Orioles Notes: Bradish, Wells, Mateo

While the 60-70 Orioles are nine games back of a Wild Card spot and would need nothing short of a miracle to make it into the postseason at this point, that isn’t stopping them from doing what they can to best set themselves up for 2026. So far, that’s meant offering ample playing time to young players like Coby Mayo, Dylan Beavers, and the recently-extended Samuel Basallo. One other way to set the roster up for 2026, however, is to get reps in for players who are working their way back from injury.

Three such players are nearing returns from the injured list for Baltimore. Danielle Allentuck of the Baltimore Banner was among those to relay that Kyle Bradish is likely to be activated from the injured list to start Tuesday’s game for the Orioles, while Rich Dubroff of Baltimore Baseball was among those to note that both Tyler Wells and Jorge Mateo figure to be activated from the injured list when rosters expand on September 1. All three players are currently on the 60-day injured list and will need to be added to the 40-man roster when activated.

For Bradish, Tuesday’s expected start will mark his first time on a big league mound since he was sidelined last June due to Tommy John surgery. He’s been on the mend ever since, and has made six rehab starts in the minor leagues as he prepares for his return to the majors. Getting Bradish into a good place to help front the Orioles’ rotation in 2026 figures to be a top priority for Baltimore over the next few weeks. The righty was emerging as an ace before he went under the knife last year, as he followed up a fourth-place finish in 2023 AL Cy Young award voting with a 2.75 ERA and 2.50 FIP and a 32.5% strikeout rate in eight starts last season.

If Bradish can be counted on for anything like his numbers over the last two years, where he pitched to a 2.81 ERA and 3.12 FIP in 38 starts, that would be a massively encouraging turn of events for the Orioles as they look to get back on track next year. Starting pitching was undeniably Baltimore’s Achilles heel this year, as short-term fliers on players like Charlie Morton and Tomoyuki Sugano were unable to compensate for the loss of Bradish due to injury and Corbin Burnes due to him signing with the Diamondbacks in free agency last winter. Burnes went on to have a difficult season of his own in Arizona that ultimately ended in Tommy John surgery, but his absence at the top of the Orioles’ rotation has nonetheless been felt as Baltimore starters have combined for a 4.76 ERA this year that stands as the worst mark in the American League.

Another arm who could help right the ship in terms of starting pitching is the right-handed Wells. Wells underwent an internal brace procedure on his UCL just a few days after Bradish’s own surgery, and while his contributions in 2024 were limited to just three starts where he surrendered 11 runs (ten earned) in 15 1/3 innings of work, he was a useful back-of-the-rotation starter and swing man for the Orioles prior to that year with a 3.96 ERA and 4.53 FIP across 43 starts and 49 relief appearances from 2021 to 2023. If Wells can get back to being that sort of dependable, league-average piece, that would go a long way to raising the floor for the Orioles next year. It’s not entirely clear whether Wells will be able to squeeze into Baltimore’s rotation upon returning given the presence of Sugano, Dean Kremer, Cade Povich, and Trevor Rogers (not to mention Bradish), but it’s not impossible that the club could at least consider a six-man rotation down the stretch.

On the position player side of things, the Orioles also figure to welcome Mateo from the injured list. Mateo, 30, is a pending free agent after this year who has been limited to just 32 games due to a number of injuries this season. After undergoing elbow surgery last August and beginning the season on the injured list, Mateo was sidelined by inflammation in that same elbow back in June. He suffered a hamstring strain about a month after that, which was severe enough to sideline him for what at the time was expected to be between 8 and 12 weeks.

His return will be on the shorter end of that timeframe, as he’s expected to return just under eight weeks after sustaining that injury. Mateo will look to finish the season strong ahead of free agency after struggling to a .180/.231/.279 (41 wRC+) line in 32 games for the Orioles this year, though that body of work includes just 65 trips to the plate. Typically, he’s been a below average but decent enough hitter for a bench role, and hit .225/.271/.371 (78 wRC+) in 423 games from 2022 to 2024.