Dwight Smith Jr. reports to summer training camp

The Orioles have a full camp roster at Camden Yards with outfielder Dwight Smith Jr. reporting today.

The club hasn't explained Smith's absence, but it's tied to COVID-19 testing. He's been quarantined prior to his return to the ballpark.

Manager Brandon Hyde, on his daily Zoom conference call with the media, said Smith tracked pitches earlier today.

"We'll be working him into our workouts going forward," Hyde said.

"I don't have any idea if Smitty's going to be ready or not, so I don't want to commit to that."

Hyde is more optimistic about Anthony Santander, who was cleared for workouts a few days ago and increased his activity today beyond tracking pitches and running the bases.

"I think that Anthony looks great," Hyde said. "He just took a bunch of live at-bats. He was hitting line drives all over the park with some homers. I think that he's got a real chance to breaking with the club if everything stays on course right now. I think without hiccups that there's a possibility.

"I think Tony is trending in the right direction."

The Orioles have been more fortunate than other teams in keeping players healthy and avoiding setbacks in a short summer training camp.

"It starts with our ownership and the senior leadership team in putting everything in place and really making our health a priority," Hyde said. "I feel that (head athletic trainer) Brian Ebel and his staff, which I've mentioned before, have just been amazing working with our senior leadership team and ownership and really keeping our players, coaches, everybody here down on the ground floor safe.

"We noticed initially when we first got here all the time and effort that was put into that and how it was really thoughtful of how they are treating us, with our safety and health first and foremost. Our guys are really appreciative of that. We haven't had hardly any complaints, if any, on how we're going about things. I think it's running ridiculously smooth. With all the things we're doing every day that are so much different, it's as smooth as it can possibly be and that really starts with the leadership of this organization and what they have put in place for us. And our players have bought into that and followed suit."

The swelling in reliever Dillon Tate's right elbow has been reduced and he could play catch over the weekend. However, he appears to have fallen out of the competition for a bullpen job.

"With us breaking next Friday, I think it's going to be a challenge for him to be (at) opening day," Hyde said, "but I love that guy's makeup and nothing that he does every surprises me."

The Orioles are prepping today for their second intrasquad game that's been super-sized to include crowd noise, music, a working scoreboard and more intensity on the field with captains choosing the teams.

Last night's experiment received a passing grade.

"Talking with some guys today a little bit about it, there was just something about a little bit of a buzz in the crowd that I think is helpful," Hyde said. "It wasn't such a stale feeling. We had walkup music for guys, also. I thought it created a good atmosphere, as good as it could possibly be."

Reliever Richard Bleier sat under one of the tents in the stands last night that's been constructed as a dugout extension. He seemed to enjoy the atmosphere from his unique vantage point.

"I think that the crowd noise is a nice touch and the cheers and all that, and the announcer (Ryan Wagner) and the music," he said today on a Zoom call. "I think all that stuff is going to be beneficial for players to be able to treat it like, get guys into the game as much as possible as a regular major league season game with fans and stuff like that. I like the noise. It's a nice thing that MLB is doing.

"As far as the seating under the tent, great seats, honestly. It was nice to watch a game there. There's a different perspective for me. I haven't watched a game in the stands since my minor league games of charting (pitches) behind home plate. But never from the first base side or the third base side. You see different things over there definitely. It was fun."

The social distancing is harder on Bleier, whose sharp wit is wasted in a duller setting.

He's a talker. He's a jokester. And his audience is dwindling.

"It's been a challenge for me, but we're still around each other and not near each other, but we still have a good time responsibly," he said. "It has been an adjustment for myself and my personality, but I think people are probably enjoying it to a point. There are some positives. But no, it's different and it's just something we all have to get used to and make the best of the situation and get a job done."

Bleier made it out of Florida, where the coronavirus is spiking, and found a setup at Camden Yards that eased any reservations he had about attempting to pitch in 2020.

"If I did, once I saw the safety protocols that MLB put in place, I didn't anymore," he said. "It is above and beyond. They're definitely looking out for the safety of the players here. It's been extremely impressive, especially what the Orioles are doing here. Everything is very strict. The second that I am done eating, if I don't put my mask back on, I feel like I'm getting chased down the halls or whatever.

"We're running a tight ship and rightfully so and I think that it could work out because of the strict protocols put in place."

Bleier threw to hitters for almost two months during the shutdown, facing a group of major leaguers at Cressey Sports Performance, a fitness facility in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.

"It just worked out that I had a great situation close to home," he said. "I just feel like I tried to stay as ready as possible, knowing that it's going to be a short season and I'm not going to have this tremendous workload of innings and every inning is really going to count and I have to take advantage of every outing I get."

He'd like to find a few more in the postseason, no matter how improbable it sounds.

A schedule reduced to 60 games tends to make the optimism flow through the summer training camps.

"I think it's going to make it a lot more interesting. You just never know what can happen," Bleier said.

"Obviously, a great example everybody is using is the Nationals in the other way. They got off to such a poor start and ended up winning the World Series. If we get off to a good start, as Hyde's saying, it's a sprint, it's not a marathon. The chances of us being competitive I feel like are better with a 60-game season than a 162-game season. Not saying we can't be competitive over a full regular season, but a shortened season definitely I think bodes in our favor."

Notes: Hyde said it's realistic to expect the club to carry 15 or 16 pitchers on opening day.

The Orioles will pay their full-time employees and year-round part-time staff through Aug. 14. The most recent update had payments guaranteed through today.

Major League Baseball and the MLB Players Association announced that only six of 10,548 samples tested last week for COVID-19 came back positive. Five of the six were players and one was a staff member.

The week included a five-day period with no new positives reported.