​The Baltimore Orioles have had to lean heavily on options they hadn’t anticipated in their starting rotation this season. Early injuries forced them to cope without Zach Eflin for the entire year, while veteran right-hander Chris Bassitt is set to miss months. Trevor Rogers, Dean Kremer, and Cade Povich have all spent time on the 15-day injured list, leaving the Orioles to scour their system for veteran, big-league-tested arms. One player who stepped up is right-hander Brandon Young. He has proven to be a perfect fit in a challenging situation, and he earned an encouraging endorsement from manager Craig Albernaz before his start Friday in the series opener against the Kansas City Royals.
“Our record is not the best; not sure what our record would be without B.Y.,” Albernaz said, per The Baltimore Sun’s Jacob Calvin Meyer. Young backed up that praise with another quality performance, allowing three runs to the Royals before Baltimore finally broke through in the later innings, securing a 5-3 victory.
Friday marked Young’s 15th start of the season and the 12th time the Orioles have won with him on the mound. In the 80 games he has not appeared in, Baltimore has gone 32-48, a statistic that makes Albernaz’s praise feel even more meaningful. This season, Young owns a 3.42 ERA over 84 1/3 innings, along with 67 strikeouts—a marked improvement from last year’s rookie campaign, when he made 12 starts and posted a 6.24 ERA, ultimately losing his spot in the rotation. The turnaround is one of the more compelling stories in the American League this year.
Young’s journey to this point has been a long one. He joined the Orioles as an undrafted free agent in June 2020 and steadily progressed through the minor leagues before earning his big-league opportunity last year. The Orioles likely wouldn’t be in this position if not for the season’s injuries to the starting staff, but Young has seized the moment and become one of the few reliable options this season—a development that has thrilled his manager and energized Orioles fans who are witnessing him emerge as a dependable contributor.
Looking ahead, Young will not make his next start until after the All-Star break, but the hope is that he can carry his strong form into the second half. The Orioles need that continued impact if they want any chance of climbing back into the American League playoff race. As Baltimore seeks to stabilize a rotation depleted by injuries, Young’s sustained performance could prove crucial to sustaining competitiveness down the stretch.