Baltimore Orioles' Starting Rotation Gets Completely Snubbed in Preseason Rankings
For the entire offseason, the conversation around what the Baltimore Orioles needed to accomplish was centered on them landing a true ace in their rotation.
They had been linked to a few free agents, although that scenario seemed unlikely because of their spending history, as well as multiple trade ideas that would get them a top-of-the-rotation guy.
Eventually, the Orioles pulled it off, landing 2021 Cy Young winner Corbin Burnes who slots into their No. 1 spot.
This would push Kyle Bradish to No. 2 and Grayson Rodriguez to No. 3, giving them an elite top-end unit.
However, Matt Snyder of CBS Sports doesn't seem to be buying into the hype that Baltimore's new rotation has generated. He doesn't even have them in the Top-10 of MLB starting units, a complete snub.
"Injuries should matter right now. Let's just look at the Orioles. After acquiring Corbin Burnes, I loved the promise of this rotation ... Instead, Means had a setback and now Bradish is hurt. They might emerge fine come the start of the season, but can we really feel great right now?" he writes.
That's certainly a fair assessment for how things look right now.
Bradish could certainly miss more time with his elbow injury than expected and Means might still not be the same player he was pre-Tommy John surgery.
However, not having them inside the Top-10 seems a little crazy.
Means wasn't in the picture last year and Burnes is an upgrade over Bradish, so even if Bradish misses more time than expected, Burnes would still be a boost to the unit with Rodriguez still there.
Plus, others on the list ahead of them have just as many questions about their viability than the Orioles currently have.
Of course, these are preseason rankings and they don't mean a whole lot in the grand scheme of things.
Baltimore still has to go out there and perform.
