When Craig Albernaz peered into the room at his introductory press conference, some familiar faces were scattered amidst the new. Among those there in support was Guardians manager Steven Vogt, the 2025 American League Manager of the Year and Albernaz’s close friend. 

Just six games into the season, conclusions about how Albernaz will manage the Orioles position player group may be premature. However, certain trends have begun to reveal themselves, and, perhaps, some ties can be made back to the new skipper’s time with the Guardians and his good friend, Vogt. 

The Orioles’ position player group as a whole is just that: whole. Six games into the year, nine of Baltimore’s 13 hitters have appeared in at least five of those contests, and eleven have recorded double-digit plate appearances. Last season, 10 Guardians appeared in at least 115 games, while 13 played at least 60. Albernaz is clearly familiar with using depth to his advantage. 

Having and using quality depth doesn’t mean that the Orioles will shy away from playing their best as frequently as possible, though. José Ramírez and Steven Kwan were penciled in nearly every day, and that trend should continue for Albernaz. 

Seemingly, it already has. 

Taylor Ward, boasting a patience and walk ability demonstrated in seeing over four pitches per plate appearance, hits first. Gunnar Henderson, the most dynamic player on the team, follows him, while Pete Alonso, one of the biggest slug threats in baseball, hits third. Assuming they all stay healthy, 150-plus games isn’t out of the question. 

The catching duo of Adley Rutschman and Samuel Basallo can hit cleanup, as can outfielder Tyler O’Neill. The long-time Cardinal is joined in the outfield by Colton Cowser, Dylan Beavers and Leody Taveras, each of which play distinct roles from one another. Coby Mayo, tasked with manning third base in the absence of Jordan Westburg, can be spelled by Blaze Alexander and Jeremiah Jackson, who can play virtually anywhere on the diamond. 

Though Alexander and Jackson are the only ones among that group considered true “utility” players, most can play multiple positions. While Cleveland did have a few players at set spots, like Ramírez and Kwan, names like Angel Martínez, Daniel Schneemann, Nolan Jones and Gabriel Arias could bounce around wherever necessary. The O’s have the talent and versatility to do the same. 

This depth also allowed Cleveland to create a distinct strategic advantage at the dish with their platoon splits. The Guardians took nearly 80 percent of their at-bats with a platoon advantage in 2025, a number that paced Major League Baseball by a whopping 13 percent. The Orioles are towards the bottom of the league in that metric to start 2026, but have the ability to play into that advantage. 

If the Orioles are facing a right-handed starter, for example, they could put two lefty bats in the outfield in Cowser and Beavers. Basallo could be the designated hitter with Rutschman catching, Henderson at short and a healthy Holliday at second, leaving just Mayo, Alonso and Ward as right-handed bats, a 33 percent “disadvantage” facing the same handedness. Later in the game, if a lefty arm comes out of the opposing ‘pen, players like O’Neill, Alexander, Mountcastle and Jackson could be at the ready. 

Of course, there are some hitters that have “reverse splits,” meaning they perform better against a pitcher with the same dominant hand. There is also plenty of merit to keeping a hot bat in the lineup, regardless of matchup, something we’ve already seen from Albernaz this year. As we get a larger sample size, where the O’s fall in that platoon advantage ranking, especially in comparison to the Guardians, will be interesting to note. 

The 2026 Orioles are constructed differently than the 2025 Guardians, too, with Baltimore boasting much more power potential and fewer true “utility” players that will see the field as frequently as the utilitymen in Cleveland. Still, it’s natural to think that Albernaz would be influenced by his time there with Vogt.

Connections, and thus, lasting impacts, are made throughout the game. Albernaz and Vogt aren’t the first pair of managers to have a close relationship, and they certainly won’t be the last. How many parallels can be drawn between the two’s managerial style remains to be seen, but certainly, Albernaz wouldn’t mind matching some of Vogt’s hardware.