The Baltimore Orioles, a team with a rich history and tradition in Major League Baseball, have experienced their share of highs and lows throughout the years. From the dominance of their pitching staff in the 1960s and 70s to their recent struggles, one area that has consistently held the team back in recent seasons is their starting rotation. The 2025 season has been no different, and it is becoming increasingly clear that the Orioles’ starting rotation is once again among the worst in the league. With injuries plaguing the team’s most promising arms and a lack of depth to cover for their shortfalls, the Orioles’ rotation is now on the wrong side of dismal team history, dragging down the team’s overall performance.
A Legacy of Pitching Greatness
Before diving into the current state of the Orioles’ starting rotation, it’s essential to appreciate the team’s storied history. The Baltimore Orioles, over the course of their existence, have produced some of the most formidable pitchers to ever take the mound in Major League Baseball. From Hall of Famers like Jim Palmer, who led the Orioles to three World Series titles in the 1960s and 70s, to Mike Mussina, a key figure in the 1990s who eventually went on to a Hall of Fame career with the New York Yankees, the Orioles have long been known for their elite pitching staffs.
The 1970s in particular stand out as a golden age for the franchise. Behind Palmer, the Orioles boasted one of the best rotations in baseball history. With Palmer joined by fellow greats like Dave McNally and Mike Cuellar, the Orioles pitching staff was a dominant force. Palmer’s remarkable consistency over his career earned him eight Gold Glove Awards and three Cy Young Awards. McNally, Cuellar, and the rest of the crew helped form a rotation that consistently gave the Orioles a chance to win, year after year.
In fact, the Orioles’ success in the 1960s and 70s was largely built on their ability to control the game from the mound. Throughout these years, the Orioles had a tradition of investing in pitching development, and it paid off with multiple World Series appearances and championships. However, in the years since their last World Series victory in 1983, the franchise has had a difficult time recapturing that pitching dominance.
The Struggles of Recent Years
Fast forward to the 2020s, and the state of the Orioles’ pitching staff could not be more different from the glory days of the 1960s and 70s. Over the past two decades, the Orioles have struggled mightily to field a competent starting rotation. While the team has had flashes of brilliance from individual pitchers, such as Chris Tillman in 2016, or more recently John Means, the lack of consistency has ultimately been the problem.
The Orioles’ front office has struggled to find the right formula for success on the mound, and the result has been years of mediocrity and even downright bad pitching. In fact, since the team’s last playoff appearance in 2016, Baltimore has cycled through a series of pitchers who have failed to establish themselves as reliable starting options. The rotation has become a revolving door of injuries, underperformance, and, in many cases, an inability to consistently get outs.
One of the primary reasons for the team’s inability to develop a consistent rotation has been a lack of investment in the pitching pipeline. While teams like the New York Yankees, Houston Astros, and Los Angeles Dodgers have consistently found and developed elite pitchers, the Orioles have struggled to draft and develop homegrown talent at the same level. This has been compounded by the team’s tendency to rely on veteran pitchers who are past their primes or have never proven to be successful in the league.
In 2025, the Orioles appear to be back in the same cycle. With an underwhelming starting rotation, the team’s hopes for a competitive season have been dashed early. The current roster is populated with several young arms who show promise but have struggled with consistency, as well as a few veteran pitchers who have failed to live up to expectations.
The Current State of the Rotation
As of mid-2025, the Orioles’ starting rotation is in a state of flux. The team entered the season hoping to build around a few key arms, but injuries and inconsistent performance have made it difficult to gain any momentum. The following are some of the key pitchers in the rotation and their struggles so far:
1. John Means – A Brief Flash of Hope
John Means, the ace of the Orioles’ pitching staff in 2020 and 2021, has been one of the team’s few bright spots in recent years. However, Means has not been immune to injury. After a promising 2021 season, in which he posted a 3.62 ERA over 150 innings, Means struggled in 2022 and 2023, with a combination of injuries and lackluster performances derailing his career trajectory. While Means remains the most experienced arm in the Orioles’ rotation, he has yet to return to the form he showed in his breakout 2019 season.
