To say the Orioles have been bitten by the injury bug this season would be an understatement; Zach Eflin, Adley Rutschman, Ryan Mountcastle, and Tyler O’Neill have all missed time with minor or significant injuries. And then there is infielder Jordan Westburg, who suffered a partially torn UCL in his right throwing elbow during spring training. Below, we will dish out a Westburg injury update and look at when he will return to the Orioles lineup.
When will Jordan Westburg be back and return to the Orioles lineup?A partially torn UCL is a somewhat common injury among baseball players, particularly pitchers, as the UCL is an elbow ligament.
It is believed that Westburg is dealing with a Grade 2 UCL injury. He did not have surgery on the elbow and is instead having platelet-rich plasma injections as a part of his rehab.
The 2024 American League All-Star has started a throwing progression, and has suffered no setbacks in his rehab to date. He is eligible to return on May 24.
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It is likely that the Orioles give the 27-year-old an extra week or so after that date, as MLB clubs are traditionally very cautious when it comes to elbow injuries.
Here are some possible return dates for Westburg based on the current information.
Teams typically elect to bring returning players back from injury on a home stand, so a return just after Memorial Day is certainly in play. The Orioles are on the road June 2 through June 7. They host the Mariners on Monday, June 8.
Orioles oddsFanatics Sportsbook currently has the Orioles with +2500 odds to win the World Series. The O’s were +3500 to win the Commissioner’s Trophy prior to the start of the 2026 season.
The Orioles are 9-9 on the season, just behind the 10-7 Rays and 10-8 Yankees. Baltimore is 6-4 in its last 10 games, and starts a seven-game road trip Thursday night in Cleveland.
Craig Albernaz’s club is -105 to make the playoffs.
Baltimore missed the postseason cut last year as it endured a disappointing 75-87 campaign. The O’s made the playoffs the season prior, however, posting 91 wins. They were eliminated by the Royals in the AL Wild Card round two years ago.
The Orioles had a pre-season win total projection of 85.5 victories.
Jordan Westburg statsWestburg enjoyed the best season of his four-year MLB career in 2024 as he collected 110 hits in 107 games played. He belted 18 home runs and drove in 63 runs that season.
The New Braunfels, Texas native has been injury prone in his career, playing just 85 games last season due to various injuries (finger sprain, hamstring strain, ankle sprain).
Despite the most recent injury, Westburg is still rostered in 25% of Yahoo! Fantasy baseball leagues.
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