Gibson on return to Orioles: "This is a place that was pretty special for my family in 2023"

BRADENTON, Fla. – A running joke developed between veteran pitcher Kyle Gibson and his agent as the winter months passed without a new contract. Free agency was dragging like an infield mat. It’s better to laugh about the situation than to stress.

“The next guy that would sign,” Gibson said this morning, “I’d be like, ‘OK, well, I’ve got to be next.’”

He said it over and over.

Gibson officially came off the board last night by passing his physical with the Orioles and signing a $5.25 million contract with incentives. He’s back with the team that named him the Opening Day starter in 2023, won 101 games and a division title and lauded his performance and leadership – long after he left.

“Everyone that I’ve talked to, I mean, guys were talking about Kyle to me when I first got here,” said Charlie Morton, who signed for $15 million on Jan. 3. “They were like, ‘Oh yeah, Kyle was this guy in the clubhouse. Gibby was one of the best guys I’ve been around. A great teammate.’ And so to see that he’s re-signed here, like those are the kind of guys ...

“I love watching the exciting young players and I love watching guys that are making their way in the big leagues kind of come up and prove themselves. I love watching that. But I really do cherish getting to play with guys that have spent a lot of their lives playing the game and learning themselves and learning how to pitch or hit or play and just becoming full-grown adults, like kids, wives, spending time, if not decades, experiencing going through everything that a big league player does. I love watching guys like that.”

Morton and Gibson stood talking in the clubhouse when the media entered this morning, accomplished starters with a combined age of 78 and with 29 years in the majors. Gibson spent the 2024 season pitching for the Cardinals near his Missouri home, hit the market again and could do nothing except wait and wonder if his career had reached its conclusion.

He'd be fine either way.

“Honestly, I was not antsy,” he said. “I went into last year not really knowing what to expect. Once you get to 36, 37 years old, if you have a down year, then that could be your last year. I went into last year understanding playing in St. Louis, playing at home, that if that was my last year, then I was content with it. Thankfully I threw the ball well and expected to have another opportunity definitely sooner than this. I think because of that mindset, I wasn’t as antsy.

“I was really enjoying the offseason with the kids and with Elizabeth and seeing family. … I kind of knew that if the right opportunity came up, then I’d have a decision to take it or not. And if opportunities didn’t come up, then you’re telling me I had to stay home with my kids and wife, OK, that wasn’t gonna be a big deal. That was gonna be a lot of fun, too. So I think that was probably some of the hardest part was I had kind of, not quite reserved that it was over, but I had been pretty content spending a lot of time with the kids. So leaving them on Thursday night was pretty tough.”

The Orioles were worried about their pitching depth with Kyle Bradish, Tyler Wells, Grayson Rodriguez, Trevor Rogers and Chayce McDermott going on the injured list and Brandon Young needing more time in Triple-A. Executive vice president/general manager Mike Elias kept checking the free agent and trade markets and zeroed in on Gibson after Rodriguez developed inflammation behind his right elbow.

“I kept in touch with quite a few people,” Gibson said. “It probably wasn’t as many official conversations happening earlier, but I’d say probably just over two weeks ago I heard from them. My agent and I had a couple talks with Mike. Yeah, I was pretty excited. This is a place that was pretty special for my family in 2023. And then we didn’t hear from them for a few days and I kind of almost thought, ‘OK, maybe that wasn’t meant to be and wasn’t going to happen.’

“We heard from them last week right in the middle of everybody going through the flu, so it was a little harder time with three of the four kids sick, myself, and thankfully my wife and our youngest didn’t have it. So it was kind of a slower process because of that, just trying to think through everything and get healthy before I made the decision. But we were able to get something together and something that made sense and figure out a buildup, and here we are.”

Gibson was a leader in 2023 but also a 15-game winner who made 33 starts, most in the American League, and fell eight innings short of reaching 200. The Orioles weren’t a hard sell for his family.

“Lots of conversations throughout the offseason about locations and about possibilities. We’d hear from a team and it would be a minor league deal, so we’d kind of usher that one off,” he said.

“We had a conversation probably about Baltimore I’d say three or four weeks ago, maybe just a week before Mike called the first time. Obviously playing at home last year, I got a little spoiled driving to the field every day and tucking the kids in and taking them to school. We tried to find an opportunity that was more in the Midwest if possible and those just didn’t come up. But then as we talked about Baltimore it was like, this is a place we really enjoyed. We know the clubhouse really well. And it was one of the places where we thought, if there’s somewhere to play after playing in St. Louis, this is one of those places that would be pretty special and fun to be a part of.

“When they called, it was probably a week later, it was pretty cool timing, the fact that we had just kind of talked about this place and everything that it meant to us and these guys. So yeah, pretty cool timing.”

The affection for Gibson also was a factor. He knew about it and felt that same bond. He knew what to expect.

“I think every time you join a new team you’re kind of playing it out in your head what’s the locker room like, how am I going to fit in, what’s the dynamic going to be. One of the questions I got was, how do I think joining a camp this late and joining a team late would be. Well, I think that was an easy question for me,” Gibson said.

