Félix Bautista made a commitment to come back to the Orioles this season after undergoing surgery in August 2025 to repair his labrum and rotator cuff. He’s gone through the rehab grind in the past. He knows what to expect and the sacrifices required to meet his goal.

What he didn’t anticipate was returning to a team that’s barely able to hang onto its playoff hopes.

The Orioles are four games behind the White Sox for the last Wild Card with a week left in the season. The tragic number, as it’s known, is four.

“Yeah, you feel it, you know?” Bautista said this afternoon via interpreter Brandon Quinones. “It’s not easy. I don’t know how much of a chance we still have to get into the playoffs, but I know at the very least the guys are focused on doing whatever they can and coming back next year ready to compete.”

The Orioles reinstated Bautista from the 60-day injured list yesterday but didn’t use him in a 1-0 loss to the Brewers. He made nine appearances on his rehab assignment, the last eight with Triple-A Norfolk.

“Incredibly satisfying,” he said. “Knowing how long I was out, all the hard work I had to put in to get through that, and being here now, seeing the fruits of all that hard work, it feels incredibly satisfying.”

Manager Craig Albernaz hasn’t committed to using Bautista in closing situations, keenly aware that the game often dictates these decisions. There’s also a certain degree of caution necessary with Bautista, who underwent Tommy John surgery in October 2023, missed the entire 2024 season and got into 35 games last year before being shut down. His last appearance was July 20.

“I’m ready for whatever situation they want to put me in,” he said, “but I’m not expecting them to put me into the ninth inning right away.”

The difficulty in pushing through another rehab reminded Bautista of the post-elbow surgery period of his life. He wasn’t burdened by any surprises, if medical silver linings actually exist.

“I knew that it was just as long of a road and it took a lot of time, but my entire focus the entire time was just on the work itself, staying focused on the work,” Bautista said. “I think that’s why being able to come back and being here now feels so good, because of how long it took, but also just because of my work and being able to come back.”

No matter what the standings said, Bautista felt that it was important to pitch again in the majors. To leave Sarasota behind and walk into the clubhouse again. To be with his teammates and sit in the bullpen where his entrances became a light show and hype video spectacle. And the team wants to set him up for a healthy offseason and 2027.

“It’s a goal that I set for myself was being able to come back at some point this year as I continue to, you know, put in the work and boxes continue to be checked off. And as I saw it to become more and more of a possibility, something I was very happy about,” he said.

“Yeah, absolutely, this is something that I wanted for myself to be able to come back at some point this season.”

*Norfolk finished its season today with a 7-4 loss to Charlotte, leaving its final record at 58-89.

Enrique Bradfield Jr. went 2-for-5 with a triple and opposite-field home run. Aron Estrada was 3-for-5 with an RBI.

Andrew Magno tossed a scoreless inning with a walk and two strikeouts and finished with a 1.70 ERA in 47 appearanes.