With John Means’ status uncertain, Orioles’ pitching logjam might clear up in a hurry

ST. LOUIS — Just as they have many times throughout his career, the Orioles are holding their collective breath as they wait to learn more about John Means’ status.

The left-hander exited his start against the St. Louis Cardinals on Wednesday after trying to pitch through elbow discomfort, manager Brandon Hyde said after the Orioles’ 5-4 loss. Means pitched three scoreless innings but his fastball velocity was 2 mph down from his season average of 90.9. He was scheduled to undergo testing to determine the severity of his injury.

“That was disappointing,” Hyde said. “Could tell a little something wasn’t right and was trying to gut through it. But he did feel some elbow soreness and we’re hoping for the best.”

Means, 31, has made four starts this season after a long road back from Tommy John reconstructive surgery. The Orioles’ 2014 11th-round draft pick tore the ulnar collateral ligament in his elbow four starts into 2022 and suffered a back injury during his recovery that delayed his return to September last season. He started four games before his elbow flared up again and forced the team to shut him down for the year.

After beginning this season on the injured list while the team slowly built him back up to full strength, Means was looking like his old self. He pitched seven scoreless innings in his 2024 debut May 4 and left Wednesday’s start with a 2.61 ERA. The two batters he walked against the Cardinals were the first two free passes he’s issued thus far this season.

“He battled through a lot and dealt with a lot of adversity and was here for kind of from the start,” Hyde said Friday after Means picked up his first win at Camden Yards since 2021. “To see his way through … I know he’s appreciative, and we’re appreciative to have him out there.”

There might be more adversity to come for Means, whose outlook is all the more uncertain given his lengthy injury history. Should the Orioles need to replace him in the short term, the most obvious answer is Cole Irvin. He entered Wednesday’s game in relief of Means after moving to the bullpen last weekend to make room for Grayson Rodriguez.

The Orioles are already planning to reinsert Irvin back into the rotation soon as part of a modified six-man rotation amid their current stretch of 43 games in 45 days. Considering he pitched on the same day as Means, Irvin would be on regular rest to take his spot in the rotation if needed. Baltimore also has Albert Suárez, who’s started three games this season, in the bullpen as another option. The club already announced its probable pitchers for this weekend’s series against the Chicago White Sox: Rodriguez (Thursday), Corbin Burnes (Friday), Dean Kremer (Saturday), Kyle Bradish (Sunday).

Should Means be sidelined long term, the Orioles would lose a significant piece of their starting pitcher depth chart. What looked like a surplus a few days ago is suddenly a situation in which the Orioles would be one more injury away from having to look toward Triple-A for starting candidates.

Perhaps the highest-upside option for starts at some point this season is left-hander Cade Povich. The 24-year-old is off to a spectacular start in Norfolk, where he holds a 2.08 ERA over nine starts with 65 strikeouts to 17 walks. His walk rate was an issue last season, but he’s cut those down while maintaining an elite strikeout pace. Povich’s success has caught the attention of prospect evaluators, with FanGraphs being the first to add him to its top 100 ranking.

Povich has also started ramping up his pitch count, breaking 90 in four of his past five starts. His most recent outing was one of his best of the season: Six innings, four hits, two runs (one earned), zero walks, eight strikeouts. The Orioles have two spots available on their 40-man roster, so they wouldn’t have to subject anyone to waivers to call him up.

But while Povich is an intriguing option for later this season, the Orioles are worried right now about the health of their veteran left-hander. Means would be the favorite to fill out the team’s playoff rotation behind Burnes, Bradish and Rodriguez if the postseason began today. With his future murky once again, all they can do right now is wait.