What started as an innocent car ride home became a deep dive into the Orioles’ roster.

Interim manager Tony Mansolino needed a lift last Thursday with family in town, and new special advisor John Mabry provided taxi service. Mansolino used the one-on-one time with a respected former major league player and coach to discuss the team and everything happening around it.

“What do you think about all this?” Mansolino asked.

And then came his answer –without pause and aimed at the one player who usually gets lost in the crowd.

“Right away, it’s Jordan Westburg,” Mansolino recalled. “He’s like, ‘That’s the guy that nobody talks about. That’s the piece.’”

The Orioles filled one of the two openings on their 40-man roster this afternoon by claiming right-hander Elvin Rodríguez on waivers from the Brewers and optioning him to Triple-A Norfolk.

Rodríguez, 27, registered an 8.68 ERA and 1.607 WHIP in six games (two starts). He allowed 18 runs and 23 hits with seven walks, 17 strikeouts and seven home runs surrendered over 18 2/3 innings.

He also made seven appearances (five starts) with the Tigers in 2022, posting a 10.62 ERA and 1.921 WHIP in 29 2/3 innings, and registered one scoreless and hitless relief appearance covering 3 1/3 innings with the Rays in 2023. He retired all 10 batters.

Rodríguez never faced the Orioles in parts of his three major league seasons.

The Brewers designated Rodríguez for assignment last Wednesday after he signed a split contract with them in January. He had a 4.25 ERA and 1.247 WHIP in 16 games (two starts) with Triple-A Nashville.

The All-Star break doesn’t provide much rest for those of us covering the draft, tracking Ryan O’Hearn and emptying a mailbag.

The last pick in the draft was announced Monday evening. Major League Baseball did something right, getting rid of Day 3. O’Hearn was the designated hitter for the American League, and as I told him would happen, I tuned out the second after he came out.

That’s the luxury of “covering” it from home. I was in Texas last year for five Orioles representatives, plus Gunnar Henderson in the Home Run Derby.

Baseball has the best All-Star Game of the major sports, but nothing compares to the Midsummer Classics of my youth, with future Hall of Famers all over the field wearing their teams’ uniforms. (Nice to see that second part come back last night.) And prior to interleague play, which removed the novelty of the American League facing the National League outside of the World Series.

Also, get off my lawn.

Ryan O’Hearn came close to facing future Hall of Famer Clayton Kershaw tonight in his first career All-Star Game at-bat.

Kershaw was a “Legend Pick” by commissioner Rob Manfred, marking his 11^th All-Star selection. The three-time Cy Young Award winner retired Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh, the Home Run Derby champion, on a liner to left and struck out Blue Jays first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr.

On the verge of a tough left-on-left matchup, O’Hearn instead got Padres right-hander Jason Adam and struck out looking at a 2-2 slider that nicked the outer half of the plate.

O’Hearn pulled a changeup foul on the previous pitch – an almost double.

The American League put runners on the corners against Mets left-hander David Peterson with two outs in the fourth, and O’Hearn grounded a first-pitch slider back to the mound. Peterson jogged to first base and flipped the ball for the out.

Tony Mansolino is carving his own path since the Orioles named him interim manager on May 17. It usually happens twice a day in the auxiliary clubhouse, where he meets with the media before and after games.

Former manager Brandon Hyde would veer to the right, around the rows of metal folding chairs, to reach his seat at the table, and he’d go back out the same way. Reporters knew the routine and how to avoid slowing or bumping into him.

Mansolino paused on his first day to wait for a public relations official and crossed up everyone by walking down the middle of the room. More fullback than halfback, though his build doesn’t offer the same comparison.

In one sense, Mansolino is following in Hyde’s footsteps because of the role unexpectedly thrust upon him. He’s got the office now and usually stands in the same spot at the dugout railing, to the far left. But he’s also figuring out on the fly how to make it job his own, for however long it belongs to him.

“I didn’t ask for this, so that morning when that happened, that was as big of a shock to me as it was you guys,” he said earlier this week. “So I think when you just kind of get thrown into the fire, you’re trying to get your feet settled and adapt.”

The Orioles made 17 selections on the final day of the 2025 First-Year Player Draft, completing rounds 4-20. This year, Baltimore selected 24 players overall: 13 pitchers and 11 position players, with 21 of the selections being college athletes and three from the high school ranks. The Orioles selected eight right-handed pitchers, five left-handed pitchers, four outfielders, five infielders, and two catchers.

