The Baltimore Orioles have acquired 27-year old lefty swinging 2B/3B/SS Josh Horton from the Oakland A’s for either a player to be named later or cash considerations.  Horton played in 16 games in AAA-ball for the A’s this year and he was 15 for 67 (.224 avg, .620 OPS) with 5 runs scored, 2 homers and 8 RBIs.  He has now played in 578 games in his first seven years in the minors and he is 612 of 2,233 (.274 avg, .719 OPS) with 309 runs scored, 25 homers, 260 RBIs and 26 stolen bases.  Horton might get his first shot at the show at some point in 2013, as 2B has been a black hole for the Orioles so far this year.

The Baltimore Orioles have placed righty swinging OF/DH Nolan Reimold on the 15-day disabled list, retroactive to May 12th, due to a strained right hamstring.  Reimold has played in 31 games for the O’s so far this year and he is 19 for 101 (.188 avg, .583 OPS) with 14 runs scored, 4 homers and 9 RBIs.  31-year old lefty swinging outfielder Chris Dickerson is likely to get the most of a P.T. bump with Reimold out of action.  Dickerson has played in 12 games for the Orioles so far this year and he is 8 for 25 (.320 avg, .866 OPS) with 5 runs scored, 1 homer, 6 RBIs and 1 stolen base.

27-year old righty starting pitcher Jair Jurrjens will join the Orioles’ starting rotation this Saturday against the Tampa Bay Rays.  He will be replacing lefty Wei-Yin Chen, who has recently been placed on the D.L.  Jurrjens has pitched in 8 games (all starts) in AAA-ball for the Orioles this year and he is 4-1 with a 3.14 ERA and a 1.14 WHIP.  Jurrjens has pitched in 126 games (125 starts) in his first 8 years in the majors and he is 53-37 with a 3.62 ERA and a 1.32 WHIP.  Jurrjens was a solid major league starting pitcher not too long ago, so maybe the Orioles will catch some lightning in a bottle with him.

The Orioles have placed 28-year old righty starting pitcher Miguel Gonzalez on the 15-day disabled list due to a blister on his right thumb.  Gonzalez has pitched in 6 games (all starts) for the Orioles so far this year and he is 2-2 with a 4.58 ERA and a 1.42 WHIP.  The Orioles have called up 25-year old righty reliever Alex Burnett to replace Gonzalez on the roster and the pitching staff.  Burnett has pitched in 8 games (0 starts) in AAA-ball for the Blue Jays and Orioles so far this year and he is 1-0 with a 0.77 ERA and a 0.86 WHIP.  Burnett has pitched in 174 games (0 starts) in his first three years in the majors and he is 8-11 with a 4.61 ERA and a 1.43 WHIP.

The Orioles have acquired 32-year old righty swinging catcher Chris Snyder from the Angels for 28-year old righty reliever Rob Delaney.  Snyder played in 21 games in AAA-ball for the D-Backs this year and he was 27 for 79 (.342 avg, 1.072 OPS) with 14 runs scored, 7 homers and 21 RBIs.  He has played in 706 games in his first 9 years in the majors and he is 465 of 2,067 (.225 avg, .714 OPS) with 227 runs scored, 77 homers and 297 RBIs.  Delaney pitched in 3 games (0 starts) in AAA-ball for the Orioles this year and he was 0-1 with a 10.12 ERA and a 2.06 WHIP.  He has pitched in 5 games (0 starts) in his first two years in the majors and he is 0-0 with a 10.50 ERA and a 2.33 WHIP.  This was a great move for the Orioles as Snyder will be Matt Wieters’ new backup.  Snyder will get the chance to keep the backup job if he plays well while Taylor Teagarden is out of action.

The Baltimore Orioles are going to place 29-year old righty swinging catcher Taylor Teagarden on the 15-day disabled list due to a dislocated left thumb, which will keep him out of action for the next 3-4 weeks.  Teagarden has played in 4 games for the Orioles so far this year and he is 0 for 13 (.000 avg) with 0 walks and 5 whiffs.  The Orioles will call up 26-year old righty swinging catcher Luis Exposito.  He has played in 16 games in AAA-ball for the Orioles this year and he was 12 for 55 (.218 avg, .527 OPS) with 9 runs scored, 0 homers and 6 RBIs.  He got his first taste of the majors for the Orioles last year and he was 1 for 18 (.056 avg, .246 OPS) with 2 runs scored.

