The Orioles haven’t had a lot of good months this season but September has begun with some good news. Nestor Aparicio and Luke Jones discuss the Birds’ recent improvement – including five walk-off wins. The Dylan Beavers’ impressive start combined with the solid return of Kyle Bradish and Tyler Wells to the starting rotation looms large for 2026 hopes in the spring.
Nestor Aparicio and Luke Jones discussed the Orioles’ recent improvement, highlighting their better performance in September, including five walk-off wins. They praised Dylan Beavers’ impressive start, noting his mental coach and potential as a long-term starter. They also emphasized the importance of Kyle Bradish’s strong performances, suggesting he could be a top-tier starter. The conversation also touched on the Orioles’ need for a high-impact starter in the offseason, despite the promising performances of Bradish, Trevor Rogers, and Tyler Wells. They concluded by mentioning upcoming events and the importance of the team’s final games.
- [ ] @Nestor Aparicio – Attend the Maryland Crab Cake Tour event at Beaumont in Catonsville.
- [ ] @Nestor Aparicio – Find former Colts players to get autographs for the 50th anniversary celebration.
- [ ] Follow up on Grayson Rodriguez’s health and recovery.
- [ ] Evaluate the bullpen and address the unknown aspects.
Bradish’s Return and Orioles’ Improvement
- Nestor Aparicio introduces the show, mentioning the upcoming football weekend and the GBMC injury reports.
- Nestor talks about the Maryland crab cake tour and the Baltimore Colts reunion event.
- Nestor and Luke Jones discuss the Orioles’ recent improvement, noting the team’s better vibes and walk-off wins.
- Luke highlights the Orioles’ recent success, mentioning their five walk-off wins in the past few weeks.
Lessons from Recent Games and Player Development
- Nestor and Luke discuss the value of recent games for young players like Samuel Biso and Dylan Beavers.
- Luke emphasizes the importance of confidence and mental coaching for players like Beavers.
- Nestor mentions the high expectations for players like Holiday, Henderson, and Beavers.
- Luke compares Beavers’ performance to Nick Marquez, noting Beavers’ impressive start in the majors.
Dylan Beavers’ Potential and Mental Strength
- Luke praises Beavers’ mental coach and his ability to handle pressure situations.
- Nestor and Luke discuss the potential for Beavers to become a long-term starter for the Orioles.
- Luke compares Beavers’ early success to other young players like Colton Cowser and Gunnar Henderson.
- Nestor and Luke reflect on the challenges and expectations for young players in the Orioles’ system.
Kyle Bradish’s Performance and Rotation Outlook
- Nestor and Luke discuss Kyle Bradish’s recent strong performances and his potential as a top pitcher.
- Luke highlights Bradish’s effective pitching and the importance of his continued success.
- Nestor and Luke discuss the impact of Bradish’s performance on the Orioles’ rotation plans for next season.
- Luke emphasizes the need for the Orioles to acquire a high-impact starter despite Bradish’s strong start.
Orioles’ Young Talent and Future Prospects
- Nestor and Luke discuss the potential of other young players like Holiday, Henderson, and Beavers.
- Luke mentions the importance of managing young players’ workloads and expectations.
- Nestor and Luke reflect on the challenges and successes of the Orioles’ young talent.
- Luke emphasizes the need for the Orioles to continue developing their young players for long-term success.
Upcoming Games and Playoff Implications
- Nestor and Luke discuss the importance of upcoming games against the Yankees and other AL East teams.
- Luke highlights the potential for the Orioles to play spoiler and impact the AL East standings.
- Nestor and Luke reflect on the impact of recent wins and the team’s improved performance.
- Luke emphasizes the importance of maintaining momentum and continuing to play well in the final weeks of the season.
Orioles’ Offseason Plans and Rotation Needs
- Nestor and Luke discuss the Orioles’ offseason plans and the need for a high-impact starter.
- Luke emphasizes the importance of Bradish and Rogers’ continued success in shaping the rotation.
- Nestor and Luke reflect on the challenges and opportunities for the Orioles in the offseason.
