PHOENIX – Ahead of Zac Gallen’s start for the Diamondbacks on Monday, Brandon Hyde described this series as “a test” for his Orioles lineup from a discipline standpoint. Baltimore couldn’t chase off the edges, or they’d be in for a long start to the week. 

On Monday, the O’s passed that test with flying colors. 

Gallen was knocked out of the game after 4 ⅔ innings, seven hits, four walks and five earned runs. He only struck out two after striking out 13 Bronx Bombers in his previous outing. Hyde called the performance “some of our best at-bats of the year.” 

In the first inning of Tuesday’s game, it seemed like much of the same. After two early runs off Merrill Kelly, the Birds seemed to be rolling. But the right-hander found a groove and 17 consecutive Orioles went hitless after Cedric Mullins’ two-run single in the first. 

So, in Game 2, the offense didn’t get the best grade with three runs on the board in a loss. 

PHOENIX – The Orioles have had key injuries just about everywhere. 

Superstar Gunnar Henderson is gearing up to play just his sixth game of the season and has not yet overlapped with Rookie of the Year runner-up Colton Cowser. Jordan Westburg has been dealing with minor injuries and has been given some days off. 

Amid some challenges in finding a rhythm, the lineup has remained solid, posting the seventh-best batting average and fifth-best OPS in the American League. Keeping the ebbs and flows to a minimum remains a hurdle. 

A starting rotation that was supposed to feature Zach Eflin and Grayson Rodriguez now features neither after Eflin’s injury Monday evening. The right-hander now hits the 15-day injured list with a right lat strain, but manager Brandon Hyde did note today that Eflin “feels really good right now.”

Despite Eflin’s excellence, the rotation’s 5.34 ERA through a dozen games is just 12th best in the AL, and their .291 batting average against is fourth-highest. 

PHOENIX – The Orioles offense got off to a blistering start. Charlie Morton did not in what would be a 4-3 loss to the Diamondbacks. And after the game, things got worse.

Let's start with the worse news before getting to the bad news.

After the game, Brandon Hyde announced that Zach Eflin has a low-grade lat strain and will be shut down for "about a week." The plan is to "reassess from there, and hopefully he'll be back throwing at that point." It could've been worse news, but it certainly could've been better.

A plan for his replacement has yet to be determined, as O's coaches got the news during tonight's game.

Brandon Young would be a logical replacement. Already on the 40-man roster, the right-hander has made two starts to kick off the season with Triple-A Norfolk. He's totaled 11 1/3 innings and hasn't allowed a run while striking out 11 and walking just two. Couple that with his 3.94 ERA in 20 games for the Tides a season ago, and you're left with an ideal candidate to make a spot start or two. 

The Orioles placed starter Zach Eflin on the 15-day injured list with a right lat strain and recalled reliever Colin Selby, who was on the taxi squad last night in Arizona.

Eflin has made three quality starts in his three outings this season and allowed six runs in 18 innings.

Two off-days could prevent the Orioles from needing a fifth starter until April 19. They currently have nine relievers on their roster.

Heston Kjerstad remains in left field today for the finale of the two-city road trip. Ryan O’Hearn is the designated hitter, with Ryan Mountcastle at first base. Ramón Urías is playing third base and Jackson Holliday is at second, which puts Jordan Westburg on the bench.

Dean Kremer makes his third start after allowing seven earned runs (eight total) and 13 hits in 9 2/3 innings. Right-handers are hitting .318/.333/.364 against him and left-handers are hitting .300/.333/.450.

The Orioles reached a point in the 2024 season when their entire rotation was on the injured list with the exception of ace Corbin Burnes. Three starters underwent reconstructive elbow surgeries in June. The team traded for Zach Eflin at the deadline and he also was shelved, missing the minimum 15 days with right shoulder inflammation.

The hope, of course, was that 2025 would be much kinder and gentler. Kyle Bradish and Tyler Wells are expected back after the All-Star break. They haven’t experienced any setbacks and are long-tossing and nearing clearance for light mound sessions. But the Orioles’ luck is turning sour again.

Grayson Rodriguez is out with inflammation in his right triceps/elbow. The drastic dip in velocity in Fort Myers wasn’t mechanical and Rodriguez wasn’t just feeling sluggish. The media wasn’t overreacting to it.

Albert Suárez was moved to the bullpen to serve in long relief and he lasted one appearance before going on the IL with right shoulder inflammation. The Orioles transferred him to the 60-day IL on Monday and diagnosed him with a subscapularis strain that will keep him out for an extended stretch.

