Orioles Acquire Kaleb Ort, Designate Peyton Burdick

The Orioles have announced the acquisition of reliever Kaleb Ort from the Phillies in exchange for cash considerations. Outfielder Peyton Burdick has been designated for assignment to create space on the 40-man roster. Philadelphia had designated Ort for assignment earlier in the day following the signing of Whit Merrifield.

This transaction marks another move involving the back end of the roster for Baltimore, which has been particularly active in the DFA market in recent weeks. Ort himself has experienced a fair amount of time in DFA limbo, transitioning from the Red Sox to the Mariners, Marlins, Phillies, and now to Baltimore through waivers or minor trades since the conclusion of the 2023 season.

The 32-year-old right-handed pitcher has solely pitched in the majors for the Boston Red Sox. He made appearances in parts of three seasons with the team, with the majority occurring in the past two years. His career includes a 6.27 ERA across 51 2/3 innings, with a 6.26 ERA over 23 innings in the most recent season.

Despite Ort’s lack of significant success in the majors, his travels throughout the league indicate that teams value him as a reliable depth pitcher. He has a decent fastball, averaging 95.8 MPH last year in the MLB. Ort’s pitching repertoire has proven effective in Triple-A, where he holds an impressive 3.09 ERA over four seasons and strikes out almost 32% of batters faced. Additionally, he still has one minor league option remaining, allowing the Orioles to assign him to Triple-A Norfolk without needing to place him on waivers if he remains on the 40-man roster.

Burdick, who will turn 27 next week, was previously mentioned as one of the players recently acquired via a DFA move by Baltimore. The Orioles obtained him in exchange for cash from the Marlins last Wednesday. In the upcoming week, they plan to either trade him themselves or attempt to pass him through outright waivers.

The right-handed-hitting outfielder has had brief stints in the MLB over the last two seasons. Burdick has struggled, posting a batting line of .200/.281/.368 and striking out nearly 40% of the time in his first 46 games. His high strikeout rate has also been a concern in the minors, as he struck out in a significant 36.6% of his plate appearances in Triple-A last season. Despite showcasing significant power, hitting over 20 home runs twice in the minors, including 24 in Triple-A last year, Burdick needs to improve his ability to make consistent contact at the plate.