Former Baltimore Orioles Starting Pitcher Finds Success In New Bullpen Role

When the MLB off-season started in early November, the belief around the league was that the Baltimore Orioles would be one of the most active teams of the free agency period. 

President of Baseball Operations Mike Elias made a lot of moves to improve the current roster, such as bringing in Pete Alonso, Shane Baz, Taylor Ward and Ryan Helsley. 

However, many fans would have liked to see Baltimore do more, especially in the construction of the bullpen. 

Outside of Helsley, Baltimore only made one more move to their bullpen, that being when they traded for Andrew Kitteredge from the Chicago Cubs. However, Baltimore actually added a third arm to their bullpen, and it wasn't via free agency or trade. 

Wells was a 15th round-pick by the Minnesota Twins in 2016, but never carved out a role in their future plans. Wells was ultimately placed in the 2020 Rule 5 Draft, where Baltimore selected him.

Wells made his MLB debut for Baltimore on April 4, 2021 where he would immediately showcase his talents as a reliever. However, Wells switched from a bullpen role to a starting pitcher for the next two seasons. 

In 2022 and 2023, Wells posted a 3.96 ERA with a 1.00 WHIP and 194 strikeouts across 222.1 innings of work (43 games started). 

The Rule 5 pickup was a pleasant surprise for what was a subpar Baltimore pitching rotation in 2022 an 2023. Unfortunately for Wells, he would see his 2024 and a majority of his 2025 campaign cut short due to an elbow injury. 

Fast forward to the year 2026, and Wells is fully healthy. However, his role for the team is different than what it's been for the past five years, as Baltimore now has a solidified pitching rotation that is without Wells. 

Now, Wells has moved back to the bullpen, where he is projected to be one of Baltimore's better relievers for the 2026 season. The 32 year-old has an intriguing five pitch mix, consisting of an array of breaking balls. In 2025, Wells' four-seam fastball averaged only 92.8 MPH, but makes up for his lack of velocity with strong changeups, sliders, cutters and curveballs. 

In only 21.2 innings last season, Wells posted a 2.91 ERA, but excelled in two areas that every reliever should; those areas being in walk rate (2.4%) and chase rate (35.3%). 

Fast forward to spring training, and Wells has put together a solid campaign out the bullpen for Baltimore. In 6.2 innings, Wells has posted a 5.40 ERA, while striking out nine batters with a 0.90 WHIP. 

Wells' makeup projects for him to be one of Baltimore's most trusted relievers, and his progress post injury has been extremely encouraging. Keep an eye out for Wells to have a big year out the bullpen for Baltimore in 2026.