masn-baseballs-orioles.jpgFor his next trick with the Orioles, Rule 5 pick Joey Rickard will replace Adam Jones in center field and bat leadoff.
Manager Buck Showalter told reporters this afternoon that Jones is sore in the rib area and that it happened during his final at-bat last night. The hope is he can play tomorrow night, but he’s not in the lineup tonight, so Rickard not only moves into center field, but bats leadoff for the first time as well.
He said he feels ready to play in center.
“I feel like I’m…

For his next trick with the Orioles, Rule 5 pick Joey Rickard will replace Adam Jones in center field and bat leadoff.

Manager Buck Showalter told reporters this afternoon that Jones is sore in the rib area and that it happened during his final at-bat last night. The hope is he can play tomorrow night, but he’s not in the lineup tonight, so Rickard not only moves into center field, but bats leadoff for the first time as well.

He said he feels ready to play in center.

“I feel like I’m prepared for it,” Rickard said this afternoon. “I played all three spots coming up in the minors with the Rays. That is something I like doing. That is something they push hard on so I’m pretty evenly distributed (in spots I have played). You get your reps every day during batting practice and spring training. I feel comfortable out there.”

In the minors since 2012, Rickard made 111 starts in center field, 17 in left and 105 in right. He also got some starts in center and left when he played winter ball in the Dominican Republic.

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“You are in charge out there, so anything in between you’ve got to be the aggressor,” Rickard said. “That is basically it. It is actually a little easier seeing the ball off the bat than in left and right.”

We’ve already seen that Rickard is a solid defender with a good arm. He takes pride in his play with the glove.

“You are going to have your ups and downs on offense,” he said. “But defense is something you should take a lot of pride in and show up with every day.”

Rickard is 4-for-7 with two hits in each game so far. He is batting .571 with a double and an RBI and is 4-for-5 so far against right-handed pitching. After two games batting ninth, he moves atop the order tonight.

“I mean, no matter where I am at in the lineup, I consider myself an on-base guy, so just will try to have a pass the baton type of mentality, and get on base for the guys behind me,” Rickard said.

Rickard has certainly quickly become a fan favorite in Baltimore. He is trying to take all the attention he is getting right now in stride. He knows it is a good start, but also this is just a small part of the much longer season.

“At the end of the day it is still just two out of 162,” he said. “So (I’m) trying not to look too far ahead. They (the fans) are passionate, that is for sure. At the moment they love me and I love them.”