The spring training schedule gets under way and we can actually watch the Orioles on MASN.
After more than four months where we haven’t gotten to see them, the Orioles are back with the start of the Grapefruit League. You can turn on your television or whatever you use to watch MASN at game time and they will be there.
It is a nice milestone towards the return of real baseball that counts. It’s cold and wintry back here in Maryland while the team is in action in Florida, but at least we can watch some baseball. Never mind that the broadcasters, due to MASN’s misguided cost-cutting, will also be where it’s cold and wintry back here in Maryland. They’re calling the game from Camden Yards.
- Gunnar Henderson – SS
- Cedric Mullins – CF
- Jordan Westburg – 3B
- Ryan O’Hearn – DH
- Ryan Mountcastle – 1B
- Gary Sánchez – C
- Jackson Holliday – 2B
- Ramón Laureano – RF
- Dylan Carlson – LF
Albert Suárez is getting the ball for the first couple of innings of this spring training opener. Pitchers who are expected to get in work after Suárez are: Keegan Akin, Justin Armbruester, Bryan Baker, Corbin Martin, and Kade Strowd. There will probably be others.
As you’d expect for the first spring training home game, there’s a solid chunk of what looks like an Opening Day lineup here. The outfield corners are almost certainly going to look different and Adley Rutschman will probably be the catcher. Depending on the Orioles level of faith in him, Rutschman might even bat in the bottom half of the order just like Sánchez is here.
After about five innings, we will probably see a wholesale replacement of the lineup with non-roster players starting to get their work in. This could be prospects who you’ve heard of or it could just be random guys who are in camp unless something either goes very right for them or very wrong for the health of a number of other players. It’ll be a surprise!
This is the first of 30 spring training games that will be played between now and March 23. That will get everyone hopefully into game shape for the March 27 Opening Day against the Blue Jays. Nobody get hurt!