Félix Bautista isn’t really back yet — not fully.

At his best in 2023, the eighth inning of Sunday’s game was a perfect spot to employ the dominant closer. Or maybe the Orioles could’ve held him for the 10th inning, when the automatic runner at second base makes extra innings difficult for many relievers who aren’t strikeout specialists.

Bautista pitched Saturday, though, and as he works back from Tommy John elbow reconstruction surgery, the Orioles aren’t going to employ the towering reliever on consecutive days. So Bautista didn’t pitch with two outs in the eighth. He didn’t pitch in the 10th. For how reliable this bullpen has been for the first 14 games of the season, Sunday marked the first crack.

It came in spots a healthy Bautista might have excelled. Instead, in the 7-6 loss to the Toronto Blue Jays, right-handers Yennier Cano and Matt Bowman handled the duties. Neither was poor. They just weren’t exceptional, as Bautista so frequently was in 2023, and it led to a loss.

The Orioles entered with a 3.24 bullpen ERA, good for sixth in the majors. Relievers conceded five runs Sunday.

“Every loss is disappointing,” infielder Jordan Westburg said. “Sucks when you blow a lead. Always does. It’s never going to get old. Always very disappointing, but it’s part of the game. We have an off day tomorrow and look to bounce back.”

Baltimore had floundered its way through the first 13 games of the year. The Orioles found themselves three games under .500 for the first time since July 8, 2022. But two off days — one scheduled, another due to rain — seemingly reset the energy around the club. Long home runs from Heston Kjerstad and Adley Rutschman lifted the Orioles to a win Saturday.

And Sunday the Orioles were in the driver’s seat entering the eighth. But left-hander Gregory Soto allowed his first runs of the season, and they all came at once to turn a three-run lead into a tie game. Cano, who entered to face Blue Jays shortstop Bo Bichette in place of Soto, allowed a game-tying single.

“You take your chances with Soto and Cano there in the eighth and the ninth,” manager Brandon Hyde said, “because those guys have been unbelievable so far this year.”

The loss means the Orioles still haven’t won two straight games this season. They also haven’t won a series, although Friday’s rainout will be made up in July, so the rubber match won’t be played for months.

In the 10th inning, with an automatic runner on second, Bowman allowed two singles that brought home a run.

Jeff Hoffman, the right-handed reliever who nearly signed with the Orioles, pitched the ninth and 10th for the Blue Jays. Hoffman’s medical with Baltimore unveiled something worrisome with his shoulder, and the Orioles altered their offer.

Hoffman wound up with the Blue Jays and, after signing, he said his matchups with the Orioles would carry extra weight. “I like the smoke,” Hoffman told Foul Territory.

He pounded his chest when he struck out Tyler O’Neill and Ramón Laureano to strand the game-tying run at third. Then he blew a kiss toward the Orioles’ dugout.

Three Orioles players asked about the incident said they didn’t see it. One veteran player, when showed the kiss toward Baltimore’s dugout, said “no one in the dugout had anything to do with it,” referring to Hoffman’s failed medical.

“I’m excited when we win,” Hoffman told reporters. “It’s hard to win in this league and we put together a good second half of that game and it was nice to get that win.”

For as promising as Saturday’s one-run win was, there are still uncertainties surrounding this Orioles team. For the seventh time this year, the starting pitcher didn’t complete five innings. And, although the offense posted five or more runs for the seventh time this season, it was the first time they lost when scoring that many.

Still, left-hander Cade Povich was serviceable in his third start of the year. He held Toronto to two runs in 4 2/3 frames, although, with seven hits against him, there was plenty of traffic. Povich has largely limited damage this year, though; he holds a 3.60 ERA in 15 innings, even with a 1.80 WHIP.

The strength of the bullpen has covered for many of the shorter starts. Right-hander Bryan Baker stranded two runners in scoring position in the fifth with a strikeout of George Springer (who then left the game with left wrist discomfort).

“I think for me, no matter where I’m at, I always want the ball,” Povich said. “But I think, based on the situation, and Baker got a huge out for us there.”

But the bullpen cracked and the early run production for Baltimore didn’t continue.

The second time Westburg struck out looking at a pitch off the plate, he had words for home plate umpire John Bacon. So did Hyde. And while Bacon held up his hand, asking Hyde to stay quiet, Hyde continued to chirp. The ejection came quickly after, and then Hyde really let loose on Bacon.

“I’m never going to disrespect an umpire, at least purposely,” Westburg said. “It’s frustrating; it’s part of the game. I know he’s not trying to screw anybody back there and I know that he’s trying his best, but it sucks. It’s a pretty helpless feeling, especially in two big at-bats with runners in scoring position where I put a little bit more pressure on myself to come through. It’s disappointing. I’m going to shake it off. I just really appreciate Hyde having my back there.”

Added Hyde: “I didn’t really appreciate the strike zone early. ... I thought we weren’t getting many calls going our way there offensively.”

It was Hyde’s first ejection of the year. He wasn’t alone in the criticism of Bacon’s strike zone. At one point, outfielder Tyler O’Neill had a lengthy discussion with Bacon, and bench coach Robinson Chirinos joined to protect his player from any recourse.

But the disagreement didn’t stop O’Neill. He returned in the fourth to crank a no-doubt homer against right-hander José Berríos. Acquired to improve Baltimore’s production against left-handers, O’Neill has performed better in right-on-right matchups to begin the year.

Three other runs came home off Berríos in the form of a wild pitch in the first, Ryan Mountcastle’s homer in the second and Rutschman’s fielder’s choice ground ball in the third.

They didn’t add on, however, and the first bullpen issue of 2025 downed the Orioles in extras. After a high-energy comeback win Saturday, this felt somewhat deflating. Living day to day during a baseball season, though, can be a taxing existence. It’s still April, and there are many games to play.

“It sucks losing, and obviously we wish we were winning more games,” Westburg said. “But I think when the tendency is to start changing, changing, changing, we might lose the identity we worked all spring to build. I think the most important part is just sticking to who we are and staying close here in this clubhouse, having each other’s back, and just trusting that the product is just going to get better.”

This story has been updated.