The Baltimore Orioles suffered a double setback with news that reliever Felix Bautista is going on the 15-day injured list with right shoulder discomfort.
Bautista going on the IL hurts the Orioles’ chances of staying competitive and perhaps getting back into the American League playoff race. At 44-57 going into Thursday’s play, Baltimore is 15.5 games behind the first-place Toronto Blue Jays in the AL East. That also leaves them 9.5 games out of the third AL wild-card playoff spot.
However, Bautista’s injury might have more of an impact on the future of the Orioles since the 30-year-old figured to be a popular trade deadline target for playoff contenders. In 35 appearances this season, the right-hander has 50 strikeouts in 34 2/3 innings with a 2.60 ERA and 19 saves in 20 opportunities.
Contending teams looking to add a closer or a late-inning setup reliever likely had Bautista on their list of potential acquisitions leading up to the July 31 MLB trade deadline.
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Besides a career rate of 13.8 strikeouts per nine innings and a 2.01 ERA with 67 saves in 76 opportunites, Bautista also has two seasons of arbitration eligiblility remaining, making him an extremely appealing low-cost asset under two seasons of team control.
He was pitching through his first full season since recovering from Tommy John surgery that sidelined him for the entire 2024 campaign.
Bautista threw a season-high 34 pitches in his last outing on Sunday versus the Tampa Bay Rays. He got the save after allowing one run in the ninth inning, but walked three batters and threw only 18 pitches for strikes.
The injury became apparent while Bautista was beginning to warm up in Wednesday’s matchup with the Cleveland Guardians. As he began to throw a heavy ball against a wall to loosen up, something felt wrong and the Orioles’ dugout was alerted that Bautista wouldn’t be available, according to the Baltimore Sun.
“Our phone rang and right when I heard that thing ring, I told whoever was next to me, I said, ‘That is not good,’” interim manager Tony Mansolino told reporters. “I heard it get slammed after and I knew it wasn’t going to be good, and it turned out to be really horrendous.”
Bautista will get an MRI exam on Friday to determine the severity of the injury, Mansolino said. The Orioles will go with a closer by committee in his absence, likely with Seranthony Domínguez, Andrew Kittredge and Gregory Soto.
If there’s no structural damage in Bautista’s shoulder, teams might still be willing to trade for Bautista if they know they’ll get him back during the final two months of the season and into the postseason. They would also have him for an additional two seasons at a lower cost.
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