LAKELAND, Fla. – Félix Bautista is making his second spring training appearance tonight, as the Orioles hit the road to face the Tigers.

Bautista retired the Red Sox in order Monday afternoon in Sarasota.

Jordan Westburg is out of the lineup after returning to it last night. Gunnar Henderson remains out with a strained right intercostal, and manager Brandon Hyde will provide an update later.

Jackson Holliday is leading off tonight, followed by Ramón Urías at third base. Heston Kjerstad is in right field, Coby Mayo is the designated hitter and Samuel Basallo is catching.

Liván Soto is the shortstop.

SARASOTA, Fla. – The rotation, bullpen, infield and outfield are impacted by health issues in Orioles camp. Starter Grayson Rodriguez informed the club that he’s experiencing soreness in his right triceps. Reliever Andrew Kittredge is shut down with inflammation in his left knee and the club is discussing its options. Shortstop Gunnar Henderson is making gradual improvement after his diagnosis of a strained right intercostal.

The outfield had been immune to injuries until yesterday, with Tyler O’Neill scratched due to soreness in his left rib cage. He also missed a game with an illness. Manager Brandon Hyde said O’Neill should be available for the next home game.

The Orioles have plenty of veteran options if they need replacements, some of them graying more than others.

Adam Jones, Nick Markakis, Al Bumbry and John Shelby are together in camp as guest instructors. They covered a lot of ground back in the day and they’re covering different generations in team history.

“Bumbry’s playing center tomorrow. Ced (Mullins) and him are gonna switch off,” manager Brandon Hyde quipped.

SARASOTA, Fla. – A 95 mph fastball from Pirates reliever Peter Strzelecki tonight dropped Ramón Urías to the dirt in the bottom of the fifth inning. Urías stayed down for a few seconds while the crowd gasped in unison, got back to his feet and struck out.

Urías grabbed his equipment bag and walked down the right field line toward the clubhouse. He was coming out anyway, with manager Brandon Hyde making multiple substitutions. He left third base and upheld his status as a healthy infielder.

The gasps became sighs of relief.

Jordan Westburg returned to the lineup, but Gunnar Henderson remained out with a strained right intercostal and Jorge Mateo won’t be ready for Opening Day after his reconstructive elbow surgery in August, though he’s swinging a bat.

The Orioles need Urías to be their utility guy. They might need him to play shortstop for Henderson or third base if Westburg slides over. Tailing fastballs with his name on them are frowned upon in this establishment.

SARASOTA, Fla. – The latest dip in velocity from Grayson Rodriguez apparently stems from a physical issue.

Rodriguez is bothered by soreness in his right triceps, according to manager Brandon Hyde. He was evaluated today and the Orioles should have more information on Friday.

Asked if there’s a base level of concern anytime a pitcher admits to soreness, Hyde said, “Sure. I’m concerned every day right now with everybody.”

Standing outside the visiting clubhouse yesterday at Hammond Stadium, Rodriguez told the media that he felt “pretty sluggish” and couldn’t get behind the ball and spin it how he wanted. He threw 30 pitches against the Twins, 20 for strikes, and allowed one run and three hits with a walk, strikeout and hit batter over 1 1/3 innings.

The radar gun provided numbers that drew most of the attention and concern. Rodriguez’s four-seam fastball averaged 93.2 mph, topping out at 95.3 on Ryan Jeffers’ strikeout in the first. Christian Vazquez led off the second with a double into left-center field on an 89.5 mph fastball.

SARASOTA, Fla. – Rosters were announced today for the second Spring Breakout game. Orioles prospects will play Yankees prospects on March 15 at 6:05 p.m. in Sarasota.

Among the 26 Orioles are top prospect Samuel Basallo and No. 3 prospect Enrique Bradfield Jr.

Here is the complete list:

Pitchers
LHP Luis De León
RHP Michael Forret
RHP Nestor German
RHP Keeler Morfe
RHP Patrick Reilly
RHP Levi Wells
RHP Cameron Weston

Catchers
Ethan Anderson
Samuel Basallo
Miguel Rodríguez
Creed Willems

SARASOTA, Fla. – Former Orioles center fielder Adam Jones will have to pause his work in the front office and in the community to accept his latest honor on Aug. 9.

Jones and another former outfielder, Joe Orsulak, were elected to the club’s Hall of Fame. Long-time broadcaster Tom Davis will receive the Herb Armstrong Award given to non-uniformed Orioles personnel.

Jones officially retired from baseball as an Oriole on Sept. 15, 2023, and in January 2025 he returned to the organization as a special advisor to the general manager and community ambassador.

His accomplishments on the field made him an easy choice in his first year of eligibility.

Jones spent 11 of his 14 seasons with the Orioles and ranks among their all-time leaders in hits (fourth, 1,781), home runs (fifth, 263), RBIs (fifth, 866), runs (fifth, 875), doubles (seventh, 305) and games played (eighth, 1,613). Also, his 93 career outfield assists are tied with Nick Markakis for second behind Paul Blair’s 105.

SARASOTA, Fla. – Orioles manager Brandon Hyde finally could joke about it.

