Hyde on Stewart, opportunties and improved bullpen

The roster is set at 28 players after the Orioles optioned DJ Stewart to the alternate camp site at Bowie following last night's doubleheader. No moves have been made this afternoon, and the team is doing stretching exercises and taking batting practice after an earlier gathering on the field with manager Brandon Hyde that included a round of applause but no explanation.

Stewart missed it. He left the club last night after going 0-for-14 with six walks and eight strikeouts this season.

"Like we talked about last night, I'd just like to free him up a little bit," Hyde said during his Zoom conference call. "I think that he was just pressing, trying to get a bunch of hits in one at-bat, and just like to see him go down there and take a lot of non-pressure at-bats and work on some things mechanically without having to produce at the major league level with the stats that count.

"He's got the opportunity to go down there and really work on some things and take a lot of free at-bats versus right and left without any pressure at all, and I think that's important. I think that's a good thing for a young player."

Pressure can come from opportunities that are slipping away and a shortened season that won't allow for extended auditions. Stewart isn't the only outfielder trying to become established.

"I think that they are very aware that there's a ton of opportunity here," Hyde said. "I'm sure they feel like if they do well that they're going to stay and play a lot, and I think maybe that's some added pressure, but that's also part of being in the big leagues and pressure comes along with it and you have to embrace it. Some guys handle it different. Some guys rise up, some guys try too hard at times. I think that's just natural human nature.

"But I think everybody's aware of the opportunity they have here. We talk about it a lot. Talk a lot with you guys about the opportunity these guys are getting. Same as this year. Guys are up here and they play well, they're going to continue to play. I hope we don't put any undue pressure on them. Maybe it's just the situation that we're in here that they're not having to wait their turn, that the opportunity is in front of them. I'm just hoping that they take advantage of it."

Going hitless in 14 at-bats with only 60 games on the schedule is magnified. But again, Stewart isn't the only player on the roster whose bat hasn't heated up. There could be other casualties.

"This is a sprint season, and a lot of these guys put a ton of work in for this sprint season and I'm sure they all wanted to get off to really good starts and to impress and solidify themselves like some of our guys did last year," Hyde said.

"I want to believe that they want to play free and easy and not put pressure on themselves, but I also think that's very, very normal. I think what you saw the last couple days with our offense is guys just trying to do way, way too much outside of themselves in their at-bats, things that we weren't doing the first seven, eight games. Really laying off tough pitches.

"I thought their intent and the quality of their at-bats were really good against some really good pitching, and I just felt like we've got away from that the last couple days and put a little too much pressure on ourselves."

The bullpen hasn't brought the same angst for the most part, with Miguel Castro tossing two scoreless and hitless innings with four strikeouts last night in the opening game of the doubleheader and Tanner Scott retiring the side in order in the sixth inning of the nightcap with three ground balls.

Two relievers blessed with big-time arms that can't always be harnessed, Castro hasn't allowed a run in 6 1/3 innings, with one walk and eight strikeouts while working out of the stretch, and Scott has produced 3 2/3 scoreless with one hit, two walks and four strikeouts.

Cole Sulser has taken over the closer's role and notched three saves. Mychal Givens hasn't allowed a run in three innings, striking out five batters. Shawn Armstrong's been tagged only with two unearned runs in three innings, and he's struck out four.

Scott is more important to the unit with Richard Bleier traded to the Marlins.

"Really impressed with our bullpen," Hyde said. "I think that's been a real bright spot for us. Our pitching in general has been a real bright spot for us. Some of the things that we talked about a lot this offseason and in spring training, the first one, they're doing. And they're commanding the ball.

"Tanner comes in last night in a one-run game and really has great stuff. But I've just been impressed with all of them. Evan Phillips, Tanner, Army, Suls, Mychal Givens. They've all done a really, really nice job out of the bullpen of not allowing free baserunners and pitching ahead in the count, and credit goes to our starters who put them in that position also, where I'm not having to, at this point, overuse guys or putting guys in situations that I normally wouldn't want to, which happened a lot last year. Where I was going with possibly three or four guys available out of the bullpen a night, now there's more options, and the expanded roster is helping that, also.

"But I've really been impressed with our pitching and knock on wood it continues. I do like the stuff that's down there. Losing Richard does increase s guy like Tanner Scott, a guy like Paul Fry, a guy like Evan Phillips, who's kind of a reverse guy who gets righties and lefties out, historically. We'll use those guys more in close situations late."