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Orioles sign 2-time All-Star Jean Segura to minor league contract; ‘Sunday Night Baseball’ returning to Baltimore | NOTES

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — In the 10 days since losing infielder Jordan Westburg to injury, the Orioles have signed two players with a combined 20 years of MLB experience to minor league contracts to provide depth for however long the All-Star will be out.

Two days ago, the Orioles inked eight-year veteran J.D. Davis after the third baseman was released by the New York Yankees. Friday, they signed two-time All-Star Jean Segura to a minor league deal to give Baltimore a 12-year veteran in Triple-A who has MLB experience at second base, third base and shortstop — the three positions Westburg has appeared this season.

Segura, 34, was an All-Star with the Milwaukee Brewers in 2013 and the Seattle Mariners in 2017. A career .281 hitter, Segura is years removed from being an impact major leaguer, although in 2022 with the Philadelphia Phillies, he put up a respectable .277/.336/.387 slash line — good for a .723 OPS.

The Dominican Republic native hasn’t played professionally over the past calendar year. He spent the first four months of 2023 with the Miami Marlins and was one of the worst players in the major leagues. Segura hit .219 with a .556 OPS in 85 games with only 10 extra-base hits in 326 plate appearances.

His minus-1.2 wins above replacement by FanGraphs’ estimation was fourth-worst among MLB players through Aug. 1, 2023, when he was traded to the Cleveland Guardians and immediately released.

If Segura makes it to the majors with the Orioles, they will be his seventh MLB team. After debuting with the Los Angeles Angels in 2012, he played four years with the Brewers. His best season came in 2016 with the Arizona Diamondbacks, when he led the National League with 203 hits, posting a .319 batting average and .867 OPS to finish 13th in NL MVP voting. He then spent two years in Seattle and four in Philadelphia before his stint with the Marlins.

Westburg’s right hand was fractured by a 95 mph fastball July 31, landing the 25-year-old on the 10-day injured list amid his breakout sophomore campaign. The Orioles’ hope is that Westburg can return before the end of the regular season, but whether that’s possible remains up in the air.

Westburg was one of the Orioles’ best players at the time of his injury, ranking third in WAR behind only Gunnar Henderson and Colton Cowser. He mostly played second and third base, spots Segura and Davis could fill if needed. Segura was mostly a shortstop in the majors, but he has played more than 3,000 innings at second base and 900 at third.

Davis has a career .764 OPS but only a .631 OPS this year between the Oakland Athletics and Yankees. He is primarily a third baseman and has begun playing for Triple-A Norfolk.

‘Sunday Night Baseball’ coming to Baltimore again

It took the Orioles five years to host ESPN’s “Sunday Night Baseball” after they did so in August 2018. This year, they’ll do so twice.

After hosting June 30 against the Texas Rangers, the Orioles will again be in primetime Aug. 25. Baltimore’s game against the Houston Astros at Camden Yards was moved from a 1:35 p.m. first pitch to 7:10 p.m. for “Sunday Night Baseball.”

It will mark the third time in 13 months Baltimore has hosted after ending its drought in July 2023. The Orioles were 37-93 when they played on “Sunday Night Baseball” in 2018. They’ll be fighting for a playoff spot in their third straight season when they take on Houston later this month.

The Astros, who entered Friday tied atop the American League West with a 59-55 record, have been the AL’s best team over the past decade. They’ve played in the AL Championship Series in each of the past seven seasons, making the World Series four times and winning twice.

The second appearance on “Sunday Night Baseball” will just be the latest of many nationally televised Orioles games this season. Their contest against the Tampa Bay Rays on Saturday will be on Fox, and so will their series opener against the Astros on Thursday, Aug. 22.

Around the horn

Orioles executive vice president and general manager Mike Elias will speak with the media at Tropicana Field on Saturday afternoon, skipper Brandon Hyde said before Friday’s game. Elias is expected to provide injury updates for starting pitcher Grayson Rodriguez (lat/teres discomfort) and reliever Jacob Webb (elbow inflammation). Both pitchers went on the 15-day IL earlier this week.

• With Tropicana Field less than an hour away from the Orioles’ facility in Sarasota, injured pitchers Félix Bautista, Kyle Bradish and Tyler Wells were with the team Friday to hang out with their teammates and, in Bautista’s case, work out on the field. All three are recovering from ulnar collateral ligament surgery. Bautista is still playing catch on flat ground after his Tommy John elbow reconstruction surgery in October. He recently posted a video on Instagram of him throwing off a flat mound in Sarasota. Hyde said it’s “always great seeing” Bautista. “He looks wonderful,” Hyde said. “I know he’s really excited to be here. I saw him hugging some other guys on the team. We definitely miss him, but it was nice to see him.”

• The Philadelphia Phillies placed Austin Hays on the 10-day injured list Friday. The outfielder was hitting .263 with a .677 OPS with the Phillies after the Orioles traded him in late July for reliever Seranthony Domínguez.


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