{"id":85439,"date":"2025-08-30T00:59:01","date_gmt":"2025-08-30T00:59:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=85439"},"modified":"2025-08-30T00:59:01","modified_gmt":"2025-08-30T00:59:01","slug":"the-hidden-warning-signs-behind-colton-cowsers-2025-slump-that-orioles-fans-overlooked","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=85439","title":{"rendered":"The hidden warning signs behind Colton Cowser\u2019s 2025 slump that Orioles fans overlooked"},"content":{"rendered":"<header class=\"relative z-10\">\n<h2 class=\"my-2.5 text-black font-group-gigantic !leading-[30px] md:!leading-[44px]\">Orioles fans should have seen Colton Cowser\u2019s 2025 struggles coming<\/h2>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"mb-0 md:mb-9 relative md:mx-10 md:mb-9\">\n<figure>\n<div class=\"overflow-hidden bg-lightGrey\"><picture><source srcset=\"https:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_crop,x_420,y_18,w_5443,h_3061\/c_fill,w_360,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images%2FGettyImages%2Fmmsport%2F11%2F01k3rfsx9gnb3pqtd82j.jpg 1x,  \nhttps:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_crop,x_420,y_18,w_5443,h_3061\/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images%2FGettyImages%2Fmmsport%2F11%2F01k3rfsx9gnb3pqtd82j.jpg 2x, \n    https:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_crop,x_420,y_18,w_5443,h_3061\/c_fill,w_1080,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images%2FGettyImages%2Fmmsport%2F11%2F01k3rfsx9gnb3pqtd82j.jpg 3x\" media=\"(max-width: 719px)\" \/><source srcset=\"https:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_crop,x_420,y_18,w_5443,h_3061\/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images%2FGettyImages%2Fmmsport%2F11%2F01k3rfsx9gnb3pqtd82j.jpg 1x, \nhttps:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_crop,x_420,y_18,w_5443,h_3061\/c_fill,w_1440,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images%2FGettyImages%2Fmmsport%2F11%2F01k3rfsx9gnb3pqtd82j.jpg 2x, \n    https:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_crop,x_420,y_18,w_5443,h_3061\/c_fill,w_1440,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images%2FGettyImages%2Fmmsport%2F11%2F01k3rfsx9gnb3pqtd82j.jpg 3x\" media=\"(max-width: 1079px)\" \/><source srcset=\"https:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_crop,x_420,y_18,w_5443,h_3061\/c_fill,w_1080,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images%2FGettyImages%2Fmmsport%2F11%2F01k3rfsx9gnb3pqtd82j.jpg 1x, \nhttps:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_crop,x_420,y_18,w_5443,h_3061\/c_fill,w_2160,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images%2FGettyImages%2Fmmsport%2F11%2F01k3rfsx9gnb3pqtd82j.jpg 2x,\n    https:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_crop,x_420,y_18,w_5443,h_3061\/c_fill,w_2160,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images%2FGettyImages%2Fmmsport%2F11%2F01k3rfsx9gnb3pqtd82j.jpg 3x\" media=\"(min-width: 1080px)\" \/><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"undefined w-full w-full\" title=\"Toronto Blue Jays v Baltimore Orioles - Game Two\" src=\"https:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_crop,x_420,y_18,w_5443,h_3061\/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images\/GettyImages\/mmsport\/11\/01k3rfsx9gnb3pqtd82j.jpg\" alt=\"Toronto Blue Jays v Baltimore Orioles - Game Two\" width=\"5443\" height=\"3061\" \/><\/picture><\/div>\n<div class=\"flex items-center gap-4 ml-1 pb-2 mt-4 md:m-3 text-darkGrey font-group-tiny\">\n<div class=\"flex items-center gap-4 ml-1 pb-2 mt-4 md:m-3 text-darkGrey font-group-tiny\"><\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption>Toronto Blue Jays v Baltimore Orioles &#8211; Game Two | Scott Taetsch\/GettyImages<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"article-body\" class=\"flex flex-wrap justify-center lg:justify-normal\">\n<div class=\"flex lg:mr-4 lg:w-[calc(70%-3em)] max-w-full\"><main class=\"min-w-0 flex-1 odesa-article-main\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"viewablity-block\">\n<div class=\"article-content [&amp;_p]:leading-[30px] [&amp;_p]:md:leading-[28px] [&amp;_li]:leading-[30px] [&amp;_li]:md:leading-[28px]\">\n<p>After\u00a0finishing second in the Rookie of the Year race\u00a0last season, Baltimore Orioles fans had high hopes for Colton Cowser coming into 2025. Though his numbers certainly dipped at the end of the season, Cowser still hit 24 homers and was also an elite defender in the outfield. Unfortunately, his production has dropped off significantly this season.<\/p>\n<p>After posting a reasonable .768 OPS last season, Cowser has seen his OPS drop to .703 in 2025.\u00a0Cowser&#8217;s thumb injury\u00a0earlier this season along with\u00a0his recent concussion have certainly played a role, however, a closer look at his underlying metrics from last season suggest that fans probably should have expected some regression at the plate this year.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"inline-text-2\" class=\"scroll-mt-24 my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-secondary my-f-1\">Colton Cowser&#8217;s underlying offensive metrics should have the Orioles on high alert<\/h2>\n<p id=\"inline-text-3\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-secondary my-f-1\">Given the amount of time he&#8217;s spent away from the field this season, one can give Cowser a pass on the decline in his defensive production year-over-year. The arm strength is still there and if Cowser had been on the field more, he probably would have produced similar results with his glove.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-4\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-secondary my-f-1\">Cowser&#8217;s bat, however, is showing some troubling trends. This season, his expected batting average (xBA) as of August 28 sits at just .226 which is incredibly close to his actual batting average (.222). His 33.3% whiff rate is bottom-tier and his strikeout rate is even worse. It was the same story in 2024. There were lots of strikeouts, lots of whiffs, and a rough .230 xBA that Cowser simply managed to outperform.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-5\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-secondary my-f-1\">Part of the problem is that on the balls Cowser has put in play, he&#8217;s hit into the ground. His ground balls rate is 47.4% versus &#8220;just&#8221; 43.3% last season. He&#8217;s still hitting the ball hard, but he pulls the ball into the ground a lot and that wastes a lot of that harder contact.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-6\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-secondary my-f-1\">Ultimately, whether or not Cowser can turn things around will come down to his ability to punish non-fastballs. Changeups have always given him fits, but he was pretty good against breaking stuff in 2024. This season, sliders and curveballs have eaten him alive when he wasn&#8217;t hurt. If he can make that adjustment, his discouraging underlying metrics will improve. If he can&#8217;t, the injury concerns may be the least of the Orioles&#8217; worries with Cowser.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/main><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Orioles fans should have seen Colton Cowser\u2019s 2025 struggles coming Toronto Blue Jays v Baltimore Orioles &#8211; Game Two | Scott Taetsch\/GettyImages After\u00a0finishing second in the Rookie&#8230; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":85445,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-85439","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mlb"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>The hidden warning signs behind Colton Cowser\u2019s 2025 slump that Orioles fans overlooked - NEWS USA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=85439\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The hidden warning signs behind Colton Cowser\u2019s 2025 slump that Orioles fans overlooked - NEWS USA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Orioles fans should have seen Colton Cowser\u2019s 2025 struggles coming Toronto Blue Jays v Baltimore Orioles &#8211; 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