The Orioles are set to give Luis De León his first big league look, and they’re doing it with a bullpen role in mind.
According to Andy Kostka of The Baltimore Banner, Baltimore is calling up the left-handed pitching prospect, though he is not yet on the 40-man roster. That means the club will have to clear space for him. With active rosters expanding from 26 to 28, the Orioles can add two players there, but more roster shuffling is already underway.
Jacob Calvin Meyer of The Baltimore Sun reported that Cade Povich has been optioned, while outfielder Christian Franklin is headed to the 10-day injured list. Those moves, combined with the two extra roster spots, give Baltimore room for four additions, and Kostka reported that outfielder Heston Kjerstad will be one of them.
Meyer also noted that right-hander Albert Suárez is in Denver, though it’s not yet clear whether he’ll be added. If De León and Suárez both make the move, the Orioles will need to open two 40-man spots.
De León, 23, is the most intriguing name in the group. Signed out of the Dominican Republic in 2021, he has built a reputation on power stuff.
His four-seamer and two-seamer both sit around 95 miles per hour, and Baseball America grades his slider, splitter and changeup as plus pitches. That outlet currently ranks him as the No. 7 prospect in Baltimore’s system.
FanGraphs is even higher on him, placing him fifth in the organization and 98th overall. There is some concern about his inconsistency, but the ingredients are obvious: a lively arsenal, ground-ball ability and the kind of velocity he can carry over multiple innings. That gives him the ceiling of a big league starter.
The numbers this season are a mixed bag. In 99 innings on the farm, De León has posted a 4.73 ERA and an 11.9% walk rate, but he has also struck out 27.1% of hitters and produced a 58.3% ground ball rate.
For the moment, though, Baltimore plans to use him out of the bullpen. He has spent most of the year starting in the minors, but he has worked in relief over the past few weeks. Since his innings total is already a personal high, the move gives the Orioles a way to manage his workload while also seeing whether his stuff plays up in shorter outings.
That matters for a club still very much in the race. The Orioles are only half a game behind the Guardians for the final American League Wild Card spot, and if De León’s stuff translates, he could become a useful arm down the stretch.
Baltimore still appears to view him as a starter long term. For now, though, the Orioles get a chance to test him against major league hitters, while also making sure they don’t risk losing him this winter. He would have been Rule 5 eligible if not added to the 40-man roster, and the Orioles were not going to leave him exposed.
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