Here’s the latest with the Orioles from Day 2 of the draft:

Fourth round (124^th): Colin Yeaman, shortstop. University of California-Irvine.

Yeaman, 21, was the Big West Player of the Year after batting .336/.447/.591 with 16 doubles, four triples, 13 home runs, 56 RBIs, 38 walks and 53 strikeouts in 60 games. He played two seasons at the College of the Canyons, batting .405 and .443 in a combined 56 games. He also underwent two surgeries on his left shoulder.

A lack of quickness and range, and average arm strength, could lead to a change in positions.

MLB Pipeline ranked Yeaman as the No. 97 prospect in the draft. His best tool is his bat, with a 55-grade hitting.

Day 2 of the draft begins later this morning and should move rapidly from rounds four to 20.

The Orioles paused late last night to admire their bounty after making seven selections.

Matt Blood, vice president of player development and domestic scouting, said he was thrilled with the level of talent that began with catchers Ike Irish and Caden Bodine and continued with shortstop Wehiwa Aloy, outfielder Slater de Brun, left-hander Joseph Dzierwa, right-hander JT Quinn and outfielder RJ Austin. Only de Brun, who committed to Vanderbilt, is a prep player.

“Just having that many picks on Day 1 gives you the ability to capitalize whenever these things happen,” Blood said. “We’re just really over the moon with the haul we were able to get today.”

(Cowser seemed most likely to jump over it, but I digress …)

The Orioles didn’t stray from their preference for college bats in the first round of the 2025 draft. Only their season can be described as unpredictable.

With the 19^th overall pick tonight, the Orioles selected Auburn catcher Ike Irish.

Irish, a 21-year-old left-handed hitter and Michigan-native, homered six times in his last eight games. He slashed .364/.469/.710 with 13 doubles, two triples, 19 homers, 58 RBIs, 33 walks, 37 strikeouts and 11 steals in 12 attempts over 55 games this season.

In three college seasons, Irish hit .350/.435/.625 with 48 doubles, five triples, 39 homers and 167 RBIs in 160 games. He batted .325/.438/.433 in the Cape Code League last summer.

Irish, listed at 6 foot 2 and 210 pounds, also plays the outfield. He caught in only 12 games this year, compared to playing 41 in right and four in left.

The Orioles couldn’t conclude the unofficial first half of their season until downing a few more shots of misfortune.

Another player went on the injured list. The start was delayed 1 hour and 38 minutes due to rain. And a former teammate homered three times as part of a five-hit, six-RBI day.

It kept getting incrementally worse for the Orioles, who lost to the Marlins 11-1 before an announced crowd of 17,759 at eventually sunny Camden Yards. They were outscored 17-1 in the last two games but avoided their 11th shutout on Ramón Laureano’s 426-foot home run in the eighth.

The chance to win three straight series for the first time this season disappeared along with four baseballs thrown by rookie Brandon Young.

Kyle Stowers produced a solo homer and a pair of two-run shots within the first five innings, and he also singled twice to further celebrate his return to Baltimore. Otto Lopez also went deep, and the Orioles were down 7-0 before the bottom half of the fifth.

Tonight, the Orioles have a whopping four picks in the top 37 of the MLB Draft. 

Baltimore will select at No. 19, numbers 30 and 31 as compensation for losing Corbin Burnes and Anthony Santander in free agency, and at No. 37, which they acquired in a trade that sent Bryan Baker to the Tampa Bay Rays. 

Years ago, the O’s farm system was seen as the best in baseball, and one of the best that the game has seen in recent memory. Through promotions and trades for big league talent, though, the prospect talent has thinned out. Four high draft picks can certainly change those fortunes. 

While the O’s have had the luxury of the No. 1 overall pick in Adley Rutschman and Jackson Holliday, they haven’t always needed it to select great players. Jordan Westburg was drafted 30th overall, Gunnar Henderson was a second-round pick, and Coby Mayo was a fourth rounder. There’s talent to be found everywhere if you know where to look. 

There is a chance, now with four picks, that the Orioles use one of those selections on a pitcher. The general consensus and chatter throughout the industry, though, seems to be that the O’s will select a position player at No. 19. There haven’t been much tying Baltimore to an arm with their first pick. 

The Orioles are ending the first half of the season today with Coby Mayo staying on the bench and the club sticking to its reasoning that winning games is the priority.

