How good can Orioles’ Colton Cowser be? | MAILBAG

Question: Just curious what your thoughts are on Colton Cowser for the upcoming season. He had a nice year last year and is a fantastic defender. I am hoping Ramón Laureano and Dylan Carlson aren’t here to take playing time away from him. I’d like to see him get a full season of at-bats, maybe 500-plus and play through any struggles. Is that realistic? What do you think his potential is? From: Jason J. Saracco 

Answer: Jason, I don’t think Laureano and Carlson were acquired to take playing time away from Cowser. I think Laureano can play center and right, and was a nice pickup. Carlson is a depth piece and a switch-hitter. Since Cowser, Cedric Mullins and Heston Kjerstad all bat left-handed, they needed some balance.

I think Cowser needs to cut down on his strikeouts. He had 172 last year and if he makes more contact, he can again get 500 at-bats. He had 499 last year. He’s excellent in the field, and I think he has the potential to be an outstanding all-around player.

Question: When do you anticipate an updated 40-man roster to reflect the players going on the injured list, i.e, Bradish and Wells, plus any new additions we aren’t aware of? Wouldn’t this give us some roster flexibility, if only temporarily? From: Mike Sherman

Answer: Mike, players can’t be moved from the 40-man roster to the 60-day injured list unless there’s a need. If the Orioles acquire a player or two, they’ll move Bradish and Wells to the 60, but they can’t do it ahead of time. They already have that roster flexibility because they’ll be able to move them to the 60-day when they want to add players.

Most weekdays, I’ll be answering at least one Orioles question. If you’d like to submit a question, send it to: Rich@BaltimoreBaseball.com. Questions may be edited for clarity, length and style.