Orioles need more quality from their starters

Through 28 games, Oriole starting pitchers have a 4.56 ERA, 22^nd in baseball. The good news is that they’ve had only two awful starts. Chris Bassitt gave up six runs in two innings at Pittsburgh on April 5^th, and Trevor Rogers allowed three runs on four hits in 1 2/3 innings against Boston last Saturday.

Both Bassitt and Rogers threw 62 pitches in their short outings, forcing manager Craig Albernaz to use his bullpen for far longer than he wanted to.

Bassitt’s start came on the road, and Cade Povich gallantly covered 5 2/3 innings. Since Rogers’ start was at home, Albernaz needed 7 1/3 innings from his bullpen. By the time the ninth inning rolled around, Keegan Akin and utilityman Weston Wilson combined to give up 10 runs.

It’s true that there haven’t been many blowouts. The Orioles have played only four games decided by five runs or more, splitting them.

The bad news is that the starters aren’t pitching long enough—or well enough.

Oriole starters rank 15^th in baseball with 144 innings pitched, an average of just over five innings per start.

In 28 games, the Orioles have recorded only six quality starts — three from Rogers and one each from Povich, Kyle Bradish and Dean Kremer.

Rogers’ first three starts met the definition of a quality start: six innings or more while allowing three or fewer earned runs.

The Orioles’ best one came on Opening Day when Rogers pitched seven scoreless innings, allowing three hits against Minnesota. It remains the Orioles’ longest start of 2026.

Rogers followed that with two starts of two runs on six hits in six innings against Texas on April 1^st and at Chicago on April 7^th.

Since then, Rogers has struggled, with bad losses to Arizona, Cleveland and the Red Sox. It’s a sharp contrast to 2025 when Rogers produced 13 quality starts, including 10 in succession in his 18 starts.

Bradish had three quality starts in six outings late last season after rehabbing from Tommy John surgery. His lone 2026 quality start came on April 15^th when he allowed two earned runs (four overall) in six innings in an Orioles’ 8-5 10-inning loss to Arizona.

Bassitt started 32 times in 2025 for the Toronto Blue Jays and had 11 quality starts. This season, he’s managed to complete five innings only twice.

On April 17^th, Bassitt pitched five scoreless innings, allowing four hits in an eventual 6-4 win at Cleveland. On April 22^nd, it was five runs on eight hits in 5 1/3 at Kansas City in a game the Orioles won, 8-6.

Bassitt, who signed for $18.5 million for this season, and Shane Baz were the big additions to the pitching staff.

The Orioles signed Baz to a five-year, $68 million extension on March 27^th. Baz has shown more durability than Bassitt, getting an out in the seventh inning on April 21^st at Kansas City and completing six at Cleveland on April 16^th

Neither Bassitt nor Baz has thrown a quality start.

After sending four prospects to Tampa Bay last December, the Orioles expected more from Baz, who threw 11 quality starts in 31 games for the Rays last season. He had four quality starts in his first five games in 2025.

Kremer, currently on the 15-day injured list with a strained right quadriceps muscle, began the season at Triple-A Norfolk. He’s started twice and has the most recent quality start, three runs on two hits in six innings in a 3-2 loss at Cleveland on April 18^th.

Povich started on April 12^th against the San Francisco Giants and pitched 6 2/3 innings, allowing a run on five hits. He was returned to Norfolk the next day

Brandon Young has started twice, and while he’s pitched well, he hasn’t finished six. In his first start, Young gave up just two hits in five shutout innings at Chicago on April 6^th. He gave up three runs on seven hits in 5 2/3 innings in the Orioles’ 10-3 win over Boston on Friday night.

The shorter starts put more pressure on the bullpen, which had generally fared well until this weekend. Albert Suárez, who was designated for assignment on Sunday, gave up four unearned runs on Saturday, and Akin and Wilson accounted for the 10-run ninth inning.

Grant Wolfram gave up two runs on three hits in the sixth inning without retiring a batter in Sunday’s 5-3 loss. His ERA soared from 2.70 to 4.50.

With the Orioles producing just 4.46 runs per game, 17^th in baseball, that’s not enough to make up for the short starts.

Bassitt, Baz, Bradish and Rogers have history on their side.

If the Orioles want to play in October, they’re going to need longer and better starts.

Notes: Double-A Chesapeake right-hander Trace Bright was named the Eastern League’s Pitcher of the Week. … High-A Frederick right-hander Yeiber Cartaya was named the South Atlantic League Pitcher of the Week. … Right-hander Kiefer Lord moves up from Single-A Delmarva to Frederick. … Right-handers Juaron Watts-Brown and Hans Crouse completed their rehab assignments with the Keys. Watts-Brown goes to Chesapeake, Crouse to Norfolk.

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