Cardinals Trade Nick Raquet To Orioles
Today: The Orioles have announced the trade and activated Raquet. Brandon Young has been optioned to Triple-A. To make space for Raquet on their 40-man roster, Baltimore transferred Eflin to the 60-day IL. Elbow discomfort forced Eflin to make an early exit during his season debut on March 31, and he is going for a second opinion from Dr. Keith Meister later today. At the very least, he will now miss April and May.
April 6, 9:27 pm: Baltimore is sending minor league outfielder Brayden Smith to St. Louis in return, reports Derrick Goold of The St. Louis Post-Dispatch. The lefty-hitting Smith was the O’s 13th-round pick last year after spending one season at Oklahoma State. He hit .200 with one home run while drawing 12 walks in 16 games at Low-A Delmarva to begin his pro career.
April 6, 9:08 pm: The Orioles are acquiring reliever Nick Raquet from the Cardinals, reports Ari Alexander of Boston 7 News. St. Louis designated the lefty for assignment yesterday. Baltimore will need to create a 40-man roster spot once the trade is final; Heston Kjerstad and Zach Eflin are potential 60-day injured list candidates.
Raquet debuted last September and tossed two scoreless appearances of one inning apiece. That’s the entirety of the 30-year-old lefty’s big league experience to date. Raquet held his spot on the 40-man roster over the offseason but was optioned early in Spring Training. He has worked three innings of one-run ball with a trio of strikeouts for Triple-A Memphis to begin the season.
It has been a long climb to the big leagues for Raquet. The 6’0″ hurler was a third-round pick by the Nationals out of William & Mary in 2017. He never made it beyond A-ball in the Washington system and was released in 2020. Raquet was out of baseball for a few seasons before turning independent and Dominican Winter League work into a new minor league opportunity with St. Louis in 2024.
Raquet spent most of last season in the upper levels of the minor leagues. He combined for a 2.24 ERA with a 28% strikeout rate over 52 1/3 frames, excelling in Double-A before struggling at the top minor league level. He’s a slider specialist whose breaking ball sits in the 82-84 mph range. Raquet’s fastball only lands around 90-91, but he has a full slate of minor league options and can head to Triple-A Norfolk.
Orioles Lose Dietrich Enns To Foot Infection, Recall Brandon Young
The Orioles placed left-hander Dietrich Enns on the injured list with an infected left foot, per a team announcement. The issue required IV antibiotics at a Pittsburgh hospital, manager Craig Albernaz told reporters, including Andy Kostka of the Baltimore Banner. “It’s crazy,” Albernaz said. “I’m not sure what happened. But his foot is pretty gnarly.”
Right-hander Brandon Young was recalled to take Enns’ spot on the roster. He’ll draw the start tonight against the White Sox. Baltimore needed another starter after Zach Eflin went to the IL with an elbow injury. Cade Povich was also recalled recently. He was a candidate to draw the start on Monday, but ended up tossing 5 2/3 innings in relief of Chris Bassitt yesterday.
Enns returned stateside last season after three seasons pitching in Asia. He stumbled to a 5.60 ERA in seven appearances with the Tigers. Detroit shipped him to Baltimore for cash at the trade deadline. Enns emerged as a meaningful part of the Orioles’ bullpen over the final two months of the season. The veteran tossed 28 2/3 innings with a 3.14 ERA and a 27.6% strikeout rate. He also earned a pair of saves.
The Orioles had a $3MM club option on Enns for 2026. Instead of exercising the option, the team worked out a new one-year contract with the lefty. He’s making $2.5MM this season. The reworked deal includes a $3.5MM club option for 2027, with a $125K buyout.
Young made his debut in 2025. He posted an ERA above 6.00 across a dozen starts, though his xFIP (4.52) and SIERA (4.67) suggested he deserved better results. Young, Povich, and Albert Suarez will have a chance to secure the No. 5 spot in the rotation with Eflin potentially facing an extended absence. The righty is getting a second opinion on his injured elbow from orthopedic surgeon Keith Meister.
Photo courtesy of Daniel Kucin Jr., Imagn Images
Orioles Place Yaramil Hiraldo On 15-Day IL, Promote Cade Povich
Prior to today’s game, the Orioles placed right-hander Yaramil Hiraldo on the 15-day injured list (retroactive to April 2) due to inflammation in his throwing shoulder. Left-hander Cade Povich was called up from Triple-A in the corresponding move, and Povich was immediately needed for 5 2/3 innings of long relief work after starter Chris Bassitt was hit hard early in an 8-2 O’s loss to the Pirates.
