Orioles' Felix Bautista: Will pitch Monday vs. PHI
Rotowire
Bautista will pitch Monday against the Phillies in a Grapefruit League game, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.
Bautista will follow starter Kyle Bradish at some point in the contest. The right-hander got off to a late start in spring action because of shoulder and knee troubles, but he showed off his impressive fastball in his spring debut earlier in the week and looks ready to roll for the start of the season.
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Orioles' Felix Bautista: Fans pair in spring debut
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Bautista (shoulder/knee) struck out two over a perfect inning Tuesday versus the Pirates in his Grapefruit League debut.
Bautista touched 99 mph on the radar gun, per Nathan Ruiz of The Baltimore Sun. He'll make another appearance Friday and an additional 2-3 after that in preparation of Opening Day. The Orioles slow-played Bautista this spring after last year's shoulder and knee issues, but those injuries no longer appear to be of concern.
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Orioles' Felix Bautista: Cleared for spring debut
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Bautista (shoulder/knee) will make his Grapefruit League debut Tuesday against the Pirates, Steve Melewski of MASNSports.com reports.
Bautista and the Orioles had been eyeing Thursday for his spring debut, but that timeline was apparently moved up a couple days. It's a good sign that Bautista's shoulder and knee aren't a concern anymore, which matches reports of how his bullpens and live batting practice sessions have looked. "The Mountain" is on track to be ready to roll for the O's on Opening Day as the club's clear closer.
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Orioles' Felix Bautista: Targeting Thursday for spring debut
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Bautista (shoulder/knee) is aiming to make his Grapefruit League debut Thursday versus the Blue Jays, Steve Melewski of MASNSports.com reports.
Bautista is expected to get in at least one live batting practice session before he is ready for game action. He's been throwing bullpens for the last two weeks after battling shoulder and knee soreness early in the spring. Despite debuting late in the spring, the closer is still on track to be ready for Opening Day.
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Orioles' Felix Bautista: Advancing to live work next week
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Orioles manager Brandon Hyde said Wednesday that Bautista (shoulder/knee) is on track to throw live batting practice next week, Rich Dubroff of BaltimoreBaseball.com reports.
The 27-year-old has yet to make his spring debut while battling shoulder and knee soreness, but he's been gradually ramping up through bullpen sessions over the past two weeks and should be ready to take the next meaningful step forward in his buildup process within the next few days. Assuming Bautista is able to get in an appearance or two in a Grapefruit League game or minor-league game on the back fields at some point before spring training ends, he should be ready to handle closing duties for the Orioles by the time Opening Day arrives.
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Orioles' Felix Bautista: Continues with bullpen sessions
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Bautista (shoulder/knee) felt good after throwing a bullpen session Wednesday, Andy Kostka of The Baltimore Sun reports.
The 27-year-old continues upping his intensity on the mound and is scheduled for another bullpen session Saturday. It's unclear when Bautista will be cleared for game action, but he appears to be close to throwing against live hitters.
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Orioles' Felix Bautista: Completes bullpen session
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Manager Brandon Hyde said Bautista (shoulder/knee) bounced back well after Saturday's bullpen session, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.
The right-hander upped his intensity to about 80-to-85 percent for Saturday's session and should continue ramping things up this week. Assuming Bautista is able to pitch at full effort in the near future, it shouldn't take long for him to advance to facing live batters.
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Orioles' Felix Bautista: To up effort level Saturday
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Bautista (shoulder/knee) will throw another bullpen session Saturday and will up his effort level to around 80-85 percent, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.
Bautista threw a less intense bullpen session Tuesday and will now ramp things up a bit more this weekend. The Orioles have elected to proceed cautiously with their closer this spring after he dealt with shoulder and knee soreness late last season. It's not clear when Bautista might be cleared for Grapefruit League action.
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Orioles' Felix Bautista: Throws bullpen session
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Bautista (shoulder/knee) threw a bullpen session without issue Tuesday, Andy Kostka of The Baltimore Banner reports.
"I felt really good the entire time, I feel healthy," Bautista said through a translator after the throwing session. The big reliever is being eased into action this spring after ending last season with shoulder and knee issues. The hope remains that Bautista will be ready for Opening Day, although it's not a given.
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Orioles' Felix Bautista: Bullpen session planned for Tuesday
Rotowire
Bautista (shoulder/knee) said that he expects to throw another bullpen session Tuesday at approximately 75-to-80 percent intensity, Andy Kostka of The Baltimore Sun reports.
Bautista is gradually building back up from left knee soreness and right shoulder soreness, injuries that both affected him late in the 2022 season. Despite the fact that the Orioles are taking a deliberate approach with him this spring and plan to hold the 27-year-old out of Grapefruit League games until around mid-March, Bautista still appears to be trending toward being ready to go for Opening Day. If Bautista doesn't progress as anticipated and needs to open the season on the injured list, however, manager Brandon Hyde mentioned Cionel Perez and Bryan Baker as candidates to get opportunities early on to close games, according to Jake Rill of MLB.com.
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Orioles' Felix Bautista: Targeting games in mid-March
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Bautista (knee/shoulder) is expected to be game-ready by mid-March, Nathan Ruiz of The Baltimore Sun reports.
