Learning more about start of spring training and season

The structure of the 2021 season is beginning to take shape.

And just in time.

The union rejected, as expected, a proposal from Major League Baseball that would have pushed back opening day about a month and reduced the schedule to 154 games with full pay. The plan included expanded playoffs and a universal designated hitter.

Seemed reasonable to me - especially the part about full pay - but players are concerned that there's a higher risk of injury if the season starts on April 28. Pitchers are ramping up and building toward the opening of camps, with the Orioles' first workout to be held on Feb. 17.

A friend who was venting to me said, "These guys aren't made of glass." There must be a safe way to dial it down a bit and work back up. But I've never pitched and won't claim to be an authority. They're routine-driven and leery of more disruptions.

We saw plenty of injuries last summer after the shutdown and July resumption of camp.

I'll stop thinking back to the days of four-man rotations and starters logging 300 innings and collecting complete games like they were coins.

The pandemic still exists. That seems to be a bigger risk. But I'm not a medical expert. I just play one on social media.

I recently spoke to a former manager who thinks having pitchers go from a 60- to 162-game season is just inviting injuries. "Guys won't be able to scratch their ..."

The league refused to guarantee players compensation for canceled games. They feared that an expanded postseason would reduce the competitive edge of some teams who didn't have to work as hard to get there and discourage them from spending money.

Let's be honest here, a Feb. 1 proposal came much too late. Was an Amazon driver delivering it? Ask him whatever happened to the hoodie I ordered for Christmas.

The union could have made a counter-proposal and declined. Also as expected. There's already an agreement in place for 2021. Strike talk will heat up after the season.

The 154-game season would have required more doubleheaders, also putting a strain on clubs.

Does anyone come out looking good in this fight?

The bell rang too late. So, let's just get on with it and find out whether safety protocols will be enough to prevent lockdowns and cancellations. Whether players gathering in Florida and Arizona can avoid testing positive and causing camps and the sport to again shut down.

Rosters will be set at 26, according to reports, with an extra player added for doubleheaders. The Orioles can prepare for a four-man bench and eight-man bullpen, if that's how they want to do it.

Keeping only four reserves, including a backup catcher, tightens the utility competition. Pat Valaika is expected to break camp with the team, but that doesn't leave a spot for Jahmai Jones or Stevie Wilkerson if the bench also holds an extra outfielder.

An outfielder can serve as the designated hitter. But if it's DJ Stewart, for example, Cedric Mullins sits with the reserves while Austin Hays starts in center field and Ryan Mountcastle and Anthony Santander handle the corners.

That's just one example, of course.

* Alex Cobb won't be in camp with the Orioles and is no longer able to observe the rebuild process from close distance.

He can still offer an opinion.

"There is no question they're heading in the right direction, their foundation of what they've built over there, what they've brought in, who Mike (Elias) has brought in," Cobb said yesterday during our phone conversation.

"Not only the technological advances that they've done, the way that they've been able to communicate those to the players, pitchers in particular, is just going to accelerate this rebuild that they have going. And from a fan standpoint I can totally understand we always want things faster, but I think they're going to surprise a lot of people with just how quickly that time actually comes.

"They're not just building for one or two years of success, they're building for sustained success over a long period of time. And the goal on their end is to not have to do this again, not have to do a complete teardown and rebuild. So they're doing things the right way and it is going to take time, but it's going to happen quicker than probably expected, and they're absolutely in the right direction."

The spin rate on Cobb's baseball world pointed him toward the Angels organization following this week's trade. He'll miss Baltimore, but enjoy being on the West Coast and within a short drive of the spring training complex.

"Been good crazy," he said. "It's been a lot of goodbyes, a lot of hellos. It's been nice."

* Félix Hernández, signed to a minor league contract last night, could be the first Cy Young Award winner to later pitch for the Orioles since Pat Hentgen, who won it with the Blue Jays in 1996. He wore the Orioles uniform from 2001-03.

Hernández was the American League recipient in 2010 with the Mariners.

Johan Santana (2006) doesn't count because he blew out his Achilles tendon after signing a minor league deal in 2014.

Doug Drabek won it for the Pirates in 1990 and ended his career with the Orioles eight years later. Fernando Valenzuela was the National League's Cy Young winner and Rookie of the Year with the Dodgers in 1981 and pitched in 32 games with the Orioles in 1993. Rick Sutcliffe won it in 1984 and started the first game at Camden Yards in 1992.

In case you were wondering.

Hernández owns a career 3.79 ERA in nine starts at Camden Yards.

* On this date in 2016, the Orioles acquired pitcher Odrisamer Despaigne from the Padres for minor league pitcher Jean Cosme.

The Orioles designated Despaigne for assignment on Sept. 5, 2016 to create a spot for left-hander Brian Duensing on the 40-man roster. He went 0-2 with a 5.60 ERA in 16 relief appearances, registered a 1.720 WHIP in 27 1/3 innings and never cracked the rotation. He also averaged 4.9 walks per nine innings.

The native of La Habana, Cuba was 1-9 with a 3.87 ERA in 18 games (17 starts) with Triple-A Norfolk.

The Marlins selected him off waivers later that month. He made three starts with the White Sox in 2019, allowing 14 runs and 24 hits and walking seven batters in 13 1/3 innings, and spent 2020 in the Korea Baseball Organization.

I was more interested in what happened to Cosme, a former 17th-round draft pick who was 20 when the Orioles traded him.

Cosme didn't make it past the Double-A level with the Padres, but he posted a 1.48 ERA and 1.110 WHIP and averaged 11.5 strikeouts per nine innings in 17 games at high Single-A Lake Elsinore in 2019. He's been pitching in the Puerto Rican Winter League after electing free agency in November.

On this date in 2011, the Orioles signed free-agent pitcher Justin Duchscherer and couldn't get him on a mound. They released him on Aug. 2 - we heard he was undergoing another hip surgery - and he was done.

He didn't like the media standing near his locker in spring training as it sought updates on his health. He'd be slated to throw in the bullpen and cancel at the last instant.

The 2011 spring training included a tour of the refurbished Ed Smith Stadium complex, where more work needed to be done but already qualified as a huge upgrade over Fort Lauderdale Stadium.

Vladimir Guerrero arrived in the clubhouse like a rock star, with teammates in awe and an entourage following him. Brian Matusz left the complex to have a wart removed from his pitching hand. New first baseman Derrek Lee tried to remain patient and accommodating as we received updates on his thumb injury, which caused his wrist to atrophy and forced the Orioles to send him to a hand specialist.

Outfielder Felix Pie jumped out of his car in the hotel parking lot as if wanting to fight me because, as I recall, I suggested that he might want to move his vehicle with traffic behind him, realized it was me and gave an awkward smile and wave.

I did the same in return.

The regular season included the resignation of pitching coach Mark Connor and the swapping of roles between third base coach John Russell and bench coach Willie Randolph. Andy MacPhail turned down an offer to remain president of baseball operations.

On this date in 2014, the Orioles signed left-hander Roy Merritt to a minor league deal. Exactly two years earlier they signed outfielder Andres Aguilar to minor league deal and four years earlier they signed third baseman Ronarsy Ledesma to a minor league contract.

Your guess is as good as mine.