Brandon Hyde fails to inspire confidence with Grayson Rodriguez update

Prior to Saturday's matchup with the Red Sox, Orioles' manager Brandon Hyde spoke with media members at the pre-game conference and gave updates on Grayson Rodriguez, Adley Rutschman, and more.

Unfortunately for O's fans, Hyde failed to inspire confidence in regard to Rodriguez, despite claiming to be hopeful about his eventual return.

Rodriguez was quoted earlier in the day, stating that he felt optimistic about his progress after a recent throwing session. When asked if he felt the same, Hyde visibly grimaced on camera before telling reporters that he's hoping for the best.

Hyde also brought up the fact that there are only about six weeks left in the season, and that he's hoping Rodriguez doesn't have any setbacks during the rehab process.

Could Grayson Rodriguez miss the rest of the 2024 season?

The young righty went on the IL 11 days ago with a mild lat strain, and will technically be able to return later this week. However, there's very little chance he comes back to Baltimore when first eligible.

Rodriguez has dealt with this kind of injury before. Back in 2022, a lat strain in the same shoulder kept him out for more than three months and delayed his MLB debut until the following year. Though Rodriguez told reporters that his current injury is less severe than the previous one, it's tough to not think about the worst case scenario here.

In the event where Rodriguez does have a setback during rehab, it would likely put the rest of his season in jeopardy. As it stands, the optimistic timeline would put him back in Baltimore around early September. But Hyde is right in that anything beyond that is going to be tight.

Right now, the Orioles are in a tight playoff race with the Yankees atop the AL East, and hold a 3.5 game lead in the AL Wild Card race. There's no reason to doubt this team's ability to hold on for the next six weeks and make a second straight postseason appearance but the longer Rodriguez stays out, the more it could come into question.

It wouldn't be ideal to enter October with Corbin Burnes, Zach Eflin, and a handful of question marks behind them. In the scenario where Rodriguez can't pitch in October, you might feel comfortable in a short playoff series, going Burnes, Eflin, and some combination of Albert Suarez, Dean Kremer, and Cade Povich. Beyond that, the four-man playoff rotation looks pretty questionable without Rodriguez.

As such, it doesn't make sense for the Orioles to try to rush Rodriguez back. They ought to let him take his time rehabbing so that he can come back later next month and ready to contribute in the season's biggest spots.