- Luke highlights the need for the Orioles to address their bullpen and other areas of need.
Final Thoughts and Upcoming Events
- Nestor and Luke wrap up the discussion, mentioning upcoming events like the Maryland crab cake tour and the Baltimore Colts reunion.
- Nestor shares his excitement about the upcoming events and the opportunity to meet with fans and guests.
- Luke emphasizes the importance of the Orioles’ continued success and the impact on the team’s future.
- Nestor and Luke express their gratitude to the listeners and their excitement for the upcoming season.
Luke Jones and Nestor discuss …y better baseball in September
Thu, Sep 11, 2025 8:35AM • 29:16
SUMMARY KEYWORDS
Orioles, Kyle Bradish, Dylan Beavers, Trevor Rogers, walk-off wins, mental coach, pitching performance, young talent, offseason plans, rotation, injury reports, Maryland crab cake tour, Baltimore Colts reunion, football weekend, GBMC.
8
SPEAKERS
Speaker 2, Luke Jones, Speaker 1, Nestor Aparicio
Nestor Aparicio 00:01
Welcome home. We are W N S T. Am 1570 task, Baltimore. We are Baltimore, positive, positively into a football weekend here. Lucas has us covered for all things, including the injury reports, brought to you by GBMC. And if you’re on the W n s t tech service, you get it first all of that, brought to you by coal roofing and Gordian energy kick off at one o’clock and tons and tons of stuff up at Baltimore positive from the Cleveland side and the 75 colts reunion in Lydell Mitchell, we’re doing the Maryland crab cake tour on Tuesday at Beaumont in Catonsville. My wife’s really been on me about the tastiness countdown that I featured the fried lobster tail there. She insists that the lamb chops are might be a top three item in Baltimore, so I will have the lamb chops with the peach special peach stuff that they do over there for lunchtime at the Beaumont on Tuesday. Councilman Pat Young will be joining me, uh, attorney and barrister Chad cause, as well as some other yet undefined guests, unnamed guest, to be their guest, to be named later. There you go. It sounds like a baseball transaction because I am wearing my baseball gear, my curio wellness Orioles shirt, which I’ll be putting out to pasture, I guess, at some point here. But hey, Brad is taking the ball. Well’s taking the ball. Rogers taking the ball. Besides, behind the plate, there are some reasons to at least peer in on Paul Skeens on a Wednesday night and Luke they can’t stop walking off victories around here early in the week, huh?
Luke Jones 01:30
I know, right? I mean a good start to the month of December, or December, September, September. And I mean just better vibes. What’s it worth? We’re going to see, right? We’re going to see what it looks like next year. We’re going to see what this off season looks like, long before we start talking about spring training. But it is good to see them playing some better baseball here. Of late, the walk off wins have been funny. I mean, it’s hilarious. It was what, two and a half weeks ago, something like that, where they were still the last team in baseball to have a walk, to have a walk off win. And they’ve had five since then. You know, going back to that first one a few weeks ago with Jackson pendulum swings in baseball, doesn’t it? I mean, it’s just, it’s crazy. I mean, we, and we talked about this with last
Nestor Aparicio 02:13
8unless you’re a pirates fan, you suck.
