CINCINNATI -- Sometimes a change of scenery is all it takes to spark a mid-season turnaround. 

Designated for assignment on the final day of May by the Nationals, Orioles starting pitcher Austin Voth has seized his opportunity to get back into a Major League rotation with a stretch of solid starts. 

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Voth, 30, began 2022 as a member of Washington’s bullpen, but he struggled mightily with command, posting a 5.59 ERA during the opening month of the season. And in his limited opportunities in May, things didn't get much better. The Orioles claimed Voth off of waivers, and after initially flirting with him as a reliever, rotation injuries offered him another shot at a starting gig. 

Fast forward two months, and Voth has turned in his best outing of the season. On Sunday afternoon, he dealt five shutout innings with six strikeouts in the team’s 3-2 loss to Cincinnati in the series finale at Great American Ball Park.

“He was outstanding,” Orioles manager Brandon Hyde said. “That was at the max there. He went three innings the last time, he goes five innings for us [tonight]. … He was really, really good. [He] left in a 0-0 game, we just didn't score.”

Voth also went toe-to-toe with the Reds’ No. 2 prospect Nick Lodolo, both throwing up zeros on the scoreboard through the first five innings. After walking three Rays hitters in his last start, he didn't walk a single hitter Sunday, and each of the four hits he allowed were singles.

“[My curveball] was a weapon for me to use, for sure. It’s good to be able to throw that pitch for strikes and then out of the strike zone as well today. And then I was mixing in some changeups as well. That’s a key pitch that I’m going to need to continue to use moving forward.”

Voth has lasted five innings just twice this season, but he’s given Hyde some much needed stability in the early innings. After posting an 8.51 ERA in his 23 appearances as a reliever this year, Voth has trimmed it down to an impressive 3.43 ERA as a starter.

“I love starting,” Voth said. “Just pitching every five days and having your own routine and building up for that start. Being able to pitch multiple innings … I love it.

“[It’s] important to go deeper in games overall. Just give the bullpen a little bit more breathing room. I was pleased to go five today.”

Voth finished firing 77 pitches, 53 for strikes. He had similar usage rates on both his low-90s four-seam fastball and curveball, the latter of which he received whiffs on 33% of swings.

Since arriving in Baltimore, Voth has taken an analytical approach to help improve his game.

“In the past, it’s always been the execution of my pitches to the middle part of the plate,” he said. “Now I’m trying to focus on the four corners of the strike zone, and I think that’s really helping me a lot.”

In his two months in Baltimore, Voth posted an ERA of 3.00 in June and 2.75 in his 19 2/3 innings in July. Only one of his last eight appearances came in middle-inning relief, and Voth dealt 2 1/3 shutout innings in that outing.

“I think that he’s excited to start. And we like his starter stuff,” Hyde added. “He’s got a really good curveball, he had a good cutter today. I love that he’s really competitive and pitched extremely well. I think he’s enjoying the opportunity and trying to run with it.”