Britton, the bullpen and Bundy's start

Zach Britton received treatment on his left forearm yesterday in Sarasota and took a nap. Manager Buck Showalter offered confirmation, his phone call around 4 p.m. waking the closer.

The voice on the other end always gives it away.

Showalter pointed out that Britton never would have slept in the afternoon back in Baltimore. Another good reason to send him to the spring training complex.

The Orioles continue to carry a six-man bullpen with a revolving door. It's going to be more of a challenge without Britton, especially as relievers are deemed unavailable on certain nights.

Darren O'Day was willing to pitch last night, but Showalter didn't want to risk injury. O'Day never warmed, Alec Asher was thrust into a set-up role and Michael A. Taylor hit a two-run homer off him in the eighth inning.

Vidal Nuño returned yesterday and twice warmed up while the Orioles were squandering a 6-2 lead. He's the second left-hander, but better suited to cover innings earlier in the game.

Meanwhile, the Orioles say they aren't currently in the market for another reliever. Do they have enough options in-house?

"We're going to find out," executive vice president Dan Duquette said yesterday as he leaned against the dugout railing and watched batting practice. "We're going to find out."

"We're not going to replace the guy who has the best sinker in the business with another pitcher who has that kind of skill," Duquette continued. "I don't think. But we do have some good pitchers who should be able to contribute some innings and some quality pitching.

"I'm hoping that Zach will come back in a reasonable amount of time. We'll try to hold the fort until he gets back on track where he's pitching at a premium level. Fortunately, we've got pitchers like (Brad) Brach who have stepped up and Mychal Givens who have stepped up, and Donnie Hart's getting more comfortable in his role. And the pitchers we brought up from Triple-A have done a good job. Asher's done a real nice job, (Gabriel) Ynoa's done a nice job. So, we'll need to lean on some of them a little bit more heavily until Zach can find his stride."

There's depth at Triple-A. The Orioles will learn in increments how much of it is quality.

"(Jimmy) Yacabonis is having a really good start at Triple-A," Duquette said. "Edwin Jackson's a veteran pitcher. He looks good. (Logan) Verrett's done a good job in the two times that he's come up and he's helped us win both games. When you come in and pitch extra innings on the road, you've got to win the game and save the game, and he did both for us, so he's done a really nice job. And (Richard) Bleier's done a good job in the short time that he's been up with us, so we're going to find out a little bit more about these veteran pitchers that we picked up at the end of the spring.

"Nuno's a qualified major leaguer, but again, we've not going to find the All-Star closer to replace Zach Britton. But Zach Britton can come back and be himself. That would be good."

Britton is confident that he'll be back before the All-Star break, that 60 days is an extreme projection. But no one knows until he starts his throwing program.

"We'll see how he comes along," Duquette said. "He's got some work to do in the interim. He's got a prescribed rest period. He's going to do some tossing and throw on the mound and throw in a game. But these soft-tissue injuries, you've got to give them enough time to heal properly.

"Zach got hurt like his first time off the mound in spring training. He got the (oblique) strain. So, all these things are related. He's had a couple of soft-tissue issues that, if he has a little bit more extended training period, it's conceivable he could come back at the high level he's established for himself the last couple of seasons."

The Orioles know that the void in the backend of their bullpen, and the disadvantages of carrying six relievers, are minimized if their starters pitch deep into games. Dylan Bundy will try again tonight.

Bundy has made seven starts, all of them quality. His five wins heading into last night were tied for the major league lead, putting him in a class that included Clayton Kershaw, Dallas Keuchel, Ervin Santana and Masahiro Tanaka. And one more win than former Oriole Jake Arrieta.

Bundy has made one career start against the Nationals, allowing two runs and three hits in six innings on Aug. 22, 2016 in a 4-3 win at Camden Yards. Anthony Rendon hit a home run.

The current Nationals are 3-for-17 against Bundy.

A.J. Cole is opposing Bundy, just as he did last August in his only previous start against the Orioles. He allowed all four runs over seven innings, and Jonathan Schoop and Mark Trumbo homered off him.

Cole is making his second start this year. He held the Phillies to one run over six innings on May 6 in a 6-2 win.