“It’s going to be months," manager Brandon Hyde told the assembled media in Arizona. "Hopefully, just a few months, but it’s really unfortunate news. Thinking about him and hoping he recovers well.”

PHOENIX – Charlie Morton hasn’t been pitching like Charlie Morton.

The veteran wasn’t signed to be an ace, nor, really, to be the second starter in the Orioles rotation. But that’s where the 41-year-old has found himself slotted in Baltimore’s first trips around the order.

Baltimore signed him in hopes of capturing what he’s been the last few years: reliable, steady and consistent.

From 2021 to 2024, the then Atlanta Brave made 124 starts, averaging 31 per season. He delivered a solid 3.87 ERA, 1.250 WHIP and over 10 strikeouts per nine innings. That’s exactly what the Orioles needed: a rotation piece that would post every fifth day and keep you in ballgames, even if the numbers weren’t incredibly flashy.

In his first two games of 2025, Morton hasn’t found flash, nor has he found reliability. And he hasn’t found the ways in which he normally gets outs.

Adley Rutschman is the designated hitter tonight in Arizona, Ryan O’Hearn is playing first base and Ryan Mountcastle is on the bench.

Jordan Westburg is the third baseman and cleanup hitter. Tyler O’Neill is in right field and Heston Kjerstad is in left.

Jackson Holliday is the second baseman.

Charlie Morton has made two starts with the Orioles and allowed nine runs and 13 hits in 8 1/3 innings. He’s struck out 13 batters.

Morton is making his 16^th career start against the Diamondbacks. He’s registered a 4.27 ERA over 86 1/3 innings. Morton has made nine starts at Chase Field and registered a 5.19 ERA in 50 1/3 innings.

Bryan Baker had gotten used to the shuffling between the majors and Triple-A, just in time to run out of minor league options. He can’t bounce back and forth without clearing waivers.

It seems like a moot point now.

Baker has stood as one of the positive developments in a season that’s already stressing out much of the fan base. Injuries struck the team again. The rotation had a 5.62 ERA in the first 10 games. The defense had too many costly lapses. Every lineup is different but still attracts the detractors.

The bullpen posted a 3.55 ERA in 2023 that ranked fifth in the majors and a 4.22 ERA last summer that ranked 23^rd. Félix Bautista missed the entire 2024 season while recovering from elbow reconstructive surgery and his return figured to bring improvement, but he made only two appearances before last night because of early restrictions placed on him and the lack of a single save opportunity.

To give Bautista mop-up duty is to risk making him unavailable the next night with the game on the line.

PHOENIX – A great night at the ballpark for the Orioles was capped off with an ominous, worrisome note. 

Zach Eflin, after tossing great six innings, was forced to exit the game with shoulder fatigue. 

"Just fatigue," Eflin clarified after the game. "I think it was precautionary. Evaluate tomorrow and see how I feel after sleeping tonight." 

The right-hander said he was "pretty optimistic," and didn't elaborate further on the potential for testing. He instead wanted to focus on the great game that his team just played, so we'll do the same.

The Orioles didn’t play Zac Gallen’s game.

PHOENIX – Tests are never slammed on your desk at a convenient time.

The Orioles offense has been inconsistent and is coming off a one-run, five-hit performance against the Royals. In their win in Kansas City on Saturday, Baltimore put up an eight-spot. In the two losses, however, the Birds combined to plate just three.

Things get much warmer in Arizona, but they don’t get much easier.

The test comes in the form of an ace in sedona red, sonoran sand and teal. And no, not the one that the Diamondbacks signed this offseason. 

This ace is Zac Gallen, a three-time top-10 Cy Young Award finisher that just shut down the prolific Yankees. “Shut down” may be a kind descriptor, as the former Tar Heel tossed 6 ⅔ scoreless innings with 13 strikeouts against the Bronx Bombers.

The Orioles won't have pitcher Albert Suárez for much longer than anticipated.

Suárez was moved to the 60-day injured list today with a right subscapularis strain to create room on the 40-man roster for left-hander Grant Wolfram, acquired from the Brewers in exchange for Triple-A Norfolk outfielder Daz Cameron and cash considerations.

The subscapularis is the largest and strongest muscle of the rotator cuff and is essential in shoulder movement and in helping maintain glenohumeral joint stability.

