As Orioles executive vice president and general manager Mike Elias detailed what the next 12 to 18 months look like for left-hander John Means, another part of him looks toward the rest of the rotation, too.
By the time Means returns from Tommy John elbow reconstruction surgery — Elias hopes Means will be ready in the first half of the 2023 season — the rotation around him will look different. There are arms currently in the rotation still developing, such as left-hander Bruce Zimmermann. But with a crop of prospects on the way to Baltimore and bullpen pieces who might still find their way into starting roles, Elias expressed hope for Means and the pitching staff, even if it takes a full year.
“I feel like the talent’s there,” Elias said Wednesday on a video conference. “We’ve just got to get luck and keep all these guys together and get them performing, and it would be very special, I think, to have any three, four, five of these guys clicking at the same time in an Orioles rotation. And we’re doing our damnedest to try to get that to be the case, but it’s never easy.”
Means, who underwent his elbow reconstruction surgery Wednesday morning in Dallas, will return to Baltimore to begin his rehabilitation with Dr. Sean Curtin and head athletic trainer Brian Ebel. Once he progresses, Means will likely report to Sarasota, Florida, to continue his workouts at the spring training facility there.
In the future, Means will be a centerpiece to a rotation that includes prospects Grayson Rodriguez, DL Hall and Kyle Bradish. Those three pitchers have yet to make their major league debuts, although that could change this season — and for Bradish, it could be sooner rather than later.
The right-hander holds a 1.20 ERA in three starts for Triple-A Norfolk, and while he was initially scheduled to start Wednesday for the Tides, Bradish was moved to Friday’s probable starter. After right-hander Chris Ellis landed on the 10-day injured list with right shoulder inflammation Tuesday, the Orioles have yet to determine who will start in Ellis’ place this weekend against the Boston Red Sox. With Bradish moved to Friday, he could be in line to start in Baltimore, instead.
“I think anybody in our Triple-A [staff] who’s pitching long and pitching as well as Kyle has put themselves in good contention for joining this rotation,” Elias said. “Up until the Ellis injury, we had five starters that were going pretty good. We’re in a situation right now this week where our focus is on the next couple of games here versus the Yankees, which is kind of an all-hands-on-deck approach from the pitching staff, and I think once we get through these next couple of games, we’ll take a look at who’s rested on the major league roster and see what we do with that fifth rotation spot going forward. But certainly, he and other people have put themselves on the radar for helping the staff this year.”
Hall, ranked as the No. 3 prospect in Baltimore’s pipeline per Baseball America, is further off from joining the Orioles. He’s set to make his first start of the season for High-A Aberdeen on Friday.
Hall had remained in Florida for extended spring training as he recovered from a stress reaction in his left elbow that cut short his 2021 season. Now he’s beginning to ramp up, throwing four-plus innings in simulated games in Florida. He should reach about that length for Aberdeen on Friday, too.
“It’s just about covering innings, throwing strikes, not having any injury setbacks,” Elias said. “The stuff and the velocity are certainly there, and I think we’re gonna see that on display on Friday. And, look, once he’s back to being himself in Bowie — the guy’s on the 40-man roster. He’s got major league stuff.”
Double-A Bowie is as high as Hall has reached thus far. A successful outing in High-A Aberdeen could propel him onward to Double-A before another stop at Triple-A Norfolk. That timeline slows how soon Hall could reach the majors. But there are other options Baltimore could turn toward, apart from Bradish, Hall and Rodriguez.
Right-hander Matt Harvey rejoined the organization on a minor league deal earlier this month and will throw an extended spring game in Florida on Thursday. The prospects for Harvey are muddled, however, with the possibility of a suspension from Major League Baseball for violating the league’s drug policy. Elias said Harvey will report to a minor league affiliate once he’s ramped up in an extended spring training.
Other options include right-hander Mike Baumann, who currently holds a bullpen role. Left-hander Keegan Akin also has starting experience.
So while there’s uncertainty regarding what the rotation might look like this weekend against the Red Sox, there’s more hope from Elias about what it’ll look like in a year once Means returns.
“As John’s injury demonstrated, pitching is a very fragile thing and you might even make the argument it’s more of a numbers game,” Elias said. “But I can’t complain about the fact that we have a guy like John, who will be coming back from surgery.”
Adley Rutschman’s development
Catcher Adley Rutschman, the top prospect in baseball, made his first rehab start for High-A Aberdeen on Tuesday, working back from a right tricep strain suffered just as major league spring training got underway.
Rutschman doubled and walked in Tuesday’s start, catching the first five innings. He returned to the IronBirds’ lineup Wednesday as the designated hitter.
Before Rutschman’s injury, Elias said the 24-year-old showed in minor league camp in February that he’s “one of the best talents in the organization, if not the sport.”
“If he puts himself back to that point in time, I can’t see a whole lot more that he probably needs to prove in the minor leagues other than he is himself,” Elias said. “So we’ll take it one day at a time. You hear him talk. That’s his mindset. I think that’s part of what makes him such a great athlete is the ability to keep that mindset and we’re only on Day 2 of his minor league rehab assignment today.”
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