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Saturday afternoon Orioles game thread: at Yankees, 1:05

The O’s look to earn their first win of the season. Nate Karns takes the mound for the good guys against James Paxton and the Yankees.

By Tyler Young
Baltimore Orioles v New York Yankees Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images

Things did not go so well for the Orioles on opening day, but that was to be expected. After all, the Yankees won 100 games last season and may have gotten even better over the winter. The Orioles...well, they did none of those things.

There will be less pomp and circumstance for game two of the 2019 season, but we do get the chance to learn quite a few bits of information about the O’s roster and how manager Brandon Hyde plans to deploy his players going forward.

First of all, the guys are facing one of the better left-handed pitchers in the game, James Paxton. Managers get a little jittery when taking on elite southpaws. We do not know if that is what has happened here with Hyde, but the lineup has some noticeable differences from the one he trotted out on Thursday.

Cedric Mullins, who has a history of struggles against lefties, has been dropped. Joining him on the pine is Chris Davis. Benching Davis needs no justification, but it’s still interesting to see. As far as players that are actually starting, Drew Jackson gets the nod in centerfield despite the presence of Joey Rickard, who has major league experience in center. It would seem Hyde prefers Jackson’s defense, or maybe he just wants to get another look at the Rule 5 pick.

Defensively, this should be as solid of a lineup as the O’s put forth. Trey Mancini has moved back to his natural position, first base, while the abilities of the outfield remain to be seen with Jackson a newbie in center and Dwight Smith Jr. a relatively inexperienced big leaguer.

On the mound is the team’s lone major league free agent signing, Nate Karns. He is expected to serve in an “opener” role today as injuries prevented the righty from stretching out enough to be a traditional starter. Of course, if things go well enough, Karns could go a bit longer. Either way, expect to see the season debuts of a few more bullpen arms that didn’t throw on Thursday.

Orioles lineup

  1. Jonathan Villar, 2B
  2. Dwight Smith Jr., LF
  3. Trey Mancini, 1B
  4. Renato Núñez, DH
  5. Joey Rickard, RF
  6. Rio Ruiz, 3B
  7. Drew Jackson, CF
  8. Jesus Sucre, C
  9. Richie Martin, SS

RHP Nate Karns

Yankees lineup

  1. Brett Gardner, CF
  2. Aaron Judge, RF
  3. Giancarlo Stanton, LF
  4. Luke Voit, 1B
  5. Miguel Andujar, DH
  6. Gary Sanchez, C
  7. Gleyber Torrres, 2B
  8. Troy Tulowitzki, SS
  9. DJ Lemahieu, 3B

LHP James Paxton

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