The Baltimore Orioles sorely need their starting pitchers to get healthy, and they’ve received a vital update on one of their studs.
Given the losses to their starting rotation, it’s truly astonishing that the Baltimore Orioles are 20 games above.500 entering Thursday.
Three players have been sidelined for the year since the first half due to season-ending elbow surgery; Grayson Rodriguez is on the IL after sustaining a lat injury, and Zach Eflin, acquired at the trade deadline, has recently joined him due to shoulder irritation.
Corbin Burnes is the lone starter from the beginning of the season still standing, and after the Orioles elected to option their other deadline addition, Trevor Rogers, to the minors, this team is hanging on by a thread.
They need their starters to get healthy and return before making the playoffs.
Eflin had some good news on that front.
According to Roch Kubatko of MASN, the right-hander said his shoulder feels “10 times better” than it did only a few days ago. He isn’t thinking about going on a rehab assignment; instead, he’s optimistic he’ll be able to return to the mix when he is eligible on September 2.
“It was more of a lingering tightness and inflammation that didn’t go away as quickly as I had planned in between starts. So that doesn’t raise any red flags for me. More specifically, he did not have enough time to fully recuperate before returning to the field,” he told Kubatko.
That’s huge for Baltimore.
Eflin, who came over from the Tampa Bay Rays, has recorded a 2.13 ERA in four starts.
If he can return and produce at his previous level, the Orioles will be able to form a formidable one-two punch with Burnes and Eflin at the top of their rotation.
This will be something to keep an eye on, but as things stand, he should be back for the season’s final month.
