Bautista activated, rejoins O's bullpen; Helsley, O'Neill done for '26

BALTIMORE -- As the Orioles' bullpen lost one closer for the rest of the 2026 season, a familiar face has returned to eventually reassume the role.

Félix Bautista was reinstated from the injured list prior to Baltimore's game vs. Milwaukee at Camden Yards on Saturday evening, as the 31-year-old right-hander completed a long comeback from right shoulder surgery. His next appearance will be his first in the big leagues since July 20, 2025.

However, the O's have decided to shut down right-hander Ryan Helsley, who has been on the IL due to right elbow discomfort since June 30. Time ran out for the 32-year-old to return with only eight games remaining in the club's season entering Saturday.

The Orioles also reinstated outfielder Christian Franklin (left hand inflammation) from the 10-day injured list and optioned outfielder Heston Kjerstad to Triple-A Norfolk. Left-hander Cade Povich, who made a spot start in Friday's 6-5, 10-inning loss to the Brewers, was optioned to Triple-A to make room on the active roster for Bautista.

Outfielder Tyler O'Neill (right shoulder inflammation) was transferred to the 60-day IL, ending his season. The 31-year-old had been sidelined since Aug. 23.

The best news of the day was the return of Bautista, who had been through this type of lengthy recovery before. The 2023 All-Star missed the entire '24 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery in October 2023, before returning to make 35 appearances for Baltimore during the '25 season.

When healthy, Bautista has been one of the best closers in baseball. The 6-foot-8 righty has a 2.01 ERA in 156 outings since making his MLB debut in 2022, recording 67 saves (including 33 in '23).

Last year, Bautista had a 2.60 ERA and 19 saves over 35 games before injuring his right shoulder. He underwent surgery to repair a torn rotator cuff and a torn labrum in August 2025.

Bautista made nine relief appearances during his Minor League rehab assignment, including eight at Triple-A. He had a 2.35 ERA in 7 2/3 innings for Norfolk.

"Couldn't be more excited to have Félix back. It's been a long road for him," manager Craig Albernaz said. "We're going to try to be as smart as we can with using Félix, but also, the game is chaotic and unpredictable, so you don't know what's going to happen."

Will Bautista immediately be thrust into his traditional ninth-inning role, or could he be used in some low-leverage spots first?

"It's one of those things where we're not going to force him into the ninth-inning role," Albernaz said. "We want to be smart with everything, especially with his buildup and ramp-up to get into the game. But also, the game is so unpredictable, it's tough to have a definitive answer on that."

Knowing Bautista would miss most of this season, the Orioles signed Helsley to a two-year, $28 million deal to fill in as their closer. However, he made only 17 appearances because of two IL stints due to elbow injuries, recording a 4.11 ERA with eight saves in 15 1/3 innings.

Helsley made his first rehab appearance at Triple-A on Sept. 12, working a 1-2-3 inning. But the decision was later made to not force the righty back with so little time remaining in the season.

"Helsley was doing pretty well in his rehab," president of baseball operations Mike Elias said. "With the calendar where we're at, we got to the point where we had to kind of decide whether to push the envelope a little bit and compress his time between outings and ramp him up and get ready for the big league level. Taking a look at that and just taking everything into account, we decided that might not be the wisest play. So, we're going to shut him down, basically, and conclude his season.

"He's healthy. We want to gear him toward 2027 at this point."

Although Helsley has the ability to opt out of his contract this offseason, it would be surprising if he decides to do so after an injury-plagued campaign.

O'Neill's season ended after his injured right shoulder didn't respond well to baseball activities earlier this month. He hit .212 with eight doubles, 10 home runs, 23 RBIs and a .677 OPS in 85 games this season, his second in Baltimore.

Since signing a three-year, $49.5 million deal with the Orioles, O'Neill has hit .206 with 14 doubles, 19 home runs, 49 RBIs and a .680 OPS in only 139 games over the past two seasons. The 2027 campaign will mark the final year of his contract.