Orioles right-hander Chris Bassitt made his third rehab start for Triple-A Norfolk on Friday night, tossing six innings vs. Buffalo. The 37-year-old veteran previously threw 3 1/3 innings of one-run ball vs. Worcester on July 28, followed by 4 1/3 frames over which he gave up three runs (two earned) against Worcester last Sunday.
Bassitt has been on the injured list since June 8 due to a back injury. He underwent a procedure to have a bone spur removed later that month.
Friday's outing proved to be another good -- and likely final -- step in the right direction as Bassitt nears the end of his recovery.
How did he perform?
Bassitt threw six scoreless innings over which he yielded three hits, walked two, hit a batter and struck out five. He threw 83 pitches, 51 for strikes.
Bassitt walked the first batter he faced and hit the first batter of the third, but he induced double plays in both innings to escape unscathed. All three hits he gave up were singles.
What’s next?
On July 31, president of baseball operations Mike Elias said the plan was for Bassitt to get “another rehab outing or two.” Since then, Bassitt has made two rehab starts, meaning he is likely on the verge of being activated from the IL. Following this past Monday's Trade Deadline, Elias hinted that Bassitt was close to rejoining the Orioles.
"I want to see this team have a really strong second half," Elias said. "We've got the rotation for it. We're going to get a little bit healthier on the offensive side. We should have Blaze [Alexander] coming back soon. I think Chris Bassitt's coming to join the rotation here, the way things are looking. And so, we plow ahead."
Baltimore currently has only four starting pitchers on its 26-man roster after trading right-hander Dean Kremer to Minnesota prior to the Trade Deadline. Left-hander Cade Povich is slated to start on Sunday in what would have been Kremer's turn in the rotation, but Povich might be optioned to Triple-A Norfolk to make room on the roster for Bassitt.
What else?
Bassitt has a 5.27 ERA over 12 games (10 starts) in his first year in Baltimore. But the 12-year MLB veteran has typically pitched better in the later months of the season during his career, recording a 3.32 ERA in 41 August starts and a 3.08 ERA over 42 September/October outings.