Has the Orioles’ play this season surprised you? | MAILBAG

Question: While I would consider myself a fairly knowledgeable fan, who reads as much about the Birds as I can find, I’m certainly not an expert. My question is what were your concerns going into this season? And with how this season has gone so far are there any issues that surprised you or you didn’t question preseason? From: Ramon Japzon

Answer: Ramon, I never imagined the Orioles would be in the position they are now. A reader asked me for my prediction in a mailbag before Opening Day, and I wrote that I thought the Orioles would make the American League Championship Series.

Obviously, I didn’t see them having the great number of injuries that they’ve had, and I thought they’d be in the thick of a difficult American League East. I thought they would be an extremely deep team, but so far, they haven’t been.

Question: When Samuel Basallo is promoted, would he just be a designated hitter? The Orioles have a glut of catchers. From: Kevin Sage

Answer: Kevin, I’m not at all certain Samuel Basallo will be promoted this season. He probably will be, but that’s not a certainty. He needs to play more and well at Norfolk.

Assuming he’s promoted in the last two months of the season, I would see him as a backup catcher and occasional DH. I’m not sure what you mean about a glut of catchers. Maverick Handley will likely return to Norfolk when Gary Sánchez returns, and he’s had trouble hitting in the major leagues, so I think if Basallo is here, he catches at least some of the time.

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.