The key piece in turning Orioles' reliever Yennier Cano's season around

The month of June was nearly picture perfect for the Orioles' bullpen. Entering last night's game against the Tampa Bay Rays, the O's seven primary relievers had combined to allow just four earned runs in the month, covering 46.2 innings in the process. Overall, it was the second best 'pen in the game since the calendar flipped.

Last night 's contest, however, saw four of those seven arms combine to allow eight earned runs in a 12-8 loss to the Rays.

Yennier Cano, entering the game in the fifth inning, retired two of the first three batters he faced. The next four hitters proceeded to hit a triple, a single, a home run, and a single. As Cano exited, he had surrendered four earned runs, his first crooked number in the run column since May 31.

At his best, back in 2023, Cano's arsenal featured either a sinker or changeup over 83 percent of the time, according to Statcast. Against that changeup, opposing batters hit just .202 and slugged .303, whiffing over 40 percent of the time. In 2025, however, it's been a different story.

The sinker and changeup still account for over 68 percent of Cano's arsenal, with the slider, four-seam fastball and a new cutter joining the fray. The changeup, though, has been far less successful. This season, opponents are hitting .433 with a .733 slugging percentage against the change, a far cry from his 2023 success.

Orioles' Yennier Cano needs to bring his changeup back to prominence in 2025

One issue with the pitch may be a mechanical one. According to Statcast, Cano's changeup has dropped about five inches less on average than it did in 2024, and two inches less than it did in 2023. Much of the issue, though, can be attributed to some tough batted ball luck.

While opponents are hitting .433 against the pitch this season, their expected batting average is down at .290. It's the same story with the .733 slugging percentage, where the expected slug is down at .425. Of course, expected stats aren't perfectly predictive, but it's fair to assume that there will be some regression in those inflated numbers.

A bad outing for a reliever can really inflate their ERA. After just one night, looking at Cano's 5.11 ERA versus his 3.75 ERA entering the game gives you a very different perception of his season. The struggles of his changeup have been real, though, and that pitch just might be the key to turning his season around.