Karns, Harvey to pitch; Trumbo remains on hold; Ruiz homers

SARASOTA, Fla.-What’s happening? – Nate Karns starts against the Minnesota Twins at Hammond Stadium at Fort Myers at 1:05 p.m. today. Other Orioles pitchers scheduled are Hunter Harvey, Luis Ortiz, Chris Lee, Miguel Castro, Donnie Hart and Josh Lucas.

Karns hasn’t appeared in a major league game since May 2017, and Harvey last faced hitters in a game on June 1.

“Nate, I want him to pitch and be healthy after it,” manager Brandon Hyde said. “I want him to feel good about it. The same goes for Harvey.”

Both have impressed Hyde in live batting practice sessions.

Mark Trumbo, who underwent right knee surgery in September, isn’t ready to play. Hyde says he doesn’t have a timetable for his first game.

“We’re going to obviously be really patient with him,” Hyde said. “He’s been around a while, so I think we’ll be relying on him, communicating with us, how he feels every single day.”

Hyde says Trumbo is progressing, but he’ll remain cautious.

“I don’t want to throw him out there unless he feels 100 percent,” Hyde said. “I’m not in any rush to put him out there.”

Dylan Bundy and Andrew Cashner threw simulated games, and Alex Cobb will throw one before he pitches in a Grapefruit League game. Hyde said Bundy and Cashner could pitch in Grapefruit League games the next time their turn comes up.

Rookie right-hander Zach Pop,  who threw a perfect ninth inning, might not pitch again for a while. The Orioles noticed a dip in his velocity.

Hyde will allow baserunners to steal at will during the spring. “As we get into the season, we learn that wasn’t the right count to go,” Hyde said. “We tighten things up, and we want a little better decisions. I want them to make aggressive mistakes right now.”

In the past, former manager Buck Showalter would bring prized prospects to major league camp for a cameo. Hyde said he hasn’t considered that with top-tier prospects such as Keegan Akin, Cadyn Grenier and DL Hall.

“We’re focused on the 60 guys we’ve got here right now,” Hyde said. “I know about those guys. I’m not in any hurry. My focus is solely on their development.”

What’s happened?—David Hess allowed a run on three hits in two innings in the Orioles’ 9-8 win over the Toronto Blue Jays on Sunday.

“All things considered, it was a pretty good start,” Hess said.

Hess is one of several competing for a starting spot. In 2018, he was 4-10 with a 4.88 ERA.

“Personally, I still feel like I have a lot to prove,” Hess said. “Last year, I showed a little bit of the upside that I have, but I also showed the troubles that I had.”

Tanner Scott allowed four runs while retiring just one batter in the third inning.

Rio Ruiz, competing for the third base job, hit a three-run home run in the first. He’s 2-for-2 in the first two games.

“In earlier camps I’ve been in, I tried to do too much out of the gate, and tried to impress too many people too often,” Ruiz said. “This time around, I went in and just kind of said, ‘Just be you.’ It’s kind of going how I want it so far.”

It was the first spring training game for Chris Davis, Trey Mancini and Jonathan Villar. Davis struck out in both his at-bats, Mancini had two singles and a stolen base, and Villar was hitless in three at-bats.

The Orioles acquired right-handed pitcher David Lebron from Texas for international signing bonus money. Lebron had a 1.31 ERA in 10 games last season with Short-Season Spokane and High-A Down East. 

What’s up with?—Cody Carroll threw a scoreless sixth, allowing two hits. Carroll was acquired last July in the trade that sent Zack Britton to the New York Yankees.

Carroll was 0-2 with a 9.00 ERA in 15 games with the Orioles last season.

“I think I just kind of put too much pressure on myself last year,” Carroll said. “I was kind of eager to show people what I can do. That’s not the way I am. I’m a person who comes in and hangs out and goes out and does a job, and that’s that. That’s what I got back to as soon as we got back down here.”

Carroll’s wife, Amber, was a sportscaster in Columbia, S.C., and Savannah, Ga., and runs half-marathons. “She runs every day, some ridiculous amount of mileage that I would never do in my life,” Carroll said. “As long as she’s enjoying it, I can’t complain.”

What’s what? The Orioles will begin online broadcasts of 16 spring training games today. All but one of their 33 games will be on either MASN, 105.7 The Fan or Orioles.com/MLB At Bat. Steve Melewski will call the online games, and he’ll be joined by special guests, including certain Orioles beat reporters.

What’s the word? “I got that all, for sure.”-Yusniel Diaz through a translator, on his long home run in Saturday’s game.

What’s the number? 3. In the first two games, the Orioles have hit three home runs, two three-run homers by Ruiz and Chance Sisco, both in the first inning, and a two-run homer by Diaz. The home runs by Sisco and Diaz were on Saturday.

What’s the record? 2-0. The Orioles face the Minnesota Twins today at 1:05 p.m. at Fort Myers.