The six strikeouts in the first four innings today could be used as an example of Tyler Wells’ effectiveness against the Guardians. The whiffs or frozen bats off his four-seamer, cutter and changeup.

But also, the way he maneuvered out of a jam in the first inning when his outing could have fallen apart fast.

A leadoff single by Steven Kwan was followed by a comebacker from Amed Rosario that Wells knocked down and fielded before attempting to get the force at second base. A mixup in coverage brought together Jorge Mateo and Adam Frazier at the bag. Mateo failed to make the catch, and Wells was charged with the error.

The right-hander retired the next three batters on a popup, strikeout and ground ball. His 21-pitch inning would launch him to a third quality start.

It wouldn’t spare him the loss.

The Orioles almost have their starter for Wednesday afternoon.

Austin Voth is going to start or pitch in bulk relief behind an opener to conclude the series against the Guardians at Camden Yards.

The club won’t call up a pitcher from Triple-A Norfolk and hand him the assignment.

“We’re unsure a little bit on who’s going to start the game,” said manager Brandon Hyde, “but trying to hold back Austin for that game.”

Left-hander Keegan Akin can provide length out of the bullpen today if Tyler Wells is knocked out early.

Guaranteed of having another winning month, the Orioles continue their homestand today against the Guardians with Adley Rutschman on the bench and Austin Hays moved to second in the order.

Hays has eight RBIs in his last eight games and nine in his last 11.

Adam Frazier is batting seventh. Ryan McKenna gets the start in right field.

Tyler Wells has allowed eight runs and 11 hits in his last two starts covering 10 innings. He’s walked three batters, struck out 15 and surrendered five home runs.

Wells has made three career appearances against Cleveland, including one start, and allowed two runs and three hits in 6 2/3 innings.

Spenser Watkins can laugh about it now, accepting if not embracing his status in the world of bizarre injuries.

Covered in dirt after attempting a diving tag at home plate on a wild pitch, Watkins stepped inside the team’s bathroom at Harbor Park in Norfolk to wash his hands. A simple task except Watkins cut his right ring finger on the bottom edge of the porcelain sink.

“I clipped it on a sharp spot,” he said yesterday, before the Triple-A Tides’ games in Memphis. “It just started bleeding right away. It was kind of a weird thing, and it was in the worst spot in terms of issues with throwing.”

Other factors influenced the injury, like the ball staying near the batter’s box and luring Watkins to the plate, where he went in head-first. Which made him want to clean the hand. Which caused the laceration.

Watkins won’t unseat former Orioles outfielder Marty Cordova, who was scratched from a 2002 lineup after falling asleep in a tanning bed and burning his face. Day games were prohibited to keep him out of the sun. Or, on the broader major league scale, Astros pitcher Lance McCullers Jr. being hit on the elbow by a champagne bottle last fall during a playoff celebration.

The Orioles didn’t need to change back into their regular uniforms. Hall of Famer Jim Palmer didn’t need to order a pancake for breakfast this morning in the press dining room before joining the MASN broadcast.

One was scheduled, the other spontaneous.

Purely coincidence that Kyle Bradish struck out the side in the top of the first inning and the Orioles scored twice in the bottom half, taking a lead they would protect throughout the game. And how Bradish escaped a two-on, no-out jam in the second, retired 11 batters in a row and held the Rangers to one run in 6 2/3.

Yennier Cano surrendered a two-out, game-tying double to Corey Seager in the eighth, but the Orioles offered an immediate response with the first two batters reaching against Cole Ragans and Austin Hays delivering an RBI single in a 3-2 victory over the Rangers before an announced crowd of 25,124 at Camden Yards.

Félix Bautista struck out the side and recorded his 13^th save, and the Orioles improved to 34-19, recapturing the second-best record in baseball. They still haven't been swept.

John Means wanted to make one more throw with a weighted medical ball, put a little extra behind it, before concluding his workout in Sarasota and heading to Baltimore. Go a little harder with his body feeling so good and with a July return to the Orioles becoming a firmer reality.

And then, the pain hit him. A strained muscle in his upper back, an area known as the teres major.

The club hopes it’s just a minor setback.

Nothing related to his elbow reconstructive surgery in April 2022, but an incident that delays his season debut and plunge into a pennant race.

“It just kind of yanked on me a little bit,” Means said this morning. “Disappointing, obviously, but at least it’s not a throwing injury or anything like that. But at the same time, it makes it a little bit more frustrating.”

The Orioles will try to avoid a sweep today and recapture the second-best record in baseball with Anthony Santander back in the lineup as the right fielder and cleanup hitter.

