This, that and the other

The Orioles begin a crucial non-division series tonight with the White Sox in town for three games.

Crucial no longer seems like a necessary designation. It's redundant. They're all big.

Every tie-breaking scenario comes into play with a packed wild card race, and the Orioles won three of four in Chicago back in June. Head-to-head results are important.

They missed out on a sweep after Dylan Cease, who starts tonight, held them to one run and struck out 13 batters in seven innings. They scored two unearned runs in the ninth off Kendall Graveman after consecutive errors by first baseman José Abreu in a 4-3 loss.

So long ago that Jonathan Arauz homered and had a run-scoring single.

Cease is 12-5 with a 2.09 ERA, 1.167 WHIP and only 11 home runs surrendered in 133 2/3 innings over his 24 starts. He’s averaging 12.0 strikeouts per nine innings, but also led the majors last night with 58 walks.

The White Sox lost yesterday in Kansas City and are 62-60. The used seven relievers after Michael Kopech failed to retire any of the four batters he faced in the first inning and exited with left knee soreness.

The loss put them 1 ½ games behind the Orioles in the wild card race.

Terrin Vavra returns to the Orioles after going on the paternity list. There’s always room for another rookie.

Or two. Gunnar Henderson is rumored to be joining the Orioles this week rather than staying with Triple-A Norfolk, which is in Jacksonville. Stay tuned.

* In case you missed it, outfielder Brett Phillips is staying in the organization.

Phillips cleared outright waivers and was assigned to Norfolk. He provides outfield insurance in case of an injury, and there’s always the chance that he returns in September with rosters expanding to 28 players. But he’s no longer on the 40-man roster.

That’s a complication, but his speed and defense are assets. So, we’ll see.

* Left-hander DL Hall will make his second relief appearance tonight with Norfolk, which begins a six-game series in Jacksonville.

Hall worked two innings Thursday. The Orioles envision using him for one-to-three innings out of their bullpen when he’s ready.

The gap between appearances with the Tides puts him on regular rest tonight. The next step is getting him into games with shorter breaks, placing him on a reliever’s schedule.

* Six pitchers were added yesterday to Single-A Delmarva’s roster – three draft picks and three undrafted free agents.

The draft selections are fifth-rounder Trace Bright (Auburn), 10^th-rounder Wyatt Cheney (McLennan Community College) and 16^th-rounder Graham Firovid (Virginia Tech).

That trio joins Cooper Chandler (Rice), Hayden Nierman (UNLV), and Trey Nordmann (Lipscomb).

The Shorebirds’ roster now holds 15 members of the 2022 draft haul.

Delmarva is home tonight to begin a series against Lynchburg.

* Outfielder Douglas Hodo III, chosen in the sixth round out of the University of Texas, joined the Florida Complex League Orioles yesterday and went 1-for-3.

Shortstop Jackson Holliday, the first-overall pick, went 0-for-2 with two walks and an RBI. He’s batting .368 (7-for-19) with a double, home run, nine walks, only one strikeout and a 1.131 OPS.

Holliday is the Orioles’ No. 3 prospect in MLBPipeline.com’s updated organizational rankings, behind Henderson and pitcher Grayson Rodriguez.

Outfielder Colton Cowser is fourth, infielder Jordan Westburg fifth, and Hall sixth.

Outfielder Dylan Beavers, the 33^rd-overall selection this year out of the University of California, is eighth after third baseman Coby Mayo.

The rankings also include trade deadline acquisitions Seth Johnson, who’s 11^th and recovering from Tommy John surgery, Chayce McDermott (14^th), and Cade Povich (15^th).