilizing force in the bullpen.
But that version of Pérez has fallen further and further away. Since then, the regression has been steady — and concerning. In 2023, his ERA rose to 3.54 over 53.1 innings, and in 2024 it climbed further to 4.53 in a similar workload of 53.2. His strikeout rate has dipped, his command has wavered, and now in 2025, those struggles have hit a breaking point.
In five appearances this season, Pérez has been rocked for nine earned runs across just five innings, inflating his ERA to an absurd 16.20. What’s more troubling is the lack of clean outings — he’s only managed one scoreless frame in five tries, making him a liability every time he takes the mound.
This isn’t just a rough stretch, it’s a performance crisis. And in a bullpen with limited margin for error, the Orioles may soon be forced to make a move. If Pérez can’t find a way to bounce back fast, his time in Baltimore could be nearing its end.
RHP Charlie Morton
It might feel a bit premature to sound the alarm on Charlie Morton — but the numbers are hard to ignore. Now in his 18th big league season, the 41-year-old right-hander is clearly nearing the twilight of a long and respected career. But no matter how seasoned the veteran, Father Time remains undefeated.
Through three starts in 2025, Morton is 0-3 with a brutal 8.78 ERA, having allowed 13 earned runs and eight walks over just 13.1 innings. He’s been consistently squared up, surrendering at least four runs in each of his outings and failing to pitch beyond the fifth inning in any of them.
In his defense, Morton wasn’t signed to be a front-line starter — that was never the plan. But injuries to Grayson Rodriguez, Kyle Bradish still recovering from Tommy John, and now Zach Eflin have left the Orioles scrambling, and Morton has been thrust into an even larger role than expected. Unfortunately, he hasn’t been able to rise to the occasion.
At $15 million on a one-year deal, the Orioles were banking on a stabilizing veteran presence in the middle or back end of their rotation. Instead, they’re getting results that aren’t just disappointing — they’re straight up losing games due to his performance.
Totally aware of how unlikely it will be that Baltimore moves on from Morton before May 1, especially with so many rotation arms on the shelf. But as reinforcements return and younger options emerge, Morton’s leash will only get shorter. If the veteran can’t turn things around, the Orioles may be forced to reconsider whether he’s helping them win — or holding them back.
While it’s still early in the 2025 season, the Orioles can’t afford to let under-performance linger — not in this division. Whether it’s veterans failing to live up to their contracts, relievers losing command, or bench pieces offering little value beyond speed, every roster spot matters for a team with postseason ambitions. If Baltimore wants to compete, they are going to have to make some tough decisions.
