On August 25, 2023, the Orioles took a big hit that would impact not only the end of the 2023 season but also the 2024 season.
All-Star closer Félix Bautista went down with an injury that would ultimately lead to him receiving Tommy John surgery.
While in the offseason the Orioles addressed the closer issue by signing veteran closer Craig Kimbrel to a one-year deal, the big issue with Bautista being injured is that there is no true “flamethrower” in the O’s bullpen. That is, until we were introduced to Wandisson Charles.
You probably didn’t know the name Wandisson Charles that well before the season, but you definitely know the name now a little over a week into Grapefruit League play. Charles has been in the MLB books since 2015 when the Oakland Athletics signed him out of the Dominican Republic. It would take Charles four full seasons to enter his first spring training.
In 2020, the Athletics would send Charles a non-roster invite, when pitched 5.2 innings and carried a 7.94 ERA, giving up five earned runs on just six hits. Charles would spend one more spring training with the A’s before being released in December of 2022.
The Orioles would sign Charles on December 19, 2022, and immediately gave him a non-roster invite for 2023 spring training. Charles would pitch just two games, having a 21.60 ERA in just 1.2 innings pitched, giving up four hits, four earned runs and walking four batters. He would strike out two batters, but he also hit two batters and did all this in 45 total pitches.
Charles would spend the 2023 season in the O’s farm system, starting in Double-A Bowie, where he would carry a 2.35 ERA in 13 games, collecting three saves. Charles would hold Double-A batters to a .127 batting average and figured out how to control his pitches, walking just five batters and striking out 26.
He would eventually be called up to Triple-A Norfolk, and while his control faltered a bit, he was still effective. Charles would pitch in 28 games and have an ERA of 5.70 in 30 innings pitched. However, he would still hold batters to an average of .190 but have 28 walks to 40 strikeouts.
Seeing the potential, the Orioles were able to re-sign the big right-hander to a minor league deal, inviting him once again to big league camp for 2024.
Charles would make his 2024 spring debut on February 25 against the Pittsburgh Pirates. He would pitch one inning, earn a hold, give up just one hit, walk one batter and strike out one.
Charles would pitch again on February 28, when he would go one more inning, walk a batter and strike out one.
Charles would throw 16 pitches in the first game, eight four-seam fastballs, seven cutters and one splitter. His fastball would top 98.7 mph, and he would average 98.075 mph per four-seamer, which would put him as the 12th hardest-throwing pitcher in 2023, according to Statcast leaderboards.
In the second game, Charles would throw a total of 12 pitches, 10 fastballs, two cutters and one changeup. The fastball would top 98 mph and average 96.9. His cutter would top 89.3 and average 88.9, as his overall velocity would take a small dip.
Charles would pitch a third game on March 2, where he would give up one hit, walk a batter and strikeout a batter in another inning of work.
What doesn’t make sense, however, is his RPM, the spin rate of the baseball, which is usually on the lower end for fastballs and the higher end for off-speed pitches.
Charles’ fastball would top an RPM of 2,215 and average 2,135 in the first game. The second game would top an RPM of 2,289 and average 2,222 RPM per fastball. Charles would also top a high of 2,296 RPM in his cutter and average 2,120 RPM in the first game while having a high of 2,377 RPM in the second game.
While the velocity took a dip, the RPM increased.
The reason this doesn’t make sense is because, according to mlbrun.com, the average spin rate in 2023 for fastballs was 2,256 RPM. This means that Charles is around 129 RPM lower in spin rate than the average fastball last season. This shouldn’t be too much of an issue for the future, but it’s something to look at moving forward.
With the loss of Bautista, having Charles as a flamethrower in the pen would be great, especially for times when someone like John Means, who doesn’t throw exceptionally fast, makes a start.
Keep an eye on Charles moving forward this spring, and expect him to make his MLB debut this upcoming season in orange and black.
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