Hyde on Cobb, Davis, aggression, outfield and more (O's down 5-2)

SARASOTA, Fla. - Alex Cobb threw four innings this morning in his simulated game on Camden Yards South and Chris Davis didn't report any discomfort in his left hip, which puts him in line to return to the lineup after Monday's off-day.

"(Davis) swung the bat good. Cobb looked great. So yeah, real productive," said manager Brandon Hyde.

Cobb's next start is put on hold after the arrival Friday night of his baby girl.

"I watched the first few innings and ball was coming out great," Hyde said. "Obviously, he's got a little fatigue from lack of sleep the last few nights, but I think he's happy with how he threw."

Trey Mancini will start at first base Tuesday night against the Yankees in Tampa and will get more reps at the position in the final weeks of camp. But don't read too much into it.

"Trey's going to start working into first base a little bit more, as well as still playing in the outfield," Hyde said. "You're going to see guys move around a little bit more, just to get guys acclimated so when the season comes that I don't put them in a spot where they haven't been over there. You're going to see that with a lot of guys."

Davis will only play first base upon his return, despite his experience at third and in the outfield.

"I just want him to really focus on his offense and play first base. Right now that's where we're at," Hyde said.

The designated hitter spot opens up if Mark Trumbo begins the season on the injured list, but it won't belong exclusively to one player. Davis won't automatically be pushed to DH while Mancini plays first.

"I think anybody's a candidate to get DH at-bats," Hyde said. "If Mark's not ready, it will be night to night on who's going to be the DH.

"Mancini's at first because I think you want to have versatility on your roster, so it's having the guy be able to play different spots. His natural position is first base. That's why I wasn't in a rush to put him over there. I want him to get a ton of reps in left field first and then we'll kind of ease into first base, and that should be an easy transition for him because he's just done it his whole life. It's more about having your roster be versatile and have guys play all over the place."

The Orioles lead the Grapefruit League and rank second in spring training with 19 stolen bases, trailing only the Padres (25). They've been thrown out on seven attempts.

Much of the aggression will carry into the regular season, but not exactly as portrayed down in Florida.

"I think we're freeing guys up a lot in spring training because I wanted guys to showcase if they could run and if they could steal. But I think the aggressiveness on the bases, from a baserunning standpoint, I'd like to stay that way," Hyde said.

"There's going to be certain times we're not going to go first to third like we have in camp. Just because I want everybody to go first to third in camp, just to stretch their limits. And I wanted them to see how, even if they think they're going to be dead out, how close they actually are and how they can be safe on certain balls that they probably didn't think they could.

"So we're going to pick our spots a little more in that way, but I still want us to be aggressive on dirt-ball reads, I still wants us to be aggressive on going first to third in the right times. I want us to put pressure on the defense. We're not going to be as green light as we are basestealing-wise, but we need to be aggressive because we're just not going to be able to hit three-run homers all game long, so we're going to have to generate offense that way and grind at the plate and run the bases well."

Guys who are given the green light to steal might not always have it.

"That has to be determined," Hyde said. "We green-light certain guys certain nights. It all changes depending on pitcher-catcher matchup and certain things. Me, Arnie (Beyler) and Flo (José Flores) get together, usually, before the game and talk about matchups that we like and green certain guys. We do a lot of homework on pitchers and catchers and counts and all sorts of things that go into it.

"Spring training you're pretty much, the leash is off and the score doesn't dictate it as much and that kind of thing, but when the season comes it's a little different."

Flores replaces Bobby Dickerson - who's here today with the Phillies - as third base coach and he won't be timid.

"Yeah, Flo's going to be aggressive," Hyde said. "He's been aggressive so far this spring. We believe in making the defense make a play on you. Obviously, not run into silly outs. Really, the scoreboard tells you a lot about how you play. But if it's a play that can go either way we're going to err on the side of aggressiveness."

Dwight Smith Jr. isn't in today's lineup, but he'll also get a look after coming to the Orioles in a trade with the Blue Jays, squeezing into an outfield competition where the candidates are "tightly bunched," in Hyde's words.

"The tough decisions are great because they're playing well and I hope Dwight comes in here and plays really, really well and makes it even harder on everybody," Hyde said. "But I think it's pretty fair to say that everybody's got a real equal opportunity in the outfield. A lot of guys have gotten a ton of at-bats and gotten an opportunity to play and taken advantage of it. I'm really pleased with how those guys have played."

Update: DJ Stewart had a two-out RBI single in the first inning to give the Orioles a 1-0 lead.

Update II: Phil Gosselin homered with one out in the second to tie the game.

Update III: Jonathan Villar is 2-for-2 today with a stolen base, and he scored on a wild pitch in the third inning to give the Orioles a 2-1 lead.

Update IV: Tanner Chleborad let an inherited runner score and one of his own in the fourth inning and the Phillies lead the Orioles 3-2.

Josh Rogers is charged with two runs and five hits in 3 2/3 innings, with no walks and four strikeouts.

Chleborad surrendered a two-run single to Nick Williams to increase the lead to 5-2 in the fourth.