SARASOTA, Fla. — Over the last few days of the Orioles’ stay in Florida, manager Craig Albernaz went to some of his players and informed them of the obvious. Formality or not, alerting select players that they had made the opening day roster was a positive moment for the first-time manager and the stars.

Surprised, Pete Alonso? Probably not. But it’s an honor anyway.

There are many moving parts to be sorted through before the Orioles begin the season Thursday at Camden Yards against the Minnesota Twins. One of those key decisions was made Saturday, though, when they optioned right-hander Dean Kremer to the minors to begin the season.

With that, the opening day rotation is set: Trevor Rogers, Kyle Bradish, Shane Baz, Chris Bassitt and Zach Eflin. There is also more certainty around some players, such as Ryan Mountcastle and Coby Mayo, and how their roles may be defined.

But, with exhibition games Sunday and Monday against the Washington Nationals, not everything is in stone.

These are the major takeaways from president of baseball operations Mike Elias’ end-of-spring news conference.

Ryan Mountcastle’s impact

There has been no shortage of uncertainty around Mountcastle over the last several months, particularly after Baltimore signed Alonso to play first base with a five-year, $155 million deal. But, as the Orioles board a plane to Baltimore, Mountcastle is still here. And he isn’t just some warm body.

Elias pushed back on the idea that Mountcastle would primarily be a bench bat. The 29-year-old is poised to see time at designated hitter, and while Alonso played 160 or more games in 2024 and 2025 as the New York Mets’ first baseman, Elias said, “Pete is not going to play 162 there.”

“Mounty has historically been great against left-handed pitching, and so I think he’s going to be a front-line player for us against a lot of opponents,” Elias said. “We believe in his stick.”

Elias acknowledged that Mountcastle’s batting statistics have regressed the last few years through “bad luck” and injuries (the deeper left field wall didn’t help a right-handed hitter, either). Mountcastle hit 33 home runs in 2021, his first full season, and he produced a .779 on-base-plus-slugging percentage in 2023.

In 89 games last year, Mountcastle’s OPS fell to .653. But the Orioles signed him to a $6.787 million contract with a $7.5 million club option in 2027 because of his track record. Mountcastle holds an .813 OPS against lefties in his career.

Ryan Mountcastle takes batting practice during spring training last month. (Ulysses Muñoz/The Banner)

Even last year, when his numbers were down across the board, he reached base 30% of the time against southpaws (his power numbers, however, were much lower; he managed a .598 OPS vs. lefties).

The combination of Samuel Basallo’s ability to play first, the signing of Alonso and the development of Mayo stirred trade rumors. Even during camp, The Athletic reported the Orioles were open to the possibility of trading Mountcastle.

As teams shuffle through all of their roster decisions ahead of opening day, there is still a possibility Mountcastle will be moved. The Orioles could bolster their bullpen that way. But, judging by Elias’ comments Saturday, Baltimore is comfortable with Mountcastle as more than a bench piece.

“That’s just a really good hitter to have on your team, and we’ll figure out a way to help him impact games for us,” Elias said.

Zach Eflin proved himself

This was always the best-case scenario, but the Orioles didn’t want to get ahead of themselves. When they re-signed Eflin this offseason after he underwent back surgery in August, the Orioles didn’t want to rush his buildup and risk setbacks.

But at each turn Eflin proved himself ready.

Pitcher Zach Eflin has looked sharp — and healthy — during the spring. (Paul Mancano/The Banner)

“He was really determined to do so,” Elias said. “Both in terms of optics and results, did about as well as you could’ve imagined, especially coming off that surgery. I really think it was an injury that was sort of inhibiting him for a while, and now it’s a surgery that’s kind of curative when it goes well.”

When Albernaz watched Eflin’s final spring start Friday — in which he struck out seven Yankees hitters and allowed one hit in 5 1/3 scoreless innings — the manager was especially pleased to see how well Eflin moved when covering first base on a grounder. For one out, Alonso flipped the ball with his glove to the covering Eflin, who had to reach up and behind his head to make the catch, then touch first base.

The play was so well done that Yankees infielder Jazz Chisholm Jr. shook Eflin’s hand after the out.

Eflin signed a one-year, $10 million deal with a mutual option for 2027. He was never fully healthy last season, which led to his 5.93 ERA in 14 starts before surgery. Now he could be better than ever.

“I think he just feels better than he has in years and hopefully is pitching better than he has in years,” Elias said. “We’ll get him prepared, and he’ll be pitching at some point in the first turn of the rotation.”

The final roster questions

The final roster spots up in the air are in the outfield, infield and bullpen. The Orioles knew the injuries to Jackson Holliday and Jordan Westburg would increase the importance of Mayo and Blaze Alexander, but in the last few days, outfielders Dylan Beavers (sore knee) and Heston Kjerstad (hamstring tightness) and left-hander Keegan Akin (adductor discomfort) suffered potential injuries.

That could change the equation late, although Beavers said he doesn’t expect the knee soreness to force him to miss much time, if any. Kjerstad will undergo imaging in Baltimore, and Akin’s hip pain occurred too late in the day Saturday for the Orioles to know the extent of that possible injury.

Of the three, Beavers and Akin were expected to make the opening day roster. If they are unable to do so, there are various possibilities ahead, particularly in the bullpen.

Outfielder Dylan Beavers said he doesn’t expect a sore knee to be a problem for him. (Ulysses Muñoz/The Banner)

Right-handers Albert Suárez, Jackson Kowar, Hans Crouse and Yaramil Hiraldo are competing for one (or two) places.

In the outfield, Leody Taveras is a possibility to make the team, regardless of Beavers’ status. Jhonkensy Noel, seen as an outfielder with an outside chance, could even be in the conversation.

If they have five outfielders, the Orioles have space for one more infielder: Jeremiah Jackson, Bryan Ramos and Weston Wilson are strong contenders. But the Orioles could run with four outfielders instead, which improves that trio’s chances.

This could all change quickly, of course, as injured players return.

Holliday is set to begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Norfolk on Friday, and right-hander Andrew Kittredge (shoulder inflammation) said he expects to begin one on or near that same date. Elias said Westburg’s injured list stint for his elbow will extend into May at least.

The nature of the opening day roster is that it’s just one group of players for one of the 162 games. The roster will change routinely this season.