Jordan Lyles signs 1-year deal with Orioles

The resumption of baseball transactions means one Orioles move has finally been completed.

The club’s one-year pact with right-hander Jordan Lyles, agreed upon in principle prior to the lockout, was made official on Saturday evening, the club announced. The deal is worth $5.5 million with a $500,000 signing bonus, a source told MLB.com's Mark Feinsand, and includes a club option for 2023.

Lyles, 31, will represent a crucial source of innings for an O’s rotation that is in flux behind left-hander John Means. Lyles, with 11 years of experience under his belt, pitched 180 innings last season for the Rangers, a mark that would have led the Orioles’ 2021 rotation.

The Astros’ first-round Draft pick in 2008, Lyles owns a 54-79 record and 5.21 ERA in his career and will be looking to take a step forward from leading the AL in earned runs over the past two seasons on top of pacing the Majors in home runs allowed (38) in ’21. A potential source of encouragement could be the O’s moving back the left-field fences, as announced in January.

Whereas Lyles now stands as the club’s bonafide No. 2 starter, behind him will be a crop of younger arms competing for spots, though the O’s could always add depth on the free-agent or waiver market. Such names include Bruce Zimmermann, Keegan Akin, Zac Lowther, Alex Wells and Dean Kremer, along with top prospects such as D.L. Hall and Mike Baumann. Grayson Rodriguez, MLB’s top pitching prospect, has recently announced that he would like to debut in the Majors this year, though that would not come until the later portion of the season, if at all.

The O’s are set to open camp in full on Monday in Sarasota, Fla., with the first Grapefruit League tilt scheduled for Friday at home against the Blue Jays.