Minor League Baseball

Baltimore Orioles Option Former All-Star Starter to Minor Leagues

Signed this past weekend, Kyle Gibson will need to build up in the minor leagues before he joins the big-league rotation, likely in early May.
Brady Farkas|
St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Kyle Gibson (44) pitches against the San Diego Padres during the first inning at Busch Stadium in 2024.
St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Kyle Gibson (44) pitches against the San Diego Padres during the first inning at Busch Stadium in 2024. | Jeff Curry-Imagn Images

In this story:

Baltimore Orioles

On the final day of the Grapefruit League season, the Baltimore Orioles made an expected move, sending former All-Star starter Kyle Gibson down to the minor leagues.

Per Andy Kostka of the Baltimore Banner:

The Orioles made the following moves:

-Optioned KyleGibson to minors (expected as he builds up).
- Reassigned catcher Maverick Handley and infielders Vimael Machín, Emmanuel Rivera, Luis Vázquez to minors.

That leaves Livan Soto and Jorge Mateo as last infield options

Gibson has already built himself to 50-70 pitches but manager Brandon Hyde says he won't join the starting rotation until early May, in all likelihood.

Gibson, 37, is a 12-year veteran of the Minnesota Twins, Texas Rangers, Philadelphia Phillies, Orioles and Cardinals. He made the All-Star Game in 2021 with Texas and owns a 112-108 career record. He's made 30 starts or more in each of the last three seasons. He pitched for the O's at the end of the 2023 season, helping them advance to the playoffs, and spoke highly of his return to Baltimore over the weekend.

Gibson's signing became a necessity for the organization after injuries to Grayson Rodriguez and Kyle Bradish. Bradish will be out through midseason as he battles back from elbow surgery, but Rodriguez's injury just occurred during spring training.

Eventually, the O's will pair Gibson with Charlie Morton, Zach Eflin and Tomoyuki Sugano.

In the meantime, Gibson will likely see starts at Triple-A Norfolk, but he could see appearances at any O's affiliate, since they are all located nearly Baltimore as well.

Related MiLB Stories

EMOTIONAL CALL: Shane Smith, who was a Rule-5 draft choice of the Chicago White Sox this winter, has made the team. He shared an emotional call with his family, which you can see here. CLICK HERE:

MAYO CLARIFIES: After his comments on being demoted grabbed headlines, Orioles prospect Coby Mayo issued another set of comments. CLICK HERE:

LAWLAR DOWN: Jordan Lawlar, one of the top prospects in baseball, was sent to Triple-A this week by the Arizona Diamondbacks. CLICK HERE:

Published | Modified
Brady Farkas
BRADY FARKAS

Brady Farkas is the senior writer for “Minor League Baseball on SI’’ and the host of “The Payoff Pitch’’ podcast, which can be found on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Brady has spent nearly a decade in sports talk radio and is a graduate of Oswego State University. Follow Brady on Twitter @WDEVRadioBrady.

Home/NEWS