Orioles to select contract of veteran righty

The Baltimore Orioles will select the contract of right-hander Roansy Contreras prior to Wednesday's game, interim skipper Tony Mansolino told the team’s beat Tuesday (link via Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com). Baltimore hasn’t yet decided whether Contreras will start the game or pitch in a bulk role following an opener, but Mansolino indicated that Contreras will pitch “a good amount” of Wednesday's game.

Contreras, 25, was a well-regarded prospect in both the Yankees and Pirates systems, going from New York to Pittsburgh as part of the Bucs’ return in the Jameson Taillon swap. He enjoyed a nice debut campaign in 2022, pitching 95 innings of 3.79 ERA ball with a 21.1% strikeout rate and 9.6% walk rate for Pittsburgh, but Contreras has yet to replicate that success. In 136 2/3 innings from 2023-24, he logged a combined 5.47 earned run average with just an 18.5% strikeout rate and a 10.5% walk rate.

The Pirates jettisoned Contreras from the 40-man roster last May, and he’s bounced around the league in journeyman fashion since. The Angels acquired him for cash following that DFA, but Contreras went to the Rangers via waivers at the beginning of the offseason. That set the stage for a tumultuous winter. Contreras was waived five times last winter and went from Texas, to Cincinnati, to Baltimore, back to the Bronx and back to the Orioles before finally clearing waivers at the end of spring training.

That marked Contreras’ first time clearing waivers, which meant the O’s were able to stash him as a minor league depth piece. He’s spent all season in Triple-A, where he’s pitched 91 2/3 innings of 3.73 ERA ball with a 17.8% strikeout rate and 8.4% walk rate. Contreras is out of minor league options, so if this proves to be just a one-off appearance, the Orioles will need to designate him for assignment yet again. 

If he passes through waivers unclaimed this time around, Contreras would be able to reject an outright assignment to the minor leagues in favor of free agency.