DETROIT – Kyle Stowers was removed for a pinch-hitter last night in Charlotte and had no idea why.

Stowers found out later that the Orioles were promoting him.

“Just really excited,” he said this morning. “Obviously, happy to be back up here. It’s obviously a great group in Norfolk and a great group up here, so it’s just fun that there’s a lot of winning going around. Definitely excited to be back up here.”

The Orioles optioned Stowers on April 9 to get more regular at-bats. He responded by batting .293/.427/.569 (17-for-58) with a double, five home runs, 17 RBIs, 13 walks and 17 strikeouts in 17 games.

“I think obviously reps are key, and so it’s good to get back to playing every day and just kind of get in a rhythm,” he said. “Hopefully, I can continue to build off what was going on down there.”

DETROIT – The string of opposing left-handed starters ended at three today, and so did Joey Ortiz’s time in the majors.

Ortiz was optioned to Triple-A Norfolk, with outfielder Kyle Stowers rejoining the Orioles for their series finale in Detroit. Ortiz went 2-for-8 with four RBIs while making three starts at second base.

The Orioles optioned Stowers on April 9 to give him more consistent at-bats. He was 0-for-4 with two walks in three games.

Stowers was batting .293/.427/.569 (17-for-58) with a double, five home runs, 17 RBIs, 13 walks and 17 strikeouts in 17 games with the Tides.

Manager Brandon Hyde is batting Stowers fourth today and playing him in right field. Ryan O'Hearn is the designated hitter.

Catcher James McCann didn’t make it to Baltimore for Opening Day, his injury rehab stint beginning that night at High-A Aberdeen. He needed only two games to convince the Orioles that he was ready to join their active roster.

Better to be a little late than spend most of the summer away from Camden Yards.

“I was watching on TV when I was in Aberdeen,” he said this morning after attending a meeting and getting ready to catch Tyler Wells in the series finale against the Yankees.

“I was excited for the win. It looked like a fun atmosphere, and hopefully we can get a few more days like that.”

McCann had two hits as the IronBirds’ designated hitter and two more yesterday while catching the first game of a doubleheader. The discomfort in his left oblique didn’t do the same damage to his season as in 2022 with the Mets.

The Orioles have decided to carry three catchers on their 26-man roster.

Veteran James McCann was activated this morning from the 10-day injured list after two injury rehab games at High-A Aberdeen. As the corresponding move, outfielder Kyle Stowers was optioned to Triple-A Norfolk.

Anthony Bemboom remains in the majors, providing a second backup to Adley Rutschman.

McCann could be in today’s lineup with the Yankees starting left-hander Nestor Cortes.

Stowers has barely played this season. He received only six plate appearances in three games.

For a pitcher that once was trying to make it to the majors while starting out in independent league baseball, making an Opening Day roster was special. And there was O's bullpen right-hander Logan Gillaspie, 25, running down the orange carpet with the rest of the Orioles on Friday afternoon.

He made his MLB debut last May 17 with two scoreless innings against the Yankees, and now has an ERA of 3.26 in 19 1/3 big league innings with the Orioles over the last two seasons.

Gillaspie’s pro career began in 2017 in independent league baseball, where he actually spent time as both a pitcher and position player.

His record from the 2017 season shows 22 games on the mound for three different teams, plus a few games at first base and catcher, and even one at shortstop. He went 4-for-23 as a hitter.

The Milwaukee Brewers signed him in 2018 but released him in 2019. The Orioles signed him on June 9, 2021, and he made his big league debut on the mound at Camden Yards last May. And he was a surprise addition to the bullpen on Opening Day this year.

SARASOTA, Fla. - Injuries forced the Orioles to redesign their bullpen before Opening Day, burning parts of the bridge to their closer. They swerved at the last minute while composing their rotation, moving away from their top pitching prospect. They resisted the temptation to carry a non-roster left-handed bat in a reserve role.

The final product is almost complete barring a last-minute change prior to rosters being set by noon. No Grayson Rodriguez or DL Hall, the top two pitching prospects who report to Triple-A Norfolk. No Dillon Tate or Mychal Givens, whose right forearm and left knee, respectively, landed them on the injured list.

Expected behind the plate in a reserve role is Anthony Bemboom, who lost his spot on the 40-man roster after signing a split-contract, watched the Orioles trade for James McCann, received an invitation to spring training and made his second straight Opening Day roster. It wasn’t supposed to happen, but pain in McCann’s left oblique, however mild, most likely has altered the team’s plans.