Santander didn’t play yesterday.

Ramón Urías is the second baseman and Gunnar Henderson is playing third. Adam Frazier moves to the bench.

James McCann is the designated hitter.

Kyle Bradish made his season debut in Texas on April 3, was hit on the foot by a line drive, and exited after only 1 2/3 innings. He didn’t pitch again until April 19.

David Hess declared himself cancer free on Jan. 20, 2022, posting on social media that he was “cured” and cleared to resume baseball activities. He could pitch again. Immerse himself in one of his passions.

The disease doesn’t choose favorites. It came back to Hess after he appeared in eight minor league games last season in the Rays’ system. And it’s worse.

Hess has been open about his battle, sharing details and the strength of his faith in various posts. He used his Instagram account Friday to provide the latest update, and it’s heartbreaking.

In true Hess form, however, it’s also brave and inspirational.

Here is the text in full:

Early outs on the basepaths became a second obstacle for the Orioles today besides the team playing across from them.

The Rangers now have the second-best record in baseball. They don’t need any assistance.

The road trip rush is fading, with the Orioles losing again 5-3 before an announced crowd of 37,939 at Camden Yards.

Ryan Mountcastle and Ramón Urías had back-to-back RBI doubles off Will Smith with two outs in the ninth to make it close.

Dean Kremer registered his fourth quality start after he was charged with three runs in 6 1/3 innings, leaving him with a 2.45 ERA in May. Manager Brandon Hyde removed him at 97 pitches after a one-out walk to Robbie Grossman, and Bryan Baker surrendered a double to Leody Taveras and two-run single to Marcus Semien.

Orioles reliever Austin Voth is a possibility to start Wednesday afternoon’s game against the Guardians at Camden Yards.

Voth will be unavailable for a few days after throwing 62 pitches last night in 3 2/3 innings. He saved the bullpen in a 12-2 loss but can’t be used for a while.

“Fortunately for us last night, Austin Voth was a savior for us,” said manager Brandon Hyde. “If I have to go through a couple more guys there, puts us in a terrible spot in a series here against a really good club, and then Cleveland. You want to minimize those types of starts just for the other guys, as well.

“Austin Voth really picked us up last night and saved me from having to use two other guys that we wouldn’t want to use, to then, hopefully be fresh as we can for these next two games.”

Asked about Voth pitching Wednesday, Hyde said, “Voth’s an option, yeah.”

Anthony Santander sits today as the Orioles resume their series against the Rangers at Camden Yards.

Adley Rutschman is the designated hitter against left-hander Andrew Heaney, and Ryan McKenna is playing right field.

Santander struck out twice last night and hit into a double play. He was 4-for-6 in his previous two games in New York.

Austin Hays moves up to third in the order. Ramón Urías returns to the lineup at third base with Gunnar Henderson on the bench.

Adam Frazier is the second baseman.

The Orioles are making a change in their rotation, optioning Grayson Rodriguez to Triple-A Norfolk following last night’s 12-2 loss to the Rangers.

Left-hander Keegan Akin is rejoining the team to replace Rodriguez on the staff.

Rodriguez, who entered the season as the organization’s top pitching prospect, allowed eight earned runs and nine total last night in 3 1/3 innings. The inconsistency dragged him down again after he held the Blue Jays to two runs in five innings last weekend.

The total body of work includes a 7.35 ERA and 1.721 WHIP in 10 starts, with 56 strikeouts in 45 1/3 innings. The 50 strikeouts through his first nine career starts were the most by an Orioles pitcher in franchise history.

Rodriguez didn’t break camp with the team after a poor spring training and was recalled to make an April 5 start in Texas after Kyle Bradish went on the injured list with a bruised foot. He allowed two runs or fewer in five outings, never working more than 5 2/3 innings, and a combined 31 earned in 19 2/3 innings in his other five starts.

Yennier Cano ran the count full Thursday night against Yankees slugger Aaron Judge and did the unthinkable. He threw a sinker out of the strike zone that Judge didn’t chase it.

The first walk by Cano in 25 2/3 innings.

All good stats must come to an end.

“Looking back, it’s great that it took that long to finally walk someone, and honestly, I’m really happy with who I ended up walking and the way that at-bat turned out, because it wasn’t just any hitter,” Cano said yesterday via interpreter Brandon Quinones, the smile on his face an indicator that he wasn’t fretting the free pass.

“He’s a great hitter, it was a great at-bat. We fought hard the entire AB, and I threw some good pitches. Went through tough at-bats. I wasn’t upset at all with how it turned out and who I ended up walking. Honestly, just really happy with how things went looking back at it now.”

