The Orioles announced that right-hander Chris Bassitt has been placed on the 15-day injured list, retroactive to June 5th, due to low back discomfort. Fellow righty Trey Gibson has been recalled in his place and will start tonight’s game.
The O’s signed Bassitt to a one-year, $18.5MM deal in the offseason. They haven’t received much return on that investment yet. Bassitt has made 12 appearances for the club so far this year, posting a 5.27 earned run average in 56 1/3 innings. His ground ball and walk rates are fairly similar to last year but his strikeout rate has almost been cut in half. He punched out 22.6% of batters faced for the Blue Jays in 2025 but is only sitting down 14.2% of opponents for the orange birds.
It’s possible the back issue has been a lingering problem. Low back inflammation sent him to the IL in September of last year. He missed the ALDS but was back on the mound in a relief role for the ALCS and World Series. Lower back tightness caused him to depart his most recent start for the Orioles after just three innings.
Though Bassitt has been struggling, it’s less than ideal for Baltimore’s rotation to be thinned out even further. Zach Eflin required Tommy John surgery in April, knocking him out for the rest of the year. A strained quad put Dean Kremer on the IL in mid-April and he still hasn’t begun a rehab assignment almost two months later. Even if he ramps up soon, he’ll need some time to get back into game shape. Cade Povich hit the IL last month due to elbow inflammation and has an uncertain timeline.
Thus far, there’s nothing to indicate Bassitt will require a lengthy absence but the O’s will have to proceed for a few weeks with four starters on the IL. That leaves them with Kyle Bradish, Shane Baz, Trevor Rogers and Brandon Young in four spots.
As mentioned, Gibson is coming up to start tonight’s game. It’s unclear if this will be a spot start or if he’ll stick around. Gibson has already made three appearances for the O’s this year with a 3.65 ERA but subpar peripherals in that small sample. In his 38 Triple-A innings, he has a 3.55 ERA, an average-ish 22.4% strikeout rate and strong 51.4% ground ball rate but a poor walk rate of 11.2%.
If the O’s send Gibson back down after tonight’s game, they could have an extra reliever for a few days but would eventually need to find a cover for Bassitt’s spot. Albert Suárez is in the big league bullpen in a long relief role and could provide some bulk. Cameron Weston is on the 40-man but was optioned on May 29th. He can’t be recalled until 15 days have elapsed from that move unless directly replacing someone going on the IL. Perhaps a non-roster option like Nestor German or Trace Bright could get some consideration, or maybe the O’s will look to an external option, but sticking with Gibson is also a possibility.
Photo courtesy of David Butler II, Imagn Images
