Roch Kubatko

Notes on Harvey, Valdez, playing in Buffalo and more

August 28, 2020, 1:37pm

Orioles

Notes on Harvey, Valdez, playing in Buffalo and more

Orioles manager Brandon Hyde has been saying that reliever Hunter Harvey should be activated from the injured list during the current road trip. There are four games left before the club returns home. Harvey is still expected to be activated. "There's a really good chance you'll see him toward the end of the series," Hyde said during today's Zoom conference call with the media. The latest Harvey update remains positive, and they come in almost daily increments. He was facing hitters at the...

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Orioles lineup vs. Blue Jays

August 28, 2020, 11:43am

Orioles

Orioles catcher Pedro Severino is healthy again and behind the plate for tonight's game against the Blue Jays at Sahlen Field in Buffalo. Severino left Sunday's game against the Red Sox with tightness in his right hip, but he avoided the injured list. He wasn't in yesterday's lineup against the Rays before the Orioles decided not to play. Hanser Alberto is leading off and playing third base. Shortstop JosÃ© Iglesias, activated from the injured list yesterday, returns as the No. 3...

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Mullins at his best when bunting

August 27, 2020, 5:35pm

Orioles

Orioles manager Brandon Hyde will post his lineup again this afternoon, with a game expected to be played. In a minor league ballpark in Buffalo. There's a first time for everything. They keep coming in 2020. Cedric Mullins was supposed to be in center field last night before the Orioles voted not to play. He's likely to stay there tonight and bat leadoff or last. He has impressive range in the field and the lineup. Mullins leads the majors with six bunt hits, four more than the next closest...

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Orioles decided not to play following second team meeting

August 27, 2020, 4:58pm

Orioles

The initial decision by the Orioles and Rays to play tonight's series finale at Tropicana Field didn't hold. Conversations during batting practice led the Orioles to conduct a second team meeting, with only the players, who later invited manager Brandon Hyde into the room and shared their desire to skip the game. Hyde phoned Rays manager Kevin Cash and the sport had another postponement. And there would be more as the fight to eliminate racial injustice intensified after Sunday's police...

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Orioles decide to play tonight after emotional team meeting (updated)

August 27, 2020, 1:57pm

Orioles

Orioles manager Brandon Hyde left it up to his players whether they wanted to take the field tonight or pack up and leave. He was going to support their decision. Whichever way it leaned. The team has decided, without any resistance, to finish the series against the Rays at Tropicana Field. At least two more games have been postponed tonight to protest the police shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wis. To bring more awareness to racial inequality. To make the boldest statement that sports can...

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Dwight Smith Jr. outrighted to alternate camp site

August 27, 2020, 10:41am

Orioles

Dwight Smith Jr. outrighted to alternate camp site

Outfielder Dwight Smith Jr. is staying in the Orioles organization. Smith has cleared waivers and been outrighted to the alternate camp site in Bowie, according to an industry source. The 60-man pool is holding 58 players. It had been reduced to 57 with left-hander Wade LeBlanc going on the 60-day injured list. The Orioles designated Smith for assignment on Saturday and selected outfielder Mason Williams' contract from the secondary camp. Smith was batting .222/.306/.365 with three doubles and...

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Hyde working to keep trade rumors from becoming distraction

August 26, 2020, 7:22pm

Orioles

Hyde working to keep trade rumors from becoming distraction

Players are kept in confinement this summer beyond their trips to the ballpark, where interactions are unavoidable but also narrowed. Arrive later than usual, dress for the games, have the option of showering or heading out immediately and repeat the process the next day. What can't be done is shielding them from trade rumors and speculation that builds as the deadline approaches. They swirl around the subjects, who find out via social media or friends and family. Manager Brandon Hyde is...

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Givens surrenders late home run in 4-3 loss (updated)

August 26, 2020, 6:07pm

Orioles

Givens surrenders late home run in 4-3 loss (updated)

Orioles manager Brandon Hyde had "an idea" last night, as he put it, that Trevor Richards would start for the Rays in the second game of the series. He was waiting for confirmation, which can be a sluggish process. They stick with TBD for as long as possible while sorting through their available candidates in the bullpen. Hyde thought the Rays might go with an opener in front of Richards. He didn't post the lineup until later, which made sense anyway because he had to check on the status of...

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Akin likely to stay in the bullpen (and other notes)

August 26, 2020, 1:43pm

Orioles

Akin likely to stay in the bullpen (and other notes)

The Orioles need a starter this weekend against the Blue Jays in Buffalo and left-hander Keegan Akin no longer appears to be an option. Manager Brandon Hyde seems to have narrowed his choices to Thomas Eshelman and Jorge LÃ³pez. Akin has been a starter throughout the minors, but perhaps not while the Orioles are chasing a playoff berth. While Hyde, in his own words, is in "win-now mode." "For us right now, Keegan fits in our bullpen the best," Hyde said today in his Zoom conference call...

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Hunter Harvey: "I'm feeling great right now"

August 26, 2020, 11:33am

Orioles

Hunter Harvey: "I'm feeling great right now"

Hunter Harvey doesn't know when he's going to be activated from the injured list and jump into a bullpen that's been missing him through the first half of the season. However, he's on the current road trip for a reason. He's getting close. "I'm feeling great right now," Harvey said today in a Zoom conference call with the media. "I've been feeling good for the last few weeks and hopefully here soon I'll be able to get back out there and start pitching in some big league games. So...

