Too soon for Orioles to determine a timetable for Cionel Pérez after oblique muscle strain

BALTIMORE—Left-handed reliever Cionel Pérez first felt his right oblique muscle tighten in the bullpen before his appearance on Saturday. Then, he said, he really felt it on his final two pitches against the Angels.

Pérez was removed after two batters and he’s on the 15-day injured list with a strained right oblique muscle.

“I think it’s important and it’s good to catch those injuries before they turn into something worse,” Pérez said through an interpreter. “I’m happy that was the case this time, and we’re working to get back on the field as soon as possible.”

Manager Brandon Hyde said that a timetable for Pérez’s return is “still to be  determined … I know he’s feeling better. He’ll probably do some sort of small throwing progression. We’ll see where that takes us and see where we are in the calendar.”

Hyde isn’t sure whether Pérez will need a rehab assignment.

“Once we get him to start playing catch, then we kind of work into the side [session]. I’m not really sure at this point.”