Two Starting Pitchers the Baltimore Orioles Should Sign

Sep 26, 2020; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; New York Mets starting pitcher Rick Porcello (22) throws the ball during the first inning against the Washington Nationals at Nationals Park. Mandatory Credit: Amber Searls-USA TODAY Sports

Rick Porcello

The 32-year-old Rick Porcello is currently floating in free agency after receiving some attention this winter. In 2020, Porcello struggled in his 12 starts with the New York Mets, posting an ERA of 5.64. However, he managed to maintain his strikeout-inducing stuff during the shortened season with the second-highest strikeouts per nine innings of his career, trailing only the 8.9 K/9 he posted during the 2018 season, in which he won the World Series with the Boston Red Sox.

Back in 2016, Porcello was voted the American League Cy Young Award winner with a 3.15 ERA and a league-best 22 wins. Of course, Porcello will most likely not return to the Cy Young level he performed up to in 2016, but the Orioles don’t need him to. If Porcello could save the bullpen from being overworked by going deep into his starts, which he has shown to be capable of throughout his big league tenure, he would be a very solid addition to the Baltimore starting rotation.

Sep 21, 2020; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Washington Nationals starting pitcher Anibal Sanchez (19) pitches against the Philadelphia Phillies in the first inning at Nationals Park. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports

Anibal Sanchez

Most recently seen aiding Venezuela to a 6-5 victory in the WBSC Baseball Americas Qualifer game on Monday, Anibal Sanchez has proven himself to be a solid big league pitcher over his 15 years in Major League Baseball. In 2020, Sanchez had what was by-far the worst season of his career, recording an ERA of 6.62 over his 11 starts with the Washington Nationals a year ago.

Despite a rocky 2020 campaign, there have been starts in recent history that show Sanchez’s ability to pitch at the highest level are still with him even more than a decade removed from his debut. During the Nationals’ title run in 2019, Sanchez tossed seven and two-thirds innings of shutout baseball in the NLCS against the St. Louis Cardinals, lifting his team to their first World Series win in franchise history. Having a veteran presence in the fold like Sanchez would most certainly help in the development of upcoming pitchers and would allow the Orioles a better chance at stringing together wins at the big league level.