Former Philadelphia Phillies starting pitcher Kyle Gibson has landed a new opportunity after he was designated for assignment and subsequently released earlier this month by the Baltimore Orioles.
According to Jon Heyman of the New York Post, Gibson is signing with the Tampa Bay Rays. The Rays announced on Wednesday that they inked the veteran pitcher to a minor league pact.
Kyle Gibson Signs With the Tampa Bay Rays
The 37-year-old right-handed pitcher opened the 2025 regular season with the Orioles, signing a one-year, $6.25 million contract before Opening Day. However, the O’s immediately regretted the signing as Gibson struggled on the mound.
He had a disastrous 16.78 ERA across four starts after joining the rotation towards the end of April. Gibson missed Spring Training, so he spent a short period in the minors to ramp up, but it didn’t help him.
The veteran starter allowed 29 hits, 23 earned runs, seven home runs, and seven walks, and only landed 10 strikeouts in 12.1 innings pitched. Lefties were hitting. 567 with four home runs and an OPS of 1.700. Meanwhile, right-handed hitters were slugging .353 with three homers and an OPS of 1.189.
In his last start with the Orioles, Gibson got lit up by the Washington Nationals on May 17, giving up six earned runs, a walk, and only posting one strikeout in the first inning.
The former Phillies pitcher will hope to have much better success with the Rays. Since leaving the city of Brotherly Love following the 2022 season, Gibson has had two stints with the Orioles (2023 and 2025) and spent the 2024 season with the St. Louis Cardinals.
Gibson wasn’t spectacular in his year-plus with the Phillies. The Phillies acquired Gibson ahead of the trade deadline in the 2021 season from the Texas Rangers. He had a 4-6 record and an ERA of 5.09 across 12 appearances during that season.
Then in 2022, Gibson had a 10-8 record and 5.05 ERA across 31 starts. Given his performance in the regular season, the Phillies moved Gibson to the bullpen for the postseason. He pitched in two games, allowing two hits, a walk, and recording two strikeouts in 2.1 innings.
If Gibson can return to his 2022/23 form, that could help him get back to the majors in Tampa Bay.