Question: Who takes Grayson Rodriguez’s place in the rotation? From: Michael Soldavini
Answer: Michael, I think the choice comes down to Albert Suárez and Cade Povich, and I tend to think that Povich will be the choice because he’s left-handed and because Suárez had experience last year in the bullpen.
Without Andrew Kittredge, the Orioles will need another reliever, and if Suárez starts, they’ll need two relievers. I think Bryan Baker will be one, but no one has stood out in camp as a candidate for the second reliever, though it’s certainly possible the Orioles sign or acquire another reliever by trade or the waiver wire.
Question: Last week the Orioles’ game ended after nine innings in a tie. Are there any other regular-season rules that are suspended during spring training? It seems to me that one or two extra innings would be useful to see how players in camp perform in game conditions. From: Steve Cohen
Answer: Steve, besides ties in spring training, starting pitchers can re-enter games. Occasionally, managers won’t want starters to exhaust their allotted pitches in one inning, and they’ll take the starter out and reinsert him to start the next inning.
Managers can’t challenge calls because there’s no replay in spring training.
As for extra innings, managers have 30 games in the exhibition season, and those are usually enough for them to make a judgment on players.
Most weekdays, I’ll be answering at least one Orioles question. If you’d like to submit a question, send it to: Rich@BaltimoreBaseball.com. Questions may be edited for clarity, length and style.