Orioles is right Albert Suarez‘s season ended with an elbow injury and the 36-year-old underwent an MRI earlier this week to determine if there was any structural damage that would require surgery. The team announced at its pace that Suarez has been diagnosed with a “mild” flexor tendon strain in his right forearm (Via Roch Kubatko of Masnsports.com). He is expected to be cleared to begin a throwing program within a few weeks.
It’s a sigh of relief for both the Orioles and Suarez, who appears to want to avoid surgery barring any significant setbacks once he begins his throwing progression. A shoulder injury limited him to 11 2/3 innings this season, but Suarez was an unexpected key contributor to the 2024 Orioles, throwing 133 2/3 innings with a 3.70 ERA between the rotation and the bullpen. That was his first big league action since 2017; Suarez spent the 2019-23 seasons pitching in Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball and in the Korea Baseball Organization, where he pitched quite well in each league.
Suarez’s success abroad generated enough interest from the Orioles to bring him on board as a minor league signee in the 2023-24 offseason at age 34. Since then, he has pitched the team a total of 145 1/3 innings with a 3.59 ERA, a 19.4% strikeout rate, and a 7.4% walk rate. The Orioles are looking to strengthen a rotation that currently exists Trevor Rogers, Kyle Bradish And Daan Kremer at the very least. Just Tyler Wells looked sharp in four late starts this season after returning from Tommy John surgery. Right-handed Grayson Rodriguez is also in the mix, although he didn’t pitch in 2025 after undergoing an elbow debridement procedure. Right-handed Brandon Young and former top prospects Cade Povich And Chayce McDermott could also play a role in the rotation.
The top trio Bradish (who, like Wells, returned from Tommy John surgery this season), the steadily reliable Kremer and the revitalized Rogers make for a solid top three. Between Wells, Rodriguez, Povich, McDermott, Young and Suarez, the O’s have decent depth, but most of that group have had recent health issues and/or issues in the majors.
However, Suarez is the only one of that bunch who is out of minor league options, making him a strong favorite to open the 2026 season in a swing capacity – health permitting. Baltimore will have him under his wing for three more seasons, and this winter he will be eligible for arbitration for the first time. MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz predicted a $900,000 salary for the right-hander.
Baltimore is expected to be active on both the free agent and trade markets this season. President of baseball operations Mike Elias told MLBTR’s Darragh McDonald in the podcast appearance last week that the Orioles “don’t want to take that off the table in any way” when asked about his club’s willingness to invest several years in a starting pitcher as a free agent.
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