‘Birdland Caravan’ drives into higher expectations, a spring of pitching decisions

The last time the Orioles participated in a Birdland Caravan the world was about to change.

That was in 2020, weeks before the COVID-19 pandemic caused sporting events across the globe to be canceled, including a chunk of the Major League Baseball season.

Back then, the Orioles were coming off their second consecutive 100-plus loss season, the first time that had happened in modern franchise history. Their 2019 draft had netted them the No. 1 overall pick, catcher Adley Rutschman, as well as promising prep infielder Gunnar Henderson and Stanford University outfielder Kyle Stowers with their next two selections — so the Orioles were starting to feel good about the future and sold that concept to its fan base at its Caravan stops around the region.

Uncertainty the next two winters — in 2021 because of the pandemic fallout and 2022 due to baseball’s lockout — parked the Caravan. It’s back this year for its second run. And this one will have a completely different feel now that the Orioles are coming off a surprising, 83-win season and players such as Rutschman, Henderson and Stowers are big leaguers.

“To be able to interact, to see the excitement. That was the huge change (created by) last year, the second half honestly,” Orioles manager Brandon Hyde said Friday morning, after participating in Thursday’s kickoff event at Bel Air High School. “Just fans’ reactions to the team and then going into the offseason and hearing how people watched us closely and how fun we were to watch. That’s great to hear and it’s nice that we’re putting a team out there that is a fun group of kids.”

The expectations, however, have changed. This fun group of kids is expected to win, expected to compete in the always-dangerous American League East after a fourth-place finish in 2022.

“Last year was a great experience,” said Henderson, who along with Stowers, outfielder Ryan McKenna, first baseman Ryan Mountcastle, Hyde and general manager Mike Elias packaged meals at the Maryland Food Bank as part of the Caravan on Friday. “We were three games back late into September. It was really awesome being able to go through that and just being able to experience that and have that drive for this year. We all know we can do it, so it’s just a matter of when.”

Check out the players and staff you’ll see throughout the weekend at Birdland Caravan 👀 pic.twitter.com/5SFTS5Pi0B

— Baltimore Orioles (@Orioles) February 2, 2023

It’s also a matter of who — especially with starting pitching. The club’s position players, barring injury, are nearly set before spring training begins in less than two weeks. There will be some competition for bench roles, and who will seize the primary designated hitter role, but we pretty much know who will be in the field on Opening Day. The same can be said of the bullpen.

The rotation, however, is a completely different equation. Elias figures there are a dozen starting pitchers on the 40-man roster who are competing for a chance to make the rotation this spring. Newcomers Kyle Gibson and Cole Irvin are locks, but after that, it’s game on in Sarasota.

Throw returnees Dean Kremer, Kyle Bradish, Austin Voth and Tyler Wells into the mix, along with top prospects Grayson Rodriguez and DL Hall, and dark horses Bruce Zimmermann, Spenser Watkins, Mike Baumann and Drew Rom, and you have 12 who initially will be stretched out in spring. Staff ace John Means’ Tommy John surgery rehab is going well and Elias expects “he could be back in our rotation on the early side in July.” So, eventually, 13 options?

“A lot of those guys had good seasons last year; I think they have inside tracks. But it’s never set in stone until we get through camp,” Elias said. “While that’s a lot of open spots, like I said, I’m pleased with the fact that we’ve got basically 12 people on the 40-man roster that are going to be in that competition. And that seems like a real good number to pull from.”

One of the most obvious differences between good teams and bad ones is depth. Most clubs have a few outstanding players. The key is what happens when some of those are injured or struggle. Will they be replaced by other quality players?

That’s where the Orioles are now. Trying to build that base, especially through their burgeoning depth in the minors. Elias said Friday that two of the Orioles’ most heralded players — and their best homegrown pitching products in years — will have a legitimate shot to earn a rotation spot on the Opening Day roster.

Rodriguez, 23, is no surprise. He appeared ready for a long look last year before a lat injury cost him three months. He’s healthy. He’s ready. But he also only pitched 75 2/3 innings last year and the Orioles are protective of their young arms. So, what happens this season? What will the limitations be and how will they be administered?

“This has been very tricky because of the calendar of the last few years with all of the weird seasons in the majors and lack of seasons in the minors,” Elias said. “Now we’re in a mode where we want to get our best pitchers out there pitching as much as possible so we can win as many games as we can. So, talking to our medical staff, our pitching department, we’ve got a lot of people involved in these conversations. I think it’s going to be individualized. I think it’s going to depend on a lot of circumstances and the phrase I would use is we’re gonna kind of ‘bring our brains’ to it on a night-to-night, start-to-start basis.”

Hall, 24, is also in an intriguing spot. He made his big-league debut with a start in August and then returned in September, finishing with 10 relief appearances, eight of them scoreless. The lefty showed he could be effective in the bullpen, but there is no way you give up on him as a starter yet. So, he’ll get his shot this spring. If he doesn’t make the rotation, Elias said it’s not been determined whether Hall will be in the bullpen or at Triple A, honing his starting stuff.

“We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it. We want to toss him into the rotation competition in camp,” Elias said. “Hopefully, he wins one of those spots. I think we’ll see what else is going on with the rest of the team if that ends up (not) being the case.”

At this point, Elias doesn’t see the club going to a six-man rotation, since rules limit staffs to 13 pitchers this year, and an extended rotation might alter the bullpen’s usage. Elias also kept the door open for trades and free-agent signings — hitters or pitchers — in case a good deal drops into their laps.

So, like most recent years, this rotation will be a work in progress. But, like this team, it appears to be deeper. There are more options anyway.

With all of this comes larger expectations. For the first time in the Hyde-Elias regime.

They’ll see that this weekend during the Birdland Caravan. And that’s what these guys want.

“For the first time since we have been here, we want to build off last year from an expectations standpoint. Excited about that, honestly,” Hyde said. “This is the first time that we’ve gone in with true, non-rebuild mode of going out to win games, and from the standpoint like where we feel like we can compete.”

(Photo of (from left) Ryan McKenna, Kyle Stowers, Ryan Mountcastle, Gunnar Henderson, the Oriole Bird, Mike Elias and Brandon Hyde: Dan Connolly / The Athletic)