Mike Wright on starting the first exhibition game

SARASOTA, Fla. - Chris Davis passed through the press workroom this morning and was subjected to the traditional media selfie. Our latest victim.

The annual nutrition meeting is being held this morning inside the Orioles clubhouse. Players are reminded not to chug bacon fat.

I'll always appreciate the year that one player brought in a box of donuts for the occasion.

Mike Wright wants to slice through the Braves' lineup on Tuesday like a hot knife through butter. Also not recommended by nutritionists, by the way.

Wright is starting the exhibition opener against the Braves in Lake Buena Vista. The stadium address is Kissimmee. Many writers refer to the area as Orlando. I just know that if you're not wearing Mickey Mouse ears, you'll stand out in the crowd.

"It's exciting," said Wright, who will be followed to the mound by Tyler Wilson. "Like I said, my ultimate goal this whole offseason is to make the rotation and this is just the first step. I've got to start in spring training games, so I'll just go out there and try to relax and have fun and make my case."

The rotation appears to be set with Chris Tillman, Yovani Gallardo, Ubaldo Jimenez, Miguel Gonzalez and Kevin Gausman, but Wright isn't conceding defeat. He knows a spot could open up and he needs to be ready and to impress.

"Yeah, absolutely," said Wright, who was 3-5 with a 6.04 ERA in 12 appearances, including nine starts, as a rookie last year. "I'm pulling for everyone ahead of me, they are great guys, but there's always things that happen.

"Yesterday, Tillman didn't throw. That's not to say he won't by the time the season does, and I hope he does. I wouldn't wish an injury on anyone. But if I just shut it down and stop competing, that's not good for the team. The same with Tyler or anybody. There's always spots available when somebody gets hurt or something happens, so I'm definitely approaching it the same way."

Wright, 26, and Wilson will go two innings if their pitch counts allow it. Wright, who registered 14 1/3 scoreless innings in his first two starts last year, has been throwing all of his pitches in camp.

"I feel good about all of them," said Wright, who was 9-1 with a 2.22 ERA in 15 games at Triple-A Norfolk last season. "I'm going to approach it just like a regular game and give it everything I've got."

Players may not look forward to the long bus ride to the Braves complex, but at least they're playing an actual game. Even if it's just the Grapefruit League.

"You know, every game counts," Wright said. "Buck (Showalter) looks at everything. Nothing gets past him. But it's exciting to have another team in the box and to really start competing and have your teammates behind you and have some real games to get us going into the real season."

The Orioles signed pitchers Sam Deduno and Nate Adcock to minor league contracts, according to the latest batch of Baseball America transactions.

Deduno, 32, is 16-20 with a 4.38 ERA in parts of six major league seasons with four teams. He's made 17 starts among his 44 appearances.

Deduno was limited to nine appearances (two starts) with the Astros last season due to a hip injury and allowed 16 runs and 24 hits in 21 innings. He's also pitched for the Rockies, Padres and Twins.

Adcock, 28, is 2-6 with a 4.17 ERA in 56 games, including five starts, over parts of four seasons. He was 1-2 with a 6.00 ERA in 13 relief appearances with the Reds last season and also has pitched for the Royals and Rangers.