BALTIMORE -- Five games into the 2026 season, the injury bug has returned to Baltimore. And once again, the bad luck has struck right-hander Zach Eflin.
Eflin exited Tuesday’s 8-5 loss to the Rangers at Camden Yards due to right elbow discomfort. It was the 31-year-old right-hander’s first outing of the year, and it was also his first regular-season start since he underwent back surgery last Aug. 18.
The severity of Eflin’s newest injury is not yet known. He is scheduled to undergo imaging on Wednesday and will “more than likely” go on the injured list, per manager Craig Albernaz.
“I feel for Zach,” Albernaz said. “Everything he went through last year, works his butt off this offseason after back surgery, he looked great in camp, did everything that he could do and beyond, and something like that, we all -- the whole coaching staff, the whole team -- you just feel for him. The heart hurts for him. You never want to see anything happen to any player, especially someone like Zach.”
An 11-year MLB veteran, Eflin has never gone on the big league IL because of an elbow injury. He had three stints last year due to a right lat strain (April 8 to May 11) and low back discomfort (June 29 to July 23 and July 29 through the end of the season) before undergoing a lumbar microdiscectomy.
Entering Spring Training there had been uncertainty regarding whether Eflin would be built up in time to be included on the Opening Day roster, as he was the last starter to get into Grapefruit League games. But he had a terrific showing in spring, tossing 7 1/3 scoreless innings over two outings and stating multiple times that he felt much better than he did last year.
Eflin cruised for much of Tuesday night, racking up seven strikeouts over 3 2/3 innings. Texas’ only run against him came on Ezequiel Duran’s leadoff home run in the third.
The Rangers were rallying with two outs in the fourth, when Danny Jansen hit a double and Evan Carter followed with a walk. Eflin threw one pitch to Duran (a 75.8 mph curveball) before head athletic trainer Scott Barringer went to the mound for a lengthy discussion, leading to Eflin’s removal from the contest.
“That’s tough. Any time you see any one of your guys feel something barking, you’re hoping for the best,” said first baseman Pete Alonso, who slugged his first Orioles home run in the contest. “It straight up stinks. Ef’s a good dude and a really, really hard worker. I hope everything is OK because we need him, for sure.”
If Eflin misses an extended period of time, it will be a disappointing outcome, as the Orioles were confident he could return to the form he showed in the second half of 2024, when he posted a 2.60 ERA over nine starts for the team after coming over in a Trade Deadline deal with the Rays. Baltimore showed that belief on Dec. 28, when it re-signed Eflin to a one-year contract worth a guaranteed $10 million that includes a mutual option for the ‘27 season.
The O’s used the IL 39 times for 29 players in 2025, a major reason for a 75-87 showing that resulted in a last-place finish in the American League East. Their rotation depth became an issue early last year, but now they may be in a better position to withstand an injury.
On March 21 the Orioles made the surprising decision to option right-hander Dean Kremer to the Minors rather than use a six-man rotation or piggyback starters. The 30-year-old had a 4.26 ERA in 126 games (123 starts) over six seasons for Baltimore from 2020-25.
Kremer is scheduled to start for Triple-A Norfolk on Friday, but that could change if Baltimore decides to call him up to replace Eflin on the roster.
“We’re talking through everything right now,” Albernaz said.
The O’s will be calling up right-hander Albert Suárez, a source confirmed to MLB.com, though it is not known whether it will be a corresponding transaction for Eflin potentially going on the IL.
MLB teams cannot call up pitchers who were optioned to the Minors for the first 15 days of the season unless they are replacing an injured player. However, Suárez was reassigned to the Minors because he is not on the 40-man roster. So it is possible that Baltimore could recall both Kremer and Suárez, who would provide immediate help for its taxed bullpen.
The 36-year-old Suárez recorded a 3.59 ERA in 37 games (25 starts) over the past two seasons for the Orioles.