Late last week, the Orioles called upon right-handed prospect Brandon Young to fill a gap in the rotation. Young made his major league debut last Saturday and pitched again yesterday afternoon in game 1 of a double-header.
Despite a good bit of success in the minor leagues, Young wasn’t particularly effective in either outing with Baltimore. The 26 year old allowed a combined 6 runs on 11 hits and 8 walks in 8.2 total innings, a far cry from what the Orioles were hoping for.
After the first game on Saturday, the Orioles chose to demote Young and recall lefty Grant Wolfram for the evening affair in Detroit. Wolfram has been a minor league depth piece throughout his career and it’s unlikely that he’ll remain in Baltimore for long, barring another injury.
But with Young being sent back down, the Orioles will need a rested starter for Wednesday’s scheduled game against the Yankees. Since we haven’t heard anything about Zach Eflin being ready to go by then, someone else is going to have to step in. Otherwise, Brandon Hyde will be forced to roll with a bullpen game, which is something they’ve been hesitant to do in the recent past.
Who will take Brandon Young’s place in the Orioles rotation?
One guy who could theoretically take the mound for the Orioles in Young’s stead is veteran righty Kyle Gibson. Signed just prior to Opening Day, Gibson has made 3 starts so far this spring and is nearing the point where he’ll be fully stretched out and ready to pitch in the majors.
Though the O’s would probably be better off giving those innings to Young and seeing if he’s capable of sticking around in the big leagues, there is some known value that Gibson can provide. He’s been quite reliable over the last four seasons and with the number of injuries the Orioles are dealing with, that stability might be a good thing for the group.
That said, Gibson is entering his age 37 season and his velocity was down pretty significantly in 2024. It’s possible that he can find a way to make it work while throwing his fastball 90-91 mph but the margin for error at that velocity is razor thin. He also felt some back tightness in a recent start but reports suggest that it isn’t serious.
Regardless of whether the Orioles choose to bring Gibson up later this week, it’s disappointing to see them shift Young back down so quickly. With so few reasonable options and Young’s prior success in Triple-A to consider, one would think they’d have a little bit longer leash on him.
