Orioles reinstate Richie Martin from 60-day injured list; Carroll, Phillips released; Cowser debuts with a homer

NEW YORK—The Orioles reinstated infielder Richie Martin from the 60-day injured list. Martin, who fractured his left wrist playing center field for Norfolk is not in the lineup for the Orioles’ game against the New York Yankees on Monday night.

Martin played four rehab games for Double-A Bowie and was 4-for-15 (.267) with a home run and two RBIs. He also played one game for the Florida Complex League Orange team.

The Orioles optioned infielder Domingo Leyba to Triple-A Norfolk. Leyba hit .154 (10-for-65) in 21 games for the Orioles with a home run and four RBIs. Earlier in the season, Leyba was hitless in 22 at-bats for Arizona and his overall average was .115. He was hitless in his last 18 at-bats for the Orioles.

Left-handed pitcher Ryan Hartman was put on the injured list to make room for Martin on the 40-man roster. Hartman, who was acquired on waivers from Houston last Friday, is going through the Covid intake process.

Carroll, Phillips released: Two familiar names, who were both acquired in July 2018 trades, were released on Monday.

Right-handers Cody Carroll, who came from the Yankees along with Josh Rogers (released June 1st) and Dillon Tate in the deal for Zack Britton, and Evan Phillips, part of the package the Orioles received for Kevin Gausman, were both let go.

Carroll was 0-2 with a 13.74 ERA in 18 games in 2018 and 2020. He and Phillips spent 2021 at Triple-A Norfolk. Carroll was 2-0 with a 5.74 ERA in 22 games with the Tides. Phillips was 1-3 with a 7.36 ERA in 44 games from 2018-2020. He was 1-1 with a 5.04 ERA in 18 games at Norfolk.

Infielder/outfielder Chris Shaw, who was claimed on waivers from San Francisco on November 25th, was also released. Shaw was 1-for-39 (.026) in 14 games with Norfolk before being injured. He was rehabbing at High-A Aberdeen and was hitting .143 in six games.

Also released were left-handed pitcher Kevin Magee from Aberdeen, and right-hander Jonathan Pendergast from High-A Delmarva.

Magee was the Orioles’ ninth-round pick in 2018, and Pendergast the team’s 29^th pick in 2019.

Cowser, Norby debut: Colton Cowser and Connor Norby, the Orioles’ top two draft choices, began their professional careers on Monday with the Orioles’ Florida Complex League Orange team.

Cowser played center field and was 2-for-3 with a home run and a strikeout. Norby played second base and was hitless in three at-bats, striking out twice.

Both were removed after the top of the sixth.

Beasts of East: The Orioles have 58 games remaining, and 38 are against the American League East. Manager Brandon Hyde knows those games will test his young team.

“It’s a huge challenge these last two months,” Hyde said. “All four teams in our division were already excellent teams, and they all got better [through trades]. We’re playing them quite a bit. It’s a nice test for our guys. We’re not going to back down from the challenge, but it’s a tough schedule ahead just because these teams are loaded up.

“They’re trying to get there in October. They have October-type lineups. It’s not going to be easy. It’s the schedule given, and we’re going to do our best.”