Baltimore Orioles: Pitching Updates, Injuries & Chris Davis News

With Opening Day approaching quickly, the Baltimore Orioles have shared the names of the first three starters.

The Baltimore Orioles proudly shared that John Means would get the honor of opening the seasons against the Red Sox.

And, in a Tweet from Dan Connolly, the O’s are also ready to name the next pitchers in the three-game series:

O's pitching coach Doug Brocail said O's are expected to have a 1-2-3 of Means, Cobb and LeBlanc for their three exhibition games and then the first 3 regular season games in Boston.
— Dan Connolly (@danconnolly2016) July 12, 2020

Veterans Following the Sophomore

It looks like the Orioles will be starting the season with veterans on the mound. Means is entering his sophomore season, and hopefully, it will look as good as his rookie season did.

Alex Cobb should get the start in game two, and after becoming a dad to daughter number two, Cobb is ready to get back on the mound. He only made a handful of starts in 2019. And, Wade LeBlanc looks to be penciled in for the third start. The 35-year-old veteran signed a $800,000 contract to pitch for the O’s, and he could turn out to be a bargain find for the team.

What’s Up With Closers

In more pitching news, it looks like the Orioles have some decisions to make about their closers. According to Roch Kubatko, who also spoke with pitching coach Doug Brocail:

Brocail also said doesn't know who's closing. Could be Givens, could be Harvey, could be Bleier if lefties coming up #orioles
— Roch Kubatko (@masnRoch) July 12, 2020

Keep in mind that Mychal Givens could be the Orioles most valuable trade chip when the deadline arrives at the end of August. Several playoff-contending teams have already show interest in him, so it is important that the Orioles keep him healthy until that date.

Injuries at Camden Yards

Pitching news isn’t the only thing coming out of Camden Yards. A handful of injuries are popping up in the player pool. Richie Martin was thought to have injured a fingernail, but the injury is much worse:

You have to think that infielder Richie Martin's small fracture in right wrist and the lack of outfielders with big league experience further open spots for Stevie Wilkerson, Andrew Velazquez or both on the 30-man. Or as Hyde said, it opens up more opportunity "for everybody.'
— Dan Connolly (@danconnolly2016) July 12, 2020

HItting Looks Goods

The last bit of news is about Chris Davis. According to Nathan Ruiz with The Baltimore Sun, Chris Davis is looking good at the plate. He had an outstanding short spring training in February and early March, and he seems to be repeating his success in summer training.

Hitting coach, Don Long said about Davis:

"“The thing that he’s carried over from March is he has made a decision to be up there and be ready to hit and not be so in-between and not be uncomfortable up there and [have a] willingness to let the results be what they are, but give himself the best opportunity to be successful by really being ready to hit and having the mentality to be up there ready to swing the bat and attack the ball and do some damage. It was really refreshing, after being with him last year, to see him come in with that outlook.”"

Next. Earl Weaver & Cal Ripken Make History on Same Day. dark

Davis isn’t the only hitter who is seeing success. Long also spoke about Jose Iglesias and Pat Valaika. Despite not having live batting practice during the shutdown, their make-shift tee work and garage training looks to have paid off, and they’re hitting against the Orioles live pitching. That could be a problem for the pitching, or it could be the hitters are ready to go in 2020. We’ll see soon.

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