This is the final tune-up game before the real action begins on Thursday.
This is it. Spring training is over and one final exhibition game remains to the Orioles. They’re in DC to play their southern neighbors. After this, they’ll have to figure out who’s going to make the roster than then put those people on a plane to Toronto.
Some teams have mostly set their rosters already. The Orioles have not officially done this yet. Maybe they’ll do it after today’s game, or maybe they won’t. They don’t have to set the roster until Thursday. Mike Elias has a demonstrated fondness for not deciding things until the last minute, because the situation could change between today and Thursday. That we don’t want anyone to get hurt today is no protection from anyone getting hurt.
We do already know that Gunnar Henderson will start the season on the injured list, and that Félix Bautista is not. No decision has been announced about Jorge Mateo, who may need some minor league rehab time as he works back from Tommy John surgery on his non-throwing arm. I’d say the signs are pointing towards Mateo hitting the IL, but I’ve been wrong before and will be wrong again.
Yesterday, the Orioles selected the contract of Maryland-born reliever Matt Bowman in order to prevent him from exercising an opt-out on his minor league contract. Bowman cannot be optioned, so does that mean he’s making the team ahead of out-of-options guys Bryan Baker and Roansy Contreras? Or that the O’s hope guaranteeing Bowman a big league salary will get him to pass through waivers?
Reminder: The Orioles-focused broadcast of this game will air on MASN 2.
Orioles lineup
- Colton Cowser – LF
- Adley Rutschman – C
- Jordan Westburg – 2B
- Ryan O’Hearn – DH
- Tyler O’Neill – RF
- Ryan Mountcastle – 1B
- Cedric Mullins – CF
- Ramón Urías – 3B
- Jackson Holliday – SS
Cade Povich is the starting pitcher. Also expected to pitch are Keegan Akin, Roansy Contreras, and Seranthony Domínguez.
What do you think? Is this the Opening Day lineup? It would certainly make sense to just go with the guys for Thursday in this final exhibition game. As ever, it is worth remembering that there is essentially no exact regular Orioles lineup. No specific lineup was repeated for more than three games last year.
There are always substitutions for the purpose of rest or injury. There’s tinkering with the order for performance reasons. There’s playing the platoon game. This will continue again in 2025. Even if this is the Orioles day 1 lineup, it might not be the day 2 lineup. Or it might! The Blue Jays expected rotation is all right-handed. There won’t be platoon games to play until relievers start coming in.
I think that the Orioles would like it if Holliday is performing in such a way that he makes sense as the leadoff hitter by June or so. No need to rush him there until he shows that’s where he belongs. It would be better if Mullins had a high enough OBP to lead off. He posted a .305 OBP the last two seasons. That’s not a good leadoff man. So at least for this game and perhaps for Thursday and some percentage of the early games, it is Cowser.
Nationals lineup
- CJ Abrams – SS
- Dylan Crews – RF
- James Wood – LF
- Josh Bell – DH
- Paul DeJong – 3B
- Nathaniel Lowe – 1B
- Keibert Ruiz – C
- Luis García Jr. – 2B
- Jacob Young – CF
The Nationals starting pitcher is Jake Irvin, who had a 4.48 ERA while starting 33 games a year ago. Teams are increasingly finding some value in the back of their rotations for guys who can make every start, even if those starts aren’t very good overall.