O's could have top prospect Bundy in Majors by June

SARASOTA, Fla. -- If all goes well, the Orioles could have Dylan Bundy in a Baltimore uniform in June.

"In other words, they are saying this is when he'd be an option again for us," manager Buck Showalter said of the June target date, which Bundy has mentioned before but the O's skipper clarified on Friday.

"It's not when he's pitching in [Class A] Frederick on rehab. That's the way I understand it. I've found through the years, it means to me that he's probably going to be pitching competitively in May. By the time this is over we are going to have to pull the reins back on him."

Bundy, who had Tommy John surgery on his right elbow last June, threw from 120 feet again on Friday with trainer Chris Correnti, and he could move back to 180 next week. He's been throwing at about 75 percent, starting with 25 throws at 60 feet and moving back accordingly.

The Orioles' top pitching prospect, Bundy was the club's first-round pick in 2011 and the 21-year-old made his Major League debut Sept. 23, 2012. A power arm, Bundy could be a starter or relief option depending on where the club is, with Showalter saying the hope is he'll be stretched out to go as a starter in June.

"He's doing well," Showalter said. "My biggest hope, not my biggest but one of them, is not having setbacks with him. I haven't seen anything to think that would happen. He looks good."