Orioles show their support for Basallo; Wells gets ready for final rehab start

BALTIMORE—One of the most impressive parts of Saturday afternoon’s availability with Orioles catcher Samuel Basallo was the large number of players who attended. The highest-profile players, including Gunnar Henderson, Jackson Holliday, Adley Rutschman, Jordan Westburg and Colton Cowser, were among those attending.

Interim manager Tony Mansolino and many coaches were there, too.

Henderson was excited when he learned about the eight-year, $67 million extension for the 21-year-old catcher/first baseman.

“Super happy for him. I know it’s going to take care of him and his family,” Henderson said. “That’s the most important thing, give him security.

“He’s obviously going to be here for the next eight, nine years. You want to be there to support your teammates.”

Henderson said he would consider an extension with the Orioles.

“If they bring it there, I will definitely look at it with my team. I’ll be happy to look over,” he said. He declined to say whether there had been talks but did say what he’s looking for in a long-term baseball home.

“Obviously, I want to be in a winning culture. The number one thing for me is being on winning teams,” Henderson said. “I love winning. I hate to lose more than I like to win. Losing is something that doesn’t sit well with me.”

Mountcastle happy for Basallo

First baseman Ryan Mountcastle could lose playing time to Basallo, who might play first base or serve as the designated hitter when he’s not catching.

However, Mountcastle was also with his teammates in Basallo’s press conference.

“It’s awesome. For him to be so young and to sign a deal like that, it’s super cool and I’m super happy for him and his family,” he said. “I feel like he’s already had a couple of big hits in some of these games early on.”

Mountcastle played with Basallo at Triple-A Norfolk when he was rehabbing his strained right hamstring.

“I got to see him a little bit when I was rehabbing the past couple of week. Definitely a very good player and going to have a really good career,” he said.

Wells nearing end of rehab

Tyler Wells is scheduled to have a final rehab start on Wednesday for Norfolk at Gwinnett. In his latest start, Wells allowed two runs on six hits in 5 2/3 innings.

“Everything’s going well. Arm’s recovering well,” Wells said. “Really happy where everything’s at.”

Mansolino said Wells will likely be inserted into the starting rotation when he returns.

“I would expect him to go into the rotation after September 1,” Mansolino said. “If he starts this year and he can accrue 35, 40 innings, maybe with how ever many starts he’s going to get, that would probably lend itself well to innings next year in 2026. He’s getting built up right now. We’ll see where it goes.”

Notes: Mansolino said that Kyle Bradish has a “good chance” of making his first start since June 2024 on Tuesday against Boston. … Right-hander Cody Poteet, who’s been on the 60-day injured list with right shoulder inflammation, is beginning a rehab assignment with Norfolk on Saturday. … Mansolino said that Tyler O’Neill, who’s on the 10-day injured list with right wrist inflammation, isn’t progressing. “He grabbed a bat here recently, started moving it. Kind of mixed results on that, taking another step back and waiting, unfortunately.” … Right-hander Brandon Young, who’s on the 15-day injured list with a left hamstring strain, isn’t optimistic that he’ll pitch again in 2025.

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