Orioles end Craig Kimbrel experiment before he ruins their postseason chances

The Baltimore Orioles announced on Wednesday that they have officially designated veteran closer, Craig Kimbrel for assignment.

Kimbrel was named an All-Star last season and he was pretty solid for the Orioles for the first half of the year. His ERA sat near a 2.00 at around the All-Star break and many in the media argued that he should have been a 2024 All-Star.

Over the last few weeks, while the Orioles have struggled, there have been many analysts that have critiqued the front office for their unwillingness to spend at the deadline this year. Baltimore didn't go out and get the relief arms that they needed because they believed heavily in Kimbrel. He has done nothing but let them down since they publicized their unwavering belief in his abilities.

Orioles improve their roster with DFA of future HOF closer Craig Kimbrel

Kimbrel is a future Hall of Famer. He's one of the best closers in the history of the game. There's no denying the ability that he's shown year in and year out for the last decade and a half. When you think about 21st-century closers, Kimbrel sits among the ranks of Aroldis Chapman and Kenley Jansen.

But there's also no denying how horrendous he's been since he converted his most recent save back on July 7. That's over two months of terrible pitching outings for Kimbrel.

On July 7, Kimbrel converted his 23rd save of the season. Since then, he's 2-3 with an ERA of 11.50 in 19 appearances. He's blown two saves and ran his season ERA up to 5.33. Kimbrel is worth negative WAR on the season now and his play has only gotten worse.

His last appearance with the team was an absolute catastrophic collapse against the San Fransisco Giants. Kimbrel allowed a season high six earned runs and didn't make it out of his lone inning. Baltimore was left with no choice other than to DFA him at this point.

The Orioles tried to change his role to take some pressure off of him. He took a lesser role in the bullpen, much like Chapman has done with the Pirates. But nothing helped. The Orioles had to get rid of him. Bringing up a prospect arm would be much better than what Kimbrel has done for them.

The Orioles had to end the Craig Kimbrel experiment, and they had to end it before Kimbrel had a chance to blow their postseason chances.