Baltimore Orioles Budding Star Holds Blue Jays Hitless in Bid for Rotation

The Baltimore Orioles have an open spot in their starting rotation and one of their top prospects made a big statement against the Blue Jays on Tuesday.

Mar 13, 2025; Dunedin, Florida, USA; Baltimore Orioles pitcher Cade Povich (37) throws a pitch against the Toronto Blue Jays in the first inning during spring training at TD Ballpark. | Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

The Baltimore Orioles have an open spot in their starting rotation with Grayson Rodriguez sidelined due to an injury.

Veteran Zach Eflin is set for the Opening Day start, and the club has Charlie Morton, Tomoyuki Sugano and Dean Kremer in some order in the two to four spots.

The fifth spot is nominally up for grabs, but 24-year-old Cade Povich has staked a strong claim to the job with his performance in spring training.

He furthered his argument in a big way on Tuesday night, as he held the Toronto Blue Jays without a hit over five dominant innings against his team's AL East foe.

Povich walked Bo Bichette and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. to start the game, but he locked in from there, striking out six over his five innings. Those six included punchouts of tough customers like Guerrero Jr, former Oriole Anthony Santander and Alejandro Kirk.

Povich exceeded rookie limits during the 2024 campaign, as he struggled to the tune of a 3-9 record and a 5.20 over 16 appearances, all of which were starts.

But the six-foot-three righty has flashed a new pitch in his arsenal this spring, joining the growing number of hurlers to add a perplexing kick change to his array of offerings.

The adjustments and growth he's shown have led to a 3.07 ERA this spring that has come in 14.2 innings pitched across four starts.

Povich got roughed up in his prior outing against the Blue Jays on March 13, but his ability to turn it around Tuesday is a green flag for manager Brandon Hyde and the club's front office as they look to finalize the Opening Day roster in the coming days.