Early notes on Hardy, youthful core and Castro (O's lead 6-0)

BOSTON - The fuss over Players Weekend has died down today, including the obsession with uniforms, spikes and nicknames. No roster moves by the Orioles, no intrigue over the rotation or the closer's health.

Feels like a normal day at Fenway Park, except the Orioles are still wearing bright orange caps that look yellowish in most photos.

(And by "most," I mean all of mine.)

Shortstop J.J. Hardy remains with Triple-A Norfolk and will play again tonight. Manager Buck Showalter checked again with third base coach Bobby Dickerson, who's in daily contact with Hardy.

"Things are going well. Hoping not too far away," Showalter said.

"That's the standard J.J. question and the standard answer, right?"

According to STATS Research, the Orioles are the only American League team with three players - Manny Machado, Jonathan Schoop and Trey Mancini - with at least 69 RBIs. The Reds and Nationals have four and the Rockies have three.

The youthful core continues to lift the club.

"It's good to see. It helps us win games," Showalter said. "But scoring runs hasn't been a problem, it's keeping the other team from scoring, especially from a starting standpoint. And keeping away from that mentality of, how much is enough?' But it's been fun to watch those three. It bodes well for our future."

Miguel Castro also has been a big contributor, and he really seemed to come out of nowhere, though it actually was the Rockies in an April 7 trade for a player to be named later or cash.

Castro tossed 3 2/3 scoreless innings to earn the win Wednesday afternoon against the Athletics and he's carrying a 2.74 ERA and 1.022 WHIP in 29 appearances. He went 2 1/3 scoreless innings in back-to-back games before going on the bereavement list.

There may not be another reliever who needs less recovery time, but that's only a surface observation.

"That's easy to say, but you've got to always say, 'OK, is that because he's telling us what he thinks he wants to hear?'"

Showalter checks with interpreter Ramon Alarcon and pitcher Ubaldo Jiménez to make certain that Castro is being truthful.

"If he doesn't feel well, he's got to tell somebody. If he's afraid if he says he doesn't feel pretty good, that he's going to be sent down," Showalter said. "That's why we didn't pitch him the last two days. I think sometimes we're going to have to be the voice of reason for him instead of, 'Oh, this guy's got a rubber arm.'

"I've heard them say that about a lot of pitchers and all of a sudden they're on the DL and you want to go, 'What happened to that rubber arm?' Well, you made it not rubber anymore, but pretty rigid."

The Orioles must decide whether Castro, 22, will enter camp next spring on a starter's schedule or continue his invaluable work out of the bullpen. A long reliever who gets outs and insists that he's ready to pitch again with minimal breaks. A guy who was deemed a project of sorts as he threw in Sarasota following the trade.

"I think he really knows that we have his best interests in mind," Showalter said. "They put him on a program. Here's where everything we told him was going to happen. He's in a good place. You can tell, mentally and physically.

"I told you guys, a lot of people see this big, strapping guy and they miss a lot of things about him. He's a sharp guy, he watches the games, he's very competitive, he ain't scared and he wants it. He's willing to do whatever it takes. He doesn't want to go back down."

Castro has thrown 46 innings in the majors this summer and 24 1/3 at Double-A Bowie, and he shows no signs of wilting. The most innings he's thrown are 80 1/3 in the low minors in 2014.

"The starts were a long time ago," Showalter said, "so he's probably pitched some of his longest outings with us this year."

The Orioles have considered the idea of sending him to the instructional league.

"We're hoping that won't be possible," Showalter said.

Update: Tim Beckham punctuated a five-run second inning with a three-run shot off Eduardo Rodriguez to give the Orioles a 5-0 lead.

Mark Trumbo and Craig Gentry had RBI singles and Beckham won a nine-pitch battle with Rodriguez to give the Orioles their second 5-0, second-inning lead in two games.

Update II: Jonathan Schoop hit his 28th home run, a solo shot in the eighth inning to give the Orioles a 6-0 lead. Schoop's 95 RBIs are an Orioles record for a second baseman.