The Baltimore Orioles have placed starter Zach Eflin on the IL and placed reliever Keegan Akin on the paternity list. They have recalled reliever Dillon Tate and starter Cade Povich.
Zach Eflin on 15-day injured list with right shoulder inflammation. Akin on paternity list. Dillon Tate and Cade Povich recalled by #Orioles. Eflin retroactive to August 17.
— Rich DubroffMLB (@RichDubroffMLB) August 20, 2024
Zach Eflin to IL One of Several Orioles Roster Moves
Eflin has been a star for the Orioles in the second half, providing four straight quality starts since he was acquired via trade. He heads to the 15-day IL with right shoulder inflammation. Manager Brandon Hyde said he hopes Eflin’s IL stint will be “short term.” Akin, 29, has spent all season in the Orioles bullpen. He will be welcoming his second child and will rejoin the Orioles a few days later. Tate, 30, spent the first part of the season with the Orioles before being sent down in July. Akin, 29, has spent all season in the Orioles bullpen. Finally, Povich, a rookie, will come back and hope to have a strong follow-up to his excellent start this past Saturday against the Boston Red Sox.
Losing Eflin Will Test The Orioles’ Rotation
In four starts since his trade to Baltimore, Zach Eflin has a 2.13 ERA. He has collected a win in every start, and struck out 25 batters in 25 1/3 innings. He has been an absolute stud for the Orioles during his short time in Baltimore. Losing him will stretch the rotation extremely thin. Everyone will now be forced to step up to replace the void left by Eflin’s absence. The biggest trait the Orioles will miss is his ability to go deep into games. Averaging over 6 innings per start, Eflin pitches deep into games, which gives most bullpen arms a break for the day. That is something not a lot of other Oriole starters have been able to do, but someone now must step up.
Cade Povich, who had struggled in his first eight starts, had a strong outing his last time out. He gave up just two runs over 6 1/3 innings. Hopefully, he can make that a trend and deliver some big-time starts down the stretch.
Can Tate Stick In The Majors
During the 2022 season, Dillon Tate was the Orioles’ setup man, and he was very good at it. He appeared in 67 games and had just a 3.05 ERA. But before the 2023 season, Tate underwent elbow surgery and missed the entire year. He worked hard to come back and made the 2024 Opening Day roster. However, he had some big-time struggles at the MLB level this year. In 29 games, Tate had a 4.59 ERA, resulting in his demotion. About a month later, Tate is back, looking to make an impact.
Tate could absolutely earn back his setup man role, or even become the closer. His biggest issue early in the season was his sinker. Batters hit .318 against it, and Tate throws it 52.6% of the time. It is now his go-to pitch because, in 2022, batters hit just .217 against his sinker. However, that sinker lost 1.4 MPH in velocity this season, causing batters to figure him out. Considering he sports a 2.30 ERA in Norfolk, Tate has begun to regain control of his sinker. If he does that, and pitches to his strengths, he will not be the corresponding move when Akin is back up.
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