Luke Jones 02:17
We talked about this last Saturday with that crazy Dodgers game on 2131 night and all of this. I mean, it’s just, you’re hoping that there’s something that these young guys take away from this. You’re hoping that there’s some value to this beyond just, Hey, make our record a little bit better, a little little more respectable in September, little more respectable. Remembering the 2025 season, you’re hoping there’s some lessons being learned here. So when Samuel biso has a couple late game moments like he’s had here of late, you’re hoping he’s drawing on that next May, when maybe he’s scuffling a little bit. Same with Dylan beavers, right? Same with any of these guys, Jackson holiday, you know, hit the big home run off Yamamoto to break up a no hitter. It’s a game of confidence, right? It really is. And it was interesting. I don’t know if, for how many people who were still watching after Paul Skeens left early in the game, you know, they’re managing his pitch count and workload down the stretcher. He only threw 60 some pitches and looked great. Big surprise there. I mean, the guy’s a phenomenal talent, but he’s a young winner, right? I mean, he’s fantastic. I don’t know, you know, there’s some other great pitchers in the NL, but he’s he’s special. But you look at what Dylan beavers did, and I don’t know how many people heard his walk off interview with Masson, he actually talked about his mental coach, that he actually has someone that I don’t know, what the sports psychologist, I think it’s much more of just like a mental coach to kind of give you strategies for handling those pressure situations. And the thing we’ve said about beavers, I mean, as much as we’ve mentioned, besides, oh, with getting the extension higher expectations, the fact that, you know he he’s the big bopper. As far as the the upside potential with the bat, I think beavers has looked as good as any of these guys over the last few years to come to the majors, even though he’s not quite as highly touted. I mean, you’re talking about a guy who’s been more of a fringe, top 100 prospect, and you know, he’ll make some top 100 lists this off season, because they’ll still be eligible to be classified in that way. But, you know, not, not this high expectation, first round pick or anything like that. But he’s come to Baltimore, he’s come to the majors, and he just looks like he belongs. And it’s not to say it’s all been perfect. We’ve seen a couple of defensive miscues and and whatnot. I mean, he’s a rookie, but mancellino made the comment after a Wednesday night’s game against Pittsburgh, after he had that walk off where he said he kind of hits like an old guy. And he didn’t mean like old, like 35 he meant he hits and. Handles himself in a way, like he’s been in the majors for five or six years, and, you know, it’s just impressive. Yeah, I’m not going to sit here and say I think Dylan beavers is necessarily going to be a future all star or anything crazy like that, but he looks like a guy who has a chance to to be there they’re starting right or left fielder for the next, I don’t know, six, seven years, maybe longer. Who knows? I think a few weeks ago, you and I talked about, like, where Nick marcas was perceived to be, how that perception kind of waned, because he didn’t become this superstar the way that he looked like he might be in his first year or two. But then you look back at his career and you say, Oh my gosh. I mean, if Dylan beavers has a career anything close to Nick Marquez. You do cartwheels because he was a Paula very good kind of player
Nestor Aparicio 05:46
for and I would say that for any of these cats at this point, that’s cool. I don’t know, holiday and Henderson, higher expectations. I think ruchman, there’s higher expectations. And I think Messiah, there’s just because so they have four guys with higher expectations than Marques. And if you start to think about the cursed ads and the, you know, just even going back with Ortiz and through the guys they’ve gotten rid of at various points, the second baseman last year, and Stowers, the whole deal, they’ve had all of this arsenal of young talent, some is going to work out. Stowers might be a 10 time all star in Miami. Who knows? He may be a flash in the pan, maybe Joe Charbonneau, for all I know. But either way, this immense amount of talent that we talk about that you’ve got Dylan beavers up as Nick Marquez, and he didn’t even know my radar 90 days ago.
