Tyler O’Neill was a lineup scratch again today. Recovered from the inflammation in his neck, O’Neill was sent to the bench for the series opener against the Nationals due to left shoulder discomfort.
Ryan O’Hearn is replacing O’Neill in right field and batting fifth against Nationals left-hander MacKenzie Gore.
Manager Brandon Hyde said O’Neill noticed the discomfort a few days ago while hitting in the cage. He played right field yesterday.
“I guess this morning he woke up feeling pretty sore,” Hyde said. “Day-to-day.”
O’Neill is batting .188/.280/.325 in 24 games.
Hyde said outfielder Heston Kjerstad’s right elbow is “better” after being hit yesterday. Kjerstad probably would have sat anyway tonight against Gore, but he wasn't the choice to replace O'Neill.
“He got hit twice in pretty much the same spot,” Hyde said. “Fortunately, we haves those elbow guards, but squared him up pretty good again.”
Kjerstad has been hit four times to lead the club, one more than backup catcher Gary Sánchez, who’s on the injured list with right wrist inflammation. He was hit five times last season in only 114 plate appearances.
"I don’t think it’s a personal thing,” Hyde said of Kjerstad, who suffered a concussion last year after Clay Holmes drilled him on the helmet. “Teams throw him in. They’re trying to get in that upper-inside corner of the box with fastballs and sometimes they miss in."
Hyde didn’t have any updates on Sánchez, who wore a brace on his wrist today while shooting pool with his left hand.
“He’s still in the training room,” Hyde said.
There also is nothing new with Grayson Rodriguez, who’s shut down with a sore lat but also is listed as having elbow inflammation.
Tyler Wells threw another bullpen session earlier today.
The Orioles reinstated Double-A Chesapeake left-hander Jakob Hernandez from the injured list and released him.
Adley Rutschman is batting third tonight and trying to shake a slump that’s lowered his average to .200 with a .629 OPS in 40 games. Going 1-for-3 yesterday bumped up his average from .197.
Rutschman is 6-for-41 this month. The last of his four home runs was hit on April 20. He had two on Opening Day in Toronto.
“After the first series of the year, I thought he went through a little bit of spell where he had some bad luck,” Hyde said. “I thought he was swinging the bat OK, just wasn’t getting any hits to fall. I think after that, there’s a lot of pressure he’s putting on himself to get hits and to get his numbers up. That’s where you see the chase up or kind of come out of his swing a little bit because I think he’s trying to do too much at times. Been more encouraged this past week.
“For me, the best swing he’s taken in a long time was that base hit the other way yesterday. I think that’s a really good start. For me, that’s who he is, a guy who can beat you when he’s going right. Up until the second half of last year, it was line drives all over the ballpark from both sides, with the ability to take you deep. And I know he’s working his butt off to get back to that.”
Rutschman batted .207/.282/.303 with only three home runs in 234 plate appearances in the second half last season. Hyde doesn’t see the same hitter having the same issues in 2025.
“I know his numbers aren’t there for sure, and he struggled the second half last year,” Hyde said. “I think the at-bats are better. I think he’s in a better place. I think he feels way better at the plate, too. I could see him getting hot here at some point.
“We need him because he’s a huge part of our lineup and the reason why we had so much success. We’re all pulling for him. He’s in a good place mentally to get out of this thing.”
Hyde lowered Rutschman to fifth in the order for one game. He was asked whether he’s considered batting Rutschman further down.
"Yeah, I’ve thought about it,” he replied.
“With the way our roster and the construction of it is right now, we have so many lefties. If I’m hitting Gunnar (Henderson) third, the option to hit fourth right now is pretty limited. If I hit O’Hearn behind him, it’s a layup for the opposing manager. They (Twins) just brought Danny Coulombe in three times against us in those two series. That’s not fair to O’Hearn, that’s not fair to Gunnar, so I need to sandwich them, I need to help them out any way I can. So I moved Adley back Sunday.
“A lot of that goes into it. I’d love to have a right-handed guy be able to hit behind Gunnar. That’s the bottom line. Looking for somebody to step up and be able to do that."
Here’s the new Orioles lineup:
Gunnar Henderson DH
Ryan Mountcastle 1B
Adley Rutschman C
Ramón Laureano LF
Ryan O’Hearn RF
Ramón Urías 3B
Jackson Holliday 2B
Cedric Mullins CF
Jorge Mateo SS
For the Nationals
CJ Abrams SS
Alex Call LF
James Wood DH
Keibert Ruiz C
Nathaniel Lowe 1B
Dylan Crews RF
José Tena 3B
Jacob Young CF
Nasim Nuñez 2B
MacKenzie Gore LHP