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Orioles and Rays lineups

August 26, 2020, 11:06am

Orioles

Pedro Severino remains on the bench tonight with discomfort in his right hip, leaving Bryan Holaday behind the plate as the Orioles continue their series against the Rays at Tropicana Field. Severino is day-to-day after leaving Sunday's game. Chance Sisco is the designated hitter. Hanser Alberto is batting second, followed by Anthony Santander. Ryan Mountcastle returns to left field after serving last night as the designated hitter. Pat Valaika is the shortstop after committing two throwing...

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This, that and the other

August 25, 2020, 6:14pm

Orioles

Pat Valaika sailed his second throw last night, again pulling first baseman Renato NÃºÃ±ez off the bag, and tried hard to exhibit better control of his emotions than he did of the baseball. Valaika removed his cap, exposing the thick blonde hair, and held it in his teeth while staring across the infield. He didn't bite through it, but only because of his restraint. Maybe it kept him from screaming. The frustration was evident. Two throwing errors that impacted Tommy Milone's start and led...

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Milone makes nice recovery in 4-2 loss (updated)

August 25, 2020, 5:22pm

Orioles

Milone makes nice recovery in 4-2 loss (updated)

Wade LeBlanc fell off the trade table with an elbow injury that brought a premature end to his season. Alex Cobb stays on it if the right team comes along that's willing to absorb the $15 million owed in 2021 or if the Orioles provide some salary relief. Then there's Tommy Milone, who could interest a contender as a back-of-the-rotation starter or swingman, though the return wouldn't necessarily accelerate the rebuild process. The veteran lefty has been a pretty solid addition this year,...

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Hyde on LeBlanc, rotation, Severino, Iglesias, Harvey, more

August 25, 2020, 1:33pm

Orioles

Hyde on LeBlanc, rotation, Severino, Iglesias, Harvey, more

Orioles manager Brandon Hyde hasn't decided how he's going to replace left-hander Wade LeBlanc in the rotation. He knows the candidates are Thomas Eshelman, Keegan Akin and Jorge LÃ³pez. They're headed to the bullpen until one of them is needed to start against the Blue Jays in Buffalo. "We're going to make that decision here probably later this week," Hyde said today in his Zoom conference call. "We have some guys who are built up for that. We'll see how it goes later in the...

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Orioles lineup vs. Rays

August 25, 2020, 10:51am

Orioles

Ryan Mountcastle is the designated hitter tonight as the Orioles begin a three-game series against the Rays at Tropicana Field. Mason Williams is playing left field and Cedric Mullins remains in center field and atop the order. Rio Ruiz moves to the cleanup spot after collecting a career-high four RBIs Sunday against the Red Sox. Chance Sisco is catching. Pedro Severino is on the bench after experiencing tightness in his hip Sunday. For the Orioles Cedric Mullins CF Anthony Santander RF Renato...

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LeBlanc on IL, Akin recalled

August 25, 2020, 10:18am

Orioles

Keegan Akin has made it back to the majors. Whether he's back in the bullpen or moved into the rotation hasn't been revealed. The Orioles placed Wade LeBlanc on the 60-day injured list this afternoon with a left elbow stress reaction, ending his 2020 season after only six starts. Akin has been recalled from the alternate camp site in Bowie as the roster replacement. The 60-man pool is down to 57 players. LeBlanc, 36, left Sunday's game against the Red Sox after throwing 14 pitches. He...

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Givens could go as trade deadline gets closer

August 24, 2020, 2:29pm

Orioles

Givens could go as trade deadline gets closer

As the Orioles prepare for a two-city road trip that begins tonight in St. Petersburg, Fla., reliever Mychal Givens must wonder whether he's pitched in his last game at Camden Yards as a member of the team. He hears the rumors every year. Trade chip talk follows him like baby chicks. He'd probably feel lonely without it. Baseball's deadline version of separation anxiety. The Orioles were willing to move Givens last summer, but they couldn't find the right partner. The days of being...

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Notes on trade deadline, Davis' status and new rules (updated)

August 23, 2020, 2:24pm

Orioles

Notes on trade deadline, Davis' status and new rules (updated)

The trade deadline is exactly one week away and the mystery surrounding it is one of the many new twists to the season. One of the great unknowns that's become timely. Executives really have no idea how it's going to evolve with the expanded playoff field perhaps reducing the number of sellers. Relievers usually are in demand and the Red Sox traded two during their trip to Baltimore, sending Brandon Workman and Heath Hembree to the Phillies. The Orioles dealt left-hander Richard Bleier to the...

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Orioles battle through injuries to defeat Red Sox 5-4 (updated)

August 23, 2020, 12:23pm

Orioles

The transitioning of the Orioles roster to a younger look and more prospects populating it can happen with the front office operating the controls or fate intervening. Wade LeBlanc came out of today's start against the Red Sox in the first inning with discomfort in his left elbow, the severity of the injury unknown until tests are run. There's never a long wait to speculate on a roster replacement, but the Orioles are going to take it one step at a time Thomas Eshelman entered the game after...

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LeBlanc leaves game with left elbow discomfort

August 23, 2020, 9:48am

Orioles

LeBlanc leaves game with left elbow discomfort

Wade LeBlanc threw a curveball this afternoon to Red Sox designated hitter Christian VÃ¡zquez in the top of the first inning, signaled to the dugout and waited to be led off the mound. LeBlanc sustained an apparent injury with two outs and a 1-0 count on his fifth batter. Manager Brandon Hyde, pitching coach Doug Brocail and assistant athletic trainer Mark Shires walked onto the field to check on him. Shires and LeBlanc walked together to the clubhouse in an unexpected development in the...