Orioles' Colton Cowser: Out until late May/early June
Rotowire
Orioles general manager Mike Elias said Tuesday that the target for Cowser's (thumb) return is late May/early June, Jake Rill of MLB.com reports.
The timetable provided when Cowser went down with a fractured left thumb in late March was 6-to-8 weeks, so it appears he's looking at the latter end of that timeline, if not longer. Heston Kjerstad has been serving as the Orioles' primary left fielder since Cowser was injured.
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Orioles' Colton Cowser: Out for six-plus weeks
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Orioles manager Brandon Hyde said that he expects Cowser to be out "probably 6-to-8 weeks minimum" after the outfielder was placed on the 10-day injured list Monday due to a fractured left thumb, Jacob Calvin Meyer of The Baltimore Sun reports.
Cowser suffered structural damage to his thumb while he slid into first base during Sunday's 3-1 loss to the Blue Jays. The Orioles recalled Dylan Carlson from Triple-A Norfolk to provide extra coverage in the outfield while Cowser is out, but Heston Kjerstad appears to be the most likely candidate to earn regular playing time -- at least against right-handed pitching -- over the next several weeks. Hyde didn't say whether or not Cowser would require surgery on his thumb.
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Orioles' Colton Cowser: Lands on IL with fractured thumb
Rotowire
The Orioles placed Cowser on the 10-day injured list Monday with a fractured left thumb, Matt Weyrich of The Baltimore Sun reports.
Cowser injured the thumb on a slide into first base in Sunday's loss to the Blue Jays, and testing revealed the fracture. It's not yet clear how much time Cowser will miss, but it will certainly be longer than a minimum stay on the IL. Dylan Carlson has taken Cowser's spot on the roster and will get some playing time in Cowser's place, but Heston Kjerstad could be the primary beneficiary.
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Orioles' Colton Cowser: Undergoes hand surgery
Rotowire
Cowser had successful surgery on his fractured hand Tuesday, Andy Kostka of TheBaltimoreBanner.com reports.
Cowser fractured his left hand in Game 2 of the American League Wild Card Series versus the Royals on Oct. 2, the game in which the Orioles were eliminated. Given the timing of the injury, Cowser is expected to have enough recovery time to be ready for the start of spring training.
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Orioles' Colton Cowser: Launches homer in Friday's win
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Cowser went 1-for-5 with a solo home run in Friday's 7-2 win over the Twins.
Cowser has tapped into his power late in the season, swatting four homers over his last seven games. He's also logged seven RBI and 12 strikeouts in that span. The rookie outfielder is up to 24 homers, 69 RBI, 77 runs scored, nine stolen bases and a .244/.323/.451 slash line over 152 contests. He's been able to maintain respectable numbers despite striking out at a 30.9 percent rate this season.
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Orioles' Colton Cowser: Lifts 23rd homer
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Cowser went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Tuesday's 5-3 win over the Yankees.
Cowser has hit safely in seven of his last eight games, going 9-for-28 (.321) with three homers in that span. Those long balls account for his only RBI since Sept. 3, but he's at least done his part by getting on base regularly. The outfielder has maintained a .244/.324/.447 slash line with 23 homers, 65 RBI, 75 runs scored and eight stolen bases over 149 contests as a regular in the lineup for much of the campaign.
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Orioles' Colton Cowser: Belts two homers
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Cowser went 2-for-4 with two solo home runs in Friday's win over Detroit.
Cowser went deep in the second and sixth innings against the Tigers for his second career multi-homer game. He also snapped an 18-game homerless drought dating back to August. During that span, he hit .224 with just two RBI. Cowser is now slashing .246/.326/.448 with 22 home runs, 48 extra-base hits and 64 RBI through 146 games.
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Orioles' Colton Cowser: Sitting down versus lefty
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Cowser isn't in the Orioles' lineup for Tuesday's game against the Giants.
San Francisco will send southpaw Blake Snell to the mound for the start of Tuesday's contest, meaning the lefty-hitting Cowser will sit on the bench while Austin Slater fills the void in left field, batting leadoff.
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Orioles' Colton Cowser: Smacks homer in win
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Cowser went 2-for-4 with a solo home run and an additional run scored in Friday's 7-5 win over the Astros.
Cowser ended a 12-game homer drought with his third-inning blast. In that span, he hit just .224 (11-for-49). The outfielder is now slashing .249/.326/.454 with 19 homers, 57 RBI, 61 runs scored and eight stolen bases through 122 contests. He remains the preferred leadoff hitter versus right-handed pitchers, though any prolonged slump at the plate for Cowser could cause manager Brandon Hyde to try someone else atop the order.
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Orioles' Colton Cowser: Swipes bag in Monday's loss
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Cowser went 1-for-4 with a stolen base in Monday's 4-3 loss to the Mets.
Cowser had gone 26 games without a steal entering Monday, though he produced 20 RBI and five home runs in that span. The outfielder is up to a .245/.323/.441 slash line with 18 homers, 56 RBI, 56 runs scored and eight steals through 118 contests this season. He continues to play on a near-everyday basis, often starting in left field versus right-handed pitchers and in center field against southpaws.
