SEATTLE – The starts keep coming to Orioles outfielder Heston Kjerstad, with injuries presenting more opportunities than otherwise would be available to a struggling hitter.

Kjerstad appeared in his 51^st game last night, making his 18th start in right. He’s made 25 in left and served as designated hitter in one game.

Opportunities aren’t the issue here. It’s the results, which lowered his average to .185 with a .231 on-base percentage and .308 slugging percentage heading into last night.

Kjerstad tripled on Sunday, the first of his career, but was picked off third base. He broke an 0-for-20 streak and was 3-for-38 in his past 10 games.

Batting eighth last night against Mariners right-hander George Kirby, Kjerstad lined a 96.5 mph fastball up the middle for a one-out single in the second inning and lined out to left field to end the fourth. He lined to center on Sunday, and to third and left field on Saturday.

SEATTLE – The Orioles kept jabbing at Mariners starter George Kirby tonight, with all eight of their hits against him singles. Ramón Urías clipped the right side of Kirby’s jaw with a 102.7 mph line drive that resulted in the final out of the fifth inning – the ball rolling to first baseman Rowdy Tellez - and left a thin stream of blood running past his mouth.

Kirby was coming out anyway after 95 pitches, but it still resembled a knockout blow.

Tomoyuki Sugano and Colton Cowser wouldn’t let the Mariners get up. Sugano held them to one run in seven innings and Cowser marked his return with an opposite-field homer off former teammate Eduardo Bazardo in a 5-1 victory over the Mariners at T-Mobile Park.

Heston Kjerstad drove in Coby Mayo with a double in the ninth, pinch-runner Jordyn Adams scored on Jackson Holliday’s single, and the Orioles improved to 23-36 with their first four-game winning streak since June 26-29, 2024. They’ve won seven of their last nine games and are 8-8 under interim manager Tony Mansolino.

Sugano delivered the rotation’s fourth quality start in a row and lowered his ERA to 3.04. He allowed five hits, walked one batter and struck out five.

SEATTLE – The Orioles are making their latest attempt to get healthy. This time, it involves Colton Cowser.

Cowser is in center field tonight for the first game against the Mariners at T-Mobile Park. He was reinstated from the injured list yesterday, leaving the Orioles with 11 players on the shelf.

Cowser hasn’t played for the Orioles since fracturing his left thumb on March 30 in Toronto. He completed a rehab assignment that consisted of three games with High-A Aberdeen and three with Triple-A Norfolk.

“Feeling good,” he said. “It was one of those things where, had to get some ABs and was able to do so. Was fighting the weather a little bit a couple of those days, but feeling good.”

Cowser went 6-for-11 with four doubles at Norfolk, but he wasn’t using statistics to measure his readiness.

SEATTLE – Colton Cowser was reinstated from the injured list yesterday and he’s playing center field tonight and batting sixth for the series opener in Seattle.

Jackson Holliday remains the leadoff hitter.

Coby Mayo is the designated hitter, Heston Kjerstad is in right field and Dylan Carlson is in left.

Ryan O’Hearn, the cleanup hitter and first baseman, is batting .329 against right-handers and the Mariners are starting three in the series. O’Hearn’s average is tied for fourth-highest among left-handed hitters versus right-handers in a minimum 100 plate appearances.

Tomoyuki Sugano has posted a 3.23 ERA and 1.063 WHIP in 11 starts. He’s got a 3.67 ERA and 1.223 WHIP in six home games and a 2.73 ERA and 0.876 WHIP in five road games.

SEATTLE - The mailbag is on the West Coast and three hours behind in being awesome.

The last batch didn’t include a handful of questions that will get some play this morning, while we wait for the Orioles to begin their series against the Mariners at T-Mobile Park, which will always be Safeco Field to me. Same as Jacobs Field in Cleveland.

I refuse to bend.

And that’s what …

You ask and I try to answer. Here are a few more after yesterday’s glorious off-day and my painfully long flight to Seattle, with the prerequisite shoulder bumping from the aisle seat every 15-20 seconds.

You don’t have to look far to find the local connections with new Orioles senior advisor John Mabry.

He grew up a fan of the team, which happens when you’re raised in Cecil County and attend Bohemia Manor High School in Chesapeake City, played for the renown Johnny’s amateur baseball team and participated in the Crown All-Star Game at Memorial Stadium.