Luke Jones 06:38
And let me just clarify, I’m not at all saying he’s going to be that. I’m just saying when we when we think about what expectations are for a player at first, and then we see what that looks like. And some guys are look like studs right away, and other guys it takes a couple years. I mean, Chris Davis is a great example. Forget about late career. I’m not talking about the Adderall or his contract at the end, or anything. Think about what he was when the Orioles acquired him from Texas. It was a koji you a hard deal. They got Tommy Hunter and Chris Davis. Chris Davis, at that point, I think, was 24 maybe 25 and he had put up some some big numbers initially with the Rangers, and then it kind of just went sideways for a couple years. And at that point, I don’t want to say he was a throwaway, but there was very much a question of what that I mean, Koji was a reliever, all right. I mean, the Rangers acquired him at a time when they were, you know, World Series contender, made to the World Series all that. But there was very much a question of what he became. And then, you know, he became a guy that could hit 50 home runs in a season. So, you know, I’m not saying beavers is going to become archaicus by any stretch of the imagination, but I’m saying what’s encouraging about it is he just looks like he belongs, right? I mean, he’s he’s come up, and he hasn’t had this six for 60, kind of stretch that Colton cowser had a couple years ago, that Mayo had last year, and still, to this, you know, to this point, still really struggling more than not that holiday had last year, albeit at age 20, he just, you know, he’s got a plan at the plate. He draws walks, he’s got a he’s got enough pop that he can hit the ball out of the ballpark, but he’s got a shorter swing. He’s quicker to the ball. And you know, for all the talk about holiday being their leadoff hitter the next five years. I don’t know. Dylan beavers kind of profiles as a guy that could be a leadoff hitter the way that he’s been drawing walks and everything. So I’ll say this much. And again, this is not to say that. I’m saying that Dylan beavers is guaranteed to be a guy for them moving forward, but of all their young guys that they’re kind of in that auditioning space with right now in terms of evaluating, all right, you know, can you count on Kobe Mayo to be your first baseman next year? Or do you need to have a plan B and A Plan C, or have a plan A and he’s Plan B? Beavers looks like a guy where, if you tell me right now, you’re not saying necessarily, he’s going to start 160 games in the outfield, but if you tell me that on paper, he’s one of your top four outfielders that you feel really good about playing most days, maybe rests against some tough lefties. Whatever I’m I’m buying that right now, like it looks it looks good, like it looks like something that could be sustainable, and he’s just impressive in that way. And like I said, I mean, you know, he credited his he’s got a mental, you know, mental coach that that kind of helps him with, you know, whether it’s breathing strategies, whether it’s being in the right headspace, all that. I mean, we talked about this going back to, you know what, when my Dell and Elias got here, right in the Astros and growth mindset and all of that, there absolutely is a mental side of this that, quite frankly, you know, if I’m calling a spade a spade, has been really disappointing about this team the last calendar year in terms of how these young guys have handled some of this. And I, I said it to you going back to last summer, I’m hoping that there’s an end game. Team here that for as disappointing as the last calendar year has been, I’m hoping that these guys can come on, come out on the other side of this and be better for it in the long run, because baseball is about struggling. I mean, we all know that anyone who watches baseball, okay, you might point to Shohei Otani or Aaron judge or these generational Hall of
8Nestor Aparicio 10:24
Fame and they still fail seven out of 10 times, but they
Luke Jones 10:26
still go through stretches, right? I mean, so, like, there’s a lot of failure involved in this game, so, but again, with beavers, specifically, it’s just, it’s been refreshing for me that they’ve called someone up and really from Jump Street, he’s looked pretty darn good. I mean, he has, and I don’t think he’s necessarily going to continue to hit, you know, 310, or whatever his current average is, you know, I’m not saying that per se, but he looks like a guy,
Speaker 1 10:53
at the very least, gonna draw walks, get on base, you know.
Luke Jones 10:59
8Okay, maybe not 305, let’s say hits 280 but if he has a 360 on base percentage, I mean, there you go, like that’s a productive player there, especially if he can play some decent defense, which he needs to get better defensively. There’s no doubt he’s got to settle in in that degree. But I just I like the makeup, and I like the profile the player that he’s shown, albeit very small sample, in the same way that if a guy struggles when he first gets caught up, you shouldn’t be, uh, you know, asking him when, uh, you know, when he’s planning on giving his speech in Cooperstown one day when he gets off to a good start, either. But it’s just been nice because they’ve had so many guys have that have struggled, and it’s something that, you know, it’s great to win some games here in September. I mean, that’s fun. And, you know, Saturday night against the Dodgers last weekend was amazing. And you know, they’ve won some series here. Hey, they’re, they’re going to be quite pivotal in determining the Al east, right? I mean, got a bunch of games, seven games with the Yankees left. They’re going to, they’re in Toronto, obviously, this weekend. And you know, they’re going to, they’re gonna, they’re gonna have something to say about that. So you can play spoiler, and you can win some games, and you can have these young guys feel good about themselves. And if you’re Mike Elias, No, you shouldn’t jump to conclusions based off of these last few weeks, but it’s helping you to inform you as far as what you need to do. And that’s where maybe we transition to say best thing about this week? Okay, a couple walk off wins against the pirates.
