Early notes on Hardy, Santander, travel roster and Wieters

LAKELAND, Fla. - Shortstop J.J. Hardy said this morning that his back continues to feel much better and yesterday's injection was done to "get over the hump."

Hardy doesn't have a hump on his back and he isn't ringing a bell later. You know the expression.

While waiting to be cleared for baseball activities, Hardy continues to take a dose pack and perform core strength exercises. The Orioles think he could play by March 10.

"I think everything's still going as planned," he said.

Today's lineup includes Rule 5 pick Anthony Santander, 22, as the designated hitter. He was expected to bat exclusively from the right side after undergoing surgery on his right shoulder to remove a bone spur, but he hit left-handed in both intrasquad games and will remain on that side against Tigers right-hander Michael Fulmer.

"At the beginning, I was feeling hurt, so they asked me, but afterward I'm feeling so much better now that I told them that I can do it left-handed so I can get my timing down. So that's why I'm hitting left-handed now," he said through interpreter Ramon Alarcon.

"It was just a (spur) that they removed from my shoulder. There was no labrum tear, just a bone that was on my shoulder."

This is Santander's first major league spring training. The Orioles selected him in the Rule 5 draft after he batted .290/.368/.494 with 42 doubles, 20 home runs, 95 RBIs and 90 runs scored in 128 games at Single-A Lynchburg.

"I am thankful for this opportunity," he said. "I'm trying to learn as much as possible from the figures who are around myself. So I'm thankful to Baltimore for this opportunity."

Scouts have compared Santander to Víctor Martínez, who's in the Tigers' lineup today.

"I don't know him yet, but that's definitely a figure I try to follow," he said. "Hopefully, at some point I can introduce myself and meet him and learn from him, ask him a few tips about how I can improve my game."

The Orioles also brought catchers Francisco Peña and Audry Pérez, infielders Robert Andino, David Washington, Preston Palmeiro, Adrian Marin, Garabez Rosa and Erick Salcedo, and outfielders Dariel Álvarez, Joey Rickard, Aneury Tavárez, DJ Stewart and Cedric Mullins to Lakeland. The bullpen includes Logan Verrett, Donnie Hart, Jayson Aquino, Richard Rodríguez, Oliver Drake, Jimmy Yacabonis, Stefan Crichton, Cody Satterwhite and Jefri Hernandez.

Gabriel Ynoa opposes the Pirates' Steven Brault on Saturday in Bradenton. Left-hander Wade Miley starts Sunday against the Pirates' Jameson Taillon in the Orioles' home opener. Ubaldo Jiménez opposes the Yankees' Chad Green Monday in Sarasota.

Over in West Palm Beach, the Nationals introduced new catcher Matt Wieters to the media and gave him No. 32. At least the digits looked right.

Wieters told reporters that he sensed after the season that he wouldn't be back with the Orioles, "but at the same time, until you're signed and official, there's nothing you can really set in stone," he said.

"So it was something where we always kept it open as an option, but it never got developing on their side. So mentally, I had moved on at the end of the year. But it's still my first team, longtime team. To be able to play there as long as I did is a real rarity in today's game. I was very fortunate to be able to play with those guys and be able to play in that organization as long as I did.

"It's something where it was more, maybe it'll pop up, but it was never really on the table for anything that was very set in stone or concrete. It was never a, 'Oh gosh, we didn't think about this. Maybe we're going back to Baltimore.' It never got to that point.

"I look at it as I'm not writing the story anyways, God's writing the story. And for whatever reason, he wanted me in Washington this year and I'm more than excited that he wanted me to play here. You also, back in '14 you saw it with Nick (Markakis), who was just as big a part of that organization. There's still a business side to it. If an organization thinks they can win a different way, they're going to take it.

"I always wanted to play for the same team my whole career, but eight good years is eight good years. So like I said, it's God's plan and I'm not going to look back on what-ifs, because we're still very fortunate to be in America and be able to play the game."