The 30-year-old Hiraldo made his MLB debut last season, posting a 4.58 ERA over 19 2/3 innings and 18 appearances for the Orioles. Between his decent Spring Training performance and some injuries up and down Baltimore’s pitching staff, Hiraldo won a spot on the Opening Day roster, though he has a 21.60 ERA over 1 2/3 innings of work early in this season. Three of Hiraldo’s four earned runs allowed came in his last outing on Tuesday, and his shoulder issue may have impacted that rough performance.
Hiraldo will now get some time to heal up, while Povich joins the roster in perhaps more than just a bullpen capacity. MASNsports.com’s Roch Kubatko wrote yesterday that Povich was brought up as a member of the Orioles’ medical taxi squad, so perhaps the team already had a feeling that Hiraldo would require an IL stint. However, the feeling was that Povich was in line to start Monday’s game as the replacement for the injured Zach Eflin, but that plan is obviously out the window given Povich’s usage today.
Dean Kremer was optioned to Triple-A before the season began, as the longtime starter was the odd man out given Baltimore’s full rotation of Trevor Rogers, Kyle Bradish, Shane Baz, Bassitt, and Eflin. Since injuries are inevitable, Kremer was expected to be called up sooner rather than later, though Kremer just made a Triple-A start on Friday. Rogers’ last start was last Wednesday, so he might end up going on Monday on normal rest, rather than benefiting from an extra rest day provided by the Orioles’ off-day last Thursday.
Injury Notes: Eflin, Kirk, Cleavinger, Falter
Orioles righty Zach Eflin didn’t travel with the team to Pittsburgh. He’s on the 15-day injured list due to an elbow issue, and manager Craig Albernaz told reporters prior to today’s series opener against the Pirates that Eflin is headed for a second opinion with orthopedic surgeon Keith Meister (via Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com). Eflin exited his first start of the season in the fourth inning due to elbow discomfort. The O’s sent him for imaging and placed him on the 15-day injured list the following day. Albernaz did not disclose the findings of the original MRI.
It’s an ominous scenario for the Orioles and for Eflin, who returned to Baltimore on a one-year, $10MM deal after undergoing back surgery in August. The 31-year-old righty (32 next week) wound up making it back from that surgery in time for Opening Day but now has a separate injury issue threatening his ability to contribute. Eflin was terrific with the Rays and O’s from 2023-24, pitching to a combined 3.54 ERA in 343 innings across the first two seasons of a three-year, $40MM deal originally signed with Tampa Bay. He was rocked for a 5.93 ERA in 14 starts last season while trying to pitch through lat and back injuries.
A few more injury situations of particular note from around the league…
- The Blue Jays are awaiting x-ray results on catcher Alejandro Kirk, writes Keegan Matheson of MLB.com. The Toronto backstop left today’s loss to the White Sox in the bottom of the tenth with a left thumb injury. An Austin Hays foul tip struck Kirk awkwardly in his glove hand, and he left the game with trainers. Tyler Heineman came off the bench to finish the game (and showed some rust on a throwing error that allowed the tying run to score with two outs). Brandon Valenzuela is the only other catcher on the 40-man roster. Skipper John Schneider indicated he’d get his first major league call if Kirk misses time.
- Rays lefty Garrett Cleavinger landed on the 15-day injured list this morning due to tightness in his right calf, per the team. Right-hander Hunter Bigge was recalled from Triple-A Durham in his place. It certainly doesn’t sound like a serious injury, but any absence for Cleavinger is notable for Tampa Bay. Though he’s not a household name, the 31-year-old southpaw pitched to a 3.04 earned run average with a 30% strikeout rate and 9.9% walk rate in 133 1/3 innings from 2023-25. He’s emerged as a key late-inning arm for skipper Kevin Cash, totaling six saves and 36 holds over the past two seasons.
- The Royals are also down a lefty reliever, as they placed swingman Bailey Falter on the 15-day injured list due to elbow inflammation. Luinder Avila is up from Triple-A and will start the first game of tomorrow’s doubleheader against Milwaukee. (Avila would have started tonight before the series opener was scrapped by weather.) Anne Rogers of MLB.com relays that Falter received an injection to treat valgus extension overload and will be shut down from throwing for a few days. The southpaw missed the final five weeks last season with biceps inflammation and has been tagged for five runs over 3 1/3 innings during his first two appearances.