Mayo has started twice in the last 11 games and is 0-for-6 this month.

“I’ve talked to him a few times about it, just trying to communicate with him as good as I can, but a lot of it was the roster, and the addition of (Jordan) Westburg and T.O. (Tyler O’Neill) kind of take away spots,” said interim manager Tony Mansolino.

“Every day you have a scenario with four outfielders that you want to play – (Cedric) Mullins, (Colton) Cowser, T.O. and Ramón (Laureano) who, when Ramón got here earlier in the year, I don’t think he was expected to become what he’s become. He’s been a really good player. And then, you have three corner infield guys, essentially, and the fourth would be Mayo. You have (Ramón) Urías, who’s in the lineup, who I think everybody in the room would agree needs to play more. But who do you play Urías over? Do you play him over Westburg? Do you play him over (Ryan) O’Hearn on the corners? When you’ve got the four outfielders, one of them is going to run through to the DH, and you have Coby, too.”

Mayo went through an 11-for-36 stretch over 11 games to finish June but isn’t benefiting from Ryan Mountcastle’s extended stay on the injured list with a Grade 2 hamstring strain. The sudden roster crunch hurts him. And the Orioles aren’t ready to use the majors as an extension of player development while fighting to make up ground in the Wild Card chase.

The Orioles tweaked their bullpen again this morning, recalling left-hander Grant Wolfram from Triple-A Norfolk and designating right-hander Corbin Martin for assignment.

The 40-man roster remains full.

Wolfram tossed two scoreless innings as the 27^th man in Thursday’s doubleheader and earned his first major league win. He joins Gregory Soto as lefties in the ‘pen.

Soto only threw five pitches yesterday while letting an inherited runner score, but he also was used in Game 2 of the doubleheader.

The Orioles are 43-51 with one game remaining before the All-Star break. Yesterday’s loss left them 6 ½ back for the last Wild Card, with seven teams still ahead of them.

The day has arrived when the Orioles can make bold strokes in painting a rosier future for the organization.

The draft begins at 6 p.m. and the Orioles hold the 19^th selection, followed by the 30^th, 31^st, 37^th, 58th, 69th and 93^rd through three rounds. The rest of it plays out Monday.

The Orioles obtained the 37^th pick in the Competitive Balance A round after trading reliever Bryan Baker to the Rays. The move didn’t increase their workload or alter the strategy beyond having the extra selection.

“It’s exciting for our group because this is what we work towards all year is to get ready for the draft, and it just gives us another shot, another pick, some more money, which in terms of strategy gives you a little more flexibility to maybe do some more things,” said Matt Blood, the vice president of player development and domestic scouting. “But it’s really just another opportunity to get another really good player.”

The hope, of course, is that the Orioles land a bunch of them.

Trevor Rogers sat at his locker early this afternoon with headphones on and his mind seemingly clear. Facing the Marlins for the first time didn’t tie his emotions in knots. He churned on the inside but played it straight. 

Rogers grabbed his glove, headed to the bullpen to warm up and strung together another terrific outing. What he lacked was support from his bullpen. He wasn’t consumed with revenge. He just needed to be rewarded.

Gregory Soto let an inherited runner score after Rogers exited with two outs in the seventh, Seranthony Domínguez gave up an RBI single to pinch-hitter Jesús Sánchez in the eighth, and the Marlins broke it open with four runs off Scott Blewett in the ninth in a 6-0 victory over the Orioles before announced crowd of 34,332 at Camden Yards.

Among the failings for the Orioles (43-51) was the attempt to move six games below .500 for the first time since May 3, but they can still win their third series in a row for the first time this season.

Rogers carried a shutout bid into the seventh after tossing 6 2/3 scoreless in his previous start. Dane Myers singled with two outs and Rogers left to a standing ovation, touching the bill of his cap as he approached the first base line. Soto hit Kyle Stowers and Derek Hill singled into left field to break a scoreless tie. Hill was tagged in a rundown.

Zach Eflin begins his injury rehab assignment Sunday at Double-A Chesapeake, as he works to return from lower back discomfort. Eflin will face hitters in Florida next Friday and “should be ready to go,” according to interim manager Tony Mansolino.

Cade Povich, recovered from left hip inflammation, starts Sunday at High-A Aberdeen and will pitch again next Saturday before the Orioles consider reinstating him.

