SARASOTA, Fla. -- On Sunday afternoon, Cade Povich posted a poll on social media.
Should the Orioles left-hander continue to warm up before his starts to “Piano Man” by Billy Joel? Or should he switch to “The Real Slim Shady” by Eminem -- a reference to his “Slim” alter ego he introduced last season.
The winner will be played on March 31 at Camden Yards, because the 24-year-old Povich will be starting the O’s home opener vs. the Red Sox.
General manager Mike Elias announced Sunday that Povich will be Baltimore’s No. 5 starter to open the season, as the southpaw beat out right-hander Albert Suárez for the final spot. Suárez will be shifting to the bullpen to serve in a multi-inning relief role.
“There were some arguments to be made in either direction. We just thought, Cade, he just looks so good right now,” Elias said. “I think he gives us, what we feel, is the best chance to win that game, the fifth game of the season. He’s in a good spot.”
It will be the first time Povich has been on an MLB Opening Day roster. He had a 5.20 ERA over 16 starts during his 2024 rookie campaign, but he finished in impressive fashion, recording a 2.60 ERA in five September outings.
Povich had a 3.07 ERA over four Grapefruit League starts this spring, recording 15 strikeouts and four walks in 14 2/3 innings. He threw five scoreless innings without allowing a hit against the Blue Jays on Tuesday, bolstering his case to make the rotation.
“Not only that [spring performance], but the way he finished the year last year, too, and the adjustments and improvements he made this offseason,” manager Brandon Hyde said. “He did pitch very well this spring. But it was good to see the changeup development and him pitch with a lot of confidence.”
Zach Eflin is set to start Opening Day for the O’s on Thursday in Toronto. Charlie Morton will start the second game on Friday. Then, the third and fourth games vs. the Blue Jays will be started by Dean Kremer and Tomoyuki Sugano, though the order has not yet been set.
Kyle Gibson, who signed a one-year, $5.25 million deal with the Orioles on Friday, is not built up yet after spending nearly all of spring as a free agent. The 37-year-old right-hander is staying back at the team’s complex in Sarasota to go through his version of a Spring Training and won’t be joining the pitching staff until later on.
‘The Mountain’ ready to go
Despite some recent uncertainty regarding Félix Bautista’s Opening Day status, the 29-year-old All-Star closer will be on Baltimore’s 26-man roster to begin the season, Hyde confirmed Sunday. Bautista, who underwent Tommy John surgery in October 2023, missed all of last season.
Bautista made six Grapefruit appearances this spring, the last of which was a final tune-up on Sunday vs. the Braves in North Port. His velocity isn’t quite up to what it was in 2023 -- it’s sitting around 96-98 mph, rather than 99-102 -- but he has been trending in the right direction.
The Orioles have been cautious with Bautista, and that will continue to be the case during the regular season, when he is unlikely to pitch on consecutive days or to go multiple innings early in the year.
Elias on Mayo’s comments
When Coby Mayo (Baltimore’s No. 2 prospect, MLB Pipeline’s No. 14 overall) was optioned to Minor League camp on Tuesday, the 23-year-old expressed disappointment in returning to Triple-A Norfolk for the start of the 2025 season.
On Sunday, Elias was asked about the comments Mayo made that day, and the GM said he understood the sentiment of the corner infielder, who has raked at Triple-A the past two seasons but struggled during his first taste of the Majors in 2024 (4-for-41 in 17 games).
“I don’t mind what he said. I certainly understand,” Elias said. “A lot of us have been there before. He’s very determined to get back. We’ve got a very deep position-player group right now. He’s a huge prospect. We don’t want him sitting on the end of the bench, and we thought it made sense for him to start the season in Norfolk and get some at-bats and get going. We’ll get him up here. There’s going to be a lot going on this year, and he’s going to be a big part of it.”
Basallo not catching early
Samuel Basallo (O’s No. 1 prospect, No. 13 overall) has been dealing with some right elbow inflammation at Minor League camp. The 20-year-old catcher will only be starting at designated hitter early in Triple-A Norfolk’s season.
Elias said Basallo will be kept out of the field for “several weeks.”