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The Baltimore Orioles are struggling with injuries, having 13 players on the injured list, including Adley Rutschman and Ryan Mountcastle. Taylor Ward and Leody Taveras have emerged as unexpected heroes for the team's offense during this challenging start to the 2026 season.
Mar 29, 2026; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Baltimore Orioles left fielder Taylor Ward (3) celebrates during the seventh inning against the Minnesota Twins at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Mandatory Credit: Daniel Kucin Jr.-Imagn Images | Daniel Kucin Jr.-Imagn Images
In many ways, the main goal of the Oriolesâ 2026 season was not to repeat the 2025 season. Through the first 16 games of the season, the Oâs have certainly been more competitive than they were to begin last season. However, one unfortunate aspect of 2025 that has followed the Orioles into 2026 is the mountain of injuries.
The Orioles currently have a major-league-leading 13 players on the IL. After a weekend that saw Adley Rutschman land on the 10-day IL with an ankle injury and Ryan Mountcastle head to the 60-day IL with a broken foot, the offense is now especially realing.
With the injuries piled on top of the early-season struggles of Pete Alonso and Samuel Basallo, the offense has been in desperate need of unexpected heroes. Thatâs where Taylor Ward and Leody Taveras come in.
The fact that Ward is a big-time contributor is not exactly a surprise. Behind Alonso, Ward was seen as the second biggest offseason addition for the Oriolesâ offense. However, when the Oâs acquired the 32-year-old outfielder from the Angels, he was expected to be a power-first bat in the mold of Alonso. Instead, heâs turned into an on-base machine whoâs wearing out the power alleys.
After last nightâs matchup with the Diamondbacks, Ward is 11th in the MLB with a .339 average, tied for 7th with 21 total hits and leads MLB with 10 doubles. After hitting a career-high 32 home runs last year, heâs yet to launch his first homer in black and orange. However, heâs more than made up for his lack of over the fence with a more disciplined approach at the plate and a willingness to spray the ball to all fields.
Unlike Alonso, Basallo and Gunnar Henderson, Ward is not blessed with elite bat speed and the ability to consistently generate high exit velocity. Even in hitting 32 long balls last year, his average exit velocity and hard-hit rate were right around league average, while his bat speed only ranked in the 15th percentile. Whatâs been elite throughout 2025 and 2026 is Wardâs ability to square up pitches and his unwillingness to chase pitches outside of the zone.
Whatâs helped transform Ward into a different offensive force is a focus on swinging for line drives instead of deep fly balls. The outfielderâs career line-drive percentage is around 26%; this year, that number has jumped up to 39.1%, the 5th-best mark in all of baseball. Weâve also seen his opposite-field hit percentage jump from 27.1% last year to a career-best 32.6% so far this year. Wardâs willingness to hit the ball to where heâs being pitched has led to a 47.8% Launch-Angle Sweet Spot rate, putting him in the 96th percentile this season.
Wardâs early-season breakout is reminiscent of the hot start we saw from former Oriole Ryan OâHearn to begin last year. Through 16 games, Ward is currently slashing .333/.427/.492. Through 16 games last year, Turn and Burn was .296/.377/.519âwhich turned into a first-half OPS of .834 and an All-Star berth.
Coming into last season, most wouldâve ranked OâHearn behind the likes of Gunnar Henderson, Adley Rutschman and Jordan Westburg in terms of expected offensive impact. Similarly, Ward was probably seen as the fourth most important Baltimore bat heading into this season, behind Henderson, Alonso and a healthy Rutschman. Instead, the newly acquired outfielder has catapulted himself to the top of the pecking order as the Oâs most productive hitter so far.
However, the mountain of injuries has meant that Baltimore once again needed someone previously seen as a depth piece to rise to the occasion. Last year, that came in the form of RamĂłn Laureano; this year, weâre seeing that same level of contribution from Leody Taveras.
Taveras came to the Orioles this past offseason out of necessity. With Colton Cowser set to be the Opening Day CF, and no other natural CF on the roster, the front office brought in Taveras to provide a defensive insurance policy in the outfield. However, Cowserâs continued struggles against off-speed pitches and the recent injury to Tyler OâNeill have thrust the 27-year-old Dominican into more of an everyday role.
To say the former Texas Ranger has taken that opportunity and run with it would be an understatement. In 12 games this season, Taveras is 9-for-25 with three doubles, four runs scored and five walks. If he had enough at-bats to qualify, his .467 OBP would lead the Orioles and place fourth in all of baseball. In the last three games, weâve seen manager Craig Albernaz stick Taveras in the sixth spot in the order, allowing him to serve as a secondary table setter for the bottom of the lineup.
Should Taveras continue to hit well, the uncertain nature of the Orioles outfield means heâll have plenty of opportunities to lock down the CF role. Cowserâs inability to hit changeups may ultimately force him down the pecking order as the season goes on, and players get healthy (he was hitting .167 on off-speed pitches with a 46.4% whiff rate heading into Monday).
If Cowser canât iron out the holes in his games (or if OâNeill continues to struggle to stay healthy), it would allow Taveras to make a Laureano-like jump from fourth outfielder to invaluable starter. And while Taveras and Laureano do not offer the same offensive profilesâwith the former a switch-hitting line-drive machine and the latter a right-hander power batâthey both provide(d) a similar ability to outshine expectations and strengthen a shaky Orioles outfield.
Even with the injuries and slow starts, thereâs still plenty of hope that this collection of Baltimore bats can produce an upper-echelon offense. And while Gunnar has been awesome so far, and the Polar Bear is getting back to his normal ways, the plus contributions from Ward and Taveras are a big part of why the Oâs sit atop the AL East after the first 10% of the season.
The Orioles have a major-league-leading 13 players on the injured list.
Adley Rutschman is on the 10-day IL with an ankle injury, while Ryan Mountcastle is on the 60-day IL due to a broken foot.
Taylor Ward and Leody Taveras have emerged as unexpected heroes for the Orioles' offense this season.
The Orioles have been more competitive in the first 16 games of the 2026 season compared to their struggles at the beginning of the 2025 season.

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