NEW YORK -- The Orioles have several exciting pitching prospects at Triple-A Norfolk, a group that made a positive impression on Craig Albernaz during his first Spring Training as manager. Now, it's time for one of those young arms to make his MLB debut.
Trey Gibson (Baltimore's No. 3 prospect per MLB Pipeline) joined the O’s taxi squad in New York ahead of Saturday’s 9-4 loss to the Yankees and will start Sunday's game at Yankee Stadium, Albernaz announced. The 23-year-old right-hander will be recalled before the outing, so the club will need to make a corresponding move.
Gibson was scheduled to start for Norfolk on Sunday, which is also when Baltimore had an opening in its starting rotation. The O’s staff is currently missing left-hander Trevor Rogers (illness) and right-hander Dean Kremer (right quad strain). They’ve also lost righty Zach Eflin (Tommy John surgery) for the season.
The need for another starter arose after Chris Bassitt and Brandon Young both started games Thursday during a doubleheader against the Astros at Camden Yards.
Gibson was an undrafted free agent who signed with the Orioles in August 2023, after pitching two seasons at Liberty University. The Newport News, Va., native reached Triple-A in ‘25, when he was also named Baltimore’s Jim Palmer Minor League Pitcher of the Year Award winner.
This year, Gibson has a 4.01 ERA with 25 strikeouts in 24 2/3 innings over six Triple-A starts. He has a 6.17 ERA in 13 outings for Norfolk over the past two seasons.
The numbers don't tell the whole story for Gibson, who has an impressive arsenal of pitches. He has a 55-grade fastball, a 55-grade curveball, a 45-grade cutter and a 40-grade changeup. However, his best offering is a 60-grade slider that is also referred to as a "death ball" -- a modified gyro slider that has little horizontal movement and sharp vertical break.
"You can't be a starter in the Minor Leagues, nevermind the big leagues, without having more than a fastball," Albernaz said. "You need to have elite offspeed offerings, which he does. To me, it's being able to land those in the strike zone, because hitters have to honor them."
Gibson faces a challenging assignment, as he'll be the first starting pitcher in O's history (since 1954) to make his MLB debut at Yankee Stadium. The Yankees are in first place in the American League East and have an AL-best 22-11 record. Their lineup is filled with sluggers such as Aaron Judge, Ben Rice, Cody Bellinger and more.
Also, Gibson will be looking to play the role of stopper for the Orioles, who are now 15-18 -- matching their low-water mark so far this season -- after three consecutive losses (and 11 in their past 17 games).
But Baltimore believes that Gibson is ready for the moment -- the biggest of his baseball career thus far.
"The biggest thing with Trey is we just want him to be Trey," Albernaz said. "It's going to be a fun day for him, and I just want to tell him when I see him to embrace the moment, have some fun with it. He put a lot of work in throughout his whole life to get to this point, and he has great stuff. I want him to trust his stuff."
Gibson will be the second homegrown starting-pitching prospect solely developed by the Orioles to reach the big leagues under the regime of president of baseball operations Mike Elias (who was hired in November 2018), joining Young. But Gibson shouldn't be the last, as right-handers Nestor German (O's No. 10 prospect) and Levi Wells (O's No. 13) are at Triple-A and nearing their own MLB debuts.
The Orioles also made several bullpen moves on Saturday. They reinstated left-hander Dietrich Enns (left foot contusion) and recalled lefty Nick Raquet from Triple-A while optioning right-hander Tyler Wells to Norfolk and designating righty Albert Suárez for assignment.
Albernaz said the O's are not stretching Wells out as a starter at this time, instead opting to keep him in a relief role. The 31-year-old right-hander had a 3.44 ERA in 14 appearances out of Baltimore's bullpen this season.