“Favorite players Cal Ripken, Eddie Murray, the whole nine yards,” Mabry said. “I’ve been watching the Orioles since Wild Bill Hagy type stuff. So it’s a cool opportunity, and at this time it was cool for our family, as well.”

Mabry was at Camden Yards this morning to fulfill his role as senior advisor, a move consummated a few weeks after the Orioles fired manager Brandon Hyde and made third base coach Tony Mansolino the interim, and it’s a broad set of responsibilities.

“Just gonna be a helping hand,” he said. “Just be an available resource for coaches and players. Get to know everything that’s going on and just be available.”

The Orioles went to extremes today to prove that they can score without relying too much on home runs, that the small ball approach remains in their skill set.

That station-to-station doesn’t always require movement.

A two-run third inning that broke a scoreless tie featured a single, double, two more singles and a sacrifice fly. The exit velocities in three straight at-bats were clocked at 79.3, 77.9 and 76.3 mph.

Charlie Morton didn’t need the Orioles to bring much thunder on a sunny day. They gave him a lead and he allowed an unearned run in a season-high 6 2/3 innings in a 3-2 victory over the White Sox before an announced crowd of 33,037 at Camden Yards that completed the first sweep in 2025.

Morton lowered his ERA to 6.20 and raised the Orioles’ record to 22-36 with their sixth win in eight games and seventh in 11. They’ve gone 7-8 under interim manager Tony Mansolino. The White Sox (18-41) have lost 12 of 16.

Coby Mayo is starting at first base today and Jorge Mateo stays in center field for the Orioles’ final game of the homestand.

Ramón Urías moves up to second in the order.

Ryan O’Hearn is the designated hitter. O’Hearn batted .365/.450/.542 in May and posted a .447 average and .681 slugging percentage on fastballs. He has a 10-game hitting streak (19-for-40) and 17-game on-base streak.

Dylan Carlson is in left field and Heston Kjerstad is in right. Adley Rutschman goes to the bench, giving Maverick Handley the start behind the plate.

Charlie Morton rejoined the rotation and held the Cardinals to two runs in six innings to lower his ERA from 7.68 to 7.09. He’s allowed four runs in 15 1/3 innings in his last four appearances.

The Orioles are trying to mix two vastly different mindsets as they enter the month of June.

This is a team with an opportunity to evaluate younger talent by providing regular starts that could allow it to get a jump on the 2026 season. To offer valuable experience to these players and possibly make some earlier decisions while plotting an offseason plan.

That’s the seller attitude, conceding that 2025 is a lost cause as they sit in last place and try to make the best of a crappy situation.

Interim manager Tony Mansolino recognizes the opportunity available to a prospect like Coby Mayo, but he isn’t giving up on the season. There are no concession speeches during his pre-game and post-game media sessions.

Mansolino kept Heston Kjerstad in the lineup yesterday, an easier task with all three Opening Day starters and one backup on the injured list. Kjerstad played right field, Jorge Mateo got another start in center and Dylan Carlson was in left. Ryan O’Hearn played first base in Ryan Mountcastle’s absence rather than getting another start in right or left.

Two more Orioles went on the injured list in the past two days. Interim manager Tony Mansolino and his staff are basing lineup decisions on availability as much as data and hunches.

Positions and batting orders are shuffled like a deck of cards. Left-right matchups aren’t given the usual consideration.

Jackson Holliday seems immune to much of it. He’s the leadoff hitter most of the time, with Gunnar Henderson moving down to third. That’s one of the easier calls to make.

Holliday hit his first career leadoff home run this afternoon, lining a fastball from White Sox starter Davis Martin deep onto the flag court. Coby Mayo collected his first major league RBI and caused benches and bullpens to empty, Jorge Mateo smacked his first home run of the season, and the Orioles won 4-2 before an announced crowd of 23,470 at sunny Camden Yards.

The Orioles (21-36) have won back-to-back games for the fourth time this season and claimed their fourth series. They’ll go for their first sweep since the final three games of the 2024 season in Minnesota.

Ryan Mountcastle received an MRI this morning on his injured right hamstring and the Orioles are waiting for the results before offering an update and measuring their level of encouragement that his absence will be brief.

Mountcastle stole home last night in the sixth inning and was removed in the eighth.

“Don’t know the severity just yet,” said interim manager Tony Mansolino. “Hopeful is probably the better word. Just hopeful that it’s not too bad, but we’ll probably find out more later today or tomorrow.”

