Santander's first game against Orioles, Povich's strong start and fade, more Mayo

DUNEDIN, Fla. – The number was right, but the player wearing it jogged to left.

Anthony Santander faced the Orioles today for the first time since signing a five-year, $92.5 million contract with the Blue Jays. The white 25 on the back of a blue jersey didn’t fit the images created over his eight seasons in Baltimore, and he added to the weirdness by going to the other side of the outfield. The baseball world was spinning off its axis.

The visiting bullpen is beyond the left field fence at TD Ballpark, which allowed Santander to fist bump and chat with major league field coordinator Tim Cossins and reliever Bryan Baker. He joked later about Cionel Pérez and Yennier Cano being big deals and arriving later. A Grapefruit League game was scheduled and a reunion broke out.

Santander will be in Sarasota next Tuesday. He asked to make the trip. And the Orioles begin the regular season with a four-game series at Rogers Centre.

“Kind of emotional,” he said. “First time in a spring training game playing against my team. They gave me the opportunity to be a big leaguer. Looking forward to the season, especially Opening Day.

“It’s a new season, you know? I feel good. I’m gonna face them a lot, so I have to feel comfortable for the next five years that I’m gonna face them.”

The Orioles knew that it would be odd.

“In blue? I know,” manager Brandon Hyde said earlier today.

“He’s one of my favorite players I’ve ever had, that I’ve been around. We were talking about his journey from 2019 to last year. Not making our team in ’19 and calling him up as the 26^th guy in Chicago, going deep, sending him back, and playing center field a lot the rest of that season because we didn’t have a center fielder, to now, getting in position to make a lot of money and earning it. Hitting 44 homers last year. Being a middle-of-the-order bat on a playoff team.

“I love everything about the guy. I love his family, his parents, who are around all the time. I want to believe we have a great relationship.”

It’s true, but friendship limits are imposed in this business.

“I think, root for personally, but they’re in our division,” Hyde said. “It’s tough to root for anybody in our division, but there are a lot of people in that clubhouse who love the guy.”

“He was great to me all the time from 2019,” Santander said. “He made me feel comfortable, he gave me the opportunity to go out there and have fun, compete. He gave me a chance to be an everyday player and I’m so grateful to him.”

Batting third in the lineup, Santander flied to center field against Cade Povich in the bottom of the first inning. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. tagged and moved to third base, and he scored on Daulton Varsho’s soft single.

Santander came up again with one out in the third inning and flied to right. He batted with runners on first and second and no outs in the fifth and flied to right again, and he singled off Baker in the seventh to leave him 6-for-23 with a double, home run, five walks and five strikeouts in spring training.

“It’s not gonna be fun playing against him cause he’s so good,” Hyde said after a 6-4 loss. “They got a quality person and a quality player over there, and it’s gonna be hard to face him because he’s dangerous from both sides and we all know him so well. Hopefully, we pitch well against him.”

“We had some interactions last year obviously when I was up there,” Povich said. “Wish him nothing but the best. He’s in our division, so only thing we can do now is compete against each other.”

Leaving was the hardest part for Santander, but it seemed a foregone conclusion.

“When you go to free agency, you want to stay with the team that gave you the opportunity, but at the same time, it’s a business,” he said. “Just looking forward to play the next five years against them.”

The Orioles reportedly made Santander a three-year offer after signing Tyler O’Neill to a three-year, $49.5 million contract. He wasn’t going to accept it, the Jays showed the most interest from the first day of free agency, and Santander headed to a new organization.

“No, zero chance, zero chance at all,” Santander said. “It wasn’t even close, but we get it, we understand. It’s a business side. Mike (Elias) is really smart about it. We’re smart about it, too, so you have to be patient. Toronto just gave me an opportunity.”

* Povich, in the middle of an intense, two-man rotation competition, cruised into the fifth inning before the first four batters reached. He’s the first Oriole to go more than four-plus innings, but he ended his start on a sour note.

