Reed Trimble returns to Triple-A, launches sixth homer for Norfolk

Reed Trimble is healthy again, and Baltimore now has to weigh a 40-man outfielder who is starting to look like more than depth. The 25-year-old returned to Triple-A Norfolk and immediately drove a three-run homer in a 9-6 win over Charlotte at Truist Field, a swing that marked his sixth home run for the Tides and turned a comeback assignment into a roster question.

Trimble’s path back was interrupted by a right hamstring problem that sent him to the 7-day injured list on March 29 after he exited a 6-4 win over Nashville. He missed a little more than a month, then worked through a seven-game rehab assignment with Single-A and High-A clubs before rejoining Norfolk. The power showed up right away. In his first game back at Triple-A on May 12, Trimble helped the Tides erase early damage in a game that featured 17 Norfolk hits and a three-run frame that steadied the lineup after Charlotte had already posted a first-inning lead and later nudged ahead again.

That is the part Baltimore will be tracking. Trimble is not simply a name on the Norfolk roster anymore. He is a 40-man player, added in November 2025, and the organization has already spent the winter and spring sorting through outfield options. When a player with that status gets healthy, returns to Triple-A and starts driving baseballs out of the yard again, the margin for keeping him parked in Norfolk gets thinner. The Orioles do not have to force a move today, but they do have to start deciding how soon they want a bat with some power-speed upside in the picture.

Trimble’s tools have never been the mystery. Baseball America described him as a switch-hitter with above-average bat speed and plus-plus speed, while MLB Pipeline gave him a 50 power grade and a 65 run grade. That profile made sense on draft day, when Baltimore took William Trimble in Competitive Balance Round B, 65th overall, out of Southern Mississippi in 2021 and signed him for $800,000. It also explains why this return matters beyond one box score. Trimble’s minor league line now includes 30 home runs and 61 stolen bases, and if the hamstring is behind him, Norfolk may be watching a player who is close to forcing Baltimore’s hand.