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Orioles pitcher Albert Suárez received a second opinion on his right elbow Tuesday during an examination by Dr. Keith Meister.

According to a team spokesperson, Suárez suffered a mild forearm flexor strain in his last appearance on Sept. 14 in Toronto.

Suárez is continuing his rehabilitation into the offseason and is expected to begin a throwing progression in the coming weeks, which is a positive development following concerns over the severity of his injury. Second opinions often lead to bad news. 

The club will provide a further update when it has more information to share.

Suárez made his lone start of the season at Rogers Centre and allowed one run and two hits in three innings before being shut down. He couldn’t undergo an MRI until the swelling subsided.

Pitching in Canada brought nightmarish results for Suárez that had nothing to do with his final line. His 2025 debut came against the Blue Jays on March 28 and he exited after 2 2/3 innings with soreness in his right shoulder. An MRI revealed a subscapularis strain, and the Orioles didn’t reinstate him from the 60-day injured list until rosters expanded on Sept. 1.

Suárez had four outings, allowing two runs and four hits in nine innings.

“I mean, it’s hard not to be healthy, but mentally I’m good,” he said last month. “I just need to make sure I heal and get ready.”

Suárez’s status on the club wasn’t in question after he made 32 appearances last year, including 24 starts, and posted a 3.70 ERA in 133 2/3 innings. However, he’s eligible for arbitration after making $825,000, and MLBTradeRumors.com projects a raise to $900,000.

Avoiding surgery obviously improves Suárez’s chances of returning next season. The Orioles need to rebuild their bullpen and he’d be a valuable contributor as a swingman and in the later innings.

“He was huge for us last year,” Mansolino said last month. “I mean, you go down the list of guys in 2024 that are big reasons why the Orioles got themselves into the playoffs, Albert’s kind of at the top of the list with some of the big names on there.

“I’m disappointed for Big Al, because after the career turns that he took and going overseas to Asia, finally getting back to the big leagues and becoming a major league starter, just the kind of predicament he’s found himself in here with the injuries, I just feel for him.”