SARASOTA, Fla. — Like any good relationship, the day starts with a simple message.

“Morning,” Orioles pitcher Dean Kremer texts to fellow starter Kyle Bradish, who is sleeping only a few rooms down the hall in whatever city they happen to be in.

“How long do you need?” he follows up once the other wakes up.

Then it’s off to explore and get breakfast together, a long-standing tradition that goes back to their minor league days. See, the two may each be in committed relationships — Bradish is married, and Kremer has a long-term girlfriend — but being a professional baseball player means spending more days away from home than with their significant others. And that means finding someone who can keep things as normal as possible on the road, starting with a good breakfast every day.

“We’re each other’s work wives, I guess, somebody to go home to,” Kremer said. “It’s comforting having someone that knows you, knows your story, knows you personally beyond just what’s between the white lines. We’ve been through life experiences together; he’s basically a brother.”

The two have been inseparable since 2021, when they got to know each other while in Triple-A. Both cornerstones of trades made during the Orioles’ rebuild, they formed a bond that carried them through their Norfolk days. It’s where they started getting breakfast together on road trips, a tradition they carried into the majors in 2022 once they became staples of the Orioles’ rotation.

Now, they have their go-to spots all over the country.

If they like a place, they’ll go back every day they are in that city. If they don’t, they’ll go back to the drawing board and find a new spot the next day. Their favorites are Cafe Landwer in Toronto and a bagel place in New York that neither knows the name of but both know how to get to from the team hotel with their eyes closed.

Because a starter pitches only once every five or so days, preparing for each outing can be more treacherous than a position player getting ready for a regular game. That’s where having someone to help you through — and someone who understands how you react to that pressure — can be beneficial.

Kremer gets anxiety on his start days and, although he tries, can’t usually eat. Bradish is different. He wants to pretend that his start day is just like any other, so Kremer is the perfect breakfast date. He gets it, and he knows exactly what Bradish needs to make everything feel normal.

“It’s really nice having him just to go through everything, especially him being another starting pitcher,” Bradish said. “We know what it’s like to be in each other’s shoes.”

That bond was tested the most last year after Bradish hurt his ulnar collateral ligament. Bradish tried a platelet-rich-plasma injection first and rejoined the team in May, but the reunion was short-lived. By June, his elbow pain had become too much and he had to have Tommy John reconstruction surgery. The recovery timeline was 12 to 18 months.

It was a devastating blow not only to his career but also to him personally. For smaller injuries, players remain with the team and usually travel as they rehab. But, for more severe ailments with longer rehab times, they are sent to the team’s complex in Sarasota.

That meant Bradish and Kremer were separated for more than half the season. They texted daily, but it’s not the same as being there in person, finding breakfast spots in their favorite cities together.

“We’re each other’s work wives, I guess, somebody to go home to. It’s comforting having someone that knows you, knows your story, knows you personally beyond just what’s between the white lines.”

Dean Kremer, on his breakfast ritual with teammate Kyle Bradish

“I didn’t feel like I was away from the game, just away from my teammates,” Bradish said. “It’s not like I felt like I was missing out too much besides being at the actual stadium with him.”

But, fortunately for these two, they didn’t have to be separated for long. After the 2023 season, they bought townhouses in Phoenix just eight minutes apart from each other so they can spend the offseason training together at Push Performance.

And, while they will have to be apart again for the first half of the season, if everything goes on track with Bradish’s recovery, they should be back together by midseason, perhaps even in time for a Toronto trip and another visit to their favorite cafe.