Dean Kremer Has Pitched Better For Minnesota Than Baltimore—But Still Not Well Enough

When he was recalled from Triple-A Norfolk on April 13, Dean Kremer joined the Baltimore Orioles starting rotation. Both the pitcher and his team hoped he would reestablish himself as the steady, above-average right-handed starting pitcher he was in 2025, before losing a rotation-spot battle to Zach Eflin in spring training. Initially, he (more or less) did so. The 30-year-old resembled his 2025 self in two April starts, generating a 4.09 ERA over 11 innings. Before he could get into a long-term rhythm, though, a quad strain landed him on the injured list.

Kremer took a long time to heal from that injury. He was transferred to the 60-day IL, and didn't rejoin Baltimore’s rotation until July 1. He struggled upon that return, posting a hideous 7.56 ERA and an uninspiring 20% strikeout rate over 25 innings. He appeared to be at risk of being designated for assignment, since he no can no longer be optioned to the minors based on his service time. Instead, Baltimore traded him to the Minnesota Twins on July 31, for left-handed-hitting outfield prospect Jhomnardo Reyes. 

The veteran immediately slotted into Minnesota’s rotation, making his Twins debut on August 5. He performed well for his new club over his first two starts, with a 1.50 ERA, 2.33 FIP, and a 22% strikeout over 12 innings. Alas, he's quickly regressed to his early-season form over his past three starts, netting a 6.75 ERA, 5.47 FIP, and a 21.2% strikeout rate over 14 2/3 frames. 

Understandably, Twins Territory was immediately enamored with Kremer, a trade deadline acquisition who got off to a great start for the club. The organization’s pitching development staff also implemented meaningful changes to his arsenal, having him rely on his four-seamer more, while using his splitter as his go-to offspeed pitch. While these adjustments were sound and worked well over a two-game sample, though, command issues and a dearth of raw stuff have dragged Kremer back to the low level of simple competence to which he'd hewed in the past.

Kremer’s greatest hindrance this season is his inability to limit walks. In Baltimore, he walked 7.2% of hitters, which is around league-average. Yet, he was getting hit hard and often, resulting in his aforementioned bloated metrics. With Minnesota, he's walked 10.3% of hitters—an untenable rate. The only starting pitchers who can sustain success in the majors while walking hitters over ten percent of the time are ones with elite stuff. (Think Dylan Cease or, to be more local if a bit less stringent, Taj Bradley.) Kremer, however, has zero plus pitches, despite sporting a six-pitch arsenal. With below-average stuff and a tendency to allow too many home runs (15 over 62 2/3 innings), it's no surprise that Kremer has been one of the worst starting pitchers with at least 60 innings pitched this season. 

I don’t fault Twins decision-makers for making the trade. The club was in dire need of starting pitching depth. Reyes is an 18-year-old lottery ticket sporting a 79 wRC+ with Baltimore’s Single-A affiliate. Still, if Kremer’s struggles continue over the last month of the season, the front office would be wise to non-tender Kremer this offseason, quickly cutting ties with the right-handed starter targeted one month ago. That would be a disappointing denouement for an acquisition the team hoped would help in 2027, too, but unless he shows more down the stretch, they could better spend the $7 million or more Kremer is likely to make if offered arbitration this fall.