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Orioles' Colton Cowser: Three hits, two runs in win
Rotowire
Cowser went 3-for-6 with a double and two runs scored in Saturday's 7-5 win over the Rays.
Per Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com, Cowser was sporting a wrap on his left wrist, but he still had another productive game. The outfielder is batting .306 (11-for-36) over nine games in August, even though it appears he's not quite 100 percent. For the season, he's up to a .254/.332/.466 slash line with 18 homers, 17 doubles, seven stolen bases, 54 RBI and 54 runs scored over 110 contests.
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Orioles' Colton Cowser: Slugs 15th homer
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Cowser went 3-for-7 with a home run, three total runs, three total RBI and a walk across both games of Monday's doubleheader split versus the Blue Jays.
Cowser went 1-for-3 with a sacrifice fly in the matinee and followed that with a solo homer and an RBI single in Game 2. He extended his hitting streak to 11 games, during which he's batting .375 with three home runs, 10 runs, 12 RBI and two stolen bases. Cowser failed to go deep in 77 plate appearances during his initial big-league cup of coffee last year, but he's hit 15 long balls across 337 plate appearances so far in 2024.
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Orioles' Colton Cowser: Logs steal Sunday
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Cowser went 2-for-4 with a double and a stolen base in Sunday's 3-2 loss to the Rangers.
Cowser has started all three games coming out of the All-Star break, going 4-for-11 with a homer and two steals. The outfielder has provided modest speed this year, going 7-for-9 on stolen base attempts. He's added a .225/.313/.431 slash line, 13 long balls, 36 RBI, 35 runs scored, 14 doubles and a triple through 304 plate appearances. Cowser continues to split his time between left field and center field, resulting in smaller roles for Austin Hays and Cedric Mullins, though Heston Kjerstad is also back in the mix for outfield playing time following his return from a concussion.
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Orioles' Colton Cowser: Sitting versus righty again
Rotowire
Cowser is not in the lineup for Tuesday's game against the Cubs.
For the third straight game, Cowser is out of the lineup against a right-hander (this time Jameson Taillon). Heston Kjerstad has recently emerged as the Orioles' preferred option in left field against righties, while Austin Hays typically gets the call at the position versus lefties. Meanwhile, Cedric Mullins has tightened his grip on the center field job. After posting a 1.004 OPS in April, Cowser has collected just a .621 OPS since May 1.
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Orioles' Colton Cowser: Reaches 10-homer mark
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Cowser went 1-for-4 with a solo home run and a walk in Tuesday's 10-8 loss to the Guardians.
Cowser has gone a modest 11-for-61 (.180) over 22 contests while seeing a part-time role in June. Five of his hits this month have gone for extra bases, and he's up to 10 homers on the year after Tuesday's long ball. He's slashing just .226/.317/.429 with 32 RBI, 29 runs scored and five stolen bases. Anthony Santander is about the only constant in the Orioles' outfield, leaving Cowser to compete with Cedric Mullins, Austin Hays and Heston Kjerstad for two positions on a regular basis.
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Orioles' Colton Cowser: Not in Friday's lineup
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Cowser is not in the lineup for Friday's contest in Houston.
It marks two straight games that he's been absent from the lineup, and both of them have come against right-handed pitching. After putting up a 1.004 OPS in April, Cowser has just a .603 OPS since May 1. Ryan O'Hearn is in left field and Cedric Mullins is in center Friday.
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Orioles' Colton Cowser: Homers, steals base
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Cowser went 2-for-2 with a two-run home run, a walk and a stolen base Sunday against the Phillies.
Cowser recorded a homer and a steal in the same game for the first time in his career, while the two hits he recorded represent just his second multi-hit effort since May 19. In total, Cowser reached base all four times he came to the plate, including on a walk and a hit-by-pitch. For the season, Cowser is slashing .234/.326/.442 with nine homers, 31 RBI, 28 runs and five steals over 227 plate appearances.
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Orioles' Colton Cowser: Homers off bench Wednesday
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Cowser hit a two-run home run in his lone at-bat in Wednesday's 4-2 win over Atlanta.
Cowser entered the game as a defensive replacement for Ryan O'Hearn in the top of the eighth inning, and he was able to make some noise on offense with his go-ahead blast a half-inning later. The homer was Cowser's first since May 26 and just his second since the start of May, as his hot start to the year has faded. He's batting just .196 over his last 16 contests, though Cedric Mullins' struggles at the plate have allowed Cowser to maintain a decent share of playing time. The 24-year-old is slashing .234/.324/.436 with eight homers, four stolen bases, 29 RBI and 27 runs scored across 216 plate appearances.
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Orioles' Colton Cowser: Sitting Saturday
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Cowser is not in the starting lineup for Saturday's game against the Rays.
Cowser started in the series opener Friday, going 1-for-4 with three strikeouts. The lefty-hitting Cedric Mullins will start in center field Saturday and bat ninth against Rays right-hander Taj Bradley.
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Orioles' Colton Cowser: Not in Friday's lineup
Rotowire
Cowser is out of the lineup for Friday's game against the White Sox, Rich Dubroff of BaltimoreBaseball.com reports.
Cowser started the previous 15 games but will head to the bench after he posted a .224/.350/.306 slash line during that stretch. Austin Hays will take over in left field and bat sixth.
