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Former Blue Jays pitcher signs surprising deal with the Baltimore Orioles
Photo credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images
Former Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Josh Walker has surprisingly signed a new major league contract with the Baltimore Orioles.
The off-season is officially in full swing as even the Blue Jays have begun making moves as starting pitcher Shane Bieber accepted his $16 million player option yesterday and will be returning for the 2026 season.
Josh Walker signs with the Baltimore Orioles
The Orioles announced yesterday that they have agreed on a major league deal with Walker which is quite surprising due to the season he had in 2025.
While the officially size of the contract is still unknown, most are expecting it to be slightly higher than league minimum.
The Orioles announced that left-hander Josh Walker has been signed to a one-year Major League contract. Salary terms weren't announced, but Walker (who was already in Baltimore's organization) was slated to earn a minimum MLB salary as a pre-arbitration player. -Polishuk
Walker only saw 3 games in the MLB last season which all came with the Blue Jays where he finished with a 7.20 ERA in 5 innings pitched and 8 strikeouts.
After being traded to the Phillies by the Blue Jays, Walker was placed on waivers by Philadelphia and claimed by the Orioles where he finished the season with their Triple-A affiliate team in Norfolk.
Across 3 Triple-A teams last season, Walker finished with a 4.64 ERA in 42.2 innings pitched across 40 games to go along with a 2-2 record and 45 strikeouts.
Walker struggled at the MLB level last season which is why this major league deal is surprising but the Orioles must have seen something that they liked in him to give him this second chance.
| POLL | ||
NOVEMBRE 5 | 1688 ANSWERS Former Blue Jays pitcher signs surprising deal with the Baltimore Orioles Will Josh Walker be able to perform at the MLB level in 2026? | ||
| Yes | 553 | 32.8 % |
| No | 1135 | 67.2 % |
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