{"id":103707,"date":"2025-07-08T22:40:05","date_gmt":"2025-07-09T02:40:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/?p=103707"},"modified":"2025-07-08T22:40:05","modified_gmt":"2025-07-09T02:40:05","slug":"orioles-2025-mid-season-report-pitching","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/2025\/07\/08\/orioles-2025-mid-season-report-pitching\/","title":{"rendered":"Orioles 2025 Mid-Season Report: Pitching"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Baltimore Orioles are having a really rough year. The team currently sits at a 40-50 record, last in the American League East and 12 1\/2 games behind first. The team’s previous manager, Brandon Hyde<\/a>, also went from AL Manager of the Year in 2023 to being shown<\/a> the door in 2025.<\/p>\n

But no more evident has the Orioles’ decline been than in their pitching. As of July 8, the team’s ERA places fourth-worst in the league, alongside their WHIP. They’ve also surrendered the third-most home runs while sporting the second-worst opposing batting average, a gigantic step back from 2024.<\/p>\n

Corbin Burnes<\/a>‘ departure<\/a> in the offseason was a significant blow, and Grayson Rodriguez<\/a>‘s extended absence<\/a> doesn’t help either. That doesn’t excuse the absolute disappointment the team’s arms have been this year. What exactly happened to the team’s pitching staff?<\/p>\n

Orioles’ Starting Pitching Woes<\/h2>\n

The players the Orioles have to try and plug the holes left behind by Rodriguez and Burnes in the rotation have been poor. The team holds<\/a> the second-lowest WAR by starting pitchers at negative four, just beating out the Colorado Rockies. When looking deeper into the stats, it’s clear that the veteran staff is either hitting their limit or not adjusting well.<\/p>\n

Charlie Morton<\/h3>\n

The 41-year-old Charlie Morton<\/a> signed<\/a> with the Orioles for a one-year, $15 million contract in January. Morton, coming off a respectable four-year tenure with the Atlanta Braves, contemplated retirement at the end of the season, according to MLB.com. It seemed to be a panic move<\/a> by the team after losing out to the Arizona Diamondbacks for Burnes in free agency.<\/p>\n

\"\"
Jul 4, 2025; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Baltimore Orioles starting pitcher Charlie Morton (50) throws against the Atlanta Braves in the second inning at Truist Park. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The move has not paid off by any means. Giving credit where due, Morton’s numbers have come down<\/a> since the end of May, even winning five games in that time span. Even in the last<\/a> four outings, the aging veteran struck out 27 in 21 1\/3 innings while only walking four batters and surrendering one home run.<\/p>\n

June was his best month in an Orioles uniform, pitching to a 2.88 ERA with only eight runs surrendered and no home runs. The downside is that he has issues with surrendering too many hits, bloating his WHIP to 1.400 for the month.<\/p>\n

\n

Charlie Morton, Back-to-Back Ridiculous Curveballs. \ud83e\udd74 pic.twitter.com\/ySw35g4FLj<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) June 24, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n