Orioles make four cuts with one more pending (de San Miguel also cut)

SARASOTA, Fla. - The Orioles have reassigned pitchers Mike Wright, Eduardo Rodriguez and Zach Braddock, and catcher Luis Martinez to minor league camp. One more player will be cut today, but manager Buck Showalter hadn't informed him. Wright allowed one run and three hits today. Braddock still hasn't pitched after undergoing surgery last summer to repair a torn labrum, but he's finally been cleared to throw off a mound. Martinez didn't get any at-bats because of a strained oblique, but he's taking batting practice. Showalter will bring him back later, as he's done with other players at minor league camp. Also, catcher Taylor Teagarden took batting practice and participated in fielding drills today as he recovers from tightness in his lower back. Showalter still hasn't decided whether Nolan Reimold, who homered today, will play left field on Sunday. He could continue to be the designated hitter. Nick Markakis is penciled into Sunday's lineup. Update: Catcher Allan de San Miguel also was reassigned to minor league camp. The Orioles have 56 players in major league camp, including 16 non-roster invitees. de San Miguel played for Australia in the World Baseball Classic. The Orioles will make a few more cuts in the next day or two. "There's some timing involved with it," Showalter said. No surprises with today's cuts. Martinez is three or four days away from playing. "When they tell us he's ready to go and he's caught a little bit over there, we'll bring him back over for two or three good looks at him, four- or five- inning stints," Showalter said. "I really want to look at him. We've got some good reports on him, especially defensively, so you'll see him again." Showalter said Wright was "impressive." "Very similar stuff (to Rodriguez), except we just want to get him back on track," Showalter said. "He was a good-looking pitcher last year when he left here. Still have some high hopes for him. We had some periods where he got out of whack last year. Good to see him finish on a high note today." Rodriguez, 19, pitched in an intrasquad game and yesterday's exhibition game against Team Spain, tossing a scoreless ninth. He's regarded as one of the top pitching prospects in the organization, along with Wright - ranking just behind Dylan Bundy and Kevin Gausman. "His last outing, that was the one to get him out on," Showalter said. "Rick (Adair) had tried to shorten him up - he was 1.6 1.7 to the plate. You can't pitch in the big leagues at that. He'd gotten real slow with it. He's now from the 1.25 (to) 1.3, which gives (Matt Wieters) a chance. And it is actually a better delivery. "When he threw (Wednesday), regardless of who he was facing, that's what we expected to see. He wasn't here with a chance to make the club. When we looked at guys who could benefit from being here, he was one of them because of all the things we could expose him to. I asked him, 'OK, why do you think you were here? What did you gain, what did you see?' And when he said, 'The best pitchers are the ones that work the hardest,' I said, 'OK, you're getting it.' "Just being around the atmosphere here, and a little bit of the professionalism and kind of what's got to go on, that was really what I wanted him to get more than anything else. That was a common denominator I was getting back from our people below. That's something he needed. He needed to really see routine, things like that. "I asked him who his lockermates were, left and right, and he told me (Miguel Gonzalez and Pedro Strop) and I said, 'Why do you think you were there? And do you want to tell me about what they do to get ready to pitch?' He gets it. And his English is getting a little better, too, and I really challenged him to trying to continue to pick that up. "He has a chance to be pretty good. I said, 'You're married right? And you've got maybe a kid on the way,' which I knew. 'You've got a chance to do a lot of great things for your family here if you stay on the approach that you're seeing these guys do.' That's the last thing he's got (to do) other than pitching and improving. I said, 'You're getting to a level where you're going to get challenged and the separator is going to be the things I am talking to you about.' " Ryan Flaherty talked about his walk-off home run. "When I hit it originally, I thought it was going to go foul," Flaherty said. "The wind had kind of been moving the ball the other way, so I figured it had a good chance to stay inside the foul pole, the way the wind had been moving." Flaherty is battling for a bench spot and has impressed Showalter with the way he's carried himself this spring. "Everyone is out there competing," Flaherty said. "Everyone knows the games don't mean anything, but at the same time, everyone is competing, everyone is trying, so it always feels good every time you do something good." Showalter is pleased with Jason Hammel this spring. "I feel good about where he is right now. The knee feels good and he's throwing the ball well," Showalter said. "Today, he was telling Rick that he felt a little slow. Actually, Rick liked it. He's good. He's in a good place right now. He and (Miguel Gonzalez) and (Wei-Yin) Chen and (Chris Tillman) are all in a good place right now."