Five and a half years ago, the Baltimore Orioles signaled the start of a full organizational rebuild, which began with the trading of All-Star third baseman, Manny Machado.
Under previous ownership, Machado would have never received close to the $300 million deal he would receive the following season in free agency. So, former Oriole GM Dan Duquette would trade Machado to the Los Angeles Dodgers in return for five prospects (Yusniel Díaz, Rylan Bannon, Breyvic Valera, Zach Pop and Dean Kremer). Díaz, Bannon and Valera combined for 12 major league hits, and Pop has pitched 155.2 innings over four seasons after being lost in the Rule 5 Draft.
Kremer is the lone piece left of that trade, and at 30-30 with a 4.28 ERA over his five big league seasons, the 29-year-old right-hander has struggled this spring. In four Grapefruit League appearances, Kremer has tossed 12 innings with 11 strikeouts and eight walks, posting a 9.00 ERA.
While it’s harder to gauge where starters are in spring training, entering his prime years, Kremer should be more established this far into spring.
Now, I will be one of the first to say that Kremer has come up big for the Birds over the last two seasons. Totaling a 21-15 record with a 4.11 ERA over 302.1 innings, Kremer has stepped up when it mattered most.
“I’m still fooling them,” Kremer said with a smile when he recently met with the media. “But, no. I got an opportunity and took advantage of it. And I’m just doing what I can to stay here.”
Kremer secured the Orioles’ postseason-clinching victory in 2023, took a no-hitter into the seventh inning of a game against the Tampa Bay Rays last September and pitched to a 2.98 ERA over his last eight starts to close 2024.
So, the looming question is: Should Birdland worry about Kremer with his struggles this spring?
While his joke of “fooling them” rings more true than people realize, the fact is that Kremer is the O’s most established organizational pitcher, surrounded by savvy veterans Zach Eflin, Charlie Morton, Albert Suárez and Tomoyuki Sugano. He needs to embrace his standing with the club.
With two seasons of control left on his contract, he has the ability to lock down a role beyond tomorrow and secure his standing as an experienced veteran you can count on in big situations.
The metrics might say Kremer is pulling a huge Houdini trick and that it’s hard to expect the miracle to keep going. His career WAR is 4.3, opponents are hitting .287 against him with a 1.318 WHIP and he has allowed 73 home runs across 95 career games.
So, is Kremer able to continue the magic trick? His career says he will. And as he enters his prime years, he has the ability to establish himself as a piece of the Orioles’ future for years to come.
What are your thoughts on Dean Kremer, and are you concerned with his rough start to spring? Let us know in the comments below! Make sure to follow The Baltimore Battery on Facebook, X, Bluesky and TikTok, and use the hashtag #baltimorebattery when sharing our content!
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