O's add another reinforcement; Eloy optioned, Kimbrel released

NEW YORK -- Yet another reinforcement has arrived for the Orioles.

On Tuesday, Baltimore reinstated first baseman Ryan Mountcastle from the 10-day injured list prior to its series opener at Yankee Stadium. The 27-year-old had been on the IL since Aug. 26 (retroactive to Aug. 23) due to a left wrist sprain sustained in an Aug. 22 game vs. Houston.

Mountcastle joins right-handed reliever Jacob Webb (Sept. 15), outfielder Heston Kjerstad (Sept. 15), top lefty reliever Danny Coulombe (Friday) and infielders Jordan Westburg (Sunday) and Ramón Urías (Sunday) as players who have returned for the O’s over the past 10 days.

In order to make room for Mountcastle on the active 28-man roster, the Orioles optioned designated hitter Eloy Jiménez to Triple-A Norfolk. Because of his service time, the 27-year-old had the choice to reject the assignment, but he accepted it.

Jiménez was acquired by the O’s on July 30 in a deal with the White Sox, one of several moves made by Baltimore shortly ahead of the Trade Deadline. The right-handed hitter got off to a strong start with the Orioles, hitting .296 (21-for-71) with five doubles, one home run and seven RBIs over 23 games in August.

However, September did not go nearly as well for Jiménez, who was 1-for-24 (.042) this month and was hitless over his past 18 plate appearances.

“I don’t think the sporadic playing time helped him. You’ve got a guy that was used to playing every day for the first four or five years of his career,” manager Brandon Hyde said. “Tough to get his rhythm and timing kind of going after being hurt a lot the first half, also. ... We just felt like this was going to make our roster a little more versatile when we added all three of those guys [Mountcastle, Urías, Westburg].”

Mountcastle could provide an offensive boost for Baltimore. He slashed .265/.305/.425 with 29 doubles, 13 home runs and 61 RBIs in 118 games prior to his IL stint. However, he went 1-for-11 during his three-game rehab assignment with Norfolk.

“We’re excited to have Mounty back,” Hyde said. “Just adds another really good right-handed hitter for us, a guy that has got the ability to hit for power as well as a good hitter.”

The Orioles also announced Tuesday that they released right-hander Craig Kimbrel, who was designated for assignment last Wednesday. The 36-year-old struggled during his lone year in Baltimore, posting a 5.33 ERA over 57 appearances.

After making the flurry of roster moves, the O’s had a chance to clinch a postseason berth later Tuesday night. They needed a win over the Yankees and a loss by either the Royals (at Washington) or the Twins (vs. Miami) to punch a ticket to October.