O's considering bullpen role for Karns

PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. -- Though the setback only kept Nate Karns off the mound briefly, it did not come without its ramifications. Karns’ recent bout with arm soreness has the Orioles toying with the idea of using the righty as a reliever, manager Brandon Hyde said Wednesday, potentially opening a second job in the back end of the club’s rotation.

Baltimore’s lone Major League free agent signing this winter, Karns entered camp the ostensible No. 4 starter. But from the start, his candidacy was clouded by durability concerns after Karns missed much of the past two years due to injuries.

“We’re not going to put him in any position to get hurt, or try to push through any kind of injury or soreness right now,” Hyde said.

The silver lining for the Orioles is that, currently, Karns is without any of those ailments. Hyde said Karns reported no ill effects from his one-inning appearance Tuesday against the Pirates, his first since being scratched from a scheduled start four days prior. Karns instead tossed a side session, then waited two days to return to game action in a relief role. He originally felt soreness after throwing 1 2/3 innings in his spring debut Feb. 25.

Though time still remains for Karns to build toward longer outings, he’ll essentially have to restart that process on a week delay. Only three weeks remain until Opening Day.

“It hinders him being able to be stretched out,” Hyde said.

All of which puts Karns in a familiar situation. Nearly a year ago, the Royals were considering converting Karns, then recovering from thoracic outlet syndrome, into a closer due to questions over his durability. He ended up missing the entire season due to right elbow issues.

“Our main focus is health,” Hyde said. “We’re going to do what’s best for him.”

If that means shifting Karns to the bullpen, it would open an extra rotation spot to an already crowded field of candidates. The list of young hurlers fighting to break camp as the club’s No. 5 includes David Hess, Yefry Ramirez, Mike Wright, and at least two pitchers that appeared in Wednesday’s game against the Rays. None come with the pedigree of Karns, who is 16-11 with a 4.08 ERA across 54 career starts. He also owns a 9.53 ERA in nine career relief appearances.

Injury updates

• Sidelined since Saturday with a jammed left pinkie finger, Trey Mancini returned to the O's lineup in Wednesday's 9-6 win over the Rays and was immediately greeted with more pain -- a Charlie Morton fastball that ended Mancini’s first plate appearance by striking him in the left leg. The hit-by-pitch, though, did not cause Mancini to be removed from the game. He started at DH and went 0-for-2.

• Left-handed reliever Richard Bleier threw live batting practice Wednesday at the club’s Sarasota complex, marking another milestone in his rehab from left lat surgery. His Grapefruit League debut could come as early as this weekend.

• Back in Minor League camp, Hyde said right-handed pitching prospects Dean Kremer (oblique) and Zach Pop (arm fatigue) have both started throwing programs after being inactive for much or all of spring. Kremer and Pop are the club’s Nos. 9 and 20 prospects, respectively, per MLB Pipeline.

Stadium announcement

USA Baseball and the World Baseball Softball Confederation announced this week that Ed Smith Stadium has been selected as one of the hosts for the 2021 U-18 Baseball World Cup, for the 30th anniversary of the international tournament. It will mark the first time since 1995 that the top youth international baseball event is held in the United States.

Our bad

The Orioles issued the following apology to their Birdland Members, many of whom reported trouble ordering game tickets through the team website. The issue has been resolved, according to the club.

Worth noting

• On the outside looking in at the start of camp, John Means continued to pitch himself into a rotation candidate with another strong outing Wednesday. The southpaw tossed three scoreless innings to open Baltimore’s win, striking out five along the way.

• Several others impressed again on the offensive side: Anthony Santander clubbed his second homer in as many starts, Richie Martin (2-for-3) pushed his Grapefruit League average to .450, and Rio Ruiz (2-for-3) continued to push for the third-base job. Yusniel Diaz also added a three-run double. The Orioles’ top prospect is hitting a cool .385 this spring.

Up next

Wright’s latest audition for a rotation spot comes Thursday at 1:05 p.m. ET, when the Orioles travel to Bradenton, Fla., to face the Pirates for the second time in three days. The right-hander is yet to allow a run this spring across seven innings. He’ll be followed by another rotation candidate in Ramirez, as well and four pitchers competing for bullpen roles: Miguel Castro, Dillon Tate, Branden Kline and Josh Osich.