Andrew Kittredge's return is imminent, this struggling veteran could be the one pushed off the roster

Andrew Kittredge's journey with the Baltimore Orioles has been unique. It's not common for a player to be traded at the deadline and then traded back at the end of the season. It almost feels illegal. Injury has delayed his 2026 debut, but it is now around the corner, which means the Orioles will have to decide which of their relievers to send down as the corresponding move.

The Orioles' bullpen was an area of concern going into the season. There were very few arms in the pen that had any real track record of major league success. However, this group of castoffs and journeymen has come together and been very competitive so far this season, and it may be one of the Orioles longest tenured pitchers, Tyler Wells, who gets tagged as the corresponding move for Kittredge.

Wells has gotten off to a slow start this season. He was the setup man on opening day, but after giving up runs in each of his first three appearances, the Orioles had to dial back his role. Just when it seemed like he was back on track, he had a blow-up outing in extra innings vs the Diamondbacks.

Now Wells' ERA sits at 5.06. With relievers, ERA can be tricky because one bad outing can really set you back early in the year, but the more predictive stats like FIP, xFIP, xERA, and SIERA all point to someone who is really struggling.

Tyler Wells' struggles are an unfortunate side effect of recovering from major surgery

Wells has always been prone to hard contact, but the real issue has been the walks. If you're going to give up almost two homers per nine, you can't put guys on base for free to score when the ball goes over the fence.

This lack of command is very clearly a lingering effect of his surgery. This is Wells' first full season back from Tommy John surgery. Coming back from Tommy John is difficult; over the last few seasons, some of the best pitchers in the league have struggled mightily in their first season back from TJ. Sandy Alcantara and Spencer Strider were Cy Young contenders pre-injury, and both put up full-season ERAs over 5 in their first season back. Wells’ teammate, Kyle Bradish, hasn't looked as sharp either.

Wells could very well be just a few months away from getting back to his old self, but the Orioles don't need to let him keep blowing games while he figures it out if they have better options. Wells could go down when Kittredge returns, figure things out in Norfolk, and then return rested and confident for the rest of the season in Baltimore.

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