The Baltimore Orioles made a key trade to boost their starting rotation late on Thursday, acquiring 28-year-old left-hander Cole Irvin from the Oakland Athletics.
Baltimore has been quiet this offseason, save for a few bargain signings, but now have a solid arm to go next to John Means in their rotation.
The lefty went 9-13 with a 3.98 ERA in 30 starts with Oakland.
With things changing slightly throughout baseball in 2023, such as limited pickoff attempts and the pitch clock, this could be a very solid pickup for the Orioles.
On Twitter, the great Peter Gammons broke down the trade and what it means for the Orioles as they look to build off of their 2022 success.
In a sped-up game and limited pickoff attampts, Cole Irvin is a fascinating pickup for the Orioles. Of pitchers w/500 or more IP imn '22, he was fastest to plate(14.1 seconds), 2 SB, 3 CS in 65 career starts
— Peter Gammons (@pgammo) January 27, 2023
As Gammons points out, Irving is a fast worker.
He took roughly 14.1 seconds to deliver his pitches on average in 2022.
Also, in 65 career starts, only two runners have stolen a base off of him, with three more being caught in the act.
So naturally, players running the bases while Irvin is on the mound might want to rethink their strategy if they plan on stealing any bases.
With a quick worker like Irvin, stealing bases is going to be much harder, especially with the pitch clock and limited pickoff attempts.
The Orioles won 83 games in 2022 and fell just short of the postseason.
But with some key offseason acquisitions and a young core in place, the team could take the next step in 2023.
And Irvin can help with that, as he could give them some much-needed innings coverage, and also work at a fast pace as Gammons alluded to.
NEXT: Cole Irvin Comments On His Exciting New Teammate
