Chris Bassitt’s situation in Baltimore just took another bad turn

Bassitt's final line in Baltimore was rough again: 5 1/3 innings, 8 hits, 5 runs, 2 walks, 3 strikeouts. His ERA climbed to 6.75, and he still has not finished 6 innings in any of his first 5 starts.

That is the part that matters most. Bassitt's outing against Kansas City was his longest start of the season, and even that came with another crooked line attached to it.

The Orioles still won 8-6 because their lineup bailed him out with a 6-run sixth inning. That should not hide what happened on the mound. Baltimore needed a comeback just to keep Bassitt from wearing another loss.

This is not a one-start blip, either. Through 21 1/3 innings, Bassitt has allowed 31 hits and 13 walks, which helps explain the 2.06 WHIP sitting next to that ERA.

His strikeout rate has not given him much cover, either. Bassitt has only 10 strikeouts in those 5 starts, a thin total for a veteran who has needed sharper command to survive without overpowering stuff.

That is where the Blue Jays come back into the story. Bassitt hit free agency after 2025, and Baltimore signed him on February 13 to a 1-year deal reportedly worth $18.5 million.

Toronto chose not to make that commitment, and early returns say that was the right read. Bassitt is 37, his outings have been getting shorter, and his margin for error already looks thinner than it did in his better Blue Jays stretches.

The warning signs have shown up almost every turn. He opened the season by giving up 4 earned runs in 4 1/3 innings against Texas, then got tagged for 6 earned runs in 2 innings at Pittsburgh.

Even his cleanest outing came with limits. Bassitt threw 5 scoreless innings at Cleveland on April 17, but he also walked 4 and still could not get through the sixth.

That is why this latest Baltimore start lands the way it does. The Blue Jays did not lose a frontline horse in free agency. They moved on from a veteran whose workload value was starting to slip.

Bassitt can still give a club innings on the right night. But if this is what the first month looks like on a 1-year, $18.5 million deal, Toronto has every reason to feel good about staying out of it.