SARASOTA,FLA. —Depending on how he approached it, Orioles starter Kevin Gausman could have let the circumstances of Tuesday’s exhibition against the World Baseball Classic-bound Dominican Republic take him in any direction.

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TV: MASN playing between innings could have taken the rising-star right-hander to a place far more relaxed than reality at Ed Smith Stadium, where the lineup he had to face — with 25 All-Star appearances among its players — certainly seemed daunting.

Once the game began, the man who could continue his ascent this season into a top-flight starting pitcher and possibly even start on Opening Day showed he was up for even the most unique challenge spring training could offer.

“That’s one thing I wanted to tell myself today, not to just get too crazy, you know?”

Gausman said. “During the season, if I’m facing a team like that, it might be a little bit different.

“It’s basically an All-Star team. It really is.

You’ve got to be on top of your game. You’ve