Cowser’s walk-off homer powers O’s win

SARASOTA, Fla. — The Orioles got their first look at their prized offseason acquisition Saturday afternoon, and he didn’t disappoint.

Corbin Burnes took the ball for the club’s Grapefruit League opener against the Boston Red Sox, donning the Orioles’ home whites for the first time since being traded by the Milwaukee Brewers in January. The 2021 National League Cy Young Award winner pitched only one inning, but it was an impressive one.

He struck out the first two batters he faced on his way to a scoreless frame, throwing 21 pitches, including 13 strikes. Burnes wanted to test out his slider and he threw several to Red Sox first baseman Bobby Dalbec, the lone hitter to reach against him with a single to center. However, early spring training games are all about process over results, and Burnes left the mound pleased with the work he did to begin building up his arm for the regular season.

“Today was just getting the feet wet, getting out there, get on the mound, feel the adrenaline going again in a game situation and then get to work with Adley [Rutschman] a little bit,” Burnes said after his appearance. “So, obviously a little bit structured today as far as what we’re doing pitch-wise but had a little bit of freedom to kind of mix and match some stuff.”

Given the state of the Orioles’ rotation, the most significant takeaway from Burnes’s outing was that he emerged from it healthy. Baltimore expects to begin the year with both Kyle Bradish (UCL strain) and John Means (elbow soreness) on the injured list.

Burnes has been among baseball’s most durable pitchers the past four seasons and the Orioles hope to lean on him heavily for those innings early.

While Rutschman didn’t have to do much game-calling behind the plate for Burnes, he still found other ways to leave his mark. The Orioles catcher crushed a home run to straightaway center field off Red Sox starter Garrett Whitlock in his first at-bat.

Rutschman reached the 20-homer threshold for the first time in 2023. His average launch angle lends itself more to gap-togap power than over-the-fence production, but the 26-year-old switch-hitter has shown he knows how to dial up a big swing. Notably, Saturday’s blast came from the left side — Rutschman hit just six homers left-handed last season.

Later in the game, Rutschman also threw out a would-be basestealer trying to take second. Top prospect Jackson Holliday, making his Grapefruit League debut at second base, caught the ball on a hop to tag out a sliding Dalbec. The Orioles are giving Holliday a look as a candidate to make the opening day roster; he hit seventh and went 0-for-2 with a strikeout.

“He’s professional in the way he goes about his business,” Rutschman said of Holliday, his fellow No. 1 overall draft pick. “He’s a hard worker, has looked great so far in spring training. It was cool to have that first interaction.”