Mansolino isn’t sure how Mountcastle sustained the injury, but the double steal seemed to be a part of it.

“I just saw him in the hallway, we were meeting on something earlier, so I haven’t asked him,” Mansolino said. “He might have told somebody last night that he was maybe getting up from the slide. He might have felt something. So it’s just unsure.”

The Orioles placed Ryan Mountcastle on the 10-day injured this this morning with a right hamstring strain and recalled corner infielder Coby Mayo.

That wasn’t the extent of the changes.

Outfielder Jordyn Adams had his contract selected and he’s wearing No. 80. Catcher Chadwick Tromp was designated for assignment.

Mountcastle exited last night’s game in the top of the eighth inning, after stealing home in a 2-1 win over the White Sox. Interim manager Tony Mansolino said Mountcastle would be re-evaluated this morning.

A roster battered by injuries can’t get healthy.

The unpredictable nature of the Orioles is still setting traps.

Adley Rutschman avoided the seven-day concussion list, serving as designated hitter Wednesday and starting behind the plate yesterday. The Orioles usually don’t carry three catchers until rosters expand in September, and the next decision appeared to come down to whether they'd designate Chadwick Tromp for assignment or option Maverick Handley. One of them would step aside for the next reinstatement - whether Colton Cowser, Jordan Westburg or Ramón Laureano.

Cowser singled and walked twice last night at Triple-A Norfolk, and Westburg had a single and double.

Cedric Mullins wasn’t supposed to go on the injured list. Cooper Hummel wasn’t supposed to keep his locker in the home clubhouse. He hadn’t used it until yesterday because the Orioles signed him Sunday while in Boston and designated him for assignment the following day.

News of Hummel's return led to assumptions about the backup catchers, but they proved to be nothing more than a Tromp trap. A Handley hazard. 

The Orioles handed out bowling shirts today to the first 15,000 fans. Zach Eflin didn’t spare the White Sox, but when would the offense strike?

It took until the bottom of the sixth inning, when the Orioles loaded the bases with no outs and scored twice on a sacrifice fly and double steal. They didn’t offer much support and little was needed.

Eflin shut out the White Sox over seven innings and the Orioles began the series with a 2-1 win before an announced crowd of 22,108 at Camden Yards.

Félix Bautista surrendered two doubles in the ninth inning, the second by Andrew Benintendi with two outs. Luis Robert Jr. walked with the count full in an eight-pitch at-bat before Bautista nailed down his ninth save.

Disaster didn't strike.

Orioles center fielder Cedric Mullins underwent an MRI yesterday on his right hamstring, and the club is expressing early optimism regarding the severity of the strain and length of his absence.

Mullins leads the club with 10 home runs and 31 RBIs, and he ranks second with a .324 on-base percentage, .448 slugging and .772 OPS. His placement on the 10-day injured list is retroactive to yesterday, making him eligible to return on June 8.

“Very minor,” said interim manager Tony Mansolino. “My guess is that this will probably be the minimum for him. And who knows? It can go a little bit further. But we are not super concerned. It’s more right now just taking care of Ced and making sure we get him back 100 percent.”

Mullins has missed three of five games. He appeared in 147 last season but made two trips to the IL in 2023 with adductor strains.

Dylan Carlson is in center field this afternoon, and Mansolino said deciding on starters will be day-to-day.

The Orioles hired former major league outfielder/first baseman and coach John Mabry as senior advisor. The announcement came this afternoon.

The current coaches will remain with the club for the rest of the 2025 season.

Mabry played in the majors for 14 season and was a coach with the Cardinals, Royals and Marlins over a span of 12 seasons. He spent the 2024 season as Miami’s hitting coach after being an assistant the previous year.

Utility player Cooper Hummel, who declined an outright assignment last night and became a free agent, has signed another one-year major league contract with the Orioles. He’s replacing center fielder Cedric Mullins, who goes on the 10-day injured list with a right hamstring strain.

Mullins was out of the lineup in three of four games before Wednesday. Today’s move is retroactive to yesterday.

The Orioles didn’t play yesterday and got some good news. Colton Cowser had his injury rehab assignment transferred to Triple-A Norfolk, led off and played center field yesterday in Game 1 of a doubleheader after back-to-back rainouts, and finished with three doubles, an RBI and a run scored. Jordan Westburg began his rehab assignment, batted behind Cowser as the designated hitter and had an RBI single and walk.

