Orioles turn to journeyman reliever to help solve bullpen issues

On Thursday, the Orioles made a flurry of roster moves to help address both the bullpen and rotation amid a group of new injury problems. With Zach Eflin and Grayson Rodriguez on the IL, and Keegan Akin having been put on the paternity list, the O's are doing what they can to survive the next several weeks.

To address the rotation, they had called up both Cole Irvin and the rookie Cade Povich, but also optioned the struggling Trevor Rogers back to Triple-A. Rogers had done more harm than good since his arrival in Baltimore and while his demotion wasn't expected it wasn't particularly surprising.

To help address the bullpen issues, the Orioles have turned to a couple unlikely sources. Lefty Nick Vespi has been surprisingly effective in Baltimore after two mediocre seasons in 2022 and 2023. Vespi was recalled and threw a scoreless inning on Thursday night.

The more interesting option for the O's though is righty Matt Bowman. Acquired just last week after Bowman opted out of a minor league deal with the Twins. He's spent time with Minnesota, Arizona, and Seattle already this year, making the Orioles his fourth organization in 2024.

It's been a while since Bowman has been an effective pitcher but he does have several successful seasons on his resume. Between 2016-2019, Bowman pitched to a 4.02 ERA with St. Louis and Cincinnati, posting respectable strikeout and walk rates. He had some bad luck in 2018 but was otherwise a solid mid-leverage relief option.

Matt Bowman could help lift a struggling Orioles bullpen

Bowman missed all of the 2020, 2021, and 2022 seasons due to elbow issues and a Tommy John surgery that suffered multiple setbacks. He was able to return with the Yankees in 2023 but spent most of the year pitching in Triple-A, posting a 3.99 ERA in just shy of 60 innings.

He has again spent more time in the minors than in the majors in 2024 but his performance in Seattle and Minnesota is likely what intrigued Mike Elias in the first place. Bowman pitched to a 1.31 ERA in 20.1 innings with the Twins' Triple-A affiliate and struck out more than a batter per inning while in both of those two organizations.

After joining the O's, Bowman threw three scoreless innings at Norfolk while striking out 6 batters and issuing just 1 walk. His contract was selected ahead of Thursday night's game in Houston and he wound up throwing 1.1 scoreless innings, notching a strikeout in the process.

Bowman isn't the flashy reliever many Orioles fans want to see, but it's possible that the O's development team can get him back in business. He'll likely have to miss bats to be successful over the long term but with roughly 5 weeks left in the season, it would just take a bit of good luck for him to have a nice run.

Bowman could certainly be nothing, and nobody would be all that surprised if he were to get shipped out after Akin and Danny Coulombe return. But we have enough evidence that he's got the repertoire to succeed in the majors. If he can, it would be a massive boost for an O's team struggling to get through the month of August.