The closing of southbound I-75 due to an accident involving two semis that caused a significant hydraulic oil leak. His arrival in the visiting clubhouse at Hammond Stadium about an hour after first pitch. Sunscreen and a look of aggravation on his face.

Asked after the game about Grayson Rodriguez’s sluggish start, Hyde said, “On the radio, it was …”

He laughed for the first time – a few minutes after sharing the news of Gunnar Henderson’s strained right intercostal muscle. Someone needed to break the tension.

Losing Henderson for any length of time would hurt, and intercostals can bring a lengthy recovery period. But Hyde stressed how the diagnosis was a “very mild” strain, and that Henderson was improving “every single day.”

FORT MYERS, Fla. – The expected 26-man roster for the Orioles on Opening Day is in jeopardy.

Manager Brandon Hyde began today’s post-game media session with negative news regarding shortstop Gunnar Henderson and reliever Andrew Kittredge.

Henderson is bothered by a “very mild” intercostal strain on his right side. The injury occurred in the first inning of Thursday’s game against the Blue Jays at Ed Smith Stadium. Henderson exited with discomfort in his right side after making a leaping catch of Bo Bichette’s line drive and grounding out in his only at-bat.

“He’s feeling a lot better, but we’re just obviously going to slow play it a little bit and make sure that he’s 100 percent. But he’s getting a lot better every single day,” Hyde said following a 5-2 win over the Twins.

The intercostal is a muscle that runs between the ribs in the chest wall and assists in expanding and contracting the chest during breathing.

FORT MYERS, Fla. – Grayson Rodriguez didn’t make it through the second inning for the second time this spring.

Just trust the process.

Rodriguez came out of today’s game against the Twins after hitting Austin Martin with one out. He threw 33 pitches, 20 strikes, with a noticeable drop in velocity.

The four-seam fastball averaged 93.2 mph, topping out at 95.3 on Ryan Jeffers’ strikeout in the first. Christian Vazquez led off the second with a double into left-center field on an 89.5 mph fastball.

That wasn’t the issue, according to Rodriguez.

FORT MYERS, Fla. – Jordan Westburg is young by most standards, celebrating his 26^th birthday only last month. However, the soreness in his lower back is making him reconsider.

“I’m getting old,” he said this morning with a smile. “Feeling older by the day.”

Westburg hasn’t played since the Feb. 22 opener due to spasms in his back. He could return to the lineup as early as Thursday in Lakeland.

“Soon, any day now,” he said. “I feel good, back to full workouts.”

Westburg’s ailment isn’t a fresh story in spring training. He’s just the latest player felled by a mattress, in this case at the Airbnb in Sarasota that he’s renting with some teammates.

FORT MYERS, Fla. – Orioles infielder Jordan Westburg said his lower back is feeling much better and he should return to the lineup by Thursday or Friday.

Westburg said he experienced some spasms caused by a soft mattress at his Airbnb.

Reliever Andrew Kittredge remains shut down while working to eliminate the inflammation in his left knee. He doesn’t know when he’ll be available to pitch or whether his status for Opening Day could be impacted.

Jackson Holliday is leading off today against the Twins in Fort Myers.

Also on the trip are Adley Rutschman, Colton Cowser, Heston Kjerstad, Coby Mayo and Ramón Laureano.

SARASOTA, Fla. – The Orioles are on the road again today with their bus pointed toward Fort Myers for another game against the Twins at Hammond Stadium.

The redundancy this spring is mind numbing. No games in Port Charlotte, the third-shortest trip from Sarasota. Only one in North Port, which is the second shortest and super convenient for manager Brandon Hyde, to close out the Florida portion of the schedule.

Out of nine games, the Orioles have played the Pirates three times – losing all three - host them again Thursday night and head back to Bradenton Monday afternoon for a MASN telecast. They’ve gone to Clearwater twice and have a split-squad game there Sunday afternoon. They were in Fort Myers Friday and return less than a week later.

The five projected starters are impressing, and Grayson Rodriguez’s next turn is today. He tossed 1 2/3 scoreless and hitless innings against the Blue Jays in his debut. The only baserunner came from a hit-by-pitch.

“I was able to drive the fastball, changeup was working good, was able to throw the new sweeper once and got a bad swing on it, so I was pretty excited about that,” he said afterward.

SARASOTA, Fla. – The Orioles are off today. My mailbag never rests.

This is the spring training edition. You ask and I answer, just like in the summer, fall and winter.

The clarity, length and style are fine. No reason to mess with them - or for anyone to know if I do. Sue me.

Also, my mailbag hits home runs over the scoreboard and yours fouls out to the catcher.

If he plays, say, 145-150 games, do you think Tyler O'Neill will make us forget about Anthony Santander?
Let’s get one thing straight: We shall never forget about Anthony Santander. Never, I tell you! He was too impactful on the field and in the clubhouse. However, O’Neill has the power to make fans worry a lot less about the 44 home runs subtracted from the roster, and he’s a more accomplished outfielder. O’Neill has exceeded 100 games twice in his career and he hit 34 homers in 2021 and 31 last season. You get him in the 145-150 range and he’s going to do some serious damage. And then you hope that he doesn’t decide to opt out.

