Matt Wieters on tonight's start and Kevin Gausman on starting season on DL

SARASOTA, Fla. - Matt Wieters said he wanted to catch in two Grapefruit League games before the Orioles break camp. He already had circled Thursday on the calendar. It made sense to also get into tonight's lineup against the Braves.

The weather may not cooperate, but Wieters is ready to get behind the plate in an exhibition game for the first time since playing one inning on March 12 and leaving with a sore right elbow.

Wieters caught an intrasquad game at Twin Lakes Park and has been batting from both sides of the plate.

By appearing in a paid-admission game, Wieters no longer could have an assignment to the disabled list backdated to March 25. However, he intends to be in the lineup on April 4 at Camden Yards.

"I'm confident with it," he said. "I think we're to the point now that this choice was I would rather get two games of big league spring training in than one. I've felt comfortable with the arm to where it's good enough to be able to go out there and play in a big league game, and like I'd said, I'd rather have two than one."

So Wieters is on track for the opener?

"Yeah, that's the plan," he said. "And even one (exhibition game), we probably still would be on track. I just would prefer to have two as opposed to one."

Just don't read anything into Wieters batting second tonight.

"Hey, I can roll over some balls if somebody gets on first base," he quipped. "We'll go first to third in a hurry."

Kevin Gausman is headed to the disabled list with tendinitis in his right shoulder.

"I kind of saw this coming," he said. "I knew I wasn't going to be ready by opening day, so I wasn't really surprised. Obviously, I didn't want to start the season on the DL, but I'd rather get it fixed than go into the season worried about something."

Gausman threw on flat ground yesterday from 90 feet.

"Everything feels great," he said. "I played catch twice now, so take a day today and then tomorrow I'll throw to 120 and probably take another day off and then a bullpen, so the plan is to throw a bullpen on the 1st. And then if everything goes well after that, I'll probably throw another one.

"I think the plan is for me to be ready two weeks, 2 1/2 weeks into the season. Like I said, just happy to kind of get this out of the way. It sucks to go back to square one and have to get work to stretch back out, but don't want to try to rush it and end up hurting myself again."

The Orioles need a fifth starter on April 10 and it seems unlikely that Gausman will be ready. However, he isn't ruling it out.

"Maybe," he said. "It's really kind of on how I feel. I feel great right now. I feel like everything's good, but if I get off the mound the first time and start to feel it again, then obviously we'll kind of reevaluate when we get there. But to say that anything is kind of out of the realm of possibility I think is unfair.

"I'd love to pitch the 10th, I'd love to pitch the 4th, too, but that's not going to happen. So hopefully I'm ready sometime around there. Like I said, my goal is the first couple weeks of the season."

Gausman will remain in Sarasota when the Orioles break camp following Thursday afternoon's game against the Braves.

"I'm going to stay down here and rehab here," he said. "I think the extended rehab guys start the 5th. I think I'll probably pitch one of the first couple days of that in a game and kind of see how I feel and go from there."

Relievers listed behind starter Miguel Gonzalez tonight include Zach Britton, Dylan Bundy, Darren O'Day, Zach Phillips and Chaz Roe.

The Orioles are sending over pitchers Jason Stoffel, Ashur Tolliver and Richard Rodriguez, infielders Ozzie Martinez, Garabez Rosa and Michael Almanzar, and outfielder Julio Borbon from minor league camp.

For the Braves
Ender Inciarte DH
Erick Aybar SS
Tyler Moore 1B
Kelly Johnson 2B
Hector Olivera LF
Jeff Francoeur RF
Tyler Flowers C
Michael Bourn CF
Gordon Beckham 3B

Matt Wisler RHP