The Baltimore Orioles had the worst record in baseball from 2018-2021.
Every season they were the laughingstock of the league.
But, this franchise is a joke no more.
All those years of losing have presented them with many top draft picks.
The Orioles have seemingly cashed in on all of those picks.
One of those players is right-handed pitcher Grayson Rodriguez.
He was the 11th overall pick in the 2018 MLB Draft.
The 23-year-old starter is finally coming into his own in the big leagues.
According to Talkin’ Baseball, Rodriguez had a 7.35 ERA in the first 10 starts of his career.
But, since being recalled on July 17, he has an ERA of 2.85 in nine starts.
Grayson Rodriguez had a 7.35 ERA in the first 10 starts of his MLB career this season. He was sent down May 27th
Since being called back up on July 17th Rodriguez has a 2.85 ERA in nine starts pic.twitter.com/9u1UWCYxoO
— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) September 5, 2023
Rodriguez has been seen as one of the top prospects in baseball for a while.
He is finally starting to pitch at that level in the majors.
It could not have come at a better time for the Orioles.
They are in the midst of a playoff race in which they are leading the AL East.
Starting pitching is very important this time of the year and Rodriguez has performed well.
Looking at the Orioles roster, it seems like they have no glaring weakness.
You could have said it was the starting pitching but they have been lights out lately.
The emergence of Kyle Bradish, Dean Kremer, and Rodriguez has given the Orioles a formidable starting rotation.
Also, they have the fourth-lowest bullpen ERA in baseball at 3.52 via Covers.com.
This team has no glaring weakness but their pitching must continue to succeed as they enter the postseason.
