Baltimore Orioles Injured Starting Pitchers Continue Rehab Work

The Baltimore Orioles are hoping they can get reinforcements for their starting rotation in the next few weeks.

Jun 9, 2023; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Baltimore Orioles pitcher John Means sits in the dugout / Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports

Two Baltimore Orioles starting pitchers continued their work toward returning to the starting rotation on Thursday.  

John Means had his third rehab start while Kyle Bradish had his first rehab start washed out due to rain. But he was still able to get some work in.

Means pitched for Triple-A Norfolk on Thursday, as he gave up two earned runs on two hits and two walks with three strikeouts in three innings against New York Yankees affiliate Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.

This continues his build-up from starts with Norfolk against Charlotte on April 6 and against Durham on March 31.

He’s improved in each start, too. Against Durham he gave up seven runs in one-plus innings and then gave up one run in three innings against Charlotte.

Orioles manager Brandon Hyde told MLB.com that he expects Means to need the full 30 days to build up to re-join the rotation. That lines up with the fact that Means was about a month behind the rest of the pitchers in spring training after he had to deal with a setback with his surgically repaired left elbow last year.

Means missed portions of the 2022 and 2023 seasons recovering from Tommy John surgery.

Bradish, meanwhile, threw a live batting practice in place of his expected rehab start at High Class-A Aberdeen. The Orioles have not rescheduled his first rehab start, so his 30-day clock has not started.

Bradish is recovering from a right UCL sprain, which is the same ligament that can lead to Tommy John surgery. The Orioles caught the sprain early in camp and believe that with rest and rehabilitation Bradish can avoid surgery.

Bradish went 12-7 in 30 starts, throwing 168.2 innings and striking out 168 last season. He had the fourth-best ERA in baseball at 2.83 and had a 1.04 WHIP. He helped the Orioles win the American League East for the first time since 2016.