All of Birdland collectively held their breath as Orioles All-Star closer Félix Bautista stumbled after a pitch in a game against the Colorado Rockies.
O’s head athletic trainer Brian Ebel and manager Brandon Hyde rushed to the mound, had a short discussion and the mood in Camden Yards went from excitement for a win to concern to worry in a matter of minutes.
The fanbase began to fear the worst with social media becoming a lightning rod of thoughts, ideas and opinions. Unbeknowns to many, Bautista was liking posts on Instagram while his spirits were reported as good and upbeat.
It came out later on Saturday from Orioles GM Mike Elias that Bautista has “some degree of injury” to the ulnal collateral ligament (UCL) in his throwing arm.
That news was followed by information from Elias stating he would go on the injured list and D.L. Hall would be recalled from Triple-A Norfolk. They will figure out what the next best step with Bautista is at this time.
“Félix has been such a massive part of our team, the best closer in the game. It’s been amazing to watch him do what he does. Last night sucked. That’s the bottom line, and we’re hoping for the best for him. I just feel for him. We’ve got to move forward, have guys step up and go from there.”
– O’s manager Brandon Hyde on Félix Bautista
Bautista was in the midst of one of the best seasons by a releiver. Over 61 innings of work, Bautista amassed 33 saves while striking out 46.4% of the batters he faced. His ERA is currently at 1.48, and he has posted a 1.89 FIP with a 2.8 WAR.
With Bautista, the O’s bullpen ranks sixth in the majors with a 3.55 ERA while posting the best FIP (3.51) and the top WAR of 6.8. The Orioles also rank third with a 26.5% strikeout rate.
The loss of Bautista is a blow to the Orioles’ bullpen, to put it mildly. The likes of fellow All-Star Yennier Canó, Jacob Webb, Danny Coulombe, Shintaro Fujinami and Cionel Pérez will all be tasked to step up to fill the void.
As for depth, Tyler Wells, John Means, Joey Kriehbal, Mike Baumann, Bryan Baker and Nick Vespi are currently in Norfolk awaiting a call to help the team at any point.
While we do not know the full extent of the injury to Bautista at this time, he was immediately placed on the 15-day IL. Birdland will continue to refresh their Twitter feeds until they know more. Either way, we all are praying that ‘The Mountain’ returns sooner rather than later
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