We are just two days away from the start of Grapefruit League games.
There will be intra-squad games, split-squad and regular roster games set in the coming weeks. They will last seven innings or longer, and roster cut downs are going down as well.
It’s all to get rolling into the beginning of the season, and with not much room left for the Birds initial roster, there are not many positions battles left to have.
Before we can get down to the final roster, we must start with the first game, which is Saturday against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Orioles manager Brandon Hyde named his opener for Saturday, appointing a veteran for the nod.
Today, Hyde named Albert Suárez as the starter for the first game of the spring. One of the surprises from last year, Suárez will look to continue his success on the right foot this Saturday.
“For me, just how I prepared in the offseason,” Suárez said of receiving the honor. “I think I’m well prepared to be able to start the first game of spring training, so it means a lot.”
Now that the big headline is out of the way, let’s take a look at what happened in O’s camp today.
We get started with bullpens from Grayson Rodriguez, Justin Ambruester and Félix Bautista. Before they threw, Tomoyuki Sugano would throw a short 13-pitch bullpen as well.
Rodriguez continues to work on his newest pitch, as today he focused on his sweeper during his session. He also worked with his slider and his off-speed pitches.
Live bullpens were also performed by the late-inning relievers. Today saw Cionel Pérez, Gregory Soto, Seranthony Domínguez and Yennier Canó all throwing.
Batters that took part in the live bullpens were Jackson Holliday, Tyler O’Niell, Colton Cowser and Ryan O’Hearn on one side, with Gunnar Henderson, Jordan Westburg, Gary Sánchez, Cedric Mullins and Ryan Mountcastle on the other.
For the most part, it was the relievers who had the upper hand. O’Niell had a hard-hit ball off Pérez, and Mountcastle poked a single to right field against Soto.
Pérez struck out Holliday while Soto got Henderson to strike out twice. Domínguez struck out O’Hearn looking and Cowser swinging, while Canó struck out Mullins.
The big news out of Major League Baseball today is the implementation of the ABS challenge system this spring.
Last year, the system was used in Triple-A as a way to hold umpires accountable for missed balls and strikes. This year, the league is testing it in spring training, with each team being given two challenges per game.
MLB will be testing the method throughout the spring to see if it’s suitable for the regular season. The league met with the Orioles multiple times to discuss the system.
“The league introduced us to it, showed us the techniques and some examples from Triple-A last year of how they were using it there,” Hyde said. “I am interested in seeing what it looks like. I’ve never seen it. I think it’s possibly going to bring some excitement to the game. On a big pitch in a big spot, everybody’s eyes are going to go to the jumbotron.”
The way Hyde described it was that it can’t be called from the bench, and there has to be some strategy involved in the use of the system.
It will be interesting to see how it is implemented, and Hyde suggested his main guys would be the ones using the system.
The system is currently only available in Florida State League ballparks. Unfortunately, that excludes the Orioles in Sarasota, the Red Sox in Fort Myers and the Braves in North Port.
SIDE NOTES:
– Hyde has not named a starter for Sunday’s game against the Philadelphia Phillies at this time
– Charlie Morton was not at practice today due to an illness
– The O’s will play 15 road exhibition games this spring, and of the 15 games, 13 will be using the automated ball-strike challenge system
– The Earl Weaver Little Field at the Orioles complex is no longer available, as the mound, grass and sign have all been removed
Tomorrow will bring our last edition of SpringNotes for this season, so make sure you come back to read all the latest updates prior to the start of Grapefruit League play.
What are your thoughts on today’s news from around O’s camp? Let us know in the comments below! Make sure to follow The Baltimore Battery on Facebook, Twitter (X) and TikTok, and use the hashtag #baltimorebattery when sharing our content!
Represent The Baltimore Battery and show off your fandom with our official merchandise! Reasonably-priced attire made just for you! Visit our official shop site by clicking here!
Like Stephen’s content? Follow him on X – @SRJHeckman, and listen to the official podcast of The Baltimore Battery, The Final Strike, anywhere you get your podcasts!
THE BALTIMORE BATTERY 
Leave a comment