SARASOTA, Fla. - Nick Markakis and Zack Britton have returned to the Orioles – to serve as spring training guest coaches.

They aren’t making a comeback.

Nine former Orioles will report to the Ed Smith Stadium complex in Sarasota to instruct the current players:

Scott McGregor – Feb. 12-22
Ben McDonald – Feb. 18-22
Zack Britton – Feb. 18-20
Brian Roberts – Feb. 24-28
J.J. Hardy – Feb. 20-26
Adam Jones – Feb. 24-March 7
Al Bumbry – March 1-5
John Shelby – March 6-10
Nick Markakis – March 6-10

Hall of Famer Cal Ripken Jr. isn’t on the list, but he’s expected to make an appearance in camp. Ripken joined the ownership group headed by David Rubinstein.

The Blue Jays take two of three games from the Orioles over the weekend, and now the Rays come to town. It doesn't get any easier. Matt Wieters went 0-for-3 with strikeout yesterday against Jays left-hander Mark Buehrle and homered against right-hander Esmil Rogers. He's now 3-for-11 with one home run and four RBIs from the right side, and 9-for-26 with two homers and three RBIs from the left side. Are we still debating the whole switch-hitting thing? It may have gone unnoticed yesterday with...

NEW YORK - Stop me if you've heard this one: The Orioles are playing a day game, their fourth in a row since leaving Baltimore. They hunger for a postgame spread that isn't lunch. In this case, the 1:05 p.m. start has nothing to do with plummeting temperatures and the need to bask in whatever warmth is available in Detroit in the month of April. It's opening day at Yankee Stadium, with the first Bleacher Creature roll call of 2014. I always feel a special bond with the city of New York...

Orioles executive vice president Dan Duquette and manager Buck Showalter kicked off a day-long series of fan forums by taking questions from season plan holders, a session that lasted about 30 minutes. J.J. Hardy can become a free agent after this season, and Duquette said the club will attempt to sign him to an extension before opening day, bringing a round of applause from the crowd. Duquette noted how the Orioles offered Chris Davis a long-term extension, "but it hasn't really...

I woke up this morning and discovered that shortstop J.J. Hardy and catcher Matt Wieters still play for the Orioles. Let's see if anything changes by noon. If yesterday's reports on the duo confirmed anything beyond my hatred of the hot stove season, it's how badly the Orioles want to upgrade their rotation. They're not actively shopping Hardy and Wieters, but they're going to approach any team with a surplus of starters. That's how the Shelby Miller rumor started yesterday morning. The...