Number of Orioles players, injury updates, O'Hearn staying hot

BOSTON – The Orioles used their 42^nd player last night when Trevor Rogers stepped on the mound to warm up for Game 2 of the doubleheader. They had Terrin Vavra on the bench and Yaramil Hiraldo in the bullpen. The number is fluid, the clubhouse attendants kept busy making nameplates for lockers.

Vavra and Hiraldo didn’t see any action unless there was some pushing and shoving at the post-game spread. But today brings new possibilities.

The team record for most players used is 62 in 2021. The Orioles needed 60 last season, 58 in 2022 and 2019, and 56 in 2018.

Vavra made it back to the majors yesterday to replace injured outfielder Ramón Laureano. He was on the taxi squad last year at the trade deadline but didn’t play. His last game with the Orioles was on May 31, 2023, before enduring multiple stints on the injured list, including a right labrum tear that required surgery, and a left groin strain.

Vavra could stay until Laureano is eligible to return on May 31, or until Colton Cowser is eligible the day before. Tyler O’Neill has a left shoulder impingement and won’t be ready on his return date, which is Monday.

Asked for an update on O’Neill, interim manager Tony Mansolino replied, “Nothing right now at the moment.”

Cowser has gone 2-for-6 with a home run in two rehab games at High-A Aberdeen and was off yesterday. He fractured his left thumb in the fourth game of the season in Toronto.

“We need to be patient with him and we don’t need to rush him, right?” Mansolino said. “He’s on the 60-day and I don’t think the initial day to come back until the 30^th. We need to allow him to get his at-bats. He’s been out for two months. But when Moo gets going and he gets back, he’s gonna be really welcomed here.”

Vavra had a .317 average and .838 OPS in 22 games with the Triple-A Norfolk. He broke camp with the team in 2023 but didn’t play much before they optioned him, which was followed by a labrum tear that required surgery. He left the organization and was re-signed.

The Orioles have worked to expand his versatility and increase his value. He’s played every position in the minors, including two appearances behind the plate and a relief inning.

Jordan Westburg could return to the active roster by early June, according to executive vice president/general manager Mike Elias. He hasn’t played since April 26 due to a left hamstring strain, and a setback ruined plans to have him work out with Norfolk and get into some games.

Westburg routinely gives the Orioles some of their best at-bats and they tend to have more success when he’s in the lineup. He’s typically flown under the radar, but his absences hurt the club.

“Westburg’s the glue to this whole thing. So is Cowser and O’Neill in a way, too,” Mansolino said.

“I think we saw last year with kind of how things went in August and into September without Westy. So we’re excited to kind of get him going here at some point, and when he does and he gets back, it’s gonna be a nice luxury to have.”

We haven’t heard a word about Albert Suárez, who’s on the 60-day injured list with a right subscapularis strain. He said on April 12 that he’d likely receive another MRI in about three weeks. He’s in Baltimore and an occasional presence in the clubhouse during media access, smiling and acting in his usual friendly manner.

* Jackson Holliday extended his hitting streak to 10 games in the opener, making him the fifth different Orioles player with a stretch of that length before turning 22 years old.

Holliday joined Manny Machado (twice), Eddie Murray (three times), Boog Powell and Cal Ripken Jr.

Mansolino kept Holliday and Cedric Mullins on the bench in Game 2, though the Red Sox were starting right-hander Lucas Giolito.

“They’re fine,” Mansolino said. “Just over the course of the season, there’s little nick-nack things that kind of happen. We were doing the best we could to stay away from them. They were both available during the game, but I was trying to do right by them.” 

* Ryan O'Hearn had the go-ahead single last night in the eighth inning of Game 2. He's playing like an early All-Star candidate.

O'Hearn has a .338 average and .889 OPS since the beginning of May, with three doubles, two home runs, six RBIs, 10 walks and eight runs scored. He's also been hit twice.

"Big knock by O’Hearn," said catcher Maverick Handley. "Been great for us all year."