BALTIMORE — The MLB debut was nerve-wracking. But it’s not like the nerves are calming down this week either.
Carter Baumler’s next assignment is likely to come against the team that drafted and nurtured him for his first five professional seasons: Baltimore.
“I just think it’s really cool,” Baumler said. “I’ve still got a few friends over there, but I’m just really excited. I spent my whole career trying to get here and I just think it’s cool that I’m here on the flip side. It’s not like I’m mad at them or anything. I’m super grateful for everything they did for me. But, yeah, it would be crazy if it didn’t run through my mind [striking out the side].”
The Rangers acquired Baumler in a trade with Pittsburgh during the Rule 5 draft, but Pittsburgh had selected him from the Baltimore organization for the Rangers. The Orioles drafted him in the fifth round of the COVID-shortened 2020 draft out of Dowling Catholic High School in Des Moines, Iowa, where he’d been classmates and friends with Caitlin Clark. He had been committed to TCU.
Rangers
In Baltimore, Baumler’s start was delayed by Tommy John surgery and a slow return. He’d pitched only 88 professional innings in the five years since being drafted. He’d pitched only 7.2 innings above Class A. And while the Orioles liked his stuff, they gambled that a team wouldn’t be able to hold on to a pitcher with such little experience — and refinement.
They might be right. It will be challenging for the Rangers to keep Baumler all season without the ability to option him to the minors. That became evident in the first series of the year when the Rangers quickly found themselves thin in the bullpen after Jacob deGrom was scratched from a start and Jacob Latz had to jump into the rotation. Had Baumler had options, the Rangers could have sent him out after he threw 43 pitches Sunday and given themselves another fresh arm.
Baumler walked four batters in 1 ⅔ innings on Sunday, necessitating the use of Chris Martin to finish out an inning. It also meant that Martin, who was pitching on back-to-back days, wouldn’t be available on Monday night. Baumler has walked five batters in his 2 ⅔ innings thus far.
For now, the Rangers are able to write it off as opening weekend nerves. That won’t be the case all season.
“He’d gotten out of things twice and the second inning [Sunday] was probably a little more challenging,” manager Skip Schumaker said. “If he attacks the zone like he did in spring training, he’s fine. He’s got elite carry with his fastball and he spins it as good as anybody in the big leagues. That gets righties and lefties out. So I think it might have sped up a little bit. You never know what that third deck; you never know with the crowd that opening weekend. All that stuff is a lot for a kid who hasn’t pitched above Double-A. So a lot of that was to be expected.”