Orioles practice extra-inning situations in intrasquad

If rules are going to change in the 2020 season, the Orioles must keep up by implementing special drills in workouts and intrasquad games.

This is a matter of baseball survival beyond staying safe in a pandemic.

Beginning with Hunter Harvey in the bottom of the first inning, the Orioles sent a succession of relievers to the mound for the "visitors" and placed a runner on second base to simulate extra innings. Because this team has been known to stretch games beyond regulation.

Mason Williams joined Cedric Mullins on the basepaths in the first by drawing a walk and Dilson Herrera launched a three-run homer to center field. Which isn't supposed to be part of the drill.

Herrera is in the utility competition but he keeps making starts at first base, which puts him at an obvious disadvantage in a pool that includes Stevie Wilkerson, Pat Valaika and Andrew Velazquez. Wilkerson played right field tonight, Valaika was at shortstop and Velazquez played second base.

Manager Brandon Hyde moved Herrera to third base in the fifth inning.

Miguel Castro couldn't strand his runner in the second inning, with Herrera advancing to third base and scoring on Bryan Holaday's bouncer that José Iglesias failed to backhand. Working exclusively now from the stretch, Castro induced three ground balls and struck out Ryan Mountcastle.

Eric Hanhold couldn't strand his runner in the third, with Mullins' triple to center field scoring Velazquez. Herrera lifted a sacrifice fly later in the inning.

Branden Kline inherited Williams, who was caught in a rundown between third and home but allowed to stay on the field and scored on Holaday's comebacker. Kline made a kick save and took the out at first base.

This is why you don't keep score.

Mountcastle struck out to end the inning.

John Means, in his final Camden Yards tune-up and immune to the extra-inning drill, was tagged with three runs (two earned) and seven hits by my unofficial count over four-plus innings. The orange team scored an unearned run in the top of the first on Austin Hays' leadoff double, a long fly ball from Hanser Alberto and catcher Holaday's errant pickoff throw to third base.

Hays and Alberto have been leading off in these games, but they were on the same side tonight.

Iglesias led off the top of the second with a double over Mullins' head in center field. He's running much more freely after hobbling around the bases in an earlier game due to back soreness, and he keeps scorching the ball. But Means stranded him after a two-out walk to Austin Wynns.

Means stranded two more in the third, with Alberto getting his prerequisite bloop single off a lefty. Means struck out Chris Davis for the second time and Iglesias to end the inning.

DJ Stewart singled off the out-of-town scoreboard in right to open the fourth, but Holaday threw him out attempting to steal as Wilkerson struck out.

The leadoff hitter reached in every inning, with Chance Sisco looping a single into right field in the fifth and moving up on wild pitch. Hays reached on a bunt and Sisco came home on Alberto's bunt. Renato Núñez followed with an RBI single to center field and Hyde ended the game.

Means has been named the opening day starter, and he should be followed by Alex Cobb and Wade LeBlanc, according to how the pitchers are lined up. Tommy Milone remains in the running for a spot at the back end of the rotation after retiring 15 of 16 batters last night.

"I think until I'm officially told that I have a spot, I've got to assume that I'm still competing," Milone said earlier today in a Zoom conference call. "I went out there and felt pretty good last night. That's one of the things, I really can't control when they tell me or if they tell me, whether it's today or a few days. That's not something I can control. The only thing I can control is going out there and pitching, and that's what I've been trying to do is leave little doubt in their mind as to me being in that rotation."

Milone said his status as a veteran in camp made it easier to remain in the Orioles' plans rather than potentially hurt him.

"My track record, I guess, can kind of speak for itself," he said. "I, for the most part, feel like I've been a somewhat consistent pitcher throughout my career. Not last year, but a few years before that maybe not as consistent, but I think I got back on track last year and I kind of showed a little bit more consistency as I did earlier in my career, so I think that helped a little bit. And I think that helps in the long run for now with the Orioles.

"Even though they didn't get to see me a lot in the spring, I think they can refer to last year and possibly years prior to that, too."

Milone also has bullpen experience, whether as a reliever or more of a bulk guy, which can be a useful skill in a truncated season.

"It's definitely something I had to learn kind of on the fly," he said. "The first time I was put in the bullpen, I was a starter and there wasn't really a spot for me anymore, so I kind of got stashed in the bullpen and that's how I learned. I wasn't coming into meaningful games, so I guess that's one way to start out. You're not put in that pressure to go out there and keep the game in line, but obviously, every time you want to go out there and do well regardless. So I think it helped in that aspect not feeling the pressure going out there. Just go out there and, as a pitcher, just try to get as many outs as you can for as long as you're out there.

"I think in a shortened season like this year is going to be, it's going to be crucial to, if I'm not starting, if I'm coming out in relief for multiple innings, whatever it's going to be, it's the same game. I just have to get as many outs as I can for as long as I'm out there. So we'll see what happens."

Milone and Thomas Eshelman, the opposing pitcher in both of the left-hander's intrasquad starts, threw four innings of live batting practice on the first day of summer training camp. Starting up again has been a relatively smooth process for them.

"It actually hasn't been that bad," Milone said. "It just kind of depended on what guys' situations were in the offseason, if they were able to throw to hitters or at least get on a mound and throw to a catcher for multiple innings. I think most guys were able to do that, so coming here ... Facing big league hitters was definitely a different animal, so that takes a little bit of an adjustment, but I think a lot of guys did a really good job of staying in shape with their arms and bodies and keeping up with that to come in here and hit the ground running. So I think that was good."

Manager Brandon Hyde is deciding whether to carry a third catcher on opening day. He labeled it as a "possibility" earlier today on his Zoom conference call.

"With a 30-man roster, obviously, it becomes a little bit easier," he said. "It's going to depend on how our roster shapes up at the end of this. I feel like 10 days is still a long ways away and short, also, in that anything can happen in these 10 days. But yeah, we've got guys that we like here that we'd like to see on the club, and so you never know what could happen.

"I would love to carry three, but we'll see."

Wynns would love to be counted among them.

Pedro Severino is the undisputed starter, leaving Wynns, Holaday and Sisco fighting for available backup spots.

"Myself and everyone's been going out there day to day and bringing everything they've got on the field. And we're all competing," said Wynns, who saved Castro from a wild pitch by blocking a ball in the dirt and making a sliding stop as it headed toward the home dugout.

"Right now it's up for grabs, and the constant competition will always be there."

Outfielder Anthony Santander watched the game from the dugout while wearing a mask. He participated in a light workout today, his first since the opening of summer training camp.