Weston K's first MLB batter on 3 pitches in scoreless O's debut

BALTIMORE -- Cameron Weston wanted to treat it like any other baseball game. But, when the bullpen doors swung open in center field at the start of the ninth inning at Camden Yards on Thursday night, the 25-year-old from Pittsburgh entered the most high-stakes matchup of his life thus far.

It was Weston’s MLB debut, and he was entering a one-run game for the Orioles.

“It’s a little bit hard. Everything feels brand new,” Weston said. “It feels like you almost don’t know what’s going on. You just try to relax, take a deep breath and just try to calm down altogether."

Although Baltimore took a 2-1 loss to Toronto, Weston did his job. The 2022 eighth-round Draft pick, who was recalled from Triple-A Norfolk earlier in the day, worked a scoreless ninth to keep the deficit at one heading to the bottom of the inning.

Weston immediately picked up his first strikeout upon entering the contest, punching out Andrés Giménez on three pitches and getting him to swing and miss at an 0-2 sweeper. After issuing a nine-pitch walk to Brandon Valenzuela, Weston got George Springer to ground into a 6-4-3 double play to end the frame.

“That was awesome. It was fun to see him go out there and do his thing, especially the first strikeout,” manager Craig Albernaz said. “He looked great, pounded the strike zone, the sweeper looked great and the split, too. I was excited to get him out there, and then he did a great job.”

It was a busy travel day for Weston, who found out he was getting called up on Wednesday night. But multiple members of his family made it in time, including his mom, Erin, who he said was “100 percent” the most emotional of the group.

“You just get the call, and all of a sudden you’re hurrying up to catch a flight and on the move after that,” Weston said. “It was exciting. Very exciting.”

Weston was recalled to get a fresh arm in Baltimore’s bullpen. Righty Trey Gibson (the O's No. 4 prospect per MLB Pipeline) was optioned to Triple-A after tossing 5 2/3 innings of one-run ball and earning his first big league win in Wednesday’s 11-2 victory over the Rays.

Last year, Weston had a solid season for Norfolk, recording a 4.59 ERA over 29 games (26 starts). This season, the results hadn’t been quite as great -- a 6.26 ERA in 11 games (seven starts) -- but his strikeout rate is up, as he fanned 40 batters over 27 1/3 innings.

Weston (who was the Orioles' No. 17 prospect entering the 2025 season) has a deep arsenal of pitches. His two primary offerings are a sinker and a sweeper, but he also has thrown a slider, a splitter and a changeup at Triple-A in 2026.

Albernaz became familiar with Weston in Spring Training, as the righty was a non-roster invitee to big league camp. Weston threw five scoreless innings over two Grapefruit League outings this spring, giving up only two hits with eight strikeouts and two walks.

"I enjoyed watching him pitch," Albernaz said. "Kind of a funky look from the right, a little lower slot. He can spin it really well. The track record, not this year but previously, was a little erratic, not in the strike zone. But the strike quality has been better, and he's been tough on righties, just because of his arm slot. ... I'm just pumped that he's here and excited for him."

Weston became the second pitcher drafted by Baltimore since Mike Elias took over the baseball operations department in November 2018 to make it to the big leagues for the club, joining right-hander Kade Strowd last year. (Brandon Young and Gibson were prospects developed by the O's, but they both signed as undrafted free agents.)

Gibson is returning to Norfolk looking to build upon the first taste of the big leagues he got this month. The 24-year-old right-hander had a 3.65 ERA in three games (two starts) for the O's in May, giving the organization reason to be encouraged that he could become an integral part of the club's pitching staff down the line.

"Gibby gets it, and he handled [getting optioned] like a pro," Albernaz said. "He understands this is part of it, and we have a great plan in place for him. He's very diligent with his work. So we know when he goes down to Norfolk, it's not out of sight, out of mind. He's going to get his work in, and he'll be ready for the next time his name is called."