Baseball is back! Orioles' pitchers and catchers report to spring training facility
BALTIMORE - Baseball is back in Birdland!
The Baltimore Orioles' pitchers and catchers are reporting today to their spring training facility in Sarasota, Florida.
Their first workout will be Thursday.
This year, there is a little more buzz in the air, a little more excitement for Orioles baseball.
The Birds are coming off an 83-win season in 2022, their most since 2016.
There are expectations in the clubhouse and in the City that the Orioles could be even better this year, and possibly make a legit run at the playoffs.
All eyes will be on catcher Adley Rutschman, who will be entering his second season.
Rutschman, who finished second in last year's Rookie of the Year voting, batted .254 with 13 home runs and 42 RBIs in 113 games in 2022.
As for the pitching staff, the Orioles added Cole Irvin and Kyle Gibson to join a crew of Dean Kremer, Austin Voth, Tyler Wells, Kyle Bradish, Mike Bauman and top pitching prospect Grayson Rodriguez to compete for rotation spots.
John Means, still recovering from Tommy John surgery, is expected to join the team at some point this season.
Felix Bautista, who had 15 saves last season, is penciled in at closer. The bullpen has Dillon Tate, Mychal Givens, Cionel Perez, Bryan Baker, DL Hall, Logan Gillaspie, Spenser Watkins, Keegan Akin, Yennier Cano and Andrew Politi.
"Just the youth and the talent," catcher James McCann said last month. "I've had numerous catchers come up and tell me how talented the guys are, hearing about the bullpen that Baltimore has put together, hearing about the youth, and how guys told me they hated having to face the Orioles' pitching staff. I get to see it first-hand, but when I have guys telling me that, that's a good thing."
The first full squad workout for the Orioles will be on February 21, and their first spring training game will be on February 25 against the Minnesota Twins.
They open the season on March 30 in Boston, and play their home-opener on April 6 against the New York Yankees.
