This is why Corbin Burnes is in Baltimore.

October has arrived and, eight months to the day after they traded for him, Burnes is taking the ball for Game 1 of the Orioles’ wild-card series against the Kansas City Royals. They swung big for the former National League Cy Young Award winner in February, sending two promising young players and a draft pick to the Milwaukee Brewers for a proven ace they could install atop their rotation. And from the moment the games began, the Orioles treated him like one.

He started their Grapefruit League opener in spring training. He dazzled on opening day with 11 strikeouts in six innings and represented the Orioles as the American League starter for the MLB All-Star Game. When they opened the second half, Burnes started the first game of the stretch run. He never missed a turn of the rotation, finishing with the sixth-most innings in the majors.

Now, as they embark on what they hope is a long postseason, they are once again turning to Burnes to lead the way.

“It’s an honor,” Burnes said. “To get the ball opening day, to get the ball Game 1 of the postseason, not many guys get to do that in their career. I’ve been fortunate to do it a couple times and to do it in my first year here in Baltimore is special as well.

“This is a great group of guys and they accepted me from Day 1 when I came in like I was part of the family and had a great spring training, great year. So, it’s a credit to those guys for accepting me as quickly as they did, and meshing in that clubhouse the way we did and, yeah, just excited to go out and take the ball and lead the charge for these guys.”

The regular-season numbers were sparkling. Burnes went 15-9 with a 2.92 ERA, 1.096 WHIP and 181 strikeouts, pitching as advertised while injury blows depleted the rest of the rotation around him. Kyle Bradish, Grayson Rodriguez, John Means and Tyler Wells all suffered season-ending injuries, making Burnes all the more critical to the Orioles’ World Series chances even with the trade deadline acquisition of Zach Eflin.

By FanGraphs’ wins above replacement metric, Burnes (3.7 WAR) was more valuable than infielder Joey Ortiz (3.1) and left-hander DL Hall (-0.2) — the two players Baltimore traded to Milwaukee for him — combined. The Orioles would not have made the playoffs without him. But while the Brewers’ success in that deal will be judged by how Ortiz, Hall and their No. 34 overall draft pick Blake Burke perform over the long run, the Orioles’ success comes down to the playoffs and how far Burnes takes them.

“We feel great about Corbin going Game 1,” manager Brandon Hyde said. “Especially with what he’s been doing in September, he’s had a heck of a year. He’s a guy that can beat anybody on any night and to have a guy like that with that kind of stuff, that kind of confidence — Corbin Burnes is pitching, you expect to win that night. And that’s how our guys feel.”

Burnes’ future with the Orioles beyond October is murky at best. The 29-year-old is set to become a free agent for the first time this winter, and he’s expected to test the market as the top starting pitcher available. With renowned agent Scott Boras representing him, the Orioles are unlikely to get some kind of hometown discount and would have to make perhaps the largest financial commitment to a player in franchise history to keep him.

That’s a tall order for new owner David Rubenstein, who also must weigh handing out extensions to some of the team’s young stars such as shortstop Gunnar Henderson, catcher Adley Rutschman, infielder Jordan Westburg and outfielder Colton Cowser. Veteran outfielder Anthony Santander, who led the team with 44 home runs this season, will also be a free agent pending a potential qualifying offer.

“It’s been awesome being able to watch him,” Henderson said of Burnes. “Being able to watch it from up the middle and just kind of see how his stuff moves and how he attacks hitters has been really awesome to watch and really looking forward to him in the postseason atmosphere.”

But the Orioles didn’t trade for Burnes with the future in mind. They acquired him to be the final piece for a ballclub aiming for its first World Series title since 1983 — and he did his part in the regular season. The real test begins with Game 1 on Tuesday.