The Orioles broke camp with Suárez in their bullpen and he allowed an earned run and two total with five hits in 2 2/3 innings in a March 28 appearance in Toronto. His fastball velocity was down about two mph from its 2024 average speed, and he went on the 15-day IL March 30 with right shoulder inflammation.

Left-hander Cade Povich beat out Suárez for the fifth spot in the rotation. Suárez is out of options and capable of going multiple innings in relief, which made a return to the bullpen a logical move for the Orioles.

The latest Orioles lineup tonight in Phoenix, where they begin a three-game series against the Diamondbacks, has Ryan O’Hearn in right field and Tyler O’Neill on the bench.

Jordan Westburg is batting cleanup as the designated hitter in another new twist. Heston Kjerstad returns to left field.

Ramón Urías is the third baseman and Jackson Holliday is at second base. Cedric Mullins is batting fifth for the third time this season.

Zach Eflin has completed six innings in both starts. He’s 0-2 with a 3.18 ERA and 0.918 WHIP in five career games (four starts) against the Diamondbacks and has registered a 3.68 ERA and 1.023 WHIP in three games (two starts) at Chase Field.

Randal Grichuk is 2-for-13 versus Eflin and Eugenio Suárez is 0-for-11 with seven strikeouts.

KANSAS CITY – The Orioles are 10 games into their 2025 season, losing six of them. They just dropped their first regular season series to the Royals since Aug. 30-Sept. 1, 2019. Their starters have remained on turn, which enabled the rotation to cycle through twice.

Young left-hander Cade Povich allowed a career-high 13 hits yesterday, three more than in his Aug. 29 start at Dodger Stadium. But in that disaster, Povich lasted only 3 1/3 innings and was charged with five runs.

It was his second-worst outing after going one-plus innings in Oakland on July 6 and surrendering eight runs and five hits with three walks and a pair of homers.  

What happened yesterday at Kauffman Stadium demonstrated how much Povich has grown as a pitcher. He made it through six innings to save the bullpen and kept the Orioles within striking distance if their bats had cooperated. Povich allowed four runs, but three in the first inning were preventable if a fly ball in right-center field was caught.

If you believe that everything else would have stayed the same, the next batter flying out gives Povich a 1-2-3 inning instead of a sacrifice fly on his line. Two singles and Michael Massey’s two-run double put the Orioles in a 3-0 hole.

KANSAS CITY – The subject already came up in the series. The Orioles must tighten their defense and keep pitch counts from escalating. Be more supportive in the field. Be more like they were in the past.

A blue sky, reduced winds and temperatures in the low 50s this afternoon made the weather more tolerable at Kauffman Stadium, but another breakdown led to a three-run first inning against Cade Povich.

The bats couldn’t compensate for it and the Orioles lost 4-1 to remain in search of their first series win.

Povich scattered a career-high 13 hits in six innings, and his start began to crumble after Tyler O’Neill made a diving catch to rob leadoff hitter Jonathan India in the first. Bobby Witt Jr. hit a ball into right-center that Jorge Mateo tracked, reached for and missed. Statcast calculated the catch probability at 99 percent.

Vinnie Pasquantino followed with a sacrifice fly, Salvador Perez and Mark Canha singled, and they scored on Michael Massey’s double down the right field line.

KANSAS CITY – Cedric Mullins is out of the lineup today for the first time this season, with Jorge Mateo playing center field in a right-handed heavy Orioles lineup.

Jordan Westburg is at second base, Ramón Laureano is in left field, Gary Sánchez is the designated hitter and Ramón Urías is playing third base.

Left-hander Cade Povich started the home opener against Boston and allowed three runs and five hits in 4 1/3 innings.

The Orioles can get back to .500 with a win. They fly to Arizona after the game.

The Orioles improved yesterday to a major league-leading 102-66 (.607) in 168 games on the road since the start of the 2023 season.

KANSAS CITY – As mock lineups go, this one seemed to border on the absurd.

MLB Network made a stop in Sarasota on its camp tour last month and took a shot at a potential order for the Orioles. Gunnar Henderson leading off and Adley Rutschman batting second were indisputable given the past, but Cedric Mullins hitting third seemed, to put it kindly, like an extreme reach.

Mullins was a prototypical leadoff hitter earlier in his career, with 398 starts easily his most, but he slid down later due to injuries, a decline in production since his 30/30 season, and other alternatives. He batted 46 times in the seventh spot last season, 32 times in the eighth and 24 in the sixth.

