BALTIMORE—The Orioles activated outfielder Austin Hays from the 10-day injured list on Monday and put struggling first baseman Chris Davis back on the injured list.

With the return of Hays, manager Brandon Hyde said Ryan Mountcastle would play some first base in the final two weeks so that Hays, Cedric Mullins, DJ Stewart and Mountcastle would get playing time.

Hays, who hasn’t played since August 14th because of a fractured rib, is in left field for the first time in his career and batting eighth against Atlanta in Monday night’s game. Hays is batting .203 with a home run and five RBIs.

To make room for Hays, Davis has returned to the 10-day injured list because of left knee patellar tendinitis. He was activated on September 9th and played one game against the Yankees. Davis is batting .115 with three RBIs in 16 games.

“I don’t see a problem getting all four of them in there quite a bit,” Hyde said of Hays, Mullins, Mountcastle and Stewart. “Everybody needs a day off here and there. I don’t see rotating those four guys, or playing three [in the outfield] and Ryan at first base as any kind of issue.”

Mountcastle, who also played first at Triple-A Norfolk last season, has played only left field since his recall on August 21st.

“He’s been playing infield his whole life,” Hyde said. “He’s been doing some work at first base here. I know he did some at the secondary site. He played some in spring training. It’s not like he’s unfamiliar with the position. It’s just not something he grew up playing … I feel good that he could make the transition there to get all four guys’ bats in the lineup.”

Outfielder Mason Williams has cleared waivers and been assigned outright to the Bowie alternate site. Infielder/outfielder Stevie Wilkerson, who suffered a broken left ring finger on July 19, has been released.

Coming up: Hyde said that Thomas Eshelman probably would start against Atlanta on Tuesday night.