The Jays scored four runs, the last two on Varsho’s two-run homer. Povich allowed five runs and eight hits in 4 2/3.

Albert Suárez takes his turn Sunday in a split-squad game against the Tigers in Lakeland.

Hyde emphasized this afternoon that Povich wasn’t entering a “make-or-break” start. Important, yes, because he’s competing for a spot at the back end of the rotation, but a poor outing wouldn’t eliminate him.

The Orioles wanted to stretch out Povich to around 75 pitches. He left after 69, with 46 strikes.

“I think there’s plenty good in the first four innings, and that last inning, first time going into the fifth, first time seeing a lineup third time through,” he said. “Definitely think there’s some things that I could have picked up on going into the fifth to have a better finish, but that’s why it’s spring training.”

The Jays took a 1-0 lead in the first on Varsho’s two-out bloop single to left field at 69.4 mph that scored Guerrero, who doubled to start the rally. Two runners were stranded in the second after a single and error, with Bo Bichette striking out on a changeup. Povich retired the Jays in order in the third, striking out Varsho with a sweeper, and again in the fourth.

Eight in a row were set down before Orelvis Martinez led off the fifth with a single. Myles Straw was awarded a generous double on a ball that appeared to scoot through third baseman Vimael Machín, and Martinez scored on Bichette’s single. Guerrero followed with an RBI single, Santander flied into a double play – Machín took the throw and fired to second baseman Livan Soto for the out – and Varsho launched a sweeper to right for a 5-3 lead.

“I thought he was really good innings two through four,” Hyde said afterward. “I don’t know if he got tired there a little bit in the fifth. Got some balls elevated, and hung that breaking ball to Varsho. They took some pretty good swings on him there in the fifth inning, but the three innings before that I thought he had a really good changeup and the curveball was excellent. So I think it was a positive outing, it just didn’t end very well.”

Povich had tossed five scoreless innings with one hit and seven strikeouts in two appearances before today.

“We’re really happy with his offseason, how he came into camp, how he’s thrown the ball so far,” Hyde said earlier.

“Improvement in the changeup, strike-throwing ability with all of his pitches. Just getting a little bit better really in every area. He came in a little bit thicker. Added some strength. Overall just a little bit better in every area.”

Povich got knocked around a few times after the Orioles called him up in June – six runs in 5 1/3 innings in his debut in Toronto, eight runs and five hits in an inning in Oakland, and five runs and 10 hits in 3 1/3 at Dodger Stadium – but what didn’t kill his chances to stay made him stronger.

The month of September began with 7 1/3 scoreless innings against the White Sox, with no walks and 10 strikeouts, and he posted a 2.60 ERA in five starts.  

“I think he’s got a really good demeanor,” Hyde said. “It’s not too high, too low. He does show a little bit of emotion, but it’s kind of an easy-going personality and I think he responds well. You never saw him after a tough start get down on himself. There was some drive there to get back, and some confidence, and it bodes well for him.”

Now, we’ll see how he responds to today’s fifth-inning fade.

“I think every showing kind of matters as far as trying to make the team,” he said. “Being able to face a team’s pretty much A lineup, it was nice.”

* Coby Mayo led off the second with a double into the left field corner at 101.4  mph and scored on Nick Gordon’s double. Soto singled and the Orioles led 2-1 after Guerrero made a diving stop of Luis Vázquez’s ground ball and threw late to home plate.

Machín stayed hot with an RBI double to left field, but Bichette’s relay nabbed Vázquez.

Runs are nice, of course, but Mayo finding his stroke is more important. The double made him 4-for-9 since a 1-for-23 start. He struck out twice and reached on an error in his next three at-bats.

“I think a little bit more comfortable, a little bit more relaxed, trying not to do too much,” Hyde said. “I think he came out of the gate maybe a little bit overly aggressive, but better swings this last week.”

* Pérez and Cano tossed scoreless innings. … Jud Fabian had an RBI single in the ninth.