An immediate take from yesterday’s 7-6, 10-inning loss to the Blue Jays is how reliever Jeff Hoffman should remember that the Orioles make another trip to Toronto and his team makes another trip to Baltimore. Be careful with that pucker or risk getting punched in the mouth. But there’s more.

Manager Brandon Hyde downplayed the latest short outing from a starter, pointing out how he handled them differently the past few games after an off-day and rainout, and with another break in the schedule today. But the bullpen is passing the baton too much, finally losing its grip yesterday in Toronto’s three-run eighth. The rotation needs to consume more innings, plain and simple.

Zach Eflin is on the injured list after going six innings in each of his three starts and posting a 3.00 ERA. He’s a huge loss for however long that it lasts.

Charlie Morton starts Tuesday night’s series opener against the Guardians at Camden Yards. He’s due like one of those bills from the record company that used to promise free albums if you returned their card by the deadline. Anyone with me here?

Morton has allowed four runs in 3 1/3 innings, five runs in five innings and four runs in five innings for a total of only 13 1/3.

The Orioles brought back their hydration station today, hoping to finally need it.

They weren’t hitting home runs. They weren’t doing much scoring. The first 13 batters were retired this afternoon. The dugout hoses were more decorative than functional.

And then, in a flash, they had a purpose again.

Heston Kjerstad cleared the center field fence in the fifth against Blue Jays starter Bowden Francis after Cedric Mullins walked. Adley Rutschman barreled a sinker with two outs in the sixth, took a couple steps and flipped his bat. The game was tied and Camden Yards was loud.

Mullins gave the Orioles a lead with a two-run double in the inning and the Orioles tied the club record with five double plays turned in a 5-4 victory before an announced crowd of 22,130.

Tomoyuki Sugano will be decked out in the all-orange uniform, last worn by the Orioles on Aug. 13, 2010, for today’s home debut against the Blue Jays.

Sugano faced the Blue Jays in his first major league game and allowed two runs in four innings before exiting with cramping in both hands. He held the Royals to one run in 5 1/3 innings in his next start.

Heston Kjerstad is in left field and Ryan Mountcastle is batting eighth. Ryan O’Hearn is the designated hitter.

Jordan Westburg is batting cleanup again and playing third base. Jackson Holliday is at second.

Mountcastle is 5-for-7 with two doubles and two home runs against Blue Jays right-hander Bowden Francis. Gunnar Henderson is 2-for-5 with a double.

A reset is nice, but the Orioles are ready to start playing again after an off-day and rainout.

The forecast was miserable last night and left the club with no choice except to reschedule. The extended break should end today.

The Orioles keep attracting more questions only 13 games into the season. Here are three random selections:

What’s happening with the rotation?

Only two starters were confirmed for the Blue Jays series and they won’t need a third. Tomoyuki Sugano is pushed back to today, decked out in an all-orange uniform, and Cade Povich is moved to Sunday, a spot that was listed as TBA.

Orioles fans must wait to finally watch Tomoyuki Sugano pitch on his home mound.

Tonight’s game against the Blue Jays has been postponed due to rain and will be made up as part of a split-admission doubleheader on Tuesday, July 29 at 12:35 p.m. The second game will begin as scheduled at 6:35 p.m.

Gates for game one will open at 11:35 a.m. and gates for the nightcap will open at 5:35 p.m. MASN will broadcast both games.

Fans with tickets for tonight will receive their same seat for game one of the doubleheader. Tickets for the originally scheduled July 29 game at 6:35 p.m. are still valid for that night. 

The first 10,000 fans attending the 12:35 p.m. game on July 29 will receive the clear stadium bag giveaway.

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 – 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 – Gunnar Henderson wore a hooded sweatshirt and wool stocking cap as he charged ground balls at shortstop during today’s infield drills. The weather at Kauffman Stadium is cold and damp, but he managed to work up a sweat.

Henderson wiped his hair with a towel and pulled the cap onto his head again. The conditions are miserable, but he couldn’t have been happier. He’s playing for the Orioles again, ready to make his 2025 debut after recovering from a strained right intercostal. He didn’t need the sun to shine.

The Orioles reinstated Henderson from the injured list earlier today and optioned outfielder Dylan Carlson. Henderson is batting leadoff to start a three-game series against the Royals.

“It sucks having to watch your team play on TV. I’ll tell you that much,” said Henderson, who returned from a rehab assignment with Triple-A Norfolk.

