Inviting more discussion about camp roster

With the 40-man roster full and the 12 camp invitees revealed, it's time to uphold our little tradition here and pick a spring training dark horse.

You reserve the right to change your mind if someone is added to the roster who emerges as a more desirable candidate. But in the meantime ...

The dark horse must be a pitcher or position player who unexpectedly heads north with the team. There aren't many open spots remaining, which amps up the challenge.

I'm going with Japanese knuckleballer Tomo Ohka, who turns 41 next month, is reporting to the minor league complex at Twins Lakes Park and hasn't pitched in the majors since 2009. I'm also pulling your leg. We'll never see him unless he's summoned to cover extra innings.

Two of the interesting omissions from the invite list are infielders Garabez Rosa and Sean Coyle.

Rosa, 27, wears out a path every spring between Twin Lakes Park and the Ed Smith Stadium complex. Manager Buck Showalter always wants him around as a "just in case" guy at home and on the road. Rosa responded last year by going 12-for-21 with a home run and 10 RBIs. He devours fastballs like Pac-Man.

Rosa batted .303/.326/.412 in 110 games this summer with Double-A Bowie and he's the Baysox's career leader in games played (466) and hits (488). He was chosen to the Eastern League All-Star team last summer and has manned every position in the infield and outfield, but he still must not be considered utility material in the majors.

Coyle, 25, was a third-round pick of the Red Sox in 2010. He batted .295/.371/.512 with 23 doubles, 16 home runs and 61 RBIs in 97 games with Double-A Portland in 2014, but injuries short-circuited his career the past two seasons.

Coyle mostly plays second base, but the Orioles signed Johnny Giavotella and Robert Andino to minor league deals and they're both on the camp roster.

The Orioles placed Joe Gunkel on the 40-man roster to protect him in the Rule 5 draft and he'll try to break camp as a long reliever/swingman. They're not sure whether his stuff plays in the majors, but they know that he throws strikes.

Gunkel, 25, walked three batters in 19 2/3 innings at Bowie and 18 in 141 1/3 innings at Triple-A Norfolk. He walked 27 batters in 144 2/3 innings with three teams in 2015 and averages 1.6 walks per nine innings over four minor league seasons. He's also allowed 0.7 home runs per nine innings.

"Joe's one of those guys who the more you see him pitch, the more impressive he is," said reliever Oliver Drake. "You can see him throw one time and you might not walk away impressed, but the more you see him pitch, you realize he is so consistent. He goes out there, he fills up the strike zone, he's got really good stuff and guys can't square it up. And it's awesome to have a guy like that on your team.

"You're sitting out there and he's filling the zone, getting quick outs, quick innings. And every time out there, you know what to expect from him because he's so consistent."

Gunkel told the media contingent at minicamp that he had an inkling the Orioles would place him on the 40-man, but he didn't walk around with fingers crossed.

"It wasn't something that I was hoping for," he said. "I had a pretty good idea that they might put me on it. Once that day came, I was kind of looking at my phone, waiting for a phone call and hopefully I got it later that day."

Director of player development Brian Graham delivered the news.

"He sent his congratulations," Gunkel said. "It was like, I earned this. I worked hard for this. It's just nice to know that you get an opportunity going in. It makes it one step easier to get called up, so going into spring training you know if you put the work in, the opportunity is going to be there."

It's most likely going to be in the bullpen with the rotation seemingly set. And it doesn't matter to Gunkel. He'll bust through any door to get to the majors.

"You talk about that, and it's something I can't control," he said. "I'm just coming down here and getting ready for that first regular season game. Whether I'm in Norfolk or in Baltimore, I want to get ready for that first regular season game."

Meanwhile, we're still waiting for the Orioles to announce their minor league staffs and introduce Howie Clark as the new assistant hitting coach. We already saw new minor league pitching coordinator John Wasdin at minicamp.

I wrote previously that Buck Britton, older brother of closer Zach Britton, was hired as a minor league coach. I'm wondering if he also provides infield depth.

Shameless plug alert: After whiffing on the last two, including my appearance Tuesday on "The Mid-Atlantic Sports Report" on MASN, I'm here to tell you that I'm again co-hosting the "Hot Stove Show" from 6-7 p.m. on 105.7 The Fan. Third baseman Manny Machado and first baseman Trey Mancini are the phone-in guests.

This is my last appearance at Dempsey's Brew Pub & Restaurant before heading to spring training, but the show must go on. It eventually will move to the Ed Smith Stadium complex upon Jim Hunter's arrival. In the meantime, stay tuned for updates.