To be ‘an elite Grant Wolfram,’ the Orioles reliever studies video of himself at his best

SARASOTA, Fla. — Grant Wolfram rewatches himself pitch against the New York Mets over and over. The back-to-back strikeouts of Juan Soto and Pete Alonso? They are frequent reminders of what Wolfram can achieve.

“What does big league Grant Wolfram look like, an elite Grant Wolfram look like?” Wolfram asks himself. “And that’s what I want to be every time I’m out there.”

If he could capture that feeling in a bottle, shake it and chug it before leaving the bullpen for each appearance, Wolfram would. Instead, the best he can do is study the highlights and remember how it felt.

It’s not all about mechanics, although there are plenty of minute details with his release that play a role in success. It’s about the whole — mechanics and confidence and, yes, some luck — that helped this 29-year-old win battles against two of the best hitters in baseball.

This spring, Wolfram has virtually guaranteed himself a roster spot on opening day through his strong performances. He is “gross,” as manager Craig Albernaz said, against left-handed batters. Whether Wolfram can retire right-handed hitters at a high enough rate will determine whether this late-blooming reliever is a stalwart piece of the bullpen.

For now, though, Wolfram is leaning on every ounce of experience he gained from the journey from the 18th round of the MLB draft through the minors, and then through waivers, to be on the cusp of an opening day roster spot.

“I had to earn my way there,” Wolfram said. “It wasn’t given to me. It wasn’t the easy road. So you learn a lot about yourself and how to get better, too. I think that was a huge thing. I mean, I’ve had that since I was little. That’s something my parents instilled in me: always working hard and always wanting to improve yourself. But I think my obvious goal was to get to the big leagues and pitch, and pitch in meaningful games and win a World Series and all that. Having that mindset, that attack mindset to strive to want to get better, is something you just need to hold on to.”

So don’t mind Wolfram when he rewatches himself pitch. He’s comparing each small movement from his latest outing to when he felt the best. Was his knee more bent there? Is that release point coming more quickly than his right foot touches the dirt?

By studying, Wolfram can pinpoint the differentiators from his best outings. And he’s had a lot of them this spring. Wolfram has thrown five scoreless innings with two hits, one walk and eight strikeouts. His gyro slider and sweeper combination is ruthless against left-handers.

The larger question is how Wolfram’s stuff will play against righties, and the nature of a three-batter minimum means he will likely face batters of both handedness. Wolfram relies on his curveball, four-seam fastball and sinker against righties. That can work if he “get[s] ahead and attack[s] early,” he said.

But the sinker, which he throws 38% of the time against righties, doesn’t always perform well.

“When you talk about the opposite handedness, there are a few pitches that don’t perform well, right?” Albernaz said. “I think the worst-performing pitch in baseball is the opposite-handed sinker. Depends on if you have outlier movement. That’s why location is the biggest thing with that pitch.”

That puts the onus on Wolfram to be especially careful when throwing that offering.

“His stuff is good enough to get both handedness out,” Albernaz said. “So, for us, it’s just doubling down on what makes him great and making sure he gets in the right locations.”

Especially given how left-handed opposing lineups in the American League East can be, carrying three lefty relievers (Keegan Akin, Dietrich Enns and Wolfram) makes sense. Of those three, Wolfram had the best numbers in 2025 against lefties. The Orioles needed a southpaw specialist, and Wolfram seems to fit that mold.

But, to become a key piece of this bullpen, Wolfram will watch a select sample of games again and again. By channeling himself at his best, he could replicate that form.

“Just trying to hold on to those and watching those over and over,” Wolfram said. “I want to be like that every time. … I want to be that version of myself.”