The Orioles have managed to stay in the wild card mix largely because their rotation has carried the load. Kyle Bradish, Trevor Rogers, Shane Baz and Brandon Young have all been giving Baltimore real innings, and in different ways they’ve kept the club afloat while the American League keeps handing out opportunities to teams with plenty of flaws.
Dean Kremer has not been part of that stability lately.
He took the ball last night with a chance to help the Orioles win a series, and instead he was tagged for eight runs in four grinding innings. That came on the heels of a start a week earlier in which he allowed six runs in a 6-3 loss to Boston. For a pitcher who has long fit the profile of a dependable back-end starter, it’s been a rough stretch at the worst possible time.
Kremer entered the night with a career 4.30 ERA and the kind of track record that usually buys a little trust. He wasn’t flashy, but he generally gave Baltimore a shot.
Some nights were five-inning outings, some stretched to seven, but the expectation was usually the same: keep the game within reach. He did that on July 1, when he threw six innings of one-run ball.
Since then, though, the consistency has vanished.
The season itself has already been unusual for one of Baltimore’s longest-tenured arms. Kremer began the year in the minors after the Orioles added Zach Eflin and Chris Bassitt. Eflin went down almost right away, and Kremer got two April starts before a quad strain sent him to the 60-day IL.
While he was sidelined, the roster around him kept changing. Bassitt got hurt, Young emerged as one of the organization’s better pitchers, Trey Gibson appeared in eight games, and the Orioles dug themselves a deep hole in the AL East.
That’s why Kremer’s struggles now matter so much. Baltimore has no cushion left.
With the club still under .500 and the trade deadline less than a week away, every game carries extra weight. The Orioles can’t keep spotting opponents early leads, and Kremer’s recent line has done exactly that.
He gave up four runs in the first last week, lasted only four innings on July 17, and allowed four earned runs over five innings against the Cubs on July 8.
The numbers from last night made the slump look even worse. Orioles beat writer Jake Rill noted that Kremer became the first O’s pitcher to allow 14 earned runs across a two-start span since Spenser Watkins in August 2021. It was only the second time in Kremer’s career that he has given up six runs or more in back-to-back starts, and the eight earned runs he surrendered last night were a career high.
Kremer had trouble finding the zone and spent too much time over the plate. The Baltimore Sun’s Matt Weyrich pointed out the locations of several pitches that were punished for hard contact.
All of that lands at a moment when the Orioles are being linked to another starter. There’s a growing sense the team will be at least modest buyers at the deadline, and the front office could use a reliever or two as well.
The lineup also has holes without Adley Rutschman and Samuel Basallo. But every addition costs prospect capital, and Baltimore would have more flexibility to address those needs if it didn’t have to chase starting pitching help.
That’s the tension here. Four-fifths of the rotation has looked more than capable of helping the Orioles chase the final playoff spot, and at times it has even looked like a group that could matter in October. But a rotation can’t carry that kind of hope if one spot turns into a nightly problem.
Bassitt should be back soon enough. He allowed one run over 3.1 innings in his first rehab appearance at Norfolk last night. The 37-year-old posted a 5.12 ERA in 12 starts, so he’s not exactly a lock either, though he does have some relief experience and could help a thin bullpen down the stretch.
That still leaves the bigger question hanging over the Orioles: if Kremer can’t be trusted to take the ball every fifth day, what do they do about it? Baltimore needs a few three- or four-game winning streaks to get where it wants to go, and that gets a lot harder with a hole in the rotation. It gets a lot easier with five starters who can hold up their end.
In Other News...
Orioles Deadline Buzz Suddenly Feels Bigger Than Anyone Expected
The trade deadline chatter around Baltimore has taken on a different kind of weight, because it is no longer just about adding pitching or shoring up the roster for a push. According to the latest reporting, the Orioles have at least explored conversations involving some of the most recognizable names in the organization, a sign that the front office is willing to listen broadly as it tries to balance the present with the future.
Even with that wider scope, the practical picture is still pretty clear: some names are far likelier to stay in the picture than others, and the clubs decision-making will be shaped by health, long-term value and market demand. Pitching remains part of the equation, with Dean Kremer among the arms mentioned as a possible move, and the next few days should tell whether Baltimore is merely doing due diligence or preparing for a deadline that could reshape the roster in a bigger way than expected. [Read more 🡒]
Orioles Turned That Viral Squirrel Moment Into A Hilarious Clubhouse Debate
A squirrel sprinting through the outfield at Comerica Park turned into one of those oddball baseball moments that can hijack a game for a few minutes and then linger in the clubhouse long after the final out. Grounds crew members gave chase, Leody Taveras took a shot at catching it and missed, and the whole scene gave Orioles players and staff a new conversation starter they clearly enjoyed.
Once the game was over, the debate shifted to which Oriole would actually be best equipped for a squirrel hunt. Several around the team landed on Gunnar Henderson and Shane Baz as the top choices, while Rico Garcia gave Taveras a second look for another try. It was the kind of harmless clubhouse argument that says as much about a teams personality as it does about the wild things that can still happen on a baseball field. [Read more 🡒]