Pregame notes on Mark Trumbo, Jeremy Hellickson and more

ARLINGTON, Texas - Mark Trumbo was scratched from the original Orioles lineup today. He was batting fourth as the designated hitter.

But manager Buck Showalter said during his pregame media session that it was injury related and, no, Trumbo has not been traded.

"He tweaked his back stretching in the weight room," Showalter said. "He's not playing today and hopefully it is not a DL thing. So I can put that one (rumor) to bed. That happened about an hour ago. Richie (Bancells, head athletic trainer) came in and said we should scratch Trumbo today, so I did. I understand people might jump to that conclusion."

The Orioles earlier today added outfielder Craig Gentry to the roster again when they selected his contract from Triple-A Norfolk. He was inserted into the lineup in right field and Trey Mancini is now the DH. The Orioles roster was at 24 players with Hyun Soo Kim gone and pitcher Jeremy Hellickson not activated yet.

"We tried to get him (Gentry) here yesterday," Showalter said. "Glad we got him here. He wasn't going to play initially. You always know the guy that wasn't in the lineup originally is good for two hits, right?"

The Orioles have 72 hours from the time of the trade to activate Hellickson and that means they could make a move as late as shortly after 11 p.m. Monday night. But essentially that means Hellickson will have to get activated before Monday's game begins.

Showalter said Hellickson is expected to play long toss today in Baltimore and throw a bullpen session at Camden Yards tomorrow. Still no date listed for his Orioles debut. The O's have Wade Miley starting today, with Ubaldo Jiménez at home Monday against Kansas City and Dylan Bundy on Tuesday.

Showalter said he did not expect Ryan Flaherty to get activated off the disabled list tomorrow. Flaherty went 1-for-9 in his first two rehab games at Double-A Bowie and will play in their home doubleheader today. In fact, he hit a two-run homer in Game 1 for the Baysox today. He still needs to play games at several postions, Showalter said.

"He's been out a long time. He's going to have mix in a couple of hits too. He will."

Showalter was asked if he feels his players have done a good job of dealing with all the speculation over the trade deadline. He does.

"It doesn't really surprise," he said. "A couple of them, maybe at one point it did concern them, but not anymore. It's not a bad thing, it's just an unknown."

Showalter said Chris Tillman is fine after suffering body cramping during his start here on Friday.

Orioles Hall of Famer Lee May passed away on Saturday at 74 in Cincinnati. May played for the O's from 1975-80 during an 18-year major league career that included time with Cincinnati (1965-71), Houston (1972-74) and Kansas City (1981-82).

He batted .254 with 123 home runs in six seasons with the Birds as a DH and first baseman, leading the American League with 109 RBIs in 1975. A three-time All-Star, May helped give Orioles legend and National Baseball Hall of Famer Brooks Robinson his "Hoover" nickname during the 1970 World Series. May was inducted into the Orioles Hall of Fame in 1998. He is survived by his wife, Terrye; three children - including Lee May Jr., a coach in the Red Sox organization; and several grandchildren.