Cowser is eligible to be reinstated from the 60-day IL today and he’s played in four games, the first three with High-A Aberdeen. The Orioles must decide whether that’s enough. Westburg was eligible on May 7, but the left hamstring hadn’t healed and his assignment was delayed.

Bringing back important players is a much-needed shot in the arm because the roster is riddled with holes. Ramón Laureano, Tyler O’Neill and Gary Sánchez will be next in some order. Kyle Bradish and Tyler Wells are plowing through their bullpen progressions, making them expected contributors after the break.

The unfortunate development for the Orioles and their fans is the 19-36 record, 16-game separation from the first-place Yankees and 11-game separation in the Wild Card chase. Is it too late?

They lost two “winnable” games against the Cardinals, going a combined 4-for-31 with runners in scoring position, but the White Sox are in town this weekend.

Outfielder Colton Cowser and infielder Jordan Westburg couldn’t escape the rain last night at Triple-A Norfolk, where their rehab assignments remained on hold due to another postponement. Cowser got a head start with three games at High-A Aberdeen, but his injury dated further back with a fractured left thumb on March 30.

Westburg strained his left hamstring and hasn’t appeared in a game with the Orioles since April 26. His workouts and rehab assignment with Norfolk were delayed after he experienced a setback, but he’s in motion again.

Cowser is on the 60-day IL and eligible to be reinstated on Friday. Westburg may not be far behind. And that leaves the Orioles with some difficult but happily anticipated roster decisions.

The offense needs Cowser and Westburg to provide competitive at-bats and drive in runners in scoring position. The Orioles went 1-for-14 Tuesday night and are batting .208 in these situations. They’ll take whatever boost the duo can give them, along with the defense.

No one could have anticipated that this is how the Orioles would construct their roster in late May. It’s rare that they carry three catchers before September, but keeping Adley Rutschman off the concussion injured list and Gary Sánchez’s wrist inflammation have brought Maverick Handley and Chadwick Tromp into the clubhouse. Emmanual Rivera missed a big chunk of spring training with a sore shoulder but he’s making starts at the infield corners. Dylan Carlson is an extra outfielder with three minor league options who has left the shuttle parked while Tyler O’Neill is on the IL with a left shoulder impingement.

Left-hander Cade Povich doesn’t know whether he’s pitching for his spot in the Orioles rotation. Trevor Rogers can be recalled from Triple-A Norfolk at any time after serving as the 27^th man in Saturday’s doubleheader in Boston and tossing 6 1/3 scoreless innings with two hits in Game 2. Zach Eflin, Dean Kremer and Charlie Morton are confirmed for the weekend series against the White Sox.

Having off-days Thursday and Monday gives interim manager Tony Mansolino and his staff the freedom to bump, skip or just stay in turn.

Povich can look like he won’t budge, as he did tonight in the first three innings, but the immovable object got knocked around after that in the Orioles’ 6-4 loss to the Cardinals before an announced crowd of 14,491 at Camden Yards.

A two-run fourth and three-run fifth spun the game in the Cardinals’ favor. The Orioles left 10 runners on base and lost their 12^th series. Their record is 19-36.

Povich allowed five runs and eight hits in 4 2/3 innings, walking three batters and tying his season high with nine strikeouts. He struck out the side in the third inning to give him six - on three fastballs, a sinker, curveball and sweeper. Lars Nootbaar led off the game with a single and the Cardinals didn’t have another hit until Masyn Winn’s leadoff single in the fourth.

Orioles pitcher Kyle Bradish is halfway through his bullpen progression and fully expecting to be reinstated from the 60-day injured list by August.

Bradish threw a 35-pitch side session on Monday, used everything in his arsenal and reported that he’s “feeling really good.”

The Orioles want Bradish to begin throwing live batting practice at the beginning of July, followed by an injury rehab assignment in the minors. He hasn’t pitched for them since undergoing ligament-reconstructive surgery on his right elbow in June 2024.

Bradish made eight starts last season after receiving a platelet-rich plasma injection in his elbow in January, posting a 2.75 ERA and 1.068 WHIP in 39 1/3 innings. He shut out the Rays on one hit over six innings in his penultimate start and allowed two runs in five innings against the Phillies before the Orioles shut him down.

Standing at his locker this afternoon, Bradish explained why he’s confident in his chances of getting back into the rotation after the break.