“Obviously, was very disappointed that I wasn’t well enough for the Opening Day roster, but I was able to get my work in and I’m ready to go now.”

Gunnar Henderson is playing for Triple-A Norfolk again tonight in Charlotte. It could be the last game on his injury rehab assignment.

The Orioles need a little more time to decide.

Henderson is 5-for-16 with two home runs in four games with the Tides. He’ll stay on the field for seven-to-nine innings tonight.

The complication in reinstating Henderson is the 1:05 p.m. start time for Thursday’s game against the Red Sox. The travel is a consideration.

Otherwise, Henderson would make the trip to Kansas City for the weekend series against the Royals.

TORONTO – Tomoyuki Sugano smiled this morning as he walked in and out of the clubhouse and down a hallway, nothing about his expression or mannerisms hinting at a first major league start and accompanying case of nerves.

He warmed up, faced his first batter and issued a four-pitch walk.

It wouldn’t be the worst part of his day.

Sugano made it through four innings and 73 pitches, went back to the mound for the bottom of the fifth and couldn’t continue. Manager Brandon Hyde, pitching coach Drew French and head athletic trainer Scott Barringer checked on him, and Sugano flexed his right hand before heading to the dugout.

Matt Bowman, whose contract was selected today with Albert Suárez going on the injured list, took over in the Orioles’ 3-1 loss to the Blue Jays before an announced crowd of 21.069. Sugano allowed two runs and four hits, with two walks and one strikeout before exiting due to unspecified “cramping.”

TORONTO – Orioles reliever Albert Suárez went on the 15-day injured list this afternoon with right shoulder inflammation, a move that’s backdated to yesterday.

Matt Bowman’s contract was selected from Triple-A Norfolk. He’s wearing No. 51.

The 40-man roster is full.

Suárez allowed one earned run and two total with five hits in 2 2/3 innings Friday night, and his fastball velocity was about two mph lower than his average in 2024. Bowman gives the bullpen a fresh arm and one capable of providing length.

The Orioles selected Bowman’s contract last Sunday on his opt-out date, designated him for assignment before Opening Day and outrighted him to Norfolk. He made 15 appearances with the Orioles last season and posted a 3.45 ERA in 15 2/3 innings.

SARASOTA, Fla. – The Orioles didn’t mean to become a spring training cliché. It just happened. Nothing they could do about it.

Their roster appeared to be mostly set, with few decisions pending. They were proceeding without new injuries. But a team can’t get too comfortable because something always seems to happen.

Or multiple things happen, which is worse.

Imagine being told before pitchers and catchers reported that the Orioles would begin the season with Gunnar Henderson and Grayson Rodriguez on the injured list. Oh yeah, and their new reliever, Andrew Kittredge, would appear in one exhibition game and need surgery on his left knee. How long until panic set in and counseling was recommended?

This isn’t just an Orioles thing, though some locals would argue it. Yankees ace Gerrit Cole underwent Tommy John surgery and won’t pitch this season. Rookie of the Year Luis Gil could miss three months with a lat strain. Giancarlo Stanton had platelet-rich plasma injections in both elbows. The Rays got back their ace, Shane McClanahan, after he missed the 2024 season following Tommy John surgery, and he walked off the mound Saturday with a triceps injury.

SARASOTA, Fla. – Orioles catcher Adley Rutschman found a different way to bond with Japanese pitcher Tomoyuki Sugano and to learn more about his new teammate. They got away from the field and the clubhouse. They got away from baseball.

They played a round of golf this week.

“He’s a funny guy, just a cool dude,” Rutschman said tonight. “I know with the language barrier it’s kind of tough sometimes to make those connections, but he seems like a really down-to-earth guy. He works his butt off every single day. Just to see a guy like that in a new environment and getting comfortable and doing his thing has been really cool for me to watch, and I think everyone else.”

Who’s the better golfer?

“He is,” Rutschman said without hesitation. “He’s really good.”

SARASOTA, Fla. – The penultimate home game of the exhibition season finds Ramón Urías in tonight’s lineup for the Orioles. Gunnar Henderson, however, remains out of it.

Urías is playing third base, Jackson Holliday is at shortstop and Jordan Westburg is at second base.

Tyler O’Neill is in left field, Colton Cowser is in center and Heston Kjerstad is in right.

