Orioles, 9-time All-Star Craig Kimbrel agree to one-year, $13 million deal, helping reinforce bullpen

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Mike Elias said Tuesday that no one can “replicate” Félix Bautista.

The 6-foot-8 fireballer is a one-of-a-kind closer, and filling his massive shoes in 2024 as he recovers from elbow surgery is one of the Orioles’ most daunting tasks this offseason.

Baltimore took a big step toward doing so Wednesday, agreeing to a one-year deal with nine-time All-Star closer Craig Kimbrel with a club option for 2025, the team announced. The agreement is worth $13 million, according to a source with direct knowledge of the deal.

The $13 million deal is the largest guarantee handed out by Elias since he took over as the Orioles’ general manager in November 2018. The previous high was $10 million for veteran starting pitcher Kyle Gibson last season.

It’s unclear if Kimbrel, 35, will be manager Brandon Hyde’s dedicated closer the way Bautista was. But Kimbrel’s 417 saves rank eighth all-time in MLB history and second among active pitchers behind Kenley Jansen (420).

Elias said he was hoping to bring in “additional structure” to the bullpen alongside sinkerballer Yennier Cano, left-handers Danny Coulombe and Cionel Pérez and the remaining relief options that fill out the group.

While an upgrade over most of Baltimore’s internal options, the hard-throwing right-hander isn’t as dominant as he once was.

In his first five seasons with the Atlanta Braves, Kimbrel posted a 1.43 ERA and 42.2% strikeout rate while leading the National League in saves in each season from 2011 to 2014. Since 2019, though, Kimbrel has a 3.57 ERA and a higher blown-save rate.

Still, he was selected to his ninth All-Star Game in 2023 as a member of the Philadelphia Phillies. He went 8-6 with a 3.26 ERA and 23 saves with the Phillies, but his struggles in the postseason are a significant reason the Arizona Diamondbacks advanced to the Fall Classic over Philadelphia.

Kimbrel still boasts a mid-to-high-90s mph fastball and a sharp curveball that puts him in the top 10% in whiff rate and strikeout percentage, according to Baseball Savant. But he ranked in the bottom 15% in hard-hit rate and barrel percentage last season, leading to a career-high 10 home runs allowed in 69 innings.

The Orioles will be Kimbrel’s eighth team. Sandwiched between his time in Atlanta and Philadelphia, he had stints with the San Diego Padres (2015), Boston Red Sox (2016-18), Chicago Cubs (2019-21), Chicago White Sox (2021) and Los Angeles Dodgers (2022).

This story will be updated.