8:49pm: Manager Brandon Hyde said after tonights win that the IL placement for Wells is precautionary ( via Jacob Calvin Meyer of the Baltimore Sun). The club is hopeful hell only be out of action for a couple weeks. 6:10pm: The Orioles announced that they have placed right-hander on the 15-day injured list due to right elbow inflammation, retroactive to April 13. They selected the contract of catcher to take his place on the active roster. To open a 40-man spot for Banuelos, they designated for a signment. There is some evidence to suggest that this injury cropped up unexpectedly. Wells started for the Os on Friday, to sing 90 pitches over four innings, and was scheduled to start tomorrows game. The news of this transaction dropped just minutes before tonights contest started and reporters such as and point out that Bauelos was already with the club on the taxi squad as an emergency third catcher. The Os already have two catchers on the roster in and . Theres been nothing to suggest that anything is wrong with either of them, so it appears that Bauelos was added because he was around and there wasnt enough time to call up another arm from one of Baltimores minor league clubs. Regardle s of when it went down, the injury to Wells is notable. Since the move was made so close to game time, the club hasnt relayed to reporters if they consider the injury severe or expect a lengthy absence, but its always at least a bit concerning when a pitchers throwing elbow is involved. Wells underwent Tommy John surgery in 2019 while in the minor leagues with the Twins. He was later selected by the Orioles in the 2020 Rule Jason Allison Jersey 5 draft and has a 4.06 earned run average over 294 2/3 innings for the Os since then. The Os already have and on the injured list, so Wells now makes it three starters on the shelf. Both Bradish and Means have started rehab a signments and could be back in a couple of weeks but its still going to be a tricky situation for the Os to navigate for a time. , , and currently occupy four spots in the Baltimore rotation but the club will need someone to replace Wells in the meantime. is already on the 40-man roster and last pitched in the minors on Thursday, so he is perhaps the most logical choice. Prospects like and are also in Triple-A but not currently on the 40-man roster. Bauelos, 27, will be making his major league debut if he can get into a game. He has spent most of his career in the Twins system, spending time in Triple-A in 2021 and 2022. He was kept in Double-A last year but performed well, hitting .270/.369/.526. That led to a minor league deal with the Os and he played two Triple-A games this year but the last was on April 3 as he has seemingly been travelling with the big league club. Soto, 24 in June, has been the unfortunate centerpiece of a game of hot potato between the Angels and Orioles in recent months. The Os claimed him off waivers from the Halos in February but the Angels claimed him back a few weeks later. Last week, the Os claimed him yet again. The young infielder has a strong .375/.414/.531 batting line in the majors, though in a tiny sample size of 71 plate appearances. In a larger sample size of 1,505 PAs in the minors since the start of 2021, hes hit .246/.340/.355 for a wRC+ of 86. But hes capable of stealing a few bases and has bounced around the diamond, playing the three infield spots to the left of first base and even a brief stint in center field. Since he still has a couple of option years remaining, Soto appears to be attractive as a versatile depth piece. The Orioles will now have one week to trade him or pa s him through waivers. Gerry Cheevers Jersey