Yennier Cano’s 2026 season was the kind of rebound the Orioles badly needed after a rocky 2025.
A year after getting optioned to Triple-A Norfolk in late June and finishing with a 5.12 ERA in 65 games, Cano looked like a reliever who had lost his footing. That’s what made his turnaround so important. He not only steadied himself, he forced the Orioles to lock him up with an extension.
The year started with a scare. Cano gave up the losing run in relief against the Texas Rangers in the second series of the season, and it had the feel of another bad turn.
Instead, he settled in immediately. Over his next 18 games, he allowed just one run on four hits.
Through his first 21 appearances, Cano posted a 1.06 ERA and gave up only seven hits and three walks in 17 innings. With injuries and inconsistency hitting the bullpen, that was exactly the kind of lift Baltimore needed.
There was one rough patch at the end of May. Cano had back-to-back shaky outings, including May 29th, when he surrendered two runs and blew a game the Orioles had led 5-0.
After that, though, he snapped right back into form. A 62% ground ball rate helped him keep the ball on the ground, right back near his pre-2025 level and among the best marks in baseball.
He also allowed only two home runs. On top of that, he trimmed his walk rate by more than 3%, landing at 6.4%, his lowest since his standout 2023 season.
By the time the trade deadline approached, Cano had built his ERA back to 2.15 and re-established himself as one of the bullpen’s core pieces. Then the Orioles made their move on July 31st, signing him to an extension that covered his final two years of arbitration and included a club option for the 2029 season. It gave Cano security and gave Baltimore control if it wants to keep him longer.
The numbers after the deadline look ugly at first glance, but they really come down to two back-to-back appearances against the Rays, when Cano allowed three runs in each. One of those outings cost the Orioles a game. In the other, the team survived anyway, with Cam Sanders coming in to get the final out.
The ninth inning, though, is still not Cano’s lane. The Orioles have tried him there before, and it has never really taken.
In his career, he owns a 5.27 ERA in 54.2 innings in that spot. In 2026, he allowed seven runs in 13 ninth-inning appearances, though all seven came across in just three games.
That’s why the cleanest path forward is pretty clear: keep Cano out of the ninth if you can. He’s much better as a setup man, and that’s where he did his best work again this season, holding opponents to a sub-.550 OPS in those innings. If Ryan Helsley exercises his player option for next year, and if Félix Bautista is also there, Cano should have the right kind of support around him in 2027.
Relievers can change fast, and nothing about Cano should be taken for granted. Still, this was a promising reset after a rough 2025.
The Orioles bet on that with the extension, and Cano answered with a 2.90 ERA in 68 games. If he can come close to that again in 2027, it would go a long way for an Orioles club trying to get back into contention.
In Other News...
Taylor Wards Collapse Is A Tough Reminder For Orioles Fans
Taylor Wards rough finish after leaving Baltimore was a reminder that a fresh start does not always lead to better production. After the Orioles moved him to Seattle, the veterans bat disappeared in a way that stood out even more because of what he had done earlier with Baltimore, when he reached base at a much healthier clip and looked far more like the hitter teams wanted in the middle of a lineup.
In 101 plate appearances with the Mariners, Ward slumped to a .125 average with no home runs and a .238 on-base percentage, a sharp drop from his work in Baltimore. For Orioles fans, it is the kind of post-trade turn that makes you look back at what might have been, and for Ward it leaves an uncertain offseason ahead as he heads toward free agency with his recent struggles hanging over him. [Read more 🡒]
Orioles Offseason Plan Is Getting Clearer For A Roster That Needs Help
The Orioles are heading into a winter that should shape the next phase of the roster, and the broad outline is starting to come into focus. Baltimore is facing a free-agent class that does not offer much help, but it does have something other clubs will want: a strong farm system with multiple top prospects and enough depth to give the front office options. For a team that needs to improve, that combination matters because it gives Mike Elias flexibility in a market that may not reward spending alone.
What makes the offseason particularly interesting is the congestion already on the big-league side. Baltimore has positional logjams that could be used to clear space and bring in upgrades, which points toward a trade-heavy approach rather than a splashy run through free agency. Elias has generally valued building through the system, and this winter looks likely to lean into that strength, with the Orioles trying to turn surplus into help where they need it most. [Read more 🡒]
Mike Elias Keeps Talking Urgency As Orioles Fans Wait For Proof
The Orioles spent Sunday trying to explain how a roster built to win now ended up at 79-82 and out of the postseason for a second straight year. Mike Elias and Craig Albernaz met with reporters on Sept. 28 and acknowledged the shortcomings that left Baltimore fourth in the AL East, with Elias openly sounding frustrated and insisting the organization has to do better after another uneven finish.
There were also reminders that the front office is not standing still. Baltimore has already made notable roster moves, including the signing of Pete Alonso and the trade of Adley Rutschman to the Boston Red Sox, part of an approach Elias said is meant to balance short-term competition with long-term development. The urgency is easy enough to hear, but Orioles fans have spent enough time waiting for it that the next round of proof matters more than the words. [Read more 🡒]