Not in lineup, Mark Trumbo provides an update on his back spasms

The Orioles' Mark Trumbo feels he could play in tonight's game against the Tampa Bay Rays. But for the second game in a row, he is not starting due to back spasms.

Trumbo is batting .248 with a major league-leading 42 homers and 100 RBIs, ninth-most in the majors. He has missed just two of the team's first 147 games. He might miss a third tonight, but he said this afternoon that the issue has improved.

"It has," Trumbo said. "I'm not starting tonight, but I'm definitely available to hit or whatever, later in the game.

"It's no big deal. You think about how many swings we take throughout the course of the year, usually at one point or another things will back up just a little bit. And that's all it is here. You just don't want it to get any worse."

Trumbo said he and the team have to weigh the benefits of not starting tonight against the fact that games and wins are so critical so late in the season.

"Yeah, it's always something," he said. "No matter what point in the year, but especially now. You want to make as smart of a decision as you can. This seems to make the most sense right now. But I could have a big at-bat later tonight, so ..."

Trumbo, who made his second All-Star team this year, hit .288 with 28 homers, 68 RBIs and a .923 OPS in the first half. Since the break, he has hit .181 with 14 homers, 32 RBIs and a .676 OPS.

He has had spasms before, not only earlier in his career, but earlier in this season.

"Probably quite a few. But this one in particular, this just seemed to be the smart decision," he said. "You play through a lot of pain throughout the course of the year. But sometimes you have to make a call that's not the easiest."