Inside The Orioles

Orioles Sign Former Astros Standout to Boost Offense Against Lefties

The Baltimore Orioles are giving a breakout star of this past spring training in hopes of finding more batters to hit left-handed pitching.
Dylan Sanders|
Feb 26, 2025; West Palm Beach, Florida, USA; Houston Astros outfielder Cooper Hummel (1) runs after he hits a ball to right field during the first inning against the Washington Nationals at CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches.
Feb 26, 2025; West Palm Beach, Florida, USA; Houston Astros outfielder Cooper Hummel (1) runs after he hits a ball to right field during the first inning against the Washington Nationals at CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches. | Reinhold Matay-Imagn Images

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Baltimore Orioles

The Baltimore Orioles lineup has been plagued against left-handed pitching this season, so they are looking for more options outside of the organization.

MASNsports.com's Roch Kubatko reported that the Orioles will be signing outfielder Cooper Hummel and designating infielder Terrin Vavra for assignment as the corresponding move to put Hummel on the 40-man roster.

Hummel was a standout from this past spring training for Houston that has been unable to crack a Major League squad.

The outfielder posted a .316/.435/.447 slash line with five doubles as a member of the Astros this spring. Many thought he had a chance to break camp with them, but they opted to go with the rookie Cam Smith instead.

That left Hummel in the minor leagues before he was DFA'd and subsequently elected free agency just a couple of weeks later.

The 30-year-old switch-hitter signed a minor league contract with the New York Yankees later that week and he has been there since his release on May 24.

In the minor leagues this year, he has posted a .258/.415/.209 slash line. At worst, he gets on base at a solid rate.

The reason that Baltimore might be intrigued by him is that he is slashing .375/.500/.375 against southpaws this season.

The Orioles are slashing .203/.281/.279 against lefties this year, so any option should not be left on the table.

Vavra was first brought to Baltimore as a piece of the Mychal Givens trade back in 2020. He made 67 appearances in the Majors before getting DFA'd back in 2024.

He came back on a minor league deal just a month later and has remained in the minors since. He has slashed .317/.388/.450 this year, but is another left-handed hitter.

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Dylan Sanders
DYLAN SANDERS

Dylan Sanders graduated from Louisiana State University with a degree from the Manship School of Mass Communication in 2023. He was born in raised in Baton Rouge, LA but has also lived in Buffalo, NY. Though he is a recent graduate, he has been writing about sports since he was in high school, covering different sports from baseball to football. While in college, he wrote for the school paper The Reveille and for 247Sports. He was able cover championships in football, baseball and women's basketball during his time at LSU. He has also spent a few years covering the NFL draft and every day activities of the New Orleans Saints. He is a Senior Writer at Inside the Marlins and will also be found across Sports Illustrated's baseball sites as a contributing writer. You can follow him on Twitter or Instagram @dillysanders

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