Orioles pregame notes on Henderson, Wong, Cano, Means and more

NORTH PORT, Fla. – Gunnar Henderson is taking live batting practice this morning back in Sarasota, his first sessions since reporting to camp on a reduced schedule.

Henderson felt some tightness in his left oblique in January while long-tossing at home. He’s hit in the cage during regular batting practice.

The presence of a real pitcher should be the final step before his exhibition debut. But his return isn’t imminent.

“I would imagine wouldn’t be too many more days before I get out there,” he said. “I don’t have the exact day, but I would say sometime this coming week.”

Manager Brandon Hyde said Henderson and second baseman Connor Norby should get into their first game in the “next three to four days.”

The Orioles understandably are taking a cautious approach with side soreness, and they certainly can’t afford to lose Henderson for an extended period.

“I’m ready to get back out there and get my body ready for the upcoming season,” he said. “Just seeing some pitching is the biggest thing.”

Hyde will speak with new second baseman Kolten Wong on Saturday to see if the veteran is close to making his Orioles debut.

“As soon as he feels ready, I’m going to throw him in there,” Hyde said. “It might be tomorrow, it might be the next day. I don’t know.”

Reliever Yennier Cano hasn’t pitched in a Grapefruit League game, but he’s healthy. The Orioles are slow-playing Cano after he logged 72 2/3 innings last season.

“He’s throwing a side for the next couple days. He’s fine,” Hyde said.

"Just the innings that he had thrown. We've got almost a month to go, still, so we're just letting him get his side work in and we'll get him into games soon."

Hyde also said left-hander John Means hasn’t experienced any setbacks in camp. Means is headed to the injured list, but only because he’s a month behind the other starters.

The Orioles face the Yankees’ Marcus Stroman on Saturday and the Pirates’ Martín Pérez on Sunday.

The Braves scratched outfielder Ronald Acuña Jr. from today's lineup with right knee soreness.