Baltimore Orioles Could Select Quality Swing Starter in Rule 5 Draft

The Baltimore Orioles could use some pitching depth and there’s a player in the Rule 5 draft that could help the team next season.

Mar 7, 2024; Port Charlotte, Florida, USA; Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Logan Workman (92) throws a pitch against the Philadelphia Phillies in the fifth inning at Charlotte Sports Park. / Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

The Baltimore Orioles has some significant needs this offseason, most notably on the pitching staff.

In the rotation, there is a good chance Baltimore will lose Corbin Burnes in free agency. It’s not a lock, but the O’s have plenty of competition.

On the injury front, two starters had elbow surgery last year and neither will be ready until at least halfway through the 2025 season — Kyle Bradish and Tyler Wells. A third, John Means, is a free agent.

In the bullpen, Danny Coulombe and Jacob Webb after the season. Craig Kimbrel is out the door as well, but he was only in town on a one-year deal and a placeholder for injured closer Félix Bautista, who returns to closer duties in 2025 after recovering from Tommy John surgery.

So, the Orioles need starters, relievers and, perhaps pitchers that can do both. And, they need to be ready to pitch in the Majors next season.

The Rule 5 Draft doesn’t always yield those types of players. But there is one player exposed to the draft from an AL East rival that could fit the bill — Tampa Bay Rays prospect Logan Workman.

Recently, Baseball America highlighted players in the Rule 5 draft that could be selected later this month in Dallas. Workman falls under the category of swingman starters, or a pitcher that can handle a starter or relief role. This is an approach that the O’s took with Wells early in his career.

Workman is a 25-year-old right-hander who went to Lee College and was picked by the Rays in the seventh round of the 2021 MLB Draft. He has steadily worked his way through their system and in 2024 he reached a critical mass of sorts. He pitched at Double-A and Triple-A and threw a career-high 146 innings.

Combined he went 11-6 with a 2.96 ERA 29 games (28 starts) with 138 strikeouts and 44 walks. For his four-year minor league career he is 22-13 with a 3.04 ERA with 345 strikeouts and 100 walks in 340 innings.

Baseball America evaluators wrote that Workman has four plus pitches — a four-seam fastball, slider, cutter and change-up. Plus, he has above-average in-zone and strike rates with all four pitches, a plus whether one is talking about a starter or a long reliever.

Players signed at age 18 or younger need to be added to their club's 40-Man roster within five seasons or they become eligible for the Rule 5 Draft. Players who signed at age 19 or older need to be protected within four seasons.

If the Orioles take a player in the draft, they owe his team $100,000 and must put that player on their 26-man roster. If at any time the player must be released in his first season with the franchise, he must be placed on outright waivers in order to be removed from the 26-man roster. Should the player clear waivers, he must be offered back to his previous team for $50,000.