Tuesday night Orioles game thread: @ San Diego, 9:40 ET

Yay, sometimes Orioles fans do get nice things! Well, in this case it’s not a competitive club or even a late-season win streak, but it is nice to see what this starting rotation might have looked like if, back in April, Tyler Wells had been healthy, not to mention Kyle Bradish and Albert Suárez.

After Bradish made his highly impressive season debut last week, we get one more from that trio tonight, with Tyler Wells on the bump for the first time since April 12, 2024, after he underwent elbow surgery

last season. As our Alex Church noted in his series preview, it’s interesting to see that, despite the talent-strapped state of the bullpen, this team has decided to stretch him out as a starter in September.

Health has long been a question mark for the big righty, who made just three starts in 2024 and has had only had one fully healthy season since coming over in the 2020 Rule 5 draft. That year, 2023, he went 7-6 with a 3.64 ERA, which included a 3.18 ERA in the first half of the season and a 7.07 mark in seven appearances after the break.

As for the Padres starter, it’s crazy that Yu Darvish has been a pro pitcher since 2005, and in the MLB since 2012. Age may be catching up to him, though, as the 39-year-old dealt with right elbow inflammation this spring and has posted what would be his worst career ERA, 5.66, in 10 starts this year since being reactivated late in the summer. I’m not sure what version of Darvish we’ll see tonight.

As for the Orioles, this lineup appears more designed to hit Darvish around than play sparkling defense. We find the red-hot Jeremiah Jackson back in right field, Coby Mayo getting the start at first over Ryan Mountcastle, and Emmanuel Rivera manning the hot corner.

Orioles lineup