O's Bautista has '100% confidence' he'll regain All-Star form
GM Mike Elias says 'very good chance' right-hander will be ready for Opening Day
Jake Rill
@JakeDRillSARASOTA, Fla. -- Get the flickering entrance lights ready at Camden Yards. Cue the ¡°Omar Whistle¡± from ¡°The Wire¡± and the anticipatory music that accompanies it.
F¨¦lix is comin¡¯ (back).
It won¡¯t be long before Félix Bautista makes his long-awaited return to the Orioles¡¯ bullpen. The Baltimore crowd will surely roar when the All-Star closer walks through the center-field gate and retakes his spot atop the mound for the ninth inning of a close game for the first time in 2025.
General manager Mike Elias said Thursday there¡¯s a ¡°very good chance¡± that Bautista will be ready for Opening Day on March 27 in Toronto, and Bautista -- who underwent Tommy John surgery in October 2023 -- expressed the same sentiment when he met with the media for the first time in more than a year on Friday morning at O¡¯s camp.
¡°I feel really good right now,¡± Bautista said via team interpreter Brandon Quinones. ¡°Everything is going according to plan, and that remains the goal -- to be ready for Opening Day.¡±
Bautista has endured a long journey back to this point, and the Orioles have greatly felt his absence.
On Aug. 25, 2023, Bautista experienced discomfort in his right elbow after throwing a 102.3 mph fastball. He tried to return before the end of the season, but his comeback attempt for the postseason was unsuccessful. Bautista attended the clinching celebrations as the O¡¯s secured a playoff berth and won the American League East title, and then his right UCL was reconstructed.
The Orioles have since played it safe with the 6-foot-8, 285-pound Dominican right-hander. They never considered rushing Bautista back in 2024, even though the club reached the postseason for the second straight year and could have benefited from his presence.
Baltimore hoped veteran closer Craig Kimbrel would serve as a strong one-year stopgap, but he recorded a 5.33 ERA in 57 games before getting designated for assignment last September. The O¡¯s then often turned to Trade Deadline acquisition Seranthony Dom¨ªnguez to close out games down the stretch.
This spring, the Orioles plan to keep the same approach regarding Bautista¡¯s recovery, even with Opening Day looming in less than six weeks.
¡°Obviously, we¡¯ve got a team with strong playoff aspirations, and we want F¨¦lix to be a big part of that playoff push, if we¡¯re able to get that far,¡± Elias said. ¡°We¡¯ll be keeping an eye on his buildup in that regard. But we¡¯re going to take it slow.
¡°It¡¯s not something that we¡¯re going to force. Kind of want to see where he¡¯s at in game action here in Sarasota before we make that determination, but it¡¯s very possible. We¡¯re going to try to be smart about it with him.¡±
Bautista, who has often rehabbed in Sarasota over the past year-plus, is throwing regular bullpen sessions and participating in pitchers¡¯ fielding practice. The 29-year-old said he¡¯s at about 85% strength, but he expects to be at 100 by the start of the season.
There is also ¡°100% confidence¡± from Bautista that he¡¯ll eventually return to his previous form. He had a 2.19 ERA in 65 appearances during his breakout 2022 rookie season, then became one of baseball¡¯s best closers in ¡®23, when he posted a 1.48 ERA with 33 saves over 56 outings.
¡°I think only someone who has gone through this really understands how hard it is,¡± Bautista said. ¡°But I¡¯ve been trying to do my best to recover and prepare myself to come back fully healthy and be prepared and ready to go. I just have to continue working and doing all the little things to make sure I get back to that point when I¡¯m ready.¡±
Baltimore¡¯s bullpen is expected to be quite deep as Bautista returns to the mix. Once he reclaims the closer spot, Dom¨ªnguez can return to a setup role. He¡¯ll be joined by Yennier Cano, Andrew Kittredge and a trio of lefties -- Keegan Akin, Cionel P¨¦rez and Gregory Soto -- pitching in high-leverage situations.
Beyond his pitching prowess, Bautista is also a popular presence in the clubhouse, and his increased involvement in Spring Training workouts has been warmly received by his teammates.
¡°I think it¡¯s a beautiful thing,¡± Cano said via Quinones. ¡°I think many know that he¡¯s been like a brother to me, on and off the field. I think he¡¯s going to bring a different confidence to this group in every way. So I think we¡¯re all really happy to have him around, and I think it will give us a lot of confidence this year.¡±