SAN DIEGO -- Tyler Wells was expecting to feel a lot of emotions when stepping onto the Petco Park mound in his Orioles uniform on Tuesday night.
It had been 508 days since Wells’ previous big league appearance -- an April 12, 2024, start against the Brewers at Camden Yards. Two months later, he underwent right UCL revision surgery with repair and internal augmentation, beginning a recovery process the San Bernardino, Calif., native was familiar with because of his Tommy John surgery in ’19.
During rehab, Wells also became a father. He and his wife, Melissa, welcomed their daughter, Ava Faye, on March 21. With his wife and daughter watching his return, Wells avoided nerves, butterflies, anxiety or all of the above.
“Actually, it’s surprising as to how calm I was,” the 31-year-old right-hander said after earning the win in Baltimore’s 6-2 victory.
It proved to help, as Wells successfully navigated a challenging Padres lineup. He turned in five solid innings, allowing two runs on five hits while striking out four and not issuing a walk during an 85-pitch outing.
But most important to Wells was getting to pitch with his wife and daughter in the stands.
“It's something that you can't really put into words,” Wells said of Ava Faye’s first time attending one of his MLB starts. “It's one of those things where she'll never remember it. She's probably too young. But at the end of the day, I think it's probably the most special thing in my heart, to be able to go out there and just show her that [I’m] chasing dreams. I'm 31 years old now, and I'm still chasing it and I'm still enjoying every second of it.
“I just hope that, being the first man in her life, I hope that she sees that and can come back to this one day and just kind of see the adversity that we had.”
Coming out of a difficult period, Wells quickly returned to form upon the completion of a six-start Minor League rehab assignment. In San Diego, he delivered a reminder of how effective he can be, recording a three-pitch swinging strikeout of Fernando Tatis Jr. to open a 1-2-3 first.
The only damage done against Wells came in the third, when Luis Arraez hit a two-run home run with two outs in the inning. After that, Wells stranded a runner on third base in both the fourth and fifth to remain otherwise unscathed.
“He looked good. He kind of looked like himself in a lot of ways,” interim manager Tony Mansolino said. “Throwing [his pitches] really wherever he wanted, the command was pretty much the same, which is kind of his calling card. But I think you also have to appreciate it a little bit considering coming off the extensive layoff.”
All five pitches in Wells’ mix looked sharp, especially his four-seam fastball, which averaged 92.7 mph, maxed out at 94.3 and induced four of his 11 whiffs. He also leaned on his cutter and changeup while mixing in his slider and curveball at times.
Wells was visibly excited after getting Arraez to fly out to center field to end the fifth, as the 6-foot-8 righty clapped his hands together and let out some emotion.
“You sit there and you start to play the whole journey back in your head over and over,” Wells said. “You just replay it in your head and just take a deep breath. Getting all the hugs from the guys and just all the welcome backs, it was really special.”
The Orioles have missed Wells, a 2020 Rule 5 Draft pick who worked as a reliever in ’21 before being converted to a starter in ‘22. He broke out in ’23 -- recording a 3.64 ERA and a 0.986 WHIP over 25 games (20 starts) for the American League East champion O’s -- before making only three starts in ’24 prior to the UCL injury.
Baltimore also missed fellow right-handed starter Kyle Bradish (Tommy John surgery) and righty swingman Albert Suárez (right subscapularis strain) for much of the season. Bradish has a 3.60 ERA over his first two starts back after allowing two runs over four innings vs. the Padres on Monday. Suárez finished Tuesday’s win with two scoreless frames.
Mansolino called it an “organizational win” to get those three pitchers healthy, each of whom should be a key contributor for the Orioles as they aim to return to postseason contention in 2026.
“To be healthy and ready, feeling normal, that’s the best feeling ever,” Suárez saId. “Today was a good win for the rehab department.”