Félix Alexander Bautista (born June 20, 1995), nicknamed "The Mountain",[1][2] is a Dominican professional baseball pitcher for the Baltimore Orioles of Major League Baseball (MLB). He was signed by the Miami Marlins as an international free agent in 2012. He made his MLB debut in 2022.
| Félix Bautista | |
|---|---|
| Baltimore Orioles – No. 74 | |
| Pitcher | |
| Born: June 20, 1995 Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic | |
Bats: Right Throws: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| April 10, 2022, for the Baltimore Orioles | |
| MLB statistics (through 2023 season) | |
| Win–loss record | 12–6 |
| Earned run average | 1.85 |
| Strikeouts | 198 |
| Saves | 48 |
| Stats at Baseball Reference | |
| Managerial record at Baseball Reference | |
| Teams | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
Career
editMiami Marlins
editBautista signed with the Miami Marlins as an international free agent on November 19, 2012. Bautista made his professional debut for the Dominican Summer League Marlins in 2013, logging a 2.73 earned run average (ERA) with 17 strikeouts in 11 appearances. In 2014, Bautista pitched to a 12.41 ERA with seven strikeouts in 12+1⁄3 innings pitched across eight games. He was released by the Marlins organization on January 15, 2015.[3]
Baltimore Orioles
editAfter not playing professionally in 2015, on August 4, 2016, Bautista signed a minor league contract with the Baltimore Orioles organization.[4] He was assigned to the Dominican Summer League Orioles, where he made 5 appearances to finish the year. Bautista returned to the DSL Orioles in 2017, posting a 4–3 record and 2.01 ERA with 75 strikeouts in 15 appearances (14 of them starts). He spent the 2018 season with the Gulf Coast League Orioles, pitching to a 4.33 ERA with 30 strikeouts in 27.0 innings of work across 12 appearances.
Bautista split the 2019 season between the Low-A Aberdeen IronBirds and the Single-A Delmarva Shorebirds, accumulating a 3.44 ERA with 48 strikeouts in 26 total appearances between the two affiliates.[5] Bautista did not play in a game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the minor league season because of the COVID-19 pandemic.[6] He spent the 2021 season with three different Orioles affiliates: High-A Aberdeen, the Double-A Bowie Baysox, and the Triple-A Norfolk Tides. In 40 appearances between the three levels, Bautista posted a stellar 1.54 ERA with 77 strikeouts in 46+2⁄3 innings pitched.[7]
The Orioles added him to their 40-man roster following the 2021 season on November 19, 2021.[8] Bautista made the Opening Day roster for the Orioles out of Spring Training in 2022.[9] He made his major league debut on April 10, 2022, pitching in relief of Tyler Wells. In the game, he recorded his first major league strikeout against Tampa Bay Rays shortstop Wander Franco.[10] On May 10, Bautista earned his first career save, closing out a 5–3 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals.[11] When the Orioles traded Jorge López, Bautista succeeded him as the Orioles' closer.[12]
Bautista was named the AL Reliever of the Month for April 2023 after going 7-for-7 in save chances, striking out 25 batters in 13.2 innings pitched, and posting a 46.4% whiff rate.[13] On May 20, Bautista pitched the ninth and tenth innings of an extra-inning victory against the Toronto Blue Jays, recording a career-high five strikeouts in the appearance.[14] On August 26, Bautista was placed on the injured list following a UCL injury that he suffered while pitching against the Colorado Rockies.[15] On September 30, it was announced Bautista would undergo Tommy John surgery, which would force him to miss the entire 2024 season. In addition, on February 9, 2024, Bautista underwent a debridement and an ulnar nerve transposition in the same elbow that had Tommy John months before.
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "Meet Félix Bautista: The biggest player in baseball, and now its best closer". FOX Sports.
- ^ Connolly, Dan. "Q&A with Félix Bautista, the flamethrowing Orioles rookie known as 'The Mountain'". The Athletic.
- ^ "Felix Bautista Stats & Scouting Report - Baseball America". October 24, 2022.
- ^ "Félix Bautista Stats, Fantasy & News".
- ^ "Félix Bautista Minor & Winter Leagues Statistics & History".
- ^ "2020 Minor League Season Canceled". mlbtraderumors.com. June 30, 2020.
- ^ Melewski, Steve (August 15, 2021). "Could pitcher who began the season at Aberdeen end with Baltimore?". MASN. Retrieved March 12, 2022.
- ^ "D.L. Hall among 6 added to 40-man roster". MLB.com.
- ^ "Orioles' Felix Bautista: Earns major-league roster spot". April 6, 2022.
- ^ "A whirlwind 12 months gets Félix Bautista to the Orioles". April 22, 2022.
- ^ "Bautista's first career save | 05/10/2022". MLB.com.
- ^ Melewski, Steve (November 28, 2022). "A few questions relating to Orioles bullpen". MASNsports.com. Retrieved October 20, 2024.
- ^ Murphy, Brian (May 3, 2023). "2023 MLB Monthly Award winners". MLB.com. Retrieved October 20, 2024.
- ^ "Orioles' Felix Bautista: Picks up extra-inning win". cbssports.com. May 21, 2023. Retrieved May 24, 2023.
- ^ Snyder, Matt (August 26, 2023). "Félix Bautista injury update: Orioles All-Star closer lands on IL with 'some degree of injury' to UCL". CBSSports.com. Retrieved August 27, 2023.
External links
edit- Career statistics from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball Reference, or Fangraphs, or Baseball Reference (Minors), or Retrosheet