Orioles Notes: Davis, Rotation, Hall

Chris Davis is probably headed to the disabled list, Orioles manager Buck Showalter told reporters today (Twitter link via the Baltimore Sun’s Jon Meoli). Earlier in the day, Meoli reported that an MRI on Davis revealed what looks to be a strained oblique muscle, and Showalter confirmed that Davis does indeed have a Grade 1 strain. There’s no timeline for his recovery available just yet, but history suggests that even a Grade 1 oblique strain could sideline Davis for more than a month. David Hall of the Virginian Pilot reports (on Twitter) that slugger David Washington will join the Orioles in place of Davis. However, as MASNsports.com’s Roch Kubatko notes, rookie Trey Mancini could see the most significant uptick in playing time as he returns to his natural position of first base.

More on the O’s…

• The Orioles’ awful performance from their rotation has led to a 9-21 slide, dropping Baltimore to a half-game out of last place in the AL East, writes Fangraphs’ Dave Cameron. In that stretch, opponents have posted OBP and slugging marks that nearly mirror Miguel Sano’s current rates. Cameron examines Chris Tillman’s rapid drop in velocity and notes that colleague Jeff Sullivan recently profiled Tillman’s change in arm slot, suggesting that perhaps he’s not quite recovered from recent shoulder injuries. Kevin Gausman’s struggles are more troubling, Cameron continues, given the fact that his stuff appears similar to last year but the results aren’t there. The Orioles need to augment their rotation with multiple arms but have little in the way of minor league reinforcements, and Cameron wonders if that could push them to the trade market this summer. All of these rotation struggles come against the backdrop of a $165MM payroll club that will soon lose Manny Machado, Zach Britton and others to free agency.
• The Orioles weren’t expecting left-hander D.L. Hall to last until their No. 21 overall selection last night, scouting director Gary Rajsich told reporters on a conference call (link via MASNsports.com’s Steve Melewski). Rajsich candidly stated that the Orioles “weren’t real thrilled with our options there” but became increasingly excited as the teams in front of them passed on Hall, whom they held in very high regard. “We project him to be a future starter in our rotation, and it shouldn’t take very long,” said Rajsich of Hall. Of course, Hall was taken out of Valdosta High School in Georgia, so Rajsich’s comment is presumably in reference to Hall’s proximity to the Majors relative to other prep arms. Even a fast-moving high school arm is likely to be several years from realistically sniffing the Majors, though Hall turns 19 in September, so he is a bit more physically advanced than some of his high school peers in the draft.