Oddsmakers and assorted experts view the Orioles as a fourth- or fifth-place team, ahead or behind the Red Sox. MLB.com’s panel of “experts” excludes them from the playoff picture. PECOTA , which never seems to calculate a successful season for them, has the win ceiling at 74. ZiPS is only a tad more optimistic with 80. Online site SportsBetting.ag sets the win total at 77 for over-under wagers.

(BetOnline.ag has Brandon Hyde 9/1 to be the first manager fired. Don’t waste your money. That isn't happening.)

SARASOTA, Fla. – The Orioles are traveling to Tropicana Field this morning to play the Rays, who can't use their spring facility in Port Charlotte due to the damage inflicted by Hurricane Ian.

The place will seem empty. As if that's an oddity. But it's still 72 degrees and dry inside and a great setup for visiting teams and the media. Don't be a hater.

I spent some time yesterday making sure that I didn't forget to share anything important, as the days meld together and the brain begins to fry. Or anything stupid. Let's not be elitist.

* Outfielder Kyle Stowers isn’t working out at first base.

I felt like I had to confirm it after speculating in Friday’s mailbag.

SARASOTA, Fla. – Opening the mailbag during spring training only makes a person prickly in the Cactus League. No danger of it happening here.

Seriously. I wouldn't needle you.

Only positive vibes allowed in Camp Happy.

The Orioles are playing their first night game, hosting the Pirates and sending Kyle Gibson to the mound for his debut. Media clubhouse access and the posting of the lineup will happen later than usual.

In the meantime ...

The blonde hair was much shorter, but Kyle Stowers kept his same enthusiasm for being a major league player. The excitement about debuting in August, the smiles as fans lined up to get a photo with him in Salisbury.

He greeted one group as if they were friends from high school.

Stowers isn’t assuming that he’s on the Orioles’ roster for opening day. The chances are good, but to relax about it is risking a rude wakeup call.

“I want to be there,” Stowers said, “and I want to help the team win in every way I can.”

Stowers played in 34 games, the first two in Toronto during a June series after Anthony Santander went on the restricted list due to his vaccination status. The real call-up came in August, with the Orioles still in the thick of the wild card race.

The baseball world has spun into a new month, which brings the Orioles within two days until the beginning of their Birdland Caravan with a kickoff fan rally with executive vice president/general manager Mike Elias and manager Brandon Hyde inside the Bel Air High School auditorium.

Pitchers and catchers report to spring training by the 15^th, with the first workout held the following day. Position players are due on the 20^th, with the initial full-squad workout the next day.

Back to normal, it appears, after the pandemic forced everyone to head home early in 2020 and impacted 2021, and after the lockout delayed and shortened the 2022 activities.  

Roster business last February was limited with the sport shut down on the major league side, but the Orioles were busy in 2021 with the Alex Cobb trade on the 2^nd that brought infielder Jahmai Jones from the Angels and the minor league contracts handed to pitchers Spenser Watkins and Dusten Knight. On the 3^rd with the minor league deals with veteran starters Félix Hernández and Wade LeBlanc and reliever Konner Wade. Matt Harvey’s minor league deal became official on the 17^th.

The Orioles might not show the same starter aggression this month, though they’ll need to know whether their inventory sufficiently stocks Triple-A Norfolk’s rotation.

After a look at the current infield depth chart Tuesday, we move on to the Orioles outfield today, where they have five players on their 40-man roster and a few other candidates for opening day roster spots.

The starters as of this writing seem to be the same three that made most of the starts last year. Austin Hays, who made 82 starts in left field, Cedric Mullins back in center after 140 starts there in 2022 and Anthony Santander in right field where he started 79 times. Hays actually made 51 right field starts while Santander made 34 as the DH.

Hays made his third straight opening day roster, hit for the sixth cycle in club history in June and set career highs for games, extra-base hits and at-bats. His 35 doubles tied Adley Rutschman for the team lead. But his falloff at bat in the second half had some fans concerned. His OPS was .843 in April and .798 in May and he led the club in offensive WAR at that point. But his second-half OPS was .626.

