The last time Zach Eflin started, he took the ball for a team hovering around .500. When he toes the rubber for the Orioles on Monday, it’ll be for a first-place squad.
Baltimore activated Eflin on Sunday, optioning reliever Bryan Baker to Triple-A Norfolk to make room for the veteran starting pitcher it acquired in a deal with the Tampa Bay Rays on Friday. Eflin, who will wear No. 24, will make his Orioles debut Monday during their doubleheader against the Toronto Blue Jays.
“You honestly dream of opportunities like this,” Eflin said in the Orioles’ clubhouse Sunday morning. “To be able to be the team in first place and battling it out with another team, coming fresh off the division title. It’s something that we [the Rays] were in a huge race with him last year and we weren’t able to get it but winning baseball, competitive baseball, high-energy, baseball is what you always dream of as a player.”
Eflin spent seven years with the Philadelphia Phillies before signing a three-year, $40 million deal with Tampa Bay before the 2023 season. Friday’s deal marked the first time in his career that he had been traded. With the Rays struggling to absorb a bevy of injuries to its rotation and the loss of star shortstop Wander Franco, who was charged with sexual abuse and sexual exploitation against a minor in the Dominican Republic, the club has traded Eflin, outfielder Randy Arozarena, reliever Jason Adam ahead of the deadline.
He’s immediately thrust into a tight race between the Orioles and Yankees in the American League East. Eflin knows the Orioles’ lineup well after spending the last two seasons in the division — he has a 3.00 ERA and 0.76 WHIP in five career starts against Baltimore — and will get the chance to acclimate himself with his contract extending through the 2025 season.
“I’ve heard nothing but incredible things about this locker room and obviously playing against them the past year and a half, it’s just you see the youth and how much the guys care about each other and how hard they play,” Eflin said. “Something that we’ve always admired over in Tampa so it’s really exciting to be in this position and be able to play with these guys.”
Eflin joins an Orioles rotation as an accomplished starter who finished sixth in American League Cy Young Award voting last season. So far this year, he’s pitched more like the middle-of-the-rotation starter he’s been for most of his career with a 4.09 ERA and 1.16 WHIP in 19 starts with Tampa Bay. Yet he still offers upside as a pitcher with elite command (2.8% walk rate) and a deceptive arsenal that induces off-balance swings on pitches outside the zone.
“Strike-throwing ability, six different pitch types, command to kind of four quadrants of the zone, fills it up,” pitching coach Drew French said of what Eflin brings to the Orioles’ rotation. “He’s got a lot of tricks and he’s got a lot of ability so we’re really excited to see him go tomorrow.”
The Orioles’ pitching staff, which has struggled in July with a 5.16 ERA, will look to Eflin to pitch deep into games and assume the No. 3 spot in the rotation behind Corbin Burnes and Grayson Rodriguez. Though the front office could still pull off more moves before the 6 p.m. trade deadline Tuesday, his addition is a welcome sight for the Orioles hitters who have had to face him the last two years.
“Facing Eflin, he’s got my number,” infielder Jordan Westburg said. “I have some pretty bad numbers against him. I felt like he kept me off-balanced. He’s got like five or six different pitches, all of them are pretty good. When you think something’s coming, he’s probably going to throw you the other pitch it seemed like. … I’m hoping he comes in here, doesn’t try to reinvent his game, just does what makes him good and I’m sure he’s going to help our rotation.”
As a player who’s been on several playoff teams throughout his career, Eflin also offers an experienced voice for their clubhouse.
“I think first and foremost, you know the type of pitcher he is,” catcher James McCann said. “I’ve faced him numerous times, we’ve faced him numerous times. He’s a guy who’s been around a little while. He understands who he is as a pitcher. And he understands what it’s like to be in a playoff race, in a pennant race. Adding a veteran arm of his caliber to our staff is a huge addition.”
Baltimore Sun reporter Jacob Calvin Meyer contributed to this article.