Orioles catch one roster break by losing Cowser to fractured thumb

Baseball has a way of cleaning up messes even while creating more turmoil.

The Orioles must decide how to find a roster spot for Gunnar Henderson, who’s eligible to return Thursday from the injured list. They are off today and have one more game without their All-Star shortstop.

“We got like one of the best players in the world coming back,” said first baseman Ryan O’Hearn. “So that’s a good thing.”

The bad thing was losing a teammate to make it happen.

The Orioles want to hold onto Jorge Mateo for his elite speed and defensive versatility. They want Ramón Urías getting bulk starts at third base, and he keeps hitting, singling twice yesterday to make him 6-for-15 in four games. They won’t option Jackson Holliday, who also singled twice yesterday and drove in a run, because this is his time to show that he can be as special as advertised.

They also want to avoid optioning outfielder Heston Kjerstad, who won’t ever live up to his status as a second-overall draft pick if he doesn’t play. Kjerstad struck out twice yesterday with multiple runners on base but lined an RBI single into left field in a four-run eighth.

They signed outfielder Ramón Laureano to a $4 million contract for his right-handed bat and defense. He won’t be judged on a disappointing Monday.

Of course, something happened that bailed out the Orioles before Henderson returned to them. Colton Cowser fractured his left thumb Sunday while diving into first base at Rogers Centre, and a solution was laid at their feet.

Outfielder Dylan Carlson was recalled from Triple-Norfolk to replace Cowser, who’s expected to miss six-to-eight weeks, and he could be optioned if the Orioles are fine with carrying seven infielders. Mateo and O’Hearn can back up in the outfield.

Carlson was signed to a $975,000 contract for this reason. He can play anywhere in the outfield, he’s a switch-hitter and he has options. Riding the shuttle can chafe a guy, but it counts as a role and it might happen to him.

Depth signings over big splashes aren’t popular, but Carlson is an example of how the Orioles sought to upgrade the roster. If he goes, he’s coming back later. And maybe again and again.

There’s no way or sane reason to downplay the significance of losing Cowser. Having it happen early leaves a big chunk of the season that he can impact, but in the meantime, the Orioles don’t have his defense in tricky left field at Camden Yards and a bat that can play all the hits. He appeared in 153 games last season and accumulated 561 plate appearances. He isn’t a platoon or semi-platoon guy. He’s supposed to be in the lineup on most nights.

Henderson can replace Cowser as the leadoff hitter, a role that last season’s Rookie of the Year runner-up handled in Toronto against four right-handed starters, but the Orioles will feel his loss. Henderson would miss only six games if he’s back Thursday. Cowser is gone for at least two months with his second fluke injury in a short span.

The left hand was fractured after he swung at a pitch in the Wild Card round and was hit by it. He dived into first base Sunday while trying to beat out a ground ball and jammed his thumb into the bag. And he was called out, doubling his pain.

The Orioles scored eight runs yesterday, but none from the second through seventh innings. They have the types of hitters who can spit out home runs like tobacco juice or manufacture line drives, walks and stolen bases. Cowser has those skills, but they’re on ice.

Kjerstad didn’t want an injury to open doors for him, but here we are, with Cowser’s removal from the active roster leading manager Brandon Hyde to start him against Red Sox left-hander Sean Newcomb. He increased the lead to 5-3 in the eighth by lining a 96.7 mph four-seam fastball from right-hander Justin Slaten into left field to score Tyler O’Neill.

“Tough assignment,” Hyde said. “Put him in the middle of the order against a left-handed starter, something that hasn’t happened - not knowing how long their starter was going to go. To have three tough at-bats and to be able to stay on the baseball that last one.

“Heston’s a good hitter. He’s got tons of power but he’s a good hitter and he can use the whole field, and when he does, good things happen.”

To get Kjerstad in the lineup more and be rewarded for it would ease the loss of Cowser and provide the thinnest of silver linings. You take those. But 2025 is shaping up to be another season where the Orioles fall back on their resiliency as much as their talent and try to stay competitive while waiting to get back to fuller strength.