Nestor Aparicio 12:23
That’s fun. Hold on now, I got my, got my, my, you know, you gotta go. We are family. You know, I’m still not over it, you know, at all. I mean, it’s like, it’s like, your revenge thing last week with the bills, like, ain’t no revenge in 2025 for 1979 but it did pay. That is a pretty sweet. Pirates, a belt buckle, you must admit there, so, yeah,
Luke Jones 12:43
wash Buckler logo there absolutely but, but, but the best thing makes me think of Clemente, not stargel, yeah, but, but, but the best thing about this week, I mean, for me, even more so than just the fun of a couple walk off wins and the guys that were responsible for it, how about the fact that on back to back nights, Kyle braddish, seven innings. I mean, he’s looked like Kyle Brad So second start in San Diego, it was a little choppier. The pitch count got to him. He wasn’t terrible by any means, but you could tell labored a little bit. But two of his first three starts, they’ve looked very free injury. Kyle Bradish, makings of a number one kind of stuff. I mean, it’s, I think a lot of people get caught up in velocity and look, yeah, he can hit 9697 he’s got the sinker. He’s got the slider that has crazy spitting, you know, crazy break on it. But also, just watch him pitch effectiveness. It looks differently like it. There are other guys that they have that are kind of pitch ability guys, or they’ve got some other guys that might have a lively arm, whatever. You see the pitch, like the mindset of a pitcher. You see how he sequences his pitches. You see how he set someone up with the slider and then, you know, throws a sinker at the knees, at right on the corner, and just paralyzes a guy. I mean, yeah, the other night, it’s not like he had a ton of swing and miss against the pirates, but you had a lot of called called strikes. And when you get swing and miss and a lot of called strikes, that tells you you’re fooling guys a lot. And he’s got
Nestor Aparicio 14:09
some maddoxy weirdness about the way his ball moves. I mean, he’s, he’s, this is why, because it is an overpowering
8Luke Jones 14:16
it’s not what we see from schemes on Wednesday. It’s still pretty overpowering, though, like it’s not overpowering, that he hits triple digits in the way that Grayson can when he’s healthy and right. And, you know, which has been a long time ago, but we’ve seen it in the past, but don’t get Don’t, don’t mis mistake, anything. He he still throws really hard, and he’s got a really impressive assortment of pitches. But I think he also, for me, he’s more advanced than there are other guys in terms of, he’s got a mind for it, and
Nestor Aparicio 14:46
he can also command the pitches, right? It’s one thing to say, I want to do this and then be able to go do it,
Luke Jones 14:51
right? I mean, this is, this is so him and, you know, Tyler wells one, one fewer startup, you know, has only two starts under. His belt, as you and I are speaking in real time right now. But this is just encouraging to see because of what happened the last couple years. I mean, we saw what happened with John means, saw what happened with Batista. You know, John means, came back in September of 23 you know, actually, if you recall pitched, you know, pitched pretty well. But then four starts into it. His elbow started bothering him again. Him again. Batista, I understand it’s the shoulder. And look, we’ll never really, I doubt we’ll ever get the clarity as far as just how much the kinetic chain. You know you love, how I throw out the kinetic chain, but you know a lot of people that will tell you that first it gets the elbow, then the shoulder, depending on your mechanics, depending on your recovery, his shoulder might have been going bad two years ago when he hurt his elbow, right? I mean, we don’t know, but what we do know is, even though he came back and was effective the first half of the season, it was never pre injury Batista with the velocity, right? I mean, he never got to the point where he was hitting 102, on occasion, he touched 100 a couple at a couple points, but it was mainly the high 90s. What we’re seeing from Bradish and wells, but especially Bradish, because Wells, for me, his long term role, if he stays healthy, is still a little bit TBD. Don’t get me wrong, he could be in the rotation, but I could also see wells in the bullpen, right? Bradish, if he’s healthy and right, he’s either the number one or the number two. If they go out and get a number one, which you know, again, that’s a big if right up. Well, Rogers has pitched like a number one for 10 weeks. Yeah, but, but, and don’t get me wrong, Rogers has been fantastic, but for me, it’s seeing a version of Kyle Bradish that looks so much like the guy we saw before the injury. And you and I have talked about this a