Cedric Mullins is leading off and serving as designated hitter.

Hot-hitting Ryan Mountcastle is out of the lineup.

SARASOTA, Fla. – Tomoyuki Sugano may never give up a run as an Oriole. That’s the pace he’s on right now. Just let it ride.

Sugano entered tonight’s game with seven scoreless innings in his three outings. He went 3 1/3 against the Twins, leaving after Christian Vázquez’s one-out single in the fourth that was the only hit against him.

The crowd gave Sugano a standing ovation as he walked to the dugout and again as he headed to the clubhouse. Geraldo Ogando stranded the runner and one of his own to preserve a 4-0 lead and Sugano’s shutout streak.

“I feel like I’m handling the ball much better as I progress,” Sugano said via interpreter Yuto Sakurai.

You won't get much more out of him. He has a large repertoire, but his sales pitch is weak.

SARASOTA, Fla. – Tomoyuki Sugano can’t be disappointed today with his command. He’d be hard-pressed to complain about anything. Even the perfectionist in him should be satisfied.

Well, mostly.

What bothered Sugano in Monday’s start didn’t exist with the same force this afternoon against the Twins at Ed Smith Stadium. He was razor sharp, retiring all nine batters faced and striking out five.

The Japanese right-hander hasn’t allowed a run in seven exhibition innings.

“It wasn’t perfect. I would say 90 percent,” he said, remaining his toughest critic.

SARASOTA, Fla. – Tyler O’Neill has returned to the Orioles’ lineup this afternoon after being scratched Thursday night with a sore left rib cage.

O’Neill is batting cleanup in the split-squad game against the Twins in Sarasota.

Jackson Holliday is leading off and playing second base. Livan Soto is the shortstop with Gunnar Henderson receiving treatment for a strained right intercostal.

Adley Rutschman is the designated hitter, with Gary Sánchez catching Tomoyuki Sugano. Sugano is making his third exhibition start.

Colton Cowser is in right field.

SARASOTA, Fla. – The Orioles are on the road again today with their bus pointed toward Fort Myers for another game against the Twins at Hammond Stadium.

The redundancy this spring is mind numbing. No games in Port Charlotte, the third-shortest trip from Sarasota. Only one in North Port, which is the second shortest and super convenient for manager Brandon Hyde, to close out the Florida portion of the schedule.

Out of nine games, the Orioles have played the Pirates three times – losing all three - host them again Thursday night and head back to Bradenton Monday afternoon for a MASN telecast. They’ve gone to Clearwater twice and have a split-squad game there Sunday afternoon. They were in Fort Myers Friday and return less than a week later.

The five projected starters are impressing, and Grayson Rodriguez’s next turn is today. He tossed 1 2/3 scoreless and hitless innings against the Blue Jays in his debut. The only baserunner came from a hit-by-pitch.

“I was able to drive the fastball, changeup was working good, was able to throw the new sweeper once and got a bad swing on it, so I was pretty excited about that,” he said afterward.

SARASOTA, Fla. – The Orioles are off today. My mailbag never rests.

This is the spring training edition. You ask and I answer, just like in the summer, fall and winter.

The clarity, length and style are fine. No reason to mess with them - or for anyone to know if I do. Sue me.

Also, my mailbag hits home runs over the scoreboard and yours fouls out to the catcher.

If he plays, say, 145-150 games, do you think Tyler O'Neill will make us forget about Anthony Santander?
Let’s get one thing straight: We shall never forget about Anthony Santander. Never, I tell you! He was too impactful on the field and in the clubhouse. However, O’Neill has the power to make fans worry a lot less about the 44 home runs subtracted from the roster, and he’s a more accomplished outfielder. O’Neill has exceeded 100 games twice in his career and he hit 34 homers in 2021 and 31 last season. You get him in the 145-150 range and he’s going to do some serious damage. And then you hope that he doesn’t decide to opt out.

The Orioles and Red Sox played to a 6-6 tie today at Ed Smith Stadium, which leads into Tuesday’s first off-day.

Here are some nuggets from this afternoon, when the first five innings meant the most to the Orioles:

* Félix Bautista faced three batters in the fifth inning – strikeout, strikeout, ground ball, standing ovation from fans.

This was Bautista’s moment. Everything else that happened was secondary.

Bautista ran the count full to Trayce Thompson and struck him out on a fastball up and away. Nate Eaton swung through a nasty splitter.