With Opening Day just over a week away, Orioles manager Brandon Hyde confirmed what everyone had assumed all along.
Left-handed pitcher John Means will start the opener for the second straight year as Baltimore begins the 2022 season at Tampa Bay next Friday. Means, who pitched the Orioles’ first solo no-hitter since 1969 last May, would have been making his third straight Opening Day start if not for a sore shoulder landing him on the injured list to open the abbreviated 2020 season. The 28-year-old pitched seven one-hit innings to open the season against Boston at Fenway Park last year, earning the win in a 3-0 final.
Despite missing much of June and July with a left shoulder strain last season, Means pitched to a 3.62 ERA in 26 starts covering 146 2/3 innings, the lone bright spot in a starting rotation that sported a league-worst 5.99 ERA. The 2019 All-Star hurler is again expected to lead a rotation short on experience beyond 31-year-old free-agent acquisition Jordan Lyles, who is expected to start the second game of the season against the Rays.
In a more interesting pitching development, Hyde told reporters in Florida that former Rule 5 pick Tyler Wells will also be part of the season-opening rotation — likely in a tandem role with another bulk-inning pitcher. The 27-year-old rookie was one of the better stories of a forgettable 2021 for the Orioles as he pitched to a 4.11 ERA and averaged 10.3 strikeouts per nine innings over 57 innings of relief work. The right-hander even collected four saves in September before being shut down with shoulder inflammation.
Given his success in his first professional action since undergoing Tommy John surgery as a member of Minnesota’s organization in 2019, the Orioles wanted to stretch out Wells this spring to see if he could be a viable rotation option. He was a starter throughout his minor-league career, posting a 2.82 ERA over 255 2/3 innings through the Double-A level.
On Thursday afternoon, Wells pitched three innings of one-run ball against Pittsburgh with his 53 pitches eclipsing his 2021 season high of 51 set last April. Of course, it remains to be seen how his mid-90s fastball and slider-changeup combination will hold up for longer outings, but Wells wouldn’t seem likely to pitch more than three or four innings at a time — at least for now — before being followed by a lefty such as Keegan Akin or Zac Lowther. To no surprise, the Orioles want to be careful with their pitchers to open the season after an abbreviated spring training due to the lockout.
