The Orioles plan to recall left-hander Cade Povich from Triple-A Norfolk on Saturday, according to two sources with direct knowledge of the decision.
Povich will be added to the club’s taxi squad Friday before being activated to start Saturday against the Boston Red Sox, a source said. The rookie joined the Orioles in Baltimore and had a locker in their clubhouse Friday.
It’s not yet clear what corresponding move the Orioles will make to create space on their active roster. Baltimore originally named right-hander Albert Suárez its probable pitcher for Saturday, and manager Brandon Hyde said in his pregame news conference Friday that the Orioles are considering pushing him and the rest of the rotation back a day. Hyde said it was “more than likely” that left-hander Trevor Rogers, scheduled to pitch Sunday, would be pushed back as well rather than skipped.
“We’d like to give these guys as much of a break as possible,” Hyde said. “We felt like, especially Al [Suárez], Al threw more than he’s ever thrown before his last start. We’re kind of getting in a spot in the schedule where a lot of guys are getting up there in innings and not used to it, and so any time we can give a guy a break, or give him an extra day or two, we’re going to.”
Hyde added that he doesn’t anticipate the club expanding to a six-man rotation for the next few weeks despite deploying that strategy last year down the stretch.
Suárez is coming off one of his best performances of the year, blanking the Tampa Bay Rays across 6 2/3 innings Sunday. He threw 94 pitches, three short of his season high, and is up to 90 1/3 innings this season. Suárez pitched more than 160 innings each of the past two years while in Japan, South Korea and Venezuela. The 34-year-old right-hander has been one of the most effective pitchers on Baltimore’s staff this season, posting a 3.39 ERA in 24 games (16 starts).
Povich, 24, is the No. 9 overall prospect in the Orioles’ farm system by Baseball America’s rankings. The rookie has made eight starts for Baltimore this season, posting a 6.27 ERA with 25 strikeouts and 23 walks over 37 1/3 innings after breaking into top 100 prospect rankings with his strong start to the year with Norfolk. Povich has flashed his potential with impressive outings against the Atlanta Braves on June 12 and the Texas Rangers on June 29 but has struggled to limit walks, surrendering five in each of his past two starts for the Orioles.
In two starts for the Tides since his last MLB stint, Povich has completed seven innings in both outings and allowed six runs (3.86 ERA) with 11 strikeouts and two walks. He owns a 3.48 ERA and 1.11 WHIP in 15 appearances (14 starts) for Norfolk this season and would be a candidate to move into the Orioles’ bullpen down the stretch even if he doesn’t stick in their rotation as a starter.