Orioles' reliever gets positive second opinion after injury-riddled season

The Baltimore Orioles revealed the injury that right-hander Albert Suárez suffered in his final outing of the season.

Sep 6, 2025; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Baltimore Orioles pitcher Albert Suarez (49) throws during the seventh inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Mandatory Credit: Daniel Kucin Jr.-Imagn Images | Daniel Kucin Jr.-Imagn Images

The Baltimore Orioles provided an update on right-handed reliever Albert Suárez on Thursday.

The team announced that Suárez suffered a mild forearm flexor strain while making his final appearance of the season, as reported by Andy Kostka of The Baltimore Banner. Suárez, who missed most of the 2025 season due to shoulder and elbow injuries, will rehab through the winter and is expected to begin a throwing program in the next few weeks.

The Orioles say right-hander Albert Suárez suffered a mild forearm flexor strain during his last appearance of the season.

He's continuing rehab into the winter and the Orioles expect him to begin a throwing progression in the coming weeks

— Andy Kostka (@afkostka) October 9, 2025

Orioles reveal injury status of Albert Suárez

Aug 30, 2024; Denver, Colorado, USA; Baltimore Orioles pitcher Albert Suarez (49) delivers a pitch in the first inning against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images | Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

Suárez made his first appearance of 2025 in the second game of the season against the Toronto Blue Jays. In that March 28 outing, he allowed five hits and one earned run in 2.2 relief outings. Two days later, Suárez was placed on the 15-day injured list with right shoulder inflammation and was eventually transferred to the 60-day IL with a subscapularis strain.

The 36-year-old right-hander missed over four months before beginning a rehab assignment on August 12th. He had a shaky first outing in Double-A for the Chesapeake Baysox, where he started and allowed five hits and four earned runs in just two innings. But Suárez found his footing during a four-game stint with the Triple-A Norfolk Tides, allowing just four hits and one earned run across 10.2 innings.

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The Orioles activated Suárez on September 1st, and he returned to the mound the next day to provide a scoreless two frames against the San Diego Padres. He appeared in three more games in September, earning two wins and posting a 2.00 ERA across nine innings.

His final appearance was a start against Toronto on September 14th, where he pitched three innings of one-run ball but sustained the season-ending injury. At the time, Suárez was placed on the 15-day IL with "right elbow discomfort," an injury that the team is now attributing to the forearm.

Suárez and the club sought a second opinion and were rewarded with positive news. With the damage limited to the forearm and not the elbow, the team is confident that the veteran reliever will be able to begin throwing again within a few weeks, putting him on track to be healthy and ready come spring training.

Welcome back to the #Orioles, Albert Suárez.

The 35-year-old RHP worked a 1-2-3 8th inning vs. the Padres on 10 pitches (8 strikes).

Suárez also picked up a strikeout by getting Ramón Laureano to swing and miss at this 95.3 mph four-seam fastball: pic.twitter.com/yWKieYKMiv

— Jake Rill (@JakeDRill) September 3, 2025

Still, Suárez's injury history in 2025 is alarming, especially considering his age. The Venezuelan-born pitcher began his professional career in 2008 after he signed with the Tampa Bay Devil Rays as an international free agent in 2006. He finally made his big-league debut in 2016 with the San Francisco Giants, where he made 40 total appearances across two years as both a starter and reliever.

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Suárez was selected by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 2017 Rule 5 draft but never cracked the major league roster. From 2018-2023, he played overseas for Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan and the KBO League in South Korea.

In 2024, Suárez was a key piece for the O's, going 9-7 with a 3.70 ERA in 32 games (24 starts) as they finished 2nd in the AL East and made the postseason. Going forward, it's hard to imagine Suárez withstanding another 100-plus inning season, but a healthy version of him could certainly offer quality innings out of the bullpen.