masn-baseballs-orioles.jpgBOSTON – With Yovani Gallardo coming off the disabled list Saturday, the Orioles will need to figure out a way to create an opening on their 25-man roster.
They could return Odrisamer Despaigne to Triple-A Norfolk and go with T.J. McFarland and Ubaldo Jimenez as their long relievers. They could option Mike Wright or Tyler Wilson and insert Despaigne into the rotation. They could part with left-hander Brian Duensing, who’s allowed four runs and eight hits in four innings, including a pair of…

BOSTON – With Yovani Gallardo coming off the disabled list Saturday, the Orioles will need to figure out a way to create an opening on their 25-man roster.

They could return Odrisamer Despaigne to Triple-A Norfolk and go with T.J. McFarland and Ubaldo Jimenez as their long relievers. They could option Mike Wright or Tyler Wilson and insert Despaigne into the rotation. They could part with left-hander Brian Duensing, who’s allowed four runs and eight hits in four innings, including a pair of home runs. Someone else could strain a muscle – groins and hamstrings are all the rage – and go on the disabled list.

We’re still waiting to find out who starts Thursday night to close out the series against the Red Sox. Wilson would be working on six days’ rest. Wright would be working on the standard four days.

Despaigne gives the Orioles more flexibility in the bullpen. They now have three optionable relievers, including McFarland and Mychal Givens, while Darren O’Day and Vance Worley are on the disabled list.

* Ever wonder what happened to Jean Cosme, the minor league pitcher that the Orioles sent to the Padres for Despaigne?

Cosme, 20, is 7-2 with a 2.64 ERA in 13 games (nine starts) with the Fort Wayne TinCaps of the Single-A Midwest League. Last year, he went 3-5 with a 4.74 ERA in 12 starts with short-season Single-A Aberdeen.

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* Brian Matusz is headed to Triple-A Iowa after agreeing to terms with the Cubs on a minor league deal. I heard that the Padres also were a finalist for Matusz, who pitched at the University of San Diego before the Orioles made him the fourth-overall pick in the 2008 draft.

The Royals and Angels also expressed interest in Matusz, but he chose the Cubs, who will stretch him out as a starter with Iowa.

* Manny Machado hit his 17th home run of the season last night and it gave the Orioles a quick 2-0 lead.

Machado has 33 career go-ahead home runs, including six this season. Of his eight career homers against the Red Sox, five have provided a lead.

Machado has three consecutive multi-RBI games against Boston. He’s 12-for-34 (.353) in eight games versus the Red Sox this season and 7-for-17 (.412) in four games at Fenway Park.

* Jonathan Schoop hit his first career home run against the Red Sox last night.

Six of Schoop’s 10 homers this season have come in the seventh inning or later. Only six of 42 in his career have come versus a left-handed pitcher, including last night’s solo shot off David Price.

* Chris Tillman has won eight decisions in a row, the longest streak by an Orioles pitcher since Erik Bedard won nine straight in 2007.

Opponents are batting .185 (12-for-65) against Tillman this season with runners in scoring position.

Tillman has 65 wins as an Oriole to tie Dick Hall for 13th place on the club’s all-time list. Last night’s effort seemed pretty big following three straight losses and with Jimenez coming out of the rotation and so much uncertainty still lingering.

“He’s our ace and he expects that of himself, so it’s not surprising when he goes out there and does that,” said closer Zach Britton. “Watching him for so long now, working out with him in the offseason, I can see when he’s got it. After the third inning, fourth inning, I knew he was pretty much on cruise control per se, making good, quality pitches. When you see that, it’s a good sign down in the bullpen.

“Everyone’s pretty excited, so I’m glad that he threw well, and he picked up the win.”

* Britton earned another multi-inning save last night, striking out four batters in 1 2/3 innings and throwing 22 pitches.

“The big thing for me is pitch count,” he said. “It’s not ups and downs. It’s really not consecutive days for the most part.

“Brad (Brach) obviously been throwing the ball well too, so he’s helped a lot. It’s helped kind of ease the burden on me and pretty much everybody else in the bullpen, but I think pitch count. That’s why when I come in the game I want to get a ground ball right away and get that first out in the inning.

“Strikeouts are great when I need them, but for the most part I want early contact and get out of the inning with few pitches and few strikeouts, I can go multiple innings on consecutive days. With the way our bullpen is shaped, even without Darren, everyone is throwing the ball really well and I think that’s why we’re having success.”

* Is it too soon to hype this series, with the Orioles and Red Sox tied for first place when it started?

Britton is fine with the hype.

“You’d like to have a cushion on this team,” he said. “This is a good team. We know if we can distance ourselves from them, it’s only going to help in the long run.

“Every time we play these guys, it’s going to be a big series, just like when we play Toronto. We’ve got some good teams in our division, especially the Blue Jays are starting to wake up a little bit. If we get some wins against those teams, it’s only going to help us in the long run.”

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* Shortstop J.J. Hardy singled twice in three at-bats and played in the field for six innings last night at Double-A Bowie. He’s staying with the Baysox for two more games.

Henry Urrutia hit his first home run for the Baysox since being sent down from Triple-A Norfolk.

* I passed along the updated All-Star voting in the American League, including Mark Trumbo remaining in fourth place among outfielders with 1,110,720 votes.

I forgot to mention that Adam Jones (419,313) is 10th and Rule 5 pick Joey Rickard no longer appears in the Top 15.

* Outfielder Austin Hays, the Orioles’ third-round pick out of Jacksonville University, is expected to take his physical Friday in Baltimore and sign his contract.

Hays actually will be making his second visit to Baltimore. Jacksonville played Mount St. Mary’s last year in a tournament that was interrupted by snow. He toured Camden Yards, ate a crab cake and made a day of it.

* Orioles third base coach Bobby Dickerson is deciding whether to accept an offer to manage this winter in the Dominican Republic.

“He’s been offered that,” said manager Buck Showalter. “Bobby’s really well-thought of over there.”