Baltimore Orioles Dynamic Back-End Relief Duo Ready for Long-Awaited Reunion

It's safe to say that one Baltimore Orioles star reliever is ready to their elite closer to return.

Jul 31, 2023; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Baltimore Orioles relief pitcher Felix Bautista (74) walks towards the dugout during batting practice before a game against the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre | Nick Turchiaro-Imagn Images

Felix Bautista is getting closer to making his return to the mound for the Baltimore Orioles.

The elite closer, who won the Mariano Rivera Reliever of the Year Award in 2023 even after damaging his UCL in August and later undergoing Tommy John surgery, is a major piece to the puzzle for this team's chances to win a World Series.

His absence last season was notable.

When Bautista was closing games for the Orioles, their relief staff had a 3.55 ERA, good for fifth-best in the MLB. Last year, with him on the shelf, that unit regressed to 23rd with a 4.22 ERA.

More things go into a bullpen performing worse on a season-by-season basis than not having one guy in the mix, but without the right-hander available for late innings, the roles changed for everyone on the staff which impacted how they executed.

Baltimore is excited to get him back in the mix, and it sounds like his return could be coming this weekend at the earliest after facing live batters for the first time on Feb. 23.

Perhaps there isn't a person more excited to have Bautista back than Yennier Cano.

"Last year was very sad," Cano said per Jake Rill of MLB.com when talking about Bautista being out.

The two have formed a close bond since they both debuted for the Orioles in 2022, carpooling together during the 2023 campaign because they both lived in the same apartment building according to Rill.

For as talked about as Bautista was last season, and rightfully so with a 1.48 ERA and 110 strikeouts in 61 innings pitched, Cano was also a dominant force in his own right with a 2.11 ERA in 72 relief outings, earning an All-Star selection alongside his good friend as well.

But without the star closer in the mix in 2024, Cano regressed a bit.

He still had a more than respectable 3.15 ERA and 119 ERA+, but he wasn't the same shutdown guy that he was when Bautista was available.

That's going to change this year, and it's one of the reasons why Baltimore is bullish on what their bullpen can provide the team, not only getting their superstar closer back, but also holding onto trade deadline acquisitions Seranthony Dominguez and Gregory Soto.

"It's going to be great," Cano said with a smile, per Rill.

If everything goes according to plan, this dynamic duo will make up one of the best back-end pairings in Major League Baseball once again.