First spring training game in the books with a “W”

The Orioles held a moment of silence for legendary Hall-of-Famer, Frank Robinson, before their game this afternoon against a split-squad Twins team. A very nice gesture, coupling with Frank’s number 20 being displayed on the scoreboard in right-center field and a number 20 jersey patch to be worn all season long.

Yefry Ramírez took the mound to begin Grapefruit League play today. It was reported during the MASN telecast that manager Brandon Hyde was looking for Ramírez to go two innings before beginning the pitcher shuffle. The first inning saw Ramírez retire the first two Twins batters he faced, before allowing a single to right fielder Jake Cave and a walk to designated hitter, Lucas Duda.

Ramírez’ 17th pitch of the first inning saw him strikeout first baseman, Tyler Austin, escaping the two-men on jam. Last season, opposing hitters batted .271 against him with runners in scoring position. Cutting down the opportunities teams have to score against him will greatly aid his quest to break camp in the starting rotation.

The Orioles’ first inning of the spring was fairly successful. Cedric Mullins led the game off with a walk, after falling behind 0-2 to Twins starter Chase De Jong. Mullins wasted no time showcasing his speed as he was able to steal second base and advance to third on catcher Tomás Telis’ overthrow into center field.

Joey Rickard followed, also falling behind in the count 0-2, but then drawing a walk. One day before his 24th birthday, Chance Sisco belted a three-run home run with a 2-0 count, giving the Orioles their first three-run lead of the spring. If you had Sisco as hitting the first Orioles homer of the spring season, you win the pot.

Ramírez came back out for the second inning and issued a walk, followed by a single two batters later. A ground out by Telis scored the first Twins run of the spring, but Ramírez was able to limit the damage, ending his day after 45 pitches.

Mike Wright was the second pitcher used by Brandon Hyde today. It’s worth noting, before the game, MLB.com reporter Joe Trezza said Wright had dropped the junior from his name. Wright is in a tough situation this spring, being out of options, however, his first outing was pretty good. Pitching the third and fourth innings, Wright allowed just two hits on 24 pitches, striking out one.

In the bottom of the third, the Orioles showed how to manufacture a run via small ball. They also reminded everyone they’ve been a home run hitting team over the years. Mullins led off with his first double of the spring and advanced to third on a ground ball to the right side by Rickard.

Then, Renato Nunez drove him in with a sacrifice fly. Leading by three again and after Sisco drew a four-pitch walk, the Orioles top-prospect Yusniel Diaz mashed a two-run homer over the left-center field fence, giving the Orioles the lead, 6-to-1. Diaz came over in the Manny Machado deal last July and is figured to be a bit factor in the team’s rebuild over the next few seasons.

Paul Fry pitched the fifth inning, followed by Evan Phillips in the sixth. Fry only gave up one hit, but it was after a lead-off walk to Randy Cesar, putting two men on with nobody out. Fry escaped the jam though, not allowing a run, after throwing 25 pitches in the inning.

Phillips in the sixth threw 24 pitches without giving up a run but issued a leadoff walk. It was quickly erased as center fielder Zack Granite bounced into a 4-6-3 double play. Bo Schultz then took over in the seventh for the Orioles, throwing 16 pitches. After back-to-back singles, a double play ball gave Phillips two outs in the inning. However, a misplayed grounder by second baseman Jack Reinheimer allowed a run to score, cutting the Orioles lead to 6-2.

The offense was fun to watch today as they really seemed to mesh well. In the seventh, Christopher Bostick, taking over for Mullins in center, singled and Anthony Santander followed with a double the other way. Santander replaced Rickard in the fifth. Rio Ruiz, replacing Nunez in the fifth, skied a ball to left field, allowing Bostick to trot home for the Orioles’ seventh run of the game.

Josh Rogers pitched the eighth inning for the Orioles. Being the sixth pitcher the Orioles used, he worked the quickest inning of the day. After throwing just 12 pitches, nine for strikes, Rogers exited after allowing just one hit and striking out one. Zach Pop then came on to pitch the ninth inning, and retired the Twins, one-two-three on 15 pitches.

All-in-all, the Orioles used seven pitchers – as expected – and 19 position players, again, as expected. They scored seven runs on eight hits, defeating the split-squad Twins team, 7-2. Next up, they’ll host the Toronto Blue Jays tomorrow at 1:05. The game will not be televised however, you can hear it on the flagship station of the Orioles, 105.7 The Fan.