lot, you know, we’ve talked about, you know, can you count on guys coming back from Tommy John? And look, this is why I always cringe when I hear people, you know, whenever you hear about a pitcher having an elbow issue and teams take a conservative approach, and and you hear fans, or even some media just say, well, just, have to Tommy John. Don’t waste time, no, because we know that Tommy John, while the recovery rate is so, so so much higher than it was 30 or 40 years ago, it’s still a major surgery. There’s still unknown coming back from it. There are still guys who don’t make it back, even though there are many, many, many, many more who do and and many, many, more who go on and have great careers and win Cy Young’s and do all that kind of stuff. But it’s still a risky procedure that if you can avoid it, you like to avoid it. Now, in most cases, it ends up not working, but in the case of Bradish this, the Orioles need a win in this department, with a guy coming back from elbow surgery. And I’m not even implying that they necessarily did anything wrong with John means, or they did anything wrong with Felix Batista, I don’t know, right? Well, then there’s Rodriguez too, but I’m talking about Tommy John, like elbow you see all reconstructions, you know? Whereas Rodriguez, I mean, it’s a boat. He had a bone spur removed, you know, we’re going to see right? But they need Bradish to be right. They need this to be the guy that he comes back and he’s that guy again, right? I mean, right now, and we’re making an assumption here, because there’s still two and a half weeks of baseball left, right, as you and I are speaking. But if you can get to the finish line of this season with Kyle Bradish making a few more starts and continuing to look like Kyle Bradish, Trevor Rogers, continuing to do what he’s done since June, and throw Tyler wells in there, even though I don’t put him at on the same plane as those two guys in terms of their up. Well, I’d like
Nestor Aparicio 18:38
8to see him healthy, sure, no healthy and effective. I’ll take that and you and I can say nice things about him, no doubt.
Luke Jones 18:45
But let’s just, let’s just stick with Bradish and Rogers. If you get those two guys to the finish line looking like they look, right now, that makes the complexion of your off season look a lot different than we were thinking three months ago, right? Three months ago. We knew this three weeks ago? No, but, but, I’m just saying three months ago, there was such a, oh my gosh, this rotation is a disaster. What the heck are they going to do? Where is Bradish going to be? Where is Grayson Rodriguez going to be? Are they going to resign aflin You know? What are they going to do? You know, where’s K Povich fit into this? Where’s Dean Kramer fitting in all that, there was so much complete unknown. And to your point, in fairness, a month ago, yeah, you could none
Nestor Aparicio 19:23
of that mattered if they don’t have a one to two. Well, it mattered to me whether their names are Rodriguez or Bradish or what does matter like but they know good pitching next year, no question.
Luke Jones 19:33
And I don’t want this to come across as they have that they don’t have major work to do still, and because they do. But if you’re in a place where Kyle Bradish ends the season feeling great and looking the way he’s looked his first three starts, and the same thing with Trevor Rogers, he’s continuing to pitch at a high level, and he’s healthy man that makes that makes addressing your rotation in the off season feel way less daunting than it did in. Two months ago. Now, let me be clear, you still need to go out and get a high impact starter, whether he’s a one or whether he’s a legit two, like someone that that you slot in somewhere, like if Kyle Bradish is fully right, Kyle Brad is one of the best pitchers in the American League. If he’s fully right, I think I fully believe that Trevor Rogers, the results speak for themselves. What he’s done. Okay? So whoever that pitcher is, whether you go trade for someone, whether you sign someone with the eight to 10 guys out there that would kind of fit that you know, fit that mold, as far as a guy to take the ball and give you 150 innings, you’re gonna feel really, really good about, you know what? You know, Rangers throw out Ranger Suarez, who’s going to be a free agent for the Phillies, right? I mean, whoever you know, you kind of get in the space where you can kind of look at it on paper and say, All right. Pitcher X, who they sign or acquire via trade, is going to fit somewhere in that top three. Kyle Bradish can fit somewhere in that top three. And Trevor Rogers the other one, right? And whatever order you want to put them, I’m not them, I’m not, I’m not so hung up on who’s the one, who’s the two?