First baseman Ryan Mountcastle will accompany the team to Tampa after the break and report to Norfolk on July 22, as he recovers from a Grade 2 right hamstring strain. He’s eligible to be reinstated from the 60-day injured list on July 30.

“He’s starting to look pretty good,” Mansolino said. “We’re getting excited about him.”

Adley Rutschman took batting practice today from both sides of the plate to test his left oblique strain and will catch Kyle Bradish for two innings next Saturday in Florida.

Jacob Stallings made his fifth start and seventh appearance behind the plate last night with the Orioles. Alex Jackson should return to the lineup this weekend after doubling twice in his first start in Game 2 of Thursday’s doubleheader.

They’ve spent less than three weeks in the organization, Stallings arriving ahead of Jackson, and probably will stay together for a while. Four catchers are on the injured list – Adley Rutschman, Gary Sánchez, Maverick Handley and Chadwick Tromp – and none of the returns are imminent.

Rutschman (oblique) is doing some light hitting. Sánchez (knee) is projected to miss eight-to-10 weeks. Tromp (back) is doing full baseball activities but must go on a rehab assignment after the break. And he’s ahead of Handley (concussion), who’s playing catch and running but won’t swing a bat for at least a week.

“I have never seen anything like this before,” Tromp said. “The past four years I was with the Braves and we didn’t use more than three in all the seasons, so this is definitely strange and weird. You never know. But I believe in this group. I think we can do something special.”

The Orioles tied the franchise record by using six catchers this season. They needed only two in 2024, Rutschman and James McCann, which was an unusual occurrence for the club.

To make a serious push for a Wild Card berth, the Orioles first had to move within five games of .500, a daunting task considering that they sat 18 below at their lowest point. Then, as interim manager Tony Mansolino explained, they could try to level the season record and get within reach of the playoffs.  

This would be different type of progression, unlike the kind laid out for injured pitchers and hitters.

The Orioles didn’t hurt their chances tonight.

Dean Kremer tossed seven scoreless innings and the top of the order unloaded on Marlins starter Edward Cabrera in a 5-2 victory before an announced crowd of 22,213 at Camden Yards. A fourth shutout disappeared when Otto Lopez hit a two-run homer off Andrew Kittredge in the ninth.

Kremer struck out seven and lowered his ERA to 4.24, and the Orioles (43-50) crept within seven games of .500 for the first time since May 4. A sweep this weekend would meet one of Mansolino’s goals.

Orioles starters Zach Eflin and Cade Povich are going on injury rehab assignments Sunday while their teammates play their final game before the All-Star break.

Eflin, on the 15-day injured list with lower back discomfort, will join Triple-A Norfolk in Jacksonville. Interim manager Tony Mansolino said Povich, on the 15-day IL with left hip inflammation, will report to High-A Aberdeen or Double-A Chesapeake.

Catcher Chadwick Tromp, on the 10-day IL with a lower back strain, is doing full baseball activities. He could begin a rehab assignment after the break.

Catcher Maverick Handley, sidelined with a concussion, is cleared for some activities – he ran and played catch today - but probably won’t swing a bat for at least another week.

“I would expect Trompy to be ahead of Handley at this point,” Mansolino said.

A day that began with the Orioles making a seller move concluded with a doubleheader sweep that could get more people buying into the idea that the 2025 season is salvageable.

Jordan Westburg hit a two-run homer off Mets left-hander Brandon Waddell in the second inning, Colton Cowser broke a tie in the fifth with an RBI single and the Orioles didn’t let up in a 7-3 victory over the Mets before an announced Game 2 crowd of 17,961 at Camden Yards.

Tomoyuki Sugano was down 2-0 in the first inning and lost a lead in the fourth, but he earned his first win since June 27 and first quality start since June 3, also the last time he got through the sixth. Fans stood to cheer as he walked back to the dugout after 99 pitches.

A bullpen that lost Bryan Baker to this morning’s trade with the Rays tossed three scoreless innings in a combined effort from Andrew Kittredge, Gregory Soto and Seranthony Domínguez. Domínguez allowed the only two baserunners.

Duel victories improved the Orioles to 42-50, their first time being eight games below .500 since May 6. Their last doubleheader sweep was June 25, 2016 against the Rays. Kevin Gausman and Oliver Drake combined on a shutout in Game 1 and T.J. McFarland recorded the win in Game 2 after relieving Chris Tillman.