UPDATE:  (4/30/2013) - The Orioles have designated Luis Exposito for assignment to make room on the roster for Chris Snyder.

UPDATE II:  (5/4/2013) - The Orioles have outrighted Luis Exposito to AAA.

The Orioles have dealt 35-year old righty reliever Luis Ayala to the Atlanta Braves for 24-year old lefty reliever Chris Jones.  Ayala pitched in 2 games (0 starts) for the Orioles this year and he was 1-0 with a 9.00 ERA and a 2.00 WHIP.  Ayala pitched in 68 games (0 starts) in his two years with the Orioles and he was 6-5 with 1 save, a 2.81 ERA and a 1.29 WHIP.  Jones pitched in 1 game (0 starts) in AA-ball for the Braves this year and he was 0-0 with a 13.50 ERA and a 3.00 WHIP.  Jones has now pitched in 156 games (24 starts) in his first seven years in the minors and he is 24-20 with 5 saves, a 3.58 ERA and a 1.34 WHIP.  This deal was more about opening a roster spot for 31-year old lefty swinging outfielder Chris Dickerson, who was called up to replace Ayala on the active roster, than getting true value back from the Braves.  Dickerson has played in 6 games in AAA-ball for the Orioles this year and he was 3 for 15 (.200 avg, .627 OPS) with 3 runs scored and 1 RBI.  Dickerson has played in 258 games in his first five years in the majors and he is 138 of 518 (.266 avg, .760 OPS) with 76 runs scored, 11 homers, 47 RBIs and 27 stolen bases.

30-year old righty reliever/starter Daniel McCutchen has been suspended for 50 games due to testing positive for PEDs.  He has pitched in 1 game (0 starts) in AAA-ball for the Orioles this year and he is 0-0 with a 21.60 ERA and a 3.00 WHIP.  Last year McCutchen pitched some for the Pirates.  He has played in 108 games (15 starts) in his first four years in the majors and he is 8-11 with a 4.77 ERA and a 1.50 WHIP.  This is going to make it hard for McCutchen to get back to the show at some point in 2013.

The Orioles have placed 35-year old switch-hitting 2B Brian Roberts on the 15-day disabled list due to a ruptured tendon in the back of his right knee.  He was injured stealing 2B last night against the Rays in Tampa.  Roberts has played in 3 games for the O’s so far this year and he is 5 for 12 (.417 avg, .917 OPS) with 1 run scored, 1 RBI and 1 stolen base.  28-year old switch-hitting Alexi Casilla and 26-year old lefty swinging Ryan Flaherty will likely share 2B until Roberts is ready to return to action.  Casilla has played in 1 game and he hasn’t batted yet but he does have a stolen base.  Flaherty has played in 1 game for the O’s so far this year and he is 0 for 3 (.000 avg, .000 OPS).  The Orioles have called up 25-year old righty swinging infielder Yamaico Navarro to replace Roberts on the active roster.  He could also figure in some at 2B for the Orioles until Roberts returns to action.  Roberts is likely out 2-4 weeks.

UPDATE:  (5/8/2013) - Brian Roberts is going to need surgery to repair his right hamstring and he will miss at least six more weeks.

The Orioles have lost 31-year old switch-hitting DH/3B Wilson Betemit for the next 6-8 weeks due to a tear in his right knee.  Betemit played in 102 games for the Orioles last year and he was 89 for 341 (.261 avg, .744 OPS) with 41 runs scored, 12 homers and 40 RBIs.  Due to Betemit’s injury, Nolan Reimold will likely start at DH with Nate McLouth starting full time in LF until Betemit returns to action.  The Orioles are still in solid shape without Betemit for the start of the 2013 season.

UPDATE:  (3/31/2013) - The Orioles have officially placed Wilson Betemit on the 15-day D.L.