Cole Irvin Comes to the Orioles

• January 29, 2023

Cole Irvin comes to the Baltimore Orioles. The left-handed starter was traded by the Oakland Athletics along with minor league right-hander Kyle Virbitsky for infield prospect Darell Hernaiz. The deal was reported by ESPN’s Jeff Passan.

Cole Irvin Last Season

Irvin made 30 starts for the A’s last season. He finished 9-13 with a career-best 3.98 ERA. He set career highs in innings pitched and strikeouts and tied his career high with 15 quality starts. All of this on a team that had the worst record in the American League.

Immediate Starter

Cole Irvin comes to the Orioles as they continue to explore trades for a starting pitcher. He now joins a long list of rotation options but is seen as an immediate starter. Irvin, who turns 29 next week, becomes the second-most experienced starting pitcher behind only Kyle Gibson. Gibson, 35, is a 10-year veteran who the team signed to a contract in December.

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We could see Irvin slotted in as the number two starter. He will compete in Spring Training with Kyle Bradish, DL Hall, Dean Kremer, Grayson Rodriguez, and Tyler Wells to form a solid rotation.

Veteran Stability

A reason why the Orioles made the trade was for more veteran stability. John Means, who was named the Opening Day starter for the 2022 season, is their most experienced pitcher. But after pitching only eight innings, he was diagnosed with an elbow strain. Transferred to the 60-day IL, doctors determined that he needed Tommy John surgery. That ended his 2022 season. His 2023 return has not been officially updated.

Success in AL East

Cole Irvin comes to the Orioles with some success pitching versus AL East teams. Last year this division had four teams with winning records, including Baltimore. Three of them made the playoffs. In 11 career games, Irvin is 4-4 with a 3.71 ERA. He knows his role as he joins this team, getting hitters out and beating the AL East teams!

Innings Eater

Over the past two seasons, few starting pitchers in the majors have thrown more strikes or innings than Cole Irvin. He is what seam-heads refer to as an “innings-eater.” Irvin works quickly, gets the ball, and goes. He has a four-pitch mix. They’re mostly average pitches, but he really knows how to use his pitches well.

Irvin’s fastball is only in the 91-92 mph range but has demonstrated to be effective. He has a unique sinker and is smart enough to use it over his other pitches. His changeup is probably his best pitch, one that leads to many outs. Finally, he has a curve ball—which he doesn’t use as much—but confuses hitters.

Orioles Outlook with Cole Irvin

Cole Irvin comes to the Orioles in an offseason that was pretty quiet for the team. Now they have acquired two veteran starters to help them improve on their surprising 83 wins from last year. This year is going to be fun for Baltimore players and their fans. Irvin will show the fans in Baltimore what he does and what he brings to the team. His addition can only help the team as they try to make the playoffs for the first time since 2016.

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