MLBTR Podcast: Lots Of Extensions And Big-Picture Topics
The latest episode of the MLB Trade Rumors Podcast is now live on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you get your podcasts! Make sure you subscribe as well! You can also use the player at this link to listen, if you don’t use Spotify or Apple for podcasts.
This week, host Darragh McDonald is joined by Steve Adams and Anthony Franco of MLB Trade Rumors to discuss…
- The Mariners signing an extension with Colt Emerson (1:20)
- The Brewers agreeing to an extension with Cooper Pratt (19:05)
- The Orioles signing an extension with Shane Baz (28:40)
- The Cubs signing extensions with Pete Crow-Armstrong and Nico Hoerner (38:00)
- Free agents coming from Japan getting less than expected this offseason (53:35)
- The Tarik Skubal arbitration decision potentially being a paradigm shift (59:15)
- The economics of the game with the collective bargaining agreement expiring in less than a year (1:05:50)
- Did the short-term deals for Kyle Tucker and Bo Bichette signal a new trend? (1:22:45)
- Dealing with high-spending clubs with draft pick penalties instead of financial penalties (1:31:00)
- Can the Brewers continue to win after trading away some valuable guys? (1:38:10)
- The exciting crop of 2026 rookies (1:41:15)
- Can the Pirates push into contention in a crowded NL Central? (1:43:40)
- The excitement around the introduction of the ABS system (1:44:50)
Check out our past episodes!
- The PCA and Sanchez Extensions, And Prospect Promotions And Reassignments – listen here
- Banged-Up Reds And Braves, Kevin McGonigle, And Spring Breakouts – listen here
- Jesús Luzardo’s Extension, Atlanta’s Depth, And Zack Littell – listen here
The podcast intro and outro song “So Long” is provided courtesy of the band Showoff. Check out their Facebook page here!
Photo courtesy of Charles LeClaire, Imagn Images
Orioles Transfer Jordan Westburg To 60-Day IL
The Orioles announced this morning that infielder Jordan Westburg has been transferred to the 60-day injured list. That opens a spot on the 40-man roster for righty Albert Suarez, whose contract has been selected from Triple-A Norfolk — a move first reported to be in the works last night. Right-hander Zach Eflin heads to the 15-day IL, as expected. He and the O’s are awaiting MRI results to determine the source of Eflin’s elbow discomfort.
Westburg himself is dealing with a severe elbow issue. Baltimore’s third baseman experienced elbow discomfort early in spring training and was found to have a partial tear of the ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow. He received a platelet-rich plasma injection and is attempting to rehab the injury without surgery. The Orioles had previously indicated that Westburg would miss all of April, but the move to the 60-day IL pushes his earliest possible return date out to May 21. (Westburg’s original IL placement on March 25 was backdated the maximum three days to March 22.)
Today’s move to the 60-day IL doesn’t necessarily represent a setback, nor does it indicate that surgery is any likelier now than it was at the time of Westburg’s original diagnosis back in February. To the contrary, manager Craig Albernaz tells the O’s beat that Westburg is continuing his rehab progression and has been cleared to swing a bat and begin playing catch (via Jacob Calvin Meyer of the Baltimore Sun). That’s a fairly encouraging update, though Westburg obviously isn’t out of the woods entirely.
The injury to Westburg has opened the door for former top prospect Coby Mayo to get a legitimate look at his original position. Westburg’s presence in the infield had previously pushed Mayo across the diamond to first base, and that spot was filled over the winter when Baltimore signed Pete Alonso to a five-year deal. Entering camp, it wasn’t clear that Mayo would have a path to regular at-bats — at least not until news of Westburg’s elbow dropped.
Mayo had a big spring showing but has started slowly, going 2-for-13 in four games — all at third base. Utilityman Blaze Alexander has also logged one game at the hot corner. They’ll continue as the primary options at third base. It’s conceivable that Alexander could leapfrog Mayo for playing time there if Mayo struggles once Jackson Holliday returns from the IL and bumps Alexander out of the mix for playing time at second base. For now, the O’s are hoping that Mayo can make good on his productive Triple-A track record and tap into the form he showed this spring (.378/.405/.622 in 42 plate appearances).
Orioles To Select Albert Suárez
The Orioles will select swingman Albert Suárez onto the big league roster, reports Jacob Calvin Meyer of The Baltimore Sun. Manager Craig Albernaz confirmed this evening that the O’s expect Zach Eflin to land on the injured list after he left tonight’s start with elbow discomfort.
