The Orioles announced Thursday that closer Félix Bautista has been placed on the 15-day injured list due to right shoulder discomfort. Righty Kade Strowd has been recalled from Triple-A Norfolk to take his spot on the active roster.
Bautista, 30, is in his first season back on the mound after missing the 2024 campaign due to Tommy John surgery. He has, in many ways, picked up where he left off pre-injury and reclaimed his status as a high-end reliever. He’s tossed 34 2/3 innings, saved 19 games and logged a 2.60 ERA with a gaudy 35.2% strikeout rate.
Bautista’s command, however, isn’t as sharp as it was prior to surgery. He’s walked 16.2% of his opponents this year — way up from the 10% mark he recorded in 2022-23. Bautista has also changed up his pitch selection, scrapping his four-seamer in favor of a sinker. That’s led to an uptick in grounders (50.7% in 2025 compared to 39.9% in 2022-23) but fewer whiffs. Impressive as that 35.2% strikeout rate is, it pales in comparison to the superhuman 46.4% rate he posted in 2023. Bautista’s sinker, notably, is sitting 97.2 mph — a good bit shy of the 99.3 mph he averaged on his four-seamer prior to surgery.
More to come.