Bautista's breakout 2022 campaign saw him deal with both knee soreness and arm fatigue in September. Neither issue sounded major at the time, but the fact that he came into camp with both problems still lingering was discouraging. While the injuries add risk to his profile this spring, it's possible they don't wind up costing him any game time, as he can still be ramped up by Opening Day if he gets the chance to appear in four or five Grapefruit League contests. He's already thrown a bullpen session without discomfort, albeit at 70 percent, per Dan Connolly of The Athletic.
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Orioles' Felix Bautista: Slowed by knee, shoulder injuries
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Bautista will have a delayed start to spring training while recovering from knee and shoulder injuries, Dan Connolly of The Athletic reports.
Bautista ended last season on the injured list with left knee soreness. He also missed a little time in September with what the Orioles referred to at the time simply as arm fatigue, but it's fair to assume now that it was shoulder related. The team expects Bautista to pitch in some Grapefruit League games and think he has a chance to be ready for Opening Day, but this is certainly not the news you want to hear at the beginning of camp. With Dillon Tate (elbow) also sidelined, Mychal Givens might see some save chances if Bautista misses time.
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Orioles' Felix Bautista: Shifts to IL
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The Orioles placed Bautista (knee) on the 15-day injured list Monday.
Bautista's move to the IL came just minutes after the rookie would be shut down for the remainder of the season due to left knee discomfort. The 27-year-old should be fully recovered from the injury well in advance of spring training and will be the odds-on favorite to open the 2023 campaign as the Orioles' closer, barring the addition of some veteran competition over the weekend. Bautista finished his first season in the big leagues with 15 saves in 17 chances to go with a 2.19 ERA, 0.93 WHIP and 88 strikeouts over 65.2 innings.
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Orioles' Felix Bautista: Shut down for season
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Orioles manager Brandon Hyde confirmed Monday that Bautista (knee) won't be available for the team's final three games of the season, Nathan Ruiz of The Baltimore Sun reports.
Bautista has been tending to left knee discomfort since his latest relief appearance Friday against the Yankees, and with the Orioles having recently been eliminated from playoff contention, Hyde won't ask his closer to pitch at less-than-optimal health. The injury is only a minor blemish on what was a spectacular rookie campaign for the 27-year-old, who converted 15 saves and gathered 14 holds while submitting a 2.19 ERA, 0.93 WHIP and 88:23 K:BB across 65.2 innings. Fortunately for Bautista, all tests on his knee came back clean, so he should be in store for a relatively normal offseason, according to Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.
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Orioles' Felix Bautista: Still experiencing knee soreness
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Bautista still has some soreness in his left knee Sunday, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.
Bautista struck out two in a scoreless inning Friday but reported knee soreness after the game and hasn't pitched since. With the Orioles eliminated from the playoff mix, it would not be surprising to see them let their gigantic power reliever rest his knee for the rest of the regular season.
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Orioles' Felix Bautista: Dealing with knee soreness
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Bautista, who struck out two in a scoreless eighth inning Friday against the Yankees, is dealing with left knee soreness, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.
Bautista came in for a high-leverage spot and got the job done, but he was apparently pitching at less than 100 percent by the time he exited the game. DL Hall got the save Friday. It's unclear if Bautista will be available for Baltimore's next game, but he said he thinks he will pitch again this season.
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Orioles' Felix Bautista: Blows save, takes loss
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Bautista (4-4) blew the save and took the loss Saturday against the Astros. He allowed four runs on four hits and two walks while striking out two over 1.1 innings.
Bautista relieved Dillon Tate in the top of the eighth with one out and a runner on first. After getting Kyle Tucker to strike out swinging, Bautista served up a double to Yuli Gurriel to drive home Yordan Alvarez and tie the game at 7-7. The right-hander came back out in the ninth and gave up a leadoff single and a walk to start the inning en route to ultimately being tagged for four runs. It was just Bautista's second blown save of the season and the first time he's been charged with a loss since July 31.
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Orioles' Felix Bautista: Records one-out save
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Bautista picked up the save in Thursday's 2-0 win over the Astros, striking out the only batter he faced.
Bautista has converted 13 straight save opportunities, recording a 1.99 ERA over 22.2 innings in 20 outings during that span. During his last three appearances prior to Thursday's outing, however, the righty had allowed two runs and six baserunners over four innings.
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Orioles' Felix Bautista: Notches 13th save
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Bautista picked up the save Tuesday against the Nationals. He allowed no hits and one walk while striking out two over one scoreless inning.
In his first appearance since sitting out a few days due to arm fatigue, Bautista worked around a leadoff walk to pitch a scoreless ninth inning and earn his 13th save of the season. The 27-year-old is 13-for-14 in save opportunities with a 1.60 ERA on the season. He should remain the top option for saves in Baltimore as long as his arm holds up.
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Orioles' Felix Bautista: Available Sunday
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Bautista (arm) will be available out of the bullpen Sunday, Nathan Ruiz of The Baltimore Sun reports.
Bautista was held out for a few days with arm fatigue, but he played catch Saturday without issue and said Sunday that he is now feeling "really good." As such, expect Bautista to get the ball if the Orioles find themselves needing to protect a lead of three runs or less in the ninth inning of Sunday's game against the Red Sox.