In 2025, Means has been inconsistent. While his stuff is still strong, his command has been shaky, and his inability to go deep into games has forced the Orioles to rely heavily on a bullpen that has itself struggled to keep games close. As the team continues to struggle with pitching depth, Means’ inability to stay healthy or be consistently effective has only added to the team’s woes.
2. Grayson Rodriguez – A Work in Progress
Grayson Rodriguez, the Orioles’ top pitching prospect, was expected to be one of the cornerstones of the team’s future. A highly touted right-hander with a fastball that can reach triple digits and a devastating slider, Rodriguez has shown flashes of brilliance. However, his journey through the majors has been rocky, as he has struggled with command and pitch efficiency, particularly against big-league hitters.
While Rodriguez has the talent to become a front-end starter, his lack of consistency and inability to manage his pitch counts have resulted in a high ERA and multiple trips to the minors. In 2025, Rodriguez has shown some improvement, but the results have still been far from what the Orioles need to become competitive. With his raw talent, there’s still hope that he can eventually find his rhythm, but the question remains whether the Orioles can afford to wait for him to develop.
3. Kyle Gibson – A Veteran Addition
Kyle Gibson, a veteran right-hander, was signed by the Orioles to provide some stability to the rotation. While Gibson has had a solid career, he has not been an ace at any point in his career. Known more for his ability to eat innings than for dominating hitters, Gibson’s role on the team was always going to be that of a reliable mid-to-back-end starter.
However, in 2025, Gibson has struggled to keep the ball in the park and maintain an effective ERA. His inability to generate strikeouts, combined with his tendency to give up home runs, has made him a liability in the rotation. With the Orioles’ offense being inconsistent, they need more from Gibson if they hope to remain competitive, but it’s unclear whether he can turn things around at this stage of his career.
4. Tyler Wells – Inconsistent but Serviceable
Tyler Wells, another homegrown product, has shown some potential as a starter, but his performances have been wildly inconsistent. At times, he can look like a competent back-of-the-rotation starter, keeping the team in games with his ability to locate the strike zone and generate weak contact. However, Wells has struggled with control, and his inability to avoid hard contact has resulted in frequent blow-up starts.
Wells has yet to prove that he can be a reliable option for the Orioles, and his struggles in 2025 have only added to the team’s woes. While he may not be a lost cause, Wells’ inconsistency leaves the Orioles with little margin for error as they try to piece together a serviceable rotation.
A Lack of Depth and the Impact of Injuries
The Orioles’ biggest problem in 2025 has been their lack of depth in the starting rotation. Injuries have decimated the team’s chances of fielding a competent staff. With Means, Rodriguez, and Wells all battling varying degrees of inconsistency and health concerns, the Orioles have been forced to rely on fringe major league pitchers who are simply not up to the task. Adding to the problem, the team’s minor league system has not yet produced the type of pitchers who can step in and provide immediate help.
In addition to these issues, the Orioles have seen their bullpen taxed early in the season due to the inability of their starters to go deep into games. This creates a vicious cycle, where the bullpen struggles, leading to even more pressure on the rotation. Until the Orioles can find stability in their starting staff, it is hard to envision the team being able to contend in the American League East, a division stacked with elite teams like the New York Yankees and Toronto Blue Jays.
A Frustrating Future?
As the Orioles continue to languish near the bottom of the standings in 2025, it becomes increasingly evident that the team’s starting rotation is a major obstacle to success. While the team has a promising young core of position players, the inability to field a competent starting rotation continues to hold them back. The team’s front office has made efforts to develop pitching, but until they can consistently produce reliable starting options, the Orioles will remain stuck in their current cycle of mediocrity.
With the team on the wrong side of history when it comes to pitching, the Orioles’ future prospects rest heavily on whether they can figure out how to develop and acquire the arms necessary to compete in the American League. Until then, the painful reality is that the Orioles’ starting rotation will continue to be a glaring weakness that drags down the rest of the team.
