The Orioles claimed right-hander Yosver Zulueta off waivers from the Cubs and then optioned the right-hander to Triple-A. No other roster move was necessary since Baltimore had an open space on its 40-man roster. Francys Romero was the first to report the move, shortly before the O’s made the official announcement.
Chicago designated Zulueta for assignment earlier this week, and Zulueta has now changed teams via waiver claim twice in the last two weeks. The Cubs claimed the right-hander off the Mariners’ waiver wire on June 15, though Zulueta’s time in Chicago’s organization came and went without any time on the big league roster.
Zulueta’s MLB resume remains the 23 2/3 innings of 5.32 ERA ball he posted with the Reds over the 2024-25 seasons. Cincinnati DFA’ed Zulueta this past winter and then dealt him to Seattle, and Zulueta has struggled to a 7.54 ERA over 22 2/3 Triple-A innings in 2026. An ugly 17.9% walk rate is the biggest cause of Zulueta’s inflated ERA, as the control problems that have plagued his entire career have become even more pronounced this year.
The pluses for Zulueta are a 55.4% grounder rate this season, and a 54% grounder rate over his brief time in the majors. Zuluta is a hard thrower who racks up a lot of strikeouts, even if his 21.4K% in the minors this season is a step below his career norms. If Zulueta can deliver even average control, the recipe is there for the righty to become an effective reliever in the bigs, yet the Orioles will now become the fifth team to try and see if Zulueta can take things to a new level.