Suárez will need to be added to the 40-man roster. That’s at capacity, so they’ll either designate someone for assignment or place an injured player on the 60-day injured list. Jordan Westburg is a borderline 60-day IL candidate. Eflin could be as well depending on the results of tomorrow’s MRI. Otherwise, recent DFA trade pickups Johnathan Rodríguez and Jayvien Sandridge probably occupy the final two spots on the 40-man roster.
Dean Kremer seems likely to step into the open rotation spot. Baltimore can operate with a four-man rotation in the interim. Trevor Rogers goes tomorrow opposite Nathan Eovaldi as they look to avoid a sweep at the hands of the Rangers. The O’s are off on Thursday before heading to Pittsburgh for a weekend series. They’ll need to replace Eflin in the rotation by next week’s series against the White Sox.
Suárez adds a multi-inning arm to Albernaz’s bullpen. The O’s used three relievers — Dietrich Enns and Rico Garcia for multiple innings — after Chris Bassitt was knocked out by the fifth inning on Monday. Grant Wolfram, Yennier Cano, Yaramil Hiraldo and Anthony Nunez all pitched tonight due to Eflin’s fourth-inning injury. Closer Ryan Helsley is their only reliever who hasn’t been called upon yet in the series.
The 36-year-old Suárez will be appearing in his third straight season with the Orioles. He was a nice find out of the KBO and turned in a 3.70 ERA across 133 2/3 innings two years ago. Shoulder and elbow injuries limited him to five appearances and 11 2/3 frames last season.
That cost him his 40-man roster spot at season’s end, but the O’s brought him back on a minor league deal. Suárez had a tough spring, allowing 10 runs (nine earned) with nine strikeouts and five walks through 10 2/3 innings. He began the season with Triple-A Norfolk but hasn’t made an appearance through their first four games.
Zach Eflin Going For MRI With Elbow Discomfort
8:36pm: Manager Craig Albernaz confirmed the O’s anticipate placing Eflin on the 15-day injured list (via Andy Kostka of The Baltimore Banner). The team will know more after he goes for imaging tomorrow. Baltimore is off Thursday and could operate with an extra reliever for a few games. They’ll presumably recall Kremer to step into the rotation by the middle of next week.
8:31pm: Orioles righty Zach Eflin left his season debut tonight in the fourth inning after a visit from the trainers. The team announced the issue as elbow discomfort and will surely have more details over the next few days.
The injury seemingly occurred on a 76 mph curveball to Texas third baseman Ezequiel Duran. Eflin had pitched well before the injury, striking out seven while allowing one run across 3 2/3 frames. His velocity was fine throughout the appearance and there was no indication the veteran righty was struggling physically until his last pitch. Baltimore’s bullpen would give up seven runs over the final 4 1/3 innings and take an 8-5 loss.
Eflin has unfortunately battled a number of injuries throughout his career. Knee issues were the main concern during his early days with the Phillies. Over the past couple seasons, he had been bothered more frequently by back and arm issues. Eflin had brief injured list stints related to his lower back in both 2023 and ’24. He had three trips to the IL last year, a season in which he was limited to 14 starts.
The 31-year-old suffered a lat strain in April, knocking him out for a month. The back flared up not long after he returned. A second back injury resulted in a lumbar microdiscectomy that ended his season. Eflin returned to the O’s on a one-year, $10MM free agent deal midway through the rehab. That went without issue, but his return for the start of the season is clouded by possible concern about the elbow.
If Eflin hits the injured list, the O’s would presumably turn to Dean Kremer to round out the rotation. Baltimore optioned him to Triple-A to begin the season. It was a numbers game more than anything, as they would have needed to go to a six-man rotation if they didn’t want to use Kremer out of the bullpen. He’s a perfectly capable fifth starter who’d slot behind Trevor Rogers, Kyle Bradish, Shane Baz and Chris Bassitt.
Injury Notes: Murphy, Kittredge, Lodolo, Canning, Pushard
Braves catcher Sean Murphy will be with High-A Rome tomorrow, per Mark Bowman of MLB.com. It’s not yet determined if he will begin a rehab assignment or simply take live batting practice. Either way, Bowman suggests that Murphy could be trending towards a return before the month of May. Rehab assignments for position players can last as long as 20 days.
Murphy has been hobbled by injuries the past two years and slashed .197/.293/.384 since the start of 2024. That was a notable drop from the .240/.336/.441 line he had in his career at the end of the 2023 season. Ideally, his return from September hip surgery will get him back on that previous track. Murphy was expected back at some point in May but this latest update suggests he could beat that target.
