Orioles pregame notes on Mountcastle, Holliday, Povich, Markakis and Crowley

Oriole first baseman Ryan Mountcastle could play later tonight depending on how he reacts to treatments on his sore wrist.

Mountcastle was removed from last night’s game in the top of the ninth inning. Ryan O’Hearn switched from right field to first base and Austin Slater batted in Mountcastle’s spot in the bottom of the ninth.

Manager Brandon Hyde said afterward that the wrist gradually became more sore after Mountcastle’s slide into second base on a double in the second inning – one of only three hits for the Orioles.

“He’s better today, it’s a little better,” Hyde said. “He’s getting treatment right now. He’s going to get treatment up until game time, so we’ll see if he’s available or not. It got pretty sore as the game went on last night but it’s a little bit better today.”

The offense needs a boost. Mountcastle hasn’t homered since July 29 and he’s batting .225/.257/.310 this month in 19 games but he has hits in 11 of his last 17, including three on Aug. 10 and two on the 13^th, 16^th and 19^th.

Jackson Holliday starts again at second base tonight, more opportunities available with Jordan Westburg on the injured  list. He’s in an 0-for-16 slump.

Asked how he thinks Holliday is doing, Hyde said, “Well, he’s 20 years old in the big leagues and when he came here he swung the bat really well. He’s just had a tough handful of games, but he almost had a base hit last night in his last at-bat through the middle.

“It’s not easy up here and I think he’s improved defensively. It’s gonna be a process. These young guys come up, they’re gonna have their ups and downs.”

Holliday isn’t looking over his shoulder. He’s pretty much set at second with Ramón Urías at third. Emmanuel Rivera reported to the club yesterday and provides a right-handed bat, but he’s more of a corner infielder.

“Talking to (Holliday) on a daily basis, how he’s gone about his business is the right way and I think that he still feels confident,” Hyde said. “I don’t see him losing any sort of confidence. I think he’s going to be a really, really good player in this league for a long time, but he’s 20 and it’s late August and it’s not easy to do right now.”

Cade Povich will try to at least duplicate his last outing with two runs allowed over 6 1/3 innings. He’s definitely keeping “Piano Man” as his warm-up song, with the crowd invited again to sing along.

“That was a great change and it worked,” Hyde said, referring to the song rather than the pitch.

“He was just so much more aggressive in the strike zone,” Hyde said. “He flashed the stuff in his starts before, but I just thought the mentality was totally different his last time out. Hope that he can repeat that tonight.”

The alter ego of “Slim,” which Povich explained afterward, also remains.

“I didn’t hear about any of that until you guys were writing about it and then I heard about it. But no, he didn’t mention it to me,” Hyde said.

“But I liked it. So whatever that was, it worked.”

The Mariners claimed infielder/outfielder Terrin Vavra on waivers from the Orioles.

Nick Markakis and Terry Crowley are in town for Saturday’s Hall of Fame induction at Camden Yards. They’re a logical pairing.

Crowley is one of the greatest pinch-hitters in baseball history, but he also was a long-time hitting coach and roving instructor who worked closely with Markakis, the first-round draft pick in 2003 who played 15 seasons in the majors. Markakis would seek out Crowley anytime he fell into a slump.

“This guy was like a son,” Crowley said today.

“I think it’s a perfect fit with me and Crow going in together,” Markakis said, “especially with everything that we’ve been through throughout my career with the Orioles and the influence that he has made in my life and my career. It couldn’t be more fitting. It’s actually a perfect fit, and I’m happy and thrilled to be here.”

Markakis never wanted to be the center of attention when he played. He didn’t care that it took until his 13^th season to make the All-Star team, which happened with the Braves. He preferred to be home with his wife Christina and sons Taylor, Tucker and Toby.

Is this weekend a little uncomfortable for him?

“Can you tell?” he asked.

“It’s not in my nature to speak. I just spoke at a luncheon that I thought I was gonna speak between two and three minutes and it was probably closer to 10 minutes. But I’m enjoying it.”

Markakis spent his first nine seasons with the Orioles and slashed .290/.358/.435. He finished sixth in American League Rookie of the Year voting in 2006 and won two Gold Gloves in right field.

Crowley finally was selected for the team’s Hall of Fame after playing parts of 12 seasons with the Orioles in two iterations. He also had two stints as hitting coach totaling 16 years, the second-longest tenure in club history behind Elrod Hendricks’ 28. Managerial changes didn’t always send him searching for a new job.

“You keep your job by having your team come in the top two or three in hitting every year for the whole league,” he said.

Crowley will be inducted Saturday at age 77.

“It’s nice for me but it’s especially nice for my family and my grandchildren who get to see a little bit of what the Oriole life was like,” he said. “It makes you feel good to know all the hard work and all the hard times didn’t go unnoticed.”

For the Astros

Jose Altuve 2B
Alex Bregman 3B
Yordan Alvarez DH
Yainer Diaz C
Jeremy Peña SS
Jake Meyers CF
Mauricio Dubón RF
Zach Dezenzo 1B
Chas McCormick LF

Hunter Brown RHP