Means (elbow soreness) not on O's ALDS roster; ALCS return possible

BALTIMORE -- John Means returned from Tommy John surgery in September and slid right back into the Orioles’ rotation like he was never gone. The 30-year-old left-hander was expected to give the team’s pitching staff a boost for its first postseason appearance since 2016.

However, Means will not be pitching in the American League Division Series vs. the Rangers.

Prior to Saturday’s ALDS Game 1 at Camden Yards, manager Brandon Hyde announced that Means has been dealing with soreness in his surgically repaired left elbow that he felt while pitching a two-inning simulated game at a pre-postseason workout on Thursday. But the southpaw could be part of Baltimore’s AL Championship Series roster, should the O’s advance.

• ALDS Game 1, presented by Booking.com: Saturday, 1 p.m. ET on FS1

“We fully expect him to be ready for the next series. Felt like he needed a few days off,” Hyde said. “Not concerning. I know he's disappointed. ... Pretty normal after a Tommy John process, and he's thrown the ball extremely well. And we don't want to take any chances, honestly, with it.”

Means, who underwent Tommy John surgery in April 2022, posted a 2.66 ERA in four starts for the Orioles in September. The ‘19 All-Star went at least five innings and allowed three or fewer runs in each of those outings, with the best coming on Sept. 23 in Cleveland, when he took a no-hitter into the seventh and gave up only one hit (a solo homer) over 7 1/3 dominant innings.

Without Means, Baltimore will likely start right-handers Dean Kremer and Kyle Gibson in Games 3 and 4 (if necessary), although it has not been announced in which order they will pitch.

While the Rangers went with an even roster split for the ALDS (13 position players and 13 pitchers), the Orioles are carrying 14 position players and 12 pitchers.

Heston Kjerstad, Baltimore’s No. 3 prospect and MLB Pipeline’s No. 24 overall prospect, made Baltimore’s ALDS roster to serve as a potent left-handed bat off the bench. The Orioles went with Kjerstad over Ryan McKenna, who is valuable as a defensive replacement in the outfield.

The O’s opted to leave off right-handed fireballer Shintaro Fujinami, who was inconsistent after coming over from the A’s in a July 19 trade. The 29-year-old MLB rookie often struggled to throw strikes, leading to a 4.85 ERA in 30 appearances. Baltimore’s final bullpen spot instead went to righty Bryan Baker, who was selected over fellow righty Mike Baumann.

Here’s the Orioles’ full ALDS roster:

Right-handed pitchers (9): Bryan Baker, Kyle Bradish, Yennier Cano, Jack Flaherty, Kyle Gibson, Dean Kremer, Grayson Rodriguez, Jacob Webb Tyler Wells

Left-handed pitchers (3): Danny Coulombe, DL Hall, Cionel Pérez

Catchers (2): James McCann, Adley Rutschman

Infielders (7): Adam Frazier, Gunnar Henderson, Jorge Mateo, Ryan Mountcastle, Ryan O’Hearn, Ramón Urías, Jordan Westburg

Outfielders (5): Austin Hays, Aaron Hicks, Heston Kjerstad, Cedric Mullins, Anthony Santander