Eddie Sykes

Not affiliated with the @orioles but I should be! #baseball #orioles #football #ravens @loyoladons Alumni #RDR

[Eddie Sykes @mlb_eddie]

Hey @Jim22Palmer can you remember anything like this during your time as a player that ended up helping the outcome of the team?

[Eddie Sykes @mlb_eddie]

@JasonLaCanfora I agree with you on this one.

[Birdland Metrics @birdlandmetrics]

In 2020, COVID cut the MLB draft from 40 rounds to 5. Brandon Young went undrafted and signed with the Orioles for $20,000. He turned down his childhood Astros because Baltimore made him "feel like they had a plan for him".

Two years later, Tommy John surgery wiped out his season after just 3 Double-A starts. He rehabbed across four affiliates in 2023, throwing 40 total innings. Then in 2024 he won the Orioles' Jim Palmer Minor League Pitcher of the Year.

His rookie year wasn't pretty. He went 1-7 with a 6.24 ERA. But there were bright spots. He nearly threw a perfect game against Houston and logged an immaculate inning along the way. This offseason he simplified his pitch mix and changed his splitter grip mid-year, the results have followed:

A 3-1 record and a 3.35 ERA so far in 2026.

Asked as a teenager what he'd do after baseball: "I'm just going to play baseball."

His father: "It could have gone either way with all the injuries and setbacks. He's worked harder than anybody I've ever seen."

Young mentioned this spring: "I can never think I don't belong here. That's just not gonna work. I know I can."

From the guy that took the $20K signing bonus. Tommy John. A 6.24 rookie ERA. Nobody has handed Brandon Young anything. He just kept showing up, with Led Zeppelin inked down his pitching arm and Hendrix on the speakers, until the game had no choice but to let him in.

We love to see what he's bringing to the rotation so far in 2026 👏

[Eddie Sykes @mlb_eddie]

@masnRoch @MDSportsblog Hope he makes a team somewhere. He deserves it and has earned it. Solid pitcher.

[Eddie Sykes @mlb_eddie]

Someone must have told the Orioles today that they were the 1966 Orioles.

Where has this heart been all year?

#birdland

[Eddie Sykes @mlb_eddie]

@baltimoresun Can we just cut our losses here

[Eddie Sykes @mlb_eddie]

@ByMattWeyrich Has to be Hardy. The teams he was on did more.

[Eddie Sykes @mlb_eddie]

@AJGershTV Over analysis is killing the team

[Eddie Sykes @mlb_eddie]

@afkostka Can’t lose then

[Eddie Sykes @mlb_eddie]

Giving up next to nothing for power hitter seems like a great move.

If there’s a place for Hinds to open up and reach his potential, I think the Marlins are a good spot for him to do that.

#marlins #mlb #birdland

[Cincinnati Reds @Reds]

The #Reds today traded OF Rece Hinds to the Marlins in exchange for RHP Zach McCambley.

[Eddie Sykes @mlb_eddie]

@masnRoch At least Handley will get to play

[Eddie Sykes @mlb_eddie]

Come on @CalRipkenJr make something happen.

Hometown kid, hometown team, homegrown.

@ryanripkenshow @zachbollinger18 @Orioles #birdland

[Buster Olney @Buster_ESPN]

To this point, there's no indication that Cal Ripken seeks a significant role in the Orioles' organization. But if he ever wants an opportunity to make over a franchise in a way he wants, this would be the time for him to make his move. If ownership wants instant credibility with its fan base, handing Ripken the reins would be the fastest route.

[Eddie Sykes @mlb_eddie]

@BGYKPA @WalterMaselli1 This is true.

[Eddie Sykes @mlb_eddie]

@zachbollinger18 Yoni Rosenblatt was a Elrod Hendricks baseball camp and Beth Tfiloh phenom

[Eddie Sykes @mlb_eddie]

@WalterMaselli1 He isn’t a UFA until 2029 I believe

[Eddie Sykes @mlb_eddie]

Not wrong

[Orioles magic @OriolesMagic23]

Trevor Rogers - back to reality
Kyle Bradish - sucks
Shane Baz - mid with upside
Bassit - mid with experience
Povich - absolutely dog shit
Young - sucks

This is the 2026 Orioles pitching staff folks! #birdland

[Eddie Sykes @mlb_eddie]

It’s gotta be Jeremiah Jackson this far.

[FowlBallTalk @FowlBallTalk]

The Orioles have a tough decision to make room for Holliday.

It’s a pretty tight race.

Who’s it going to be?

[Eddie Sykes @mlb_eddie]

@kenzurawski20 Whoa whoa whoa. Be careful !

[Eddie Sykes @mlb_eddie]

@PaulValleIII Yeah. Wonder what he did to mess this up