Orioles Claimed Luis Robert Jr. Just to Put Him on the IL Six Days Later

The Baltimore Orioles looked at Luis Robert Jr.'s medical history, decided to take on the rest of his $20 million salary anyway, and have now been rewarded with a trip right back to the injured list.

MLB Trade Rumors reported Sunday that Baltimore officially placed the outfielder on the 10-day IL. This comes exactly six days after the Orioles claimed him off outright waivers from the New York Mets on August 31.

Claiming a guy off waivers and losing him to the IL in less than a week is the baseball equivalent of buying a used luxury car and having the transmission drop out at the first stoplight. The Orioles took on the roughly $3 million remaining on his deal this year, plus a $2 million buyout for next season, hoping to catch lightning in a bottle for a playoff push.

Instead, they are getting the full Luis Robert Jr. experience. The former All-Star is hitting a very pedestrian .233 with a .399 slugging percentage this season. He already missed months earlier this year with a herniated disc in his back, which makes acquiring him feel like hitting on 16 at the blackjack table and acting surprised when you bust.

Baltimore really needed this gamble to work. They are fighting for their lives in the American League Wild Card race, chasing the Cleveland Guardians and desperately trying to find right-handed pop to balance out an outfield leaning heavily on Colton Cowser and Leody Taveras.

The timing could not be worse for a team in a tailspin. The Orioles just got swept in a brutal three-game set by the Boston Red Sox, scoring a grand total of five runs all weekend. If you are holding a futures ticket on Baltimore to make a deep October run, this offense suddenly looks incredibly thin.

Now, the Orioles have to survive the September stretch run without their expensive new toy. Whenever the season ends, the front office gets the distinct pleasure of paying $2 million just to make his $20 million club option for 2027 go away.