The Baltimore Orioles lost on Wednesday to the Kansas City Royals, falling in two games in the American League wild card series.
The O’s mustered just one run in the two games as they lost 1-0 and 2-1. It was a crashing end to a promising season for Baltimore, who was swept in the playoffs for the second straight year.
Though not an excuse, the Orioles were clearly not at full strength in these playoffs. Kyle Bradish and John Means were out most of the year with injury and closer Felix Bautista missed the entire season after undergoing Tommy John surgery. Furthermore, Grayson Rodriguez was shut down toward the end of the year. Jorge Mateo was out with a gruesome elbow injury also.
At the end of the season press conference, O’s leadership provided some injury updates:
Per Roch Kubatko of MASN on social media:
Elias said Bautista, Mateo and Rodriguez will be more or less full go start of spring training
The 29-year-old Bautista was arguably the top reliever in the game in 2023, going 8-2 with a 1.48 ERA. He saved 33 games while striking out 110 batters in just 61.0 innings.
Rodriguez is one of the top young arms in the American League. He went 13-4 this season in 20 starts. He struck out 130 batters in 116.2 innings.
As for Mateo, he’s a utility infielder who provides the Orioles with depth and great speed.
Baltimore finished second in the American League East to the New York Yankees.
