Baltimore

Orioles

Cooke, a former Blue Jays prospect, seemed potentially interesting in relief in 2023, when he posted an 80/19 K/BB in 44 1/3 innings between three levels in the minors. That earned him an invite to big-league camp the following spring. However, he struggled that year, underwent Tommy John in Jan. 2025 and was released prior to this season. He made his comeback in indy ball, posting a 2.66 ERA in 23 2/3 innings for Lexington in the Atlantic League. Now he’ll get a look from a rival AL East team.

Irish had knee surgery back in July that ended his minor league season after hitting .286/.388/.528 with 16 homers and 20 steals in 343 plate appearances for High-A Frederick. The Orioles want him to make up for those lost at-bats in the fall league, and Irish has been crushing the ball, leading the AFL in hits and home runs. He’s now 11-for-26 (.423) with two home runs, five RBI, and two steals.

According to the Texas Orthopedic and Spine Associates website, the procedure removed damaged tissue from the triangular fibrocartilage complex in the wrist. Holliday will be able to begin his rehab in a few weeks, and he should be good to go for spring training.

The 32-year-old Rees, a former Blue Jays prospect, got a little attention back in 2019 after posting a crazy 0.73 ERA and an 88/15 K/BB in 61 2/3 innings in A-ball. He topped out in Triple-A with the Jays, but he will get another look from a major league team next spring after spending two years in indy ball and 2026 in Mexico.

Ogando, 26, joined the Orioles organization in 2025 after seven years with the D-backs and a 2024 spent in indy ball. He had a 4.89 ERA and a 61/37 K/BB in 49 2/3 innings out of the pen between Double- and Triple-A this year.

Westburg missed the entire 2026 season after suffering a UCL sprain in spring training and then having a setback in early May. Westburg wound up having Tommy John surgery in the middle of May but is now beginning his hitting progression, which means he should have plenty of time to be ready to go by spring training.

Bradish dealt with the injury over his final three starts of the season and was placed on the injured list on September 13th. The recovery from this surgery is usually a couple of months long, so he should be able to have a relatively normal offseason and build up to the necessary arm strength by spring training.

Shane Baz and Elmer Rodríguez were supposed to start this one. Both teams will finish the season having played 161 games, with the Yankees going 93-68 and the Orioles 79-82.

Baz will still get to finish on a rather positive note, as he turned in a quality start last time out against the Jays and went without adding to his total of 15 losses in his final three outings. He’ll finish tied with Tanner Bibee and Brady Singer for the MLB lead in losses, though his 4.11 ERA and 154/63 K/BB ratio in 179 2/3 innings aren’t so bad.

Kjerstad was brought up from Triple-A Norfolk on September 23 but hadn’t drawn a start until now. The 27-year-old outfielder will bat eighth for the O’s against Yankees’ right-hander Elmer Rodriguez on Sunday afternoon in New York.