Manager Brandon Hyde penciled in Mullins third only one time and it happened on Sept. 13, 2024 in Detroit – a game most remembered for Gunnar Henderson’s two-out triple in the ninth that broke up a no-hitter. The Tigers used an opener, Beau Brieske, and Hyde got a little more creative.

The Orioles played their ninth game yesterday and Mullins was used in a seventh different spot, which STATS confirmed is a record in the modern era. The Athletics’ Billy McKinney in 2022 and the Yankees’ Alex Rodriguez in 2015 were used in six. Hyde had Mullins third behind Henderson and Jordan Westburg, who’s done some moving of his own.

KANSAS CITY – Tomoyuki Sugano has made two starts in the majors and pitched with the roof closed in Toronto and with a game-time temperature of 47 degrees at windy Kauffman Stadium. His exposure to intense heat and humidity is coming in the summer months. He’s going through a cooling down period before he ramps up.

Sugano didn’t experience any cramping in his hands today and he wasn’t soaked in sweat. He made the Royals uncomfortable through the fifth inning before a long break altered the course of his outing. A slight detour rather than a derailment.

Bryan Baker entered with one out in the sixth and coaxed a double play, and two other relievers handled the rest in an 8-1 victory over the Royals before an announced crowd of 14,383.

The Orioles sent nine batters to the plate in the top of the sixth and scored four times for a 6-0 lead. They improved to 4-5 and can win the series Sunday afternoon before flying to Arizona.

The big inning included a bases-loaded, two-run single for Jackson Holliday against left-hander Sam Long. Heston Kjerstad went left-on-left earlier with an RBI single after Long replaced starter Michael Wacha.

KANSAS CITY – Among the series of pregame drills this afternoon at bitter-cold Kauffman Stadium was outfielder Tyler O’Neill throwing to the bases. The early work is done to sharpen skills and that’s an area where the two-time Gold Glove winner wanted to focus.

The Royals sent nine batters to the plate last night in the eighth inning and scored five times against left-hander Cionel Pérez to expand their lead to 8-2. A sloppy game created its final mess when Vinnie Pasquantino singled down the right field line with the bases loaded and two outs, and all three runners scored.

O’Neill didn’t find a cutoff man, with the first and second basemen also chasing the ball, and fired to second. Bobby Witt Jr., who drew an intentional walk, raced home and dived across the plate.

“Tyler understands,” said manager Brandon Hyde. “We’ve had similar kind, three times now, where we threw the ball to the wrong base on a ball in the corner situation. And that’s a little bit of not understanding batter runners, runners on base. You’ve got Bobby Witt at first base and a ball drops like that, Tyler understands that ball needs to go to the plate. We threw to the wrong base in the left field corner in Toronto. We did it at home, also.

“(O’Neill) has played well, just a couple mistakes there that he understands. But you have to know the runners on base, you have to know the batter runner speed, etc., to make the right decision.”

KANSAS CITY – Tomoyuki Sugano gets his second chance in the majors this afternoon after leaving his debut with cramping in both hands.

Sugano allowed two runs and four hits in four innings at Rogers Centre in Toronto in the fourth game of the season. He faces the Royals today in the bitter cold, but at least it's dry.

Gunnar Henderson is serving as the designated hitter today and Gary Sánchez is catching. Adley Rutschman is on the bench.

Ryan Mountcastle moves up from eighth to cleanup. Cedric Mullins is batting third.

Heston Kjerstad stays in left field. Ramón Urías is at third base and Jordan Westburg is at second. Jackson Holliday is the shortstop.

KANSAS CITY – Having Gunnar Henderson back on the active roster creates a ripple effect that pushes an infielder to the bench.

No one is making waves over it. That’s just how it works with a full-time, All-Star shortstop in the lineup.

Jackson Holliday returned to second base last night in the series opener against the Royals, and Jordan Westburg made the start at third. One of them could sit this afternoon, or both could stay on the field while Ramón Urías and Jorge Mateo remain in reserve roles.

Optioning Dylan Carlson yesterday left the Orioles with four outfielders and seven infielders, the original math expectation before they signed Ramón Laureano. Henderson’s stint on the injured list and Mateo’s ability to get ready for Opening Day changed it.

Urías is hitting like an everyday player but doesn’t receive that kind of treatment. He’s 9-for-21 (.429) with a .976 OPS in six games after collecting two more hits Thursday against the Red Sox. Urías and Westburg began last night tied for the team lead with nine hits.