The Orioles and Red Sox played to a 6-6 tie today at Ed Smith Stadium, which leads into Tuesday’s first off-day.

Here are some nuggets from this afternoon, when the first five innings meant the most to the Orioles:

* Félix Bautista faced three batters in the fifth inning – strikeout, strikeout, ground ball, standing ovation from fans.

This was Bautista’s moment. Everything else that happened was secondary.

Bautista ran the count full to Trayce Thompson and struck him out on a fastball up and away. Nate Eaton swung through a nasty splitter.

SARASOTA, Fla. - The Orioles have a big pitching day lined up for this afternoon’s game against the Red Sox at Ed Smith Stadium.

Charlie Morton makes his second start, but that’s just the opening act.

Tomoyuki Sugano will follow in relief, his second spring training appearance after Wednesday’s start against the Pirates in Bradenton. And Félix Bautista will make his exhibition debut later in the game, his first action in a competitive game since Aug. 25, 2023, prior to his Tommy John surgery.

Other relievers today include Roansy Contreras and Matt Bowman.

Bautista won’t be used on back-to-back days or more than one inning early in the regular season, according to manager Brandon Hyde.

The Orioles are 4-4 in the Grapefruit League, losers of two straight, and it means as much as the heart-healthy claims on boxes of Cheerios. Maybe if you power-walk to the fridge to get the milk.

Spring training records aren’t important. Take the wins where you can get them, but don’t judge a game by the final score.

For example, the 5-2 loss to the Pirates Saturday. Much more impactful were Cade Povich’s three scoreless innings. He put on a clinic, locating his fastball and secondary stuff. The changeup was outstanding.

Four of Povich’s six strikeouts were looking. He had the Pirates guessing wrong. He had outstanding stuff. And he had a catcher, Adley Rutschman, who did some fine framing.

Povich said afterward on the MASN broadcast that he thought he missed with a curveball, but Rutschman got him the strike.

The last pitch thrown by Orioles closer Félix Bautista in a competitive game was Aug. 25, 2023 against the Rockies at Camden Yards. Bautista was one strike away from his 34^th save but settled for the unwanted hold.

Bautista unleashed a 102.3 mph fastball to pinch-hitter Michael Toglia, tumbled toward first base, began flexing his hand and walked off the mound. He underwent reconstructive-elbow surgery in October, and rest, rehab exercises and baseball activities followed as Bautista missed the entire 2024 season. He’s gotten through bullpen and live batting practice sessions without any setbacks and is expected to pitch Monday afternoon against the Red Sox in Sarasota.

Manager Brandon Hyde provided the update earlier today in his media scrum in Clearwater, where the Orioles are playing the Phillies.

Monday's game airs on MASN and also features Tomoyuki Sugano’s second appearance with the Orioles. Charlie Morton starts and Sugano is scheduled to pitch in relief.

Bautista is expected to be ready for Opening Day, but the team will ease him back into a full-time closing role. He’s got to build up his arm and innings, and the velocity is sitting in the mid-90s.

Samuel Basallo is serving as the designated hitter this afternoon, as the Orioles make another Sunday trip to play the Phillies in Clearwater.

Gary Sánchez is behind the plate.

Ramón Laureano gets the start in center field and is batting leadoff, followed by second baseman Jackson Holliday.

Colton Cowser is in right field and Heston Kjerstad is in left. Coby Mayo is at third base.

Dean Kremer makes his first start after giving up two runs and three hits with two walks and three strikeouts over two relief innings against the Tigers in Sarasota.

SARASOTA, Fla. – The best season of Keegan Akin’s professional life came with one harsh outcome that he’s able to laugh about five months later.

It took that long.

Pitchers dread the slow walk back to the dugout after surrendering a game-winning run. Head bowed, the roar of the opposing crowd ringing in his ears, reporters seeking an explanation and reaction.

Akin would like to forget, but the reminder has a locker set up on the other side of the spring training clubhouse.

Outfielder Tyler O’Neill punctuated a three-homer series against the Orioles in September by clearing the Green Monster in the 10^th inning. The Red Sox responded to Emmanuel Rivera’s tie-breaking single by taking advantage of a Jackson Holliday error and bringing O’Neill to the plate.

Tyler O'Neill would have been in today's Orioles lineup except he's dealing with an illness, according to manager Brandon Hyde, who met with the media in Sarasota for his daily pregame dugout session.

O'Neill hit a ball Thursday against the Blue Jays that cleared the concourse in left field for a three-run homer. He didn't make the trip to Fort Myers yesterday, but he wasn't going to play anyway. It didn't raise any red flags.

Starter Charlie Morton also was out of camp recently due to an illness and he made a quick return.

Dylan Beavers is starting in left field today as a late addition to the lineup.

Hyde also said that Jordan Westburg is feeling better and has been cleared for light baseball activities. He isn't swinging a bat because of the soreness in his lower back that's kept him out of the lineup since last Saturday's exhibition opener, but he's able to play catch.