Baltimore Orioles 2024 Opening Day roster projection 3.0: Red hot outfielder snubbed

The 18-5 Orioles are enjoying their final spring training off day on Monday, March 18, before closing out their Grapefruit League Schedule with seven more games. Too bad a team's spring training results mean absolutely nothing.

What does mean something, however, are the players' individual statistics, especially those who were not guaranteed a spot on the Orioles 26-man roster coming into camp.

Since Version 2.0 of my Opening Day Roster Projection articles came out, several players have played themselves into the running for spots on the roster, including players - looking at you, Kyle Stowers -who were considered longshots at best for a roster spot when players reported in mid-February. The Orioles now have a pleasant predicament on their hands, with several position players competing for a precious 13 spots in Brandon Hyde's starting lineup and bench. And while the pitching competition may be a bit clearer, there are still a handful of players competing for the few final spots in Brandon Hyde's bullpen.

2024 Baltimore Orioles Opening Day Roster Projection 3.0

Catchers: Adley Rutschman, James McCann (2)

Despite all of the movement that has taken place since we published Version 1.0, it is nice that the Orioles' catching situation has remained the same. Of course, barring injury, everyone knew that Rustchman and McCann would likely be the two Orioles running down the orange carpet on March 28 when the O's host the Los Angeles Angels at Camden Yards. Assuming this duo remains healthy for the next week and a half, that is exactly what we will see on Opening Day.

With that said, Michael Perez (.807 OPS, one home run) had a solid spring, and should one of the Orioles' top two catchers go down with an injury, he would likely take their place on the roster, especially if top prospect Samuel Basallo is not ready yet.