Orioles injury update: Questions remain about Gunnar Henderson and Félix Bautista

Orioles fans got concerning news about superstar shortstop Gunnar Henderson earlier this week. The 23 year old has been out since February 27 while dealing with an intercostal strain that he picked up while making a leaping catch against the Blue Jays. He's been absent over the past three weeks but based on the information we'd gotten from Brandon Hyde and the Orioles, there wasn't much reason to think that Henderson would need to start the year on the IL.

That might not be the case, given Hyde's latest update. Earlier this week, Hyde told reporters that he's hopeful about Henderson's availability for Opening Day but that they're "running out of time" and no final decisions have been made, as of yet. With under a week to go before the Orioles open their season against the Blue Jays, there are just a couple opportunities left for Henderson to return and get some reps in before the end of spring training.

If Henderson isn't back in the lineup this weekend, it wouldn't be surprising to see him start the year on the IL. It's still unclear how severe the strain is, but given that he's already missed three weeks and has yet to return to game action, it's fair to assume that it's an issue. Recovery times vary pretty widely with rib cage issues, but the bad ones can cost players significant amounts of time. If they don't heal properly, they can cause lasting discomfort. That twisting motion is obviously vital to a hitter's swing, so Henderson needs to be truly pain free before he can return to action.

If Henderson can't go, it's possible that Jackson Holliday gets shifted to shortstop in the interim. Jordan Westburg and Ramón Urías would be the top candidates to handle everyday duties at second and third. And since Jorge Mateo won't be ready to go, it leaves open the possibility that the O's could call upon Vimael Machín and his hot bat as a utilityman for Opening Day.

Orioles most recent injury updates unfortunately don't inspire confidence

Like with Henderson, we'd all been under the impression that the Orioles would have star closer Félix Bautista back for Opening Day. Hyde's comments this week drew Bautista's availability into question, however. Hyde mentioned that the O's are still discussing their options and haven't committed to putting Bautista on the roster for next Thursday.

The biggest issue seems to be that Bautista's velocity is still down a few ticks from where he was in 2023. Bautista throws extremely hard but the difference between 96 and 100 can be massive for a guy that's so reliant on blowing the ball past hitters.

Bautista has thrown in four games this spring and as Jacob Calvin Mayer reported, he's scheduled to throw later this afternoon as well. He could get a sixth and final spring outing early next week but the O's spring training schedule wraps up on Monday before they head north to Toronto.

If Bautista isn't fully stretched out and the Orioles decide they want to keep him on a rehab program, Seranthony Dominguez is the most likely candidate to see save chances in the early going. Despite having some rocky stretches in the role last year, Hyde is clearly comfortable with him in the role and the O's don't have a ton of other great options, especially with Andrew Kittredge recovering from knee surgery.