What to Expect from Dylan Bundy

We Orioles fans have been waiting for Dylan Bundy to become the team’s ace for years now.

Expectations for Bundy have been high ever since the Orioles drafted the Oklahoma native with the fourth pick in the 2011 draft.

Bundy started his career in Single-A Delmarva and pitched 30 scoreless innings. He tore through minor league hitters and made his way to Baltimore that same season at just 19 years old.

Fans were ready for Bundy to be in the rotation for the 2013 season, as he breezed through the minors. It wasn’t meant to be though, as the right-hander received news that he needed Tommy John surgery.

Bundy rehabbed all of 2013 and came back last season, but didn’t reach his previous form. His velocity was down and fans grew disappointed. Some believed he would never get back to where he was.

That disappointment, along with the sentiment that “we’ve been waiting forever for this guy” led some to even toss around the “b” word (bust).

The problem with that, though, is that Bundy is only 22 years old. That’s right, he’s younger than Kevin Gausman by nearly two full years. On top of that, he is finally back to full health. Another thing going Bundy’s way is that he is no longer being asked to be the star of the rotation. The emergence of Gausman and Hunter Harvey has helped ease expectations on what Bundy needs to be for the team.

So what should we expect from Bundy in 2015?

It would be a surprise to see the young pitcher with the Orioles until late in the season and maybe a surprise to see him at all. The Orioles finally have a surplus of rotation options and can afford to give Bundy time to get back to his previous form.

There is no word on where Baltimore wants Bundy to start out in the minors, but it seems as if he would be ready to start in Double-A Bowie’s rotation. He surpassed Triple-A Norfolk in the 2012 season, so the team might want to ease him back in Double-A.

This will be the first time in Bundy’s career that he’ll be fully healthy and not needed by the Orioles’ franchise right away. It should give the pitcher more confidence, as he can be relaxed and not feel the pressures of the high expectations he had when he was first drafted.

The best thing that could happen is that Bundy gets through this season fully healthy and regains his velocity. The Orioles (hopefully) won’t need his services this season, but starters Bud Norris and Wei-Yen Chen are free agents after this year, which could open up two rotation spots.

Another reason the Orioles will hope Bundy can put it together this year is that he has only one minor league option remaining. The team will likely bring him up as a reliever at some point this season to see how he’s progressed, and how MLB-ready he is. He could contribute out of the bullpen, like he did in 2012, or like Gausman did in both 2013 and 2014. He could slide into the middle of the rotation next year and would make his long-awaited debut as a starter then.

It’s easy to see why Baltimore fans want to see Bundy now, as they have been let down by pitchers that were supposed to save the team in the past (we all know the list of names; I won’t rehash them here.)

However, patience is needed here because Bundy has never failed at any level yet. Don’t expect things to change this season. We’ll see him in Baltimore again – no need to rush it.