Mullins had the difficult chore of trying to follow up his 30-30 season. While his stolen base total increased to 34 (second in the AL to Jorge Mateo), his homer total dropped to 16. His OPS dropped from .878 (OPS+ of 137) to .721 (OPS+ of .104). No doubt the Orioles are hopeful they get more offensive production out of both of these players in 2023.

Santander had a big year and ranked tied for fifth in the AL in homers. He batted .240/.318/.455/.773 with 33 homers and 89 RBIs. He produced career highs in games, at-bats, hits, home runs, extra-base hits, total bases, runs scored, RBIs, walks, hit-by-pitches, and OBP and tied a career high in doubles. He led the club in homers, extra-base hits, total bases, RBI, hit-by-pitches, and slugging. And Santander’s 33 homers as a switch-hitter were the most in MLB last year and the most by an O's switch-hitter since Eddie Murray hit 33 in 1983.

The Orioles have made two moves since the last time that I speculated on the position-player half of the 26-man roster, acquiring first baseman/outfielder Ryan O’Hearn from the Royals on Tuesday for cash considerations and designating him for assignment on Thursday while claiming first baseman Lewin Díaz off waivers from the Braves.

O’Hearn has one minor league option remaining. Díaz has none. Both players fit the profile of a left-handed hitting backup first baseman, though O’Hearn also plays the corner outfield, with 31 of his major league starts coming in right.

The club’s thirst for a left-handed bat probably hasn’t been quenched. I’d be shocked if Díaz is the final acquisition. Then again, I didn’t think he’d be back and O’Hearn would last two days.

The only predictable component of this offseason has been its unpredictability.

Whichever player is able to secure a bench role is doing so at the expense of someone who currently projects as a member of the opening day roster.  

As the New Year began on Sunday, we provided a wish list for some players and O's staff for the 2023 season. We add to that here today.

Terrin Vavra and Kyle Stowers: More regular at-bats. I think that on rebuilding O’s teams that were headed for 100 or more losses, one or both of these players may have been given 300 or 400 plate appearances, and we could really tell a bit about them in such a sample. The 2023 edition may make that hard for one or both.

But among all Orioles that batted last year, Vavra’s .340 OBP ranked fourth. We know this kid can work the count and uses the whole field, We also know he hit just one homer in 103 plate appearances. The power is just not going to be there, but he has to bring what he can bring, which is the plate discipline needed on a club that ranked 22^nd in the majors in this stat last year.

Stowers power seems to be a real thing. He ranked fifth on the team in slugging among all O’s batters in 2022. He can drive it out to all fields and worked to decrease his K rate at Triple-A last year. I think that, given enough at-bats, Stowers could produce solid corner outfield stats and also would bring average-or-better defense with a plus arm.

Jorge Mateo: The ability to find once again whatever he found batting that made his hitting, sub-par to that point, look above average and even special at times for a spell last year. He did have a nice five-week stretch of hitting that ran from July 16 to Aug. 23, including his big night at the Little League Classic. In that span of 31 games he batted .321 with a .944 OPS. You thought maybe he had turned a corner. But that did not hold up, and over his final 36 games he hit .174/.213/.270/.483.

We’re only a few days away from moving past 2022, leaving behind the good and the bad. The personal and professional triumphs and the failures.

This is a time for reflection on the Orioles beat. Certain moments stick with everyone. Others might have gone unnoticed by most or happened during one-on-one interactions.

I’ll share some of mine, in no particular order, over the next few days.

* Manager Brandon Hyde revealed on March 16 that catcher Adley Rutschman was shut down with a strained right triceps, an injury that surfaced during an intrasquad game in Sarasota. On the same day that Heston Kjerstad, the second overall pick in the 2020 draft, strained his hamstring while chasing a line drive in left field that resulted in Rutschman’s inside-the-park home run.

We didn’t know whether Rutschman had a chance to break camp with the team prior to reporting, but the injury removed the drama. He was staying back at extended spring training.

“When do you head down to spring training?”

I was asked again this week during dinner with some friends. I smiled, shrugged and offered the usual time frame.

Major League Baseball hasn’t shared the report date for pitchers and catchers, which coincides with my report date. We usually know months ago.

The Rays arrive on Feb. 14, with their first workout held the following day. But they’re in upheaval after Hurricane Ian hit Port Charlotte hard in late September.

Every March home game will be played at Tropicana Field. The Orioles visit on the 5^th.