Adley Rutschman launched a 3-0 pitch from Jon Gray onto the flag count in the bottom of the first inning to give the Orioles a quick lead. Cedric Mullins made a leaping catch to rob Josh Jung of a home run to begin the top of the second, prompting rookie Grayson Rodriguez to raise a fist in the air, and then his cap.

This is the exact kind of start that the team wanted after returning home from an exhilarating road trip. Hoping that it would escalate and allow them to coast instead of slipping into crisis mode.

And then, of course, Rodriguez surrenders a two-run homer to Leody Taveras with two outs in the second inning and the Orioles are forced into chasing their 20^th comeback win. They live in an unusual comfort zone.

The Rangers turned it into a miserable spot, refusing to stay within reach and to play along.

The final images of Rodriguez include how he placed a hand on his hip and stared at the outfield as Corey Seager rounded the bases after hitting a grand slam in an eight-run fourth inning. And how he shouted into his glove after entering the dugout.

The Orioles won’t plug John Means into their rotation in two months. The timetable for his return has fractured.

Executive vice president/general manager Mike Elias revealed today that Means strained the scapula region in his upper back while performing activation drills in Sarasota. The injury isn’t related to past shoulder issues, per Elias, and the severity is reduced because it’s muscular. But July isn't happening.

Elias said Means “is and was flying along” in his recovery from Tommy John surgery in April 2022 before this week’s setback.

“It’s not his shoulder capsule, it’s not a throwing injury,” Elias said. “He’s just got a strained muscle in the scapula. It’s called the ‘teres major.’ So, this is basically just going to add some time to his return back to the Orioles.

“How long exactly, I don’t know. We’re still very much hoping on getting him back this season, but this is obviously going to slow things down and tack on some time before we actually see him out in games. But he’s doing well. This isn’t the end of the world or anything. It’s just kind of bad timing, an unfortunately timed muscle strain that’s just going to cause him to have to kill some time in his rehab while we wait for that to heal.”

Cedric Mullins has returned to the Orioles lineup tonight for the series opener against the Rangers at Camden Yards.

Ryan O’Hearn is the designated hitter. Adam Frazier continues to bat fifth.

The Orioles and Rangers have the two best records in baseball since April 13 at 27-11 and 24-13.

The Orioles are averaging 5.81 runs per game on the road and 4.35 runs at home, the largest differential in the major leagues per STATS.

A victory tonight would match the best 50-game stretch in the Rangers' franchise history. The 2013 team won 32 of its first 50 but missed the playoffs after losing to the Rays in Game 163.

The Orioles have reinstated infielder Ramón Urías from the 10-day injured list following his two rehab games at High-A Aberdeen.

Urías hasn’t played for the Orioles since straining his left hamstring on May 8.

In a corresponding move, rookie infielder Joey Ortiz was optioned to Triple-A Norfolk. Ortiz was 5-for-11 in his last five games.

Back from a 5-1 road trip that moved them 16 games above .500, the Orioles begin another homestand with a weekend series against the first-place Rangers, whose 31-18 record is third-best in baseball.

Never seems to get any easier.

NEW YORK - The Orioles scored first last night and kept the lead. They didn’t need to rally late. A nice little change of pace.

Stress wasn’t drained from the dugout, however. They never felt comfortable until the final out. Slim margins are their norm.

The 19 comeback wins this season lead the majors. That’s a lot. But approaching the club record?

Not by a long shot.

We haven’t reached the month of June yet, so there’s plenty of time. However, the Orioles will need to keep rallying and raising manager Brandon Hyde’s blood pressure.

NEW YORK – The Orioles knew it.

Before they filed out of the clubhouse for more pregame stretching and throwing, before the anthem was played, they knew that the Rays won earlier today. Their own victory would be necessary to keep pace in the American League East.

Last night’s comeback, made possible by an eight-run seventh inning, prevented them from falling four games back.

Get used to it.

The stamp denoting their spectator status has faded. They’re fighting to avoid doing the same in the standings.

NEW YORK – Cedric Mullins isn’t in tonight’s Orioles lineup for “personal reasons,” according to manager Brandon Hyde.

Hyde didn’t elaborate or confirm whether Mullins is at Yankee Stadium.

Mullins always plays against right-handed starters. And left-handed hitters are slashing .356/.430/.644 against Clarke Schmidt this season.

Not having Mullins atop the order tonight was bound to raise questions.

“It’s probably going to be one day,” Hyde said. “I’m not going to expand on that. It’s for personal reasons right now and we should see him back soon.”