Later on Friday, the Orioles announced several more cuts: catcher Nick Ciuffo and pitcher Spenser Watkins cleared waivers and were outrighted to Norfolk, while pitcher Chris Ellis cleared waivers and is now a free agent.
He was one of five Orioles who still remained on the 60-day IL, along with Keegan Akin, Jorge López, Jorge Mateo, and DJ Stewart.
The Giants were 29th of 29 teams in waiver claim priority, by virtue of having the best record in MLB in the 2021 season.
How many innings do you think, without looking it up, that Hunter Harvey pitched with the Orioles at the MLB level? Recall that he was the team’s top pick in the draft all the way in 2013.
Harvey pitched his way to near-universal top 100 prospect status within 18 months of being drafted, not bad at all for a #22 pick.
He has never been healthy enough in the Mike Elias era for the Elias decisionmakers to believe Harvey might be a future anchor in the bullpen, and by putting Harvey on waivers along with forgettable roster filler we have an idea that think they had waited long enough.
Ellis, also 29, made six starts and had a 2.49 ERA, but he averaged fewer than five innings per start and had a 5.52 FIP.
More likely they will just spend the offseason churning waiver claims and maybe, if there’s not a lockout, making a Rule 5 pick or two themselves.