Spring Training

Orioles go easy with Wynns; Wright extends scoreless streak; Ramirez allows four homers

BRADENTON, Fla.-What’s happening?—Andrew Cashner starts against the Boston Red Sox at Ed Smith Stadium in Sarasota today. Cashner, who allowed four runs on six hits in four innings on March 5 against the Detroit Tigers, is scheduled to be followed by Gabriel Ynoa, Nate Karns, Sean Gilmartin and Josh Osich.

Catcher Austin Wynns is out because of a sore left oblique. Wynns felt it during batting practice and had an MRI.

“Take precaution, be smart and just get back on the field as soon as possible,” Wynns said. “I definitely avoided something big-time serious.”

Manager Brandon Hyde wants to be cautious.

“I think he’s day-to-day with the oblique,” Hyde said. “But I also think that with an oblique, you’ve got to really careful, so we’re not going to push him in any way. We’re going to make sure he’s 100 percent, that that side’s cleared up and then maybe do a couple of days to make sure from there. Oblique’s are such a tricky thing. You can redo it quickly.”

Jesus Sucre is scheduled to catch three innings today and start on Sunday.

Richard Bleier is scheduled to pitch for the first time this spring on Saturday night against the New York Yankees.

Chris Davis remains out because of a strained left hip flexor.

“It sounds like it felt a little bit better today,” Hyde said. “But he’s still day-to-day.”

Left-handed relief pitcher Donnie Hart was claimed off waivers by the Los Angeles Dodgers.

What’s happened?—Mike Wright pitched three scoreless innings, giving up one hit in the Orioles 5-4 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates. He has pitched 10 shutout innings, allowing eight hits.

This could be Wright’s best spring training.

“If you look at the stats, it is,” Wright said. “I feel pretty good right now, and I hope to keep that rolling and continue to have the best spring possible.”

Austin Hays made an excellent diving catch in center field, and Wright was delighted by it.

“Confidence is huge,” Wright said. “I can’t really stress that enough. It seems weird for people who don’t go out there every single day. It’s big and, obviously, it helps you when you’ve got defense behind you like we did today.”

Yefry Ramirez allowed four solo home runs in three innings, striking out six.

“I just thought Yefry got into some predictable counts,” Hyde said. “One was the changeup, the other three were fastballs, kind of thigh-high, kind of ambushed, selling out on fastballs on him. Around that, he pitched pretty good with some really good changeups. But just left the ball in the middle part of the plate three times, and they had their home run swing going.”

Branden Kline allowed Cole Tucker’s game-winning home run in the ninth.

What’s up with-Sean Gilmartin. In 12 games with the Orioles last season, Gilmartin had a 3.00 ERA. Despite the good stats, Gilmartin was taken off the 40-man roster in October but quickly re-signed with the Orioles.

“It’s just what you get with this game, you can do everything right,” Gilmartin said. “It was a business/baseball decision that they had to make, and I understand it. You had a bunch of guys on the [disabled list] that had to come off, and they didn’t want to lose those guys.”

Gilmartin allowed three runs and retired just one batter in the February 24th opener against Toronto. In his second outing, he allowed a hit in a scoreless 1 2/3 innings on March 1.

What’s what? After Mike Elias was named executive vice president and general manager, he wrote a letter to season-ticket holders, naming Cedric Mullins as one of the keys to the club. Hyde didn’t guarantee that Mullins had the starting center field job locked up.

“I think it’s fair to say that he’s going to get every opportunity to be the center fielder or get a lot of playing time,” Hyde said. “He’s going to get a big opportunity to win a big league job. I can’t say in cement that he’s going to be our Opening Day center fielder. Just like a lot of our guys, he’s going to get every opportunity to be on the club and be a big part of our lineup.

What’s the word? “I was a free agent for less than a day. I wasn’t going to get a better opportunity than here. This organization, where we’re at right now, it’s the best place to be.”-Gilmartin on his choice to remain with the Orioles 

What’s the number? 21. Opening Day at Yankee Stadium is three weeks away. Hyde hasn’t named a starter.

“I’m not ready to announce that, yet.” Hyde said. 

What’s the record?  7-5-2. The Orioles play the Boston Red Sox at Ed Smith Stadium at 1:05 p.m.

18 Comments

18 Comments

You must be logged in to post a comment Login or Register Here

Leave a Reply

To Top