“Hopefully, I can still fit in with these guys. I know I’m two years older now, so hopefully they don’t hold it against me. But I think I fit in probably the same places I did a couple years ago. I think in the game, everybody’s probably pretty similar about their workplace. There’s so many other things going on other than work and you want to try to have an impact on people in a positive way if you can. That’s really what Elizabeth and I try to do wherever we go.

“I’m thankful that these guys welcomed us a couple years ago and we were able to have so much fun, because they had an impact on me, too, in a lot of different ways. So pretty cool to be back here and to have so many welcoming faces and a lot of time to catch up.”

Gibson is 37 and Morton is 41. Tomoyuki Sugano is 35 and a decorated pitcher in Japan. Albert Suárez, a starter candidate, also is 35. Zach Eflin is 30 with nine years of major league experience and four kids under the age of 3.

“Last year I think you had to be 35 to get into the Cardinals rotation, so we had an age requirement,” Gibson quipped.

“I think starting pitching and pitching in general can do a lot to add some consistency to your team. That’s one thing we talked about in 2023 a lot was, we knew we had really quality, really high-level position players, and if the rotation and the pitching staff could give these guys an expectation of what they’re going to get every day from the pitching staff, then they can really bring a lot of consistency to the team and take some pressure off them. And I don’t think the goal has really changed in that regard.

“I think if you talk to anybody in this rotation, we want to be a rotation that’s healthy and is going out there five or six innings and taking outs away from the bullpen and making sure they’re not covering a lot. But then giving these position players a couple zeros at the beginning of the game to work with, try to limit big innings so that they’re not trying to feel like they have to fight back and put up a big number to get back in the game. All the things that lead to winning baseball. When you have position players like this that score runs and play really good defense, you just add some consistency to that and these guys know what they’re going to get, it’s a big deal.”

The first step for Gibson was signing. Now comes the preparation after a late start. Gibson has thrown four bullpen sessions ranging from 50-70 pitches.

“I’m probably ahead of schedule where I normally would be coming into spring because of those bullpens,” he said. “We’ve gotten it kind of laid out just talking to Frenchy (Drew French) a little bit. Kind of see how we feel. But I’d say a couple bullpens and get into live BPs and then see how I’m building up with that and we can kind of adjust the innings load.

“I think normally in spring training my first outing would be two innings, so probably try to avoid having a two-inning outing just for the sake of the bullpen and everyone else who would have to cover innings. Try to do a little bit of a normal buildup. I think I do have the ability to speed it up, an outing here and there.”

Eflin is the Opening Day starter and Morton goes second, but the rest of the order remains a secret. Gibson eventually will slot and become teammates again with Eflin, reliving their days in Philadelphia. And he can further admire Morton from up close.

“He’s somebody that I’ve watched pitch a lot and it’s fun watching him pitch,” Gibson said. “There’s just not many guys that have his stuff and then also pitch to both sides and set hitters up. I just kind of geek out over watching guys do that. So definitely excited. Heard a lot of really good things about him.”

“We might have maybe met each other up in Minnesota just in passing, but I don’t really know him,” Morton said. “But I’ve heard nothing but great things and he seems like a great dude. A phenomenal career. When I saw that I was excited.

“I want to say that he was one of the first guys that I knew about that actually got into biomechanics as a pitcher and kind of tapping into the delivery in a different way than we had before as players. I guess maybe it was with (former Twins pitching coach) Wes (Johnson) up there? I remember thinking and I remember seeing him and his throwing program and kind of like how he was figuring out how his body was moving and the arm was working. And then, I think he created a great career for himself. He’s in his late 30s now and he’s still in the big leagues.”

And still capable of influencing how the Orioles fare in 2025 after their back-to-back playoff appearances.

"I'm looking for (the veterans) to be leaders on our club, to be part of the really good culture we have in our clubhouse. Gibby was a huge part of that two years ago," said manager Brandon Hyde.

"Everybody loves Gibby. Such an unbelievable teammate. Cheers for the guys and he's incredible with bringing guys along. Dinners, getting guys together off the field, all that kind of stuff that builds comradery and chemistry. Gibby understands all that. He was amazing for us a couple years ago."

“Gibby’s probably the best clubhouse guy I’ve ever played with, so to have him back I think is huge for this group,” said first baseman Ryan O’Hearn. “I think he’s the ultimate morale guy. Just the way he brings everybody together, and I think that’s an invaluable thing to have in a guy. And obviously, a good pitcher, too. He’s gonna help us on the field. Just very excited that he’s back. When I heard the news, I was ecstatic. Love Kyle Gibson. I think he’s gonna be really valuable in the clubhouse and to the team. A little surprised, just because you don’t expect too many signings this late in camp and close to Opening Day, but very happy that he’s with us.”  

* Eflin starts today and will be on a shorter leash. The Orioles brought relievers Roansy Contreras, Bryan Baker, Cionel Pérez, Gregory Soto and Yennier Cano to Bradenton.