When he gets back, it could impact other players on the roster. Jonah Heim is currently backing up Drake Baldwin. It’s expected that the club will use the designated hitter spot to give regular at-bats to both Murphy and Baldwin. Perhaps they could cut Heim from the roster or keep him as a third catcher. Dominic Smith is getting time in the DH spot for now and he has performed well, though in a small sample size of two games.
Some more injury notes from around the league…
- Orioles right-hander Andrew Kittredge is set to begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Norfolk tomorrow, per Jake Rill of MLB.com. He missed most of spring training due to shoulder inflammation and started the season on the IL. He posted a 3.40 earned run average last year with a 30.8% strikeout rate, 5.3% walk rate and 49.2% ground ball rate. Baltimore has Ryan Helsley in the closer’s role. Once Kittredge is off the IL, he’ll jump into a setup role alongside guys like Yennier Cano and Tyler Wells.
- Reds left-hander Nick Lodolo is set to make a rehab start on Thursday, per Charlie Goldsmith of Charlie’s Chalkboard. A blister sent the southpaw to the IL to start the year. Goldsmith suggests Lodolo could rejoin the club for their series in Miami next week, implying Lodolo would only need to make the one rehab start. Cincinnati is also without Hunter Greene to start the year, so it would be great to get Lodolo back sooner rather than later. The rotation is currently manned by Andrew Abbott, Brady Singer, Rhett Lowder, Chase Burns and Brandon Williamson.
- Padres right-hander Griffin Canning tossed three innings in a simulated game yesterday, per Jeff Sanders of the San Diego Union-Tribune, and will begin a rehab assignment on Saturday. Rehab assignments for pitchers can last as long as 30 days, so it seems Canning is trending towards a return in April or perhaps in early May. It was reported a few weeks ago that late April would be possible but that May or June would be more likely. Perhaps Canning is now on a path for the more optimistic end of that window.
- The Cardinals today placed right-hander Matt Pushard on the 15-day injured list, retroactive to March 30th, due to right knee patellar tendinitis. Fellow righty Gordon Graceffo was recalled as the corresponding move. It’s unclear how long Pushard is expected to be out. As a Rule 5 pick, he has to spend at least 90 days on the active roster this year or else the Rule 5 restrictions will carry over into the 2027 season.
Photo courtesy of Dale Zanine, Imagn Images
Orioles Acquire Johnathan Rodriguez From Guardians
The Orioles acquired outfielder Johnathan Rodriguez from the Guardians in exchange for minor league right-hander Carter Rustad, MLB.com’s Tim Stebbins. reports. The two teams have each officially announced the trade, and the Orioles optioned Rodriguez to Triple-A.
Rodriguez is a veteran of 44 big league games, all with the Guardians in 2024-25. A third-round pick for Cleveland in the 2017 draft, Rodriguez has been crushing minor league pitching for four years now, and he has a .301/.390/.535 slash line and 56 homers over 1083 plate appearances at the Triple-A level. In the majors, however, Rodriguez has hit only .176/.282/.304 with 36 strikeouts over his 117 PA in a Guards uniform, as his struggles with advanced spin rates have been highlighted against upper-level pitchers.
It was enough for the Guardians to designate Rodriguez for assignment in advance of Opening Day, and Baltimore stepped up with a trade offer to bring the 26-year-old outfielder into the organization. Rodriguez has a minor league option remaining, so he’ll provide the O’s with some depth at the very least, even if it remains unclear where exactly Rodriguez could fit onto their 26-man roster unless an injury arises.
Baltimore is already juggling Taylor Ward, Tyler O’Neill, Dylan Beavers, Leody Taveras, and utilitymen Jeremiah Jackson and Blaze Alexander as candidates for outfield duty. Jackson and Alexander will probably see more time on the infield with Jackson Holliday and Jordan Westburg still on the injured list, however, creating more need for an optionable outfielder like Rodriguez to be part of the mix at Triple-A. It could also be that the Orioles’ evaluators see Rodriguez as a project to be fixed, as his hitting potential and strong throwing arm make him an interesting player to watch if he learns how to handle movement.
Rustad is a few weeks away from his 25th birthday, and the righty was a 15th-round pick for Baltimore in the 2024 draft. The Mizzou product has worked almost exclusively as a reliever in pro ball, and he posted a 3.23 ERA, 24.6% strikeout rate, and 10.1% walk rate across 53 total minor league innings in 2025, moving from A-ball to high-A to Double-A before the year was out.