Thursday night game thread: @ Nationals, 7:05

"Hey, you know what would really turn this season around? More Colby Rasmus." -- the Orioles, apparently

It's true. The Rasmaster (not his nickname) is back. Because these are the 2018 Orioles and nothing matters.

Rasmus was activated this afternoon from the DL, where he'd been since the second week of the season with a left hip flexor strain. Joey Rickard was optioned to make roster room. Rasmus, in his eight games for the Orioles before his DL stint, was 2-for-21 with 13 strikeouts. His last game before he was sidelined was probably his worst. Despite not entering the game until the 10th inning, he went 0-for-3 with two strikeouts and stranded five runners on base.

The Orioles, for whatever reason, seem terrified to actually cut ties with players. Of the 41 players to make an appearance for the O's this year, only one -- ex-Rule 5 lefty Nestor Cortes -- is no longer in the organization. Just think of all the terrible, replacement-level roster fillers who have suited up for the Birds this year, and consider that all but one of them is still hanging around somewhere in the system. Yikes. (That list includes the recently DFA'd Pedro Alvarez, who was outrighted to Triple-A Norfolk today.)

Perhaps the O's are hoping Rasmus will prove he still has something left and raise his trade value from "nonexistent" to "meager." In fairness, he hit well towards the end of his rehab assignment, batting .378 with a 1.104 OPS in his last 11 games for Frederick and Bowie. Of course, he wasn't facing the likes of Max Scherzer, the three-time Cy Young winner the O's will face tonight. Good luck to Colby and the rest of the Orioles' lineup. They'll need it.