8Nestor Aparicio 21:05
Well, then the Kramers and the Povich is, and this, you know, the Albert Suarez is, make their figure you figure it out.
Speaker 2 21:12
Yeah, you can start, you know, those guys as number four and number five candidates. Or you go sign another Chicano Sugano kind of guy, like a guy that all along was kind of viewed as a number four, number five starter. Then Hey, Grayson Rodriguez, I’m not writing them off. Like, if Grayson Rodriguez is healthy, he’s absolutely going to be in the rotation. But you can’t put your eggs in that basket, right? You can’t plan on that dude. You and I are not going to be sitting here on Preakness day next year talking about a wealth of of resources of starting pitching, if we are, if they’ve got seven pitchers, and Rodriguez and Bradish and Rogers are all at at the front, and they’re good and Wells is healthy, and whoever they sign, that’s pitcher X is healthy. Oh my. We’ll be having a poverty should be back in Norfolk, right? Like, you know, right? I got it. Or he, or he’s in the bullpen, right? I mean, he’s helped. Maybe he becomes a reliever that can actually, you shorten him up and his stuff plays better. I mean, there’s all of that at work here, so who knows. But I’m very encouraged by what I’ve seen from Kyle Bradish, because all the talk about the Orioles needing a one, you know, a one, a two, whatever again, let’s, let’s, let’s not get so hung up on 123, or like, who’s a bona fide number one. Let’s think about it in terms of who’s starting up in a playoff series for you, right? Kyle Bradish fits that description. The Trevor Rogers we’ve seen the last three months fits that description. Now he’s got to continue it. But fits that description. Whoever they go out and get has to fit that description in the way that Corbin Burns was your game one starter, albeit in a very brief, all too brief series against Kansas City last October. But the Brad thing is just it’s huge for me, because no matter who you get out there, realistically speaking, who you’re going to go out and acquire,
Luke Jones 23:05
Kyle Bradish, when he’s right, is just as good as or better than anyone you could go acquire this winter. So him looking the part, stuff wise, command wise, pitching the way that he was pitching him, we forget, because he was hurt. This guy was fourth in Cy Young voting two years ago. I mean, like he was a very legitimate top of the rotation kind of guy. Now, he didn’t have the experience that you wanted in the postseason, but in terms of how he looked, especially the last four months of 2023 oh my goodness, he was great. So to have that guy back in play, and again, that doesn’t mean that you just Elias puts his feet up and say, Hey, we’re good, right? I mean, we’ve got Bradish, we’ve got Grayson Rodriguez, who we think is going to be okay next spring. Like, No, you need to go, go get that and boy. I mean, the bullpen is still up such an unknown. I mean, the bullpen, they’ve got a ton of work to do, but the Bradish piece to this, and then throw in wells too. It’s encouraging because they’ve just, you know, the recent years with guys coming back from major elbow surgery. I mean, they’ve had their they’ve had their failures with that. And again, that’s not to say that the Orioles necessarily did anything wrong with those guys, but for whatever reason, and maybe it’s genetics, maybe some bad luck, whatever it you know with means we saw how that played out, and unfortunately, with Felix Batista, so they really needed a win or two. And I don’t, you know, you knock on wood, say a prayer, cross your fingers, cross your toes, whatever. Because with any pitcher, right? I mean, you’re one pitch or one outing away from suddenly having big concerns again, with anyone you know, we saw that with Dean Kramer with a forearm issue, even though it seems, seems like it’s okay, you know, they haven’t put them, put them on the IL as you and I speak so. But I mean, Bradish is just, he’s a game. Changer kind of pitcher that’s, that’s the ability,
Nestor Aparicio 25:01
8giving these guys time, spreading them out a little bit too, and watching pitches all of that.
