DeAn Kremer

Performance Analysis

Plate appearances and per-game impact line up to a B- performance grade for Dean Kremer. The 7-year veteran's 2026 season has been defined by scarcity and constraint — across just 2 games, he logged 16 strikeouts, a bright spot in an otherwise truncated and turbulent campaign marked by a quad injury that landed him on the IL and derailed what little momentum he'd built early. That strikeout rate represents genuine competence with the fastball-slider combination, but the inability to stay healthy and accumulate innings is the real story here, and it's a damning one: a starting pitcher who can't pitch simply cannot help a 41-48 Orioles rotation fighting for relevance in a compressed September push. The media narrative has swung decisively away from Kremer as a rotation anchor — his early-season demotion to the minors signaled a clear loss of front-office confidence, and subsequent acquisitions of arms like Lou Trivino, Josh Walker, and Trevor Rogers only cemented that the organization has moved past him as a depth piece they're willing to carry. Heading into the final stretch of the regular season, Kremer faces an uphill climb to reclaim any standing in Baltimore's hierarchy; without a forceful return from injury and a demonstrable bump in production, he enters the final weeks as a roster-filler fighting for survival rather than a reliable contributor to a team clawing toward contention.