Hardy ready for his return

NEW YORK - Orioles shortstop J.J. Hardy said three games at Double-A Bowie were enough to get him back into a major league lineup for the first time this season.

He's tired of waiting.

Hardy is coming off the disabled list this afternoon. The Orioles haven't announced a corresponding move and the lineup card includes one extra player.

Hardy is batting seventh in his 2015 debut after going 4-for-12 with a double and RBI at Bowie. He arrived in New York today with infielder Ryan Flaherty, who will be activated on Friday.

"The games went well," Hardy said. "Took some swings and misses. Some good swings. The stuff I was a little worried about, I did, and it was fine, so I feel good about it."

What was Hardy worried about during those three games?

"Swing and misses, getting fooled on off-speed stuff and letting go with the top hand," he said. "I did that quite a few times, so it was all right."

The Baysox played this morning, but Hardy didn't need any more at-bats in the Eastern League.

"It wasn't terrible," he said. "I had some bad at-bats and my timing was a little bit off, but I think it went pretty well for the three games. After missing five or six weeks, it wasn't too bad."

For Hardy, it's a major relief to be out of the minors and back with the Orioles.

"It was a lot longer than I expected, maybe longer than some people expected," he said. "It's good to have it in the rearview mirror and move forward.

"Could surprise myself. Might take a few more games, but the main thing is the shoulder felt good and we will take it from there. I'm going to continue keeping all the muscles strong and basically be like a pitcher rehab type stuff and keep it strong."

Hardy can adjust his pregame routine, including limiting his swings, if necessary.

"I might if it starts to get sore at some point, but right now I feel like i can do everything and I'll do that as long as it feels good," he said.

Hardy was asked about returning to the Double-A level.

"There weren't a whole lot of fans, but the talent level is good," he said. "I mean, we saw some really good arms those three days. The field's nice. It was good. It was fun."

Hardy had to find some sort of pleasure from his prolonged stay on the disabled list. It lasted longer than he expected.

"It seemed like it was taking forever," he said. "I guess six weeks, right? Six weeks tomorrow. Yeah, it definitely took longer than I thought."

The Orioles have managed to hover around .500 without Hardy and catcher Matt Wieters for the first 25 games. Flaherty, second baseman Jonathan Schoop and reliever Wesley Wright joined them on the disabled list.

"It's definitely good, but we've always had good depth," Hardy said. "We've been ready for things like that to happen and everyone's been doing a really good job."