The Orioles have added some left-handed batters on minor league deals in recent days. But the search for a quality lefty bat to place somewhere in the lineup may well still be ongoing.

But is a potent lefty bat already on the roster looking for more playing time? And is Kyle Stowers that bat?

Yes, to the first question and I think yes to the second also.

O’s executive vice president and general manager Mike Elias talked at the Winter Meetings about being careful not to make acquisitions that block prospects. Stowers already is partially blocked on the roster with Austin Hays in left, Cedric Mullins in center and Anthony Santander in right. Colton Cowser is another outfield prospect charging toward Baltimore. The DH spot is open, but he might already be a bit squeezed in outfield at-bats.

But Stowers, who hit one of the most dramatic homers of the 2022 season, has big-time power, cut down on his strikeouts on the farm last year and features a decent glove with a plus arm. He’s big and strong, was the O’s co-Minor League Player of the Year with Adley Rutschman in 2021 and will turn 25 on Jan. 2.

SAN DIEGO – Orioles manager Brandon Hyde took his turn in front of the media this afternoon at the Winter Meetings, talking about new starter Kyle Gibson, the desire for more pitching depth, the process of recruiting free agents to Baltimore, veteran leader replacements and Jorge Mateo’s snub in Gold Glove voting. He also fielded premature questions about the message he'll send to the team and positions on opening day.

Where to begin?

Gibson signed a one-year, $10 million contract yesterday to give the Orioles an experienced starter, though they aren’t done negotiating with others.

“I’m excited to add Kyle,” Hyde said. “Talked to him a couple times and traded texts last night. Excited to bring somebody with the career he’s had and playing on a World Series club. Somebody with his veteran aspects that he brings, it’s going to be huge for us.”

Hyde has participated in the video calls with pitchers on the market, a manager who also works in sales, highlighting the advantages of joining the Orioles while trying to build an early connection.

With some of the top pitchers in the majors pulling in some of the biggest salaries, short of signing a pitcher for $25-30 million or more, how do the Orioles get a frontline pitcher?

Well, potentially via trade.

But to get something good you have to be prepared to give up something good. Fans for years have suggested trades where their team gives up six mediocre players to get one good one. But teams don’t look to add mediocre players, so acquiring several of them at once is no incentive. What they want is players who have two or three years (or more) of team control left and are good players now. If they are in the prime years of their careers, all the better. If their salary is reasonable, even better yet.

The Orioles have at least one such player. And when it is suggested the team consider trading Anthony Santander to get something they like in return, it makes some in Birdland nervous. They get worried when there is talk of trading productive players. But if the team wants to acquire a pitcher they can slot at or near the top of their rotation, one with some track record of success in the majors and not a prospect who hasn’t done it yet, they need to give up something.

This is where Santander or someone similar could come in. Not because the Orioles want to “get rid of him” or they want to “move him,” but when you talk about “trade chips” that have some significance and could get another club's attention, well, he could.

While just one of the four O's full-season minor league affiliates - high Single-A Aberdeen - made the playoffs this year, it was a banner season for the organization in player development. They had two players ranked as the No. 1 prospect in the sport and both Adley Rutschman and Gunnar Henderson made the majors and did well when they got there.

The Orioles prospects list was noted for both the quality and depth it showed this season. That was seen by the Orioles being ranked as the No. 1 farm at midseason by Baseball America, MLBPipeline.com and ESPN.

Today let's take a look at a few stat categories for both hitters and pitchers and see which players were among the top five O's this year for those stats. Later we'll take a look at more stat categories.

OPS (min, 250 PAs)

.946 - Gunnar Henderson
.886 - Connor Norby
.884 - Kyle Stowers
.874 - Colton Cowser
.852 - Jordan Westburg

Jorge Mateo slapped a ground ball to the right side of the infield in the ninth inning, from mitt to first base to the final out of the 2022 season.

Fans stood and cheered the Orioles after a 5-1 loss to the Blue Jays in Game 2 of the doubleheader. The team came back out of the dugout with caps held high in the air. Some players waved and others returned the applause.

Manager Brandon Hyde intended to play everyone today. No one would be left on the bench on the last day, with a makeup doubleheader carrying them to their 162^nd game.

A winning record was intact. Stats could be padded before players scattered for the winter. Go home, rest, and get ready to make a stronger run within the division in 2023.

But first, an emotional send-off.