Luke Jones 25:06
Yeah, yeah. So, and, I mean, you look the other night,
Nestor Aparicio 25:09
I mean, three more starts for Bradish or two, three, right? Three, three. You know, you
Luke Jones 25:13
kind of look at it. I mean, they’ve got the Toronto series, Chicago, New York. I mean, probably three, yeah. I mean, you know, they’ve got the six man rotation, I mean, and obviously right now, I mean, with Kramer with the forearm, Sagano seems okay. I mean, you know, he had to leave his start, you know, getting hit on the foot, but it seems like he’s all right, you know, at least two, if not three. I mean, just get him to the finish line that he’s healthy. He can have a normal off season, then he can start doing the things that a normal pitcher, healthy pitcher, does, to start ramping up and, man, it’s go time. And if you tell me that can all happen with Kyle Bradish, he’s whoever they get in the off season is going to have to be a really special pitcher for me not to say that I’m inclined to give Kyle Bradish the ball on opening day. I mean, that’s what I think of Kyle Bradish. But, you know, obviously you have to see how it plays out, who they get, see how the next 18 innings go exactly, exactly. But these first three starts, it’s been really encouraging. I mean, he he’s been really good, and that’s just been that has been as encouraging of a development as anything we’ve seen. You know, next to Trevor Rogers pitching the way that he has, after thinking that that trade was a total failure, and now you look at it, doesn’t look so bad the way Trevor Rogers is pitched over the second half of this season. I mean, heck, it’s going to be he might be the most valuable Oriole for whatever that voting is worth. You know, in a season like this. But you know, when you have Bradish and Trevor Rogers and throw Tyler wells in, you know, with how he looked against Pittsburgh, at least it’s at least some stuff to smile about, and some things you can start projecting in a positive way as you go into the off season, knowing that, yes, Mike Elias still has a heck of a lot of work to do.
Nestor Aparicio 26:54
And some home games left here. Yankees coming in, Tampa coming in, the orals and the season in New York at Yankee Stadium. You know, there’s some home wrecking to be done here in the American League East in the coming weeks, you can follow Luke out at Baltimore. Luke, all of our breaking news happens, first on the W N st tech service that’s brought to you by Cole roofing, Gordian energy and our friends at GBMC are also powering up by injury reports around here as we get into football and the game and the brownies on Sunday, and then an extra day. I guess they’ll move the schedule back a day next week for hardball with the lions next week as well. So saw some busy sports stuff happening around here. We’re doing the Maryland crab cake tour next Tuesday at the Beaumont in Catonsville. Will be there in the afternoon. Councilman Pat young, who’s running for Baltimore County Executive, will be with us. I will be at the Baltimore Colts alum event on Saturday at Union brewing. I will have my Baltimore Colts belt buckle on. I have my Baltimore Colts hat signed Bert signed it like maybe 20 years ago. So I don’t need to find Bert i but they’re definitely, I don’t know the Don McCauley is sign. It’s I gotta, I gotta find some of these guys this week. So any of you out there remember the 75 colts feeling alive in 75 feeling alive in 25 god, I can’t believe it’s 50 Years crazy. I got, I still have my 1975 colts ticket stubs laying around around here. So you’ll see all that. I don’t know. Social media this weekend, Lionel Mitchell stopping by as well. I’m excited about that. And a whole bunch of browns alums and Cleveland mafia members from my media friends, including Munch Bishop, has joined us. Dave zest, former Brown and Raven who lives in Ohio, former analyst on Browns football, and one time quarterback, left handed quarterback in the great state of Ohio, find out what he’s selling something for a living. Dude, when you’re a punter, you got to go get a job when you’re done. So zest got a job and he’s taking a break. He’s like, I could do it from the car for 15 minutes. I’m like, you know, not the same as kicking in the NFL. So I’m going to find out what the the afterlife of Dave zestel is one of my all time favorites. I liked his brother better. We drank a lot of beer. Lot of beer together. I am Nestor. He is Luke. We are wnst. Am 1570 Towson, Baltimore, man, 27 years. Lot of stuff’s gone down here. They better not lose to the browns. You.
