The Orioles offered an encouraging update on starting pitcher Grayson Rodriguez before Wednesday’s game in Toronto.
Even as Rodriguez was placed on the 15-day injured list with right lat/teres discomfort earlier in the day, manager Brandon Hyde told reporters that it’s a “mild” strain and expressed optimism that the right-hander will pitch again this season. Hyde said it “seems to be” less serious than the Grade 2 lat strain that sidelined Rodriguez for three months of game action when he was at Triple-A Norfolk two years ago. Of course, the Orioles were extra cautious with their then-22-year-old prospect and weren’t in the thick of a pennant race when that injury occurred in early June of 2022.
This doesn’t mean Rodriguez’s return is imminent — or guaranteed — but even that dose of optimism came with the announcement that reliever Jacob Webb was joining him on the 15-day IL with “right elbow inflammation” and being further evaluated. Arguably Baltimore’s most dependent bullpen arm over the course of the season, the 30-year-old Webb leads the club in relief appearances (53) and ranks second behind lefty Keegan Akin in relief innings (49 2/3) while pitching to a 3.08 ERA. In a year in which more established Orioles relievers have dealt with inconsistency or injury, Webb has been reliable, but he also had been scored on in three of his last six appearances, a sign that something was awry.
You never have enough pitching, and you never stop worrying about your pitchers’ health.
That’s why it’s critical for the Orioles to hit if they want to win the AL East for the second straight year and make noise in the postseason. With an offense still ranking third in the majors in runs per game despite a rough July and a pitching staff missing vital pieces in both the rotation and bullpen, Baltimore isn’t built to win 2-1 games on days All-Star starter Corbin Burnes doesn’t pitch. Yes, the rest of the rotation behind Burnes needs to step up with Rodriguez now sidelined for an unspecified period of time and Hyde must figure out the optimal bullpen formula — even if it’s a committee approach — down the stretch, but a lineup led by Gunnar Henderson and Anthony Santander will need to do the heaviest lifting if the Orioles are to be playing deep into October.
With All-Star infielder Jordan Westburg sidelined with a fractured hand until next month, rookie second baseman Jackson Holliday is providing a tremendous lift after homering in his third straight game Wednesday to give the Orioles the lead in the sixth inning at Rogers Centre. The 20-year-old phenom is 9-for-24 with four homers and 10 RBIs since returning to the majors last week, putting his nightmare April stint behind him and reinforcing that patience is warranted when young talents arrive in the majors.
The Orioles hope that will pay off with corner infield prospect Coby Mayo, who is taking his lumps going 0-for-13 with eight strikeouts since his major league debut last Friday.
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In the meantime, Santander continues to have a career year after homering twice — giving him a career-high 34 entering Aug. 8 — and making a sensational catch to preserve a one-run lead in the seventh inning of Wednesday’s eventual 7-3 win. Colton Cowser just enjoyed a 17-game hitting streak while moving into the leadoff role, and Adley Rutschman is showing signs of rebounding from a horrendous July even if it’s not fully showing up in the box score just yet.
With the status of both Rodriguez and Webb now unclear moving forward, the Orioles need their lineup to be clicking as much as possible the rest of the way if they want to edge the New York Yankees for the division crown and give themselves their best chance to roll the dice in October. That will hopefully include the returns of Rodriguez, Webb, and left-hander Danny Coulombe, but the last couple days have reinforced how fragile the pitching remains even after general manager Mike Elias added two starters and two relievers at the trade deadline.
If the Orioles are to get where they desire to go, they’ll going to need to hit their way there.
