The Baltimore Orioles of today are certainly not the same organization that accumulated five straight losing seasons from 2017 to 2021.
Mike Elias took over as the lead baseball man in late 2018 and has slowly, but surely led the Orioles to where they currently are: an up-and-coming team with several young stars and exciting prospects.
They got out of the AL East basement this year with a solid 83-79 record, and the best is yet to come.
Elias and his team signed veteran pitcher Kyle Gibson a few days ago to be a rotation stalwart and veteran leader for a very young team.
Gibson signing with Baltimore was not a product of him not having more offers: he really likes the project and received a glowing report from a former teammate who recently played for the Orioles.
“On a Zoom call, Kyle Gibson said he recently looked at the Orioles’ roster and noticed he was the only one born before 1992. He looks forward to taking on the veteran role former Texas teammate Jordan Lyles had for the Orioles: ‘He only had glowing things to say about Baltimore,'” Baltimore Sun’s Nathan Ruiz tweeted.
On a Zoom call, Kyle Gibson said he recently looked at the Orioles’ roster and noticed he was the only one born before 1992. He looks forward to taking on the veteran role former Texas teammate Jordan Lyles had for the Orioles: "He only had glowing things to say about Baltimore."
— Nathan Ruiz (@NathanSRuiz) December 8, 2022
Gibson Can Help The O’s And Vice Versa
Lyles’ career was spiraling in the wrong direction after two lousy seasons in 2020 and 2021, but the Orioles helped him complete a very decent 2022 with a 4.42 ERA.
He was a leader and mentor to a young pitching staff that includes Dean Kremer, Keegan Akin, Dillon Tate, Tyler Wells, Spenser Watkins, Felix Bautista, and more quality pitchers.
Now, that role will be inherited by Gibson.
Gibson himself was a disappointment in Philadelphia this year, with a 5.05 ERA in 167.2 innings.
He has been better in the past and has a lot of talent in his right arm.
This has the potential to be a mutually benefitting relationship between pitcher and team.
NEXT: The Orioles Have A Specific 2023 Plan For Adley Rutschman