SARASOTA, Fla. — The Orioles don’t yet know whether Gunnar Henderson will be ready for opening day, but they might have to start making contingency plans pretty soon.

Henderson, 23, suffered a mild intercostal strain in his ribs last week, and while Orioles manager Brandon Hyde is “very, very hopeful” that the star shortstop can get back on the field in time for the start of the regular season, his status is in doubt with three weeks to go before the club heads to Toronto for Game 1 of 162.

“I mean, we hopefully have Gunnar, right?” infielder Ramón Urías said during the Orioles’ 9-5 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates on Thursday. “We all know how good he is, how good he is for the team. So, hopefully he’s ready for the start of the season. But also the guys we have show up, and we always try to do the best that we can.”

The Orioles only have eight infielders on their 40-man roster, Henderson included, and five already project to make the opening day roster at one of the other three spots: Ryan Mountcastle, Ryan O’Hearn, Jackson Holliday, Jordan Westburg and Urías. The others are Jorge Mateo, who’s expected to begin the season on the injured list, and Coby Mayo.

Mayo entered spring training without a clear path to a roster spot. The Orioles’ top infield prospect has taken reps at both third and first base this spring to stay ready for a potential opportunity at either position. Though no third baseman has been injured, Westburg was drafted as a shortstop and could move over to open up third for Mayo. Holliday could also return to his natural position at short, while Westburg takes over at second and Mayo starts at third.

Baltimore does have Urías, a former Gold Glove Award winner at third who played 93 games there for the Orioles last season and held his own at the plate with a .745 OPS. The same argument for Mayo could apply to Urías, which would give the Orioles the flexibility to add a nonroster invitee to their bench and maintain more depth to begin the season.

Livan Soto might be the favorite of that group to earn a spot. The 24-year-old has been acquired by the Orioles three separate times over the past year and he stuck with the organization after clearing waivers over the winter.

Soto is also shortstop and his presence on the opening day roster would allow the Orioles to keep the rest of their infielders in place — an option that might be more attractive should Henderson only miss minimal time.

Other options in camp include Emmanuel Rivera, Luis Vázquez, Terrin Vavra, Vimael Machin and Jeremiah Jackson, with Vázquez and Jackson able to play shortstop.

While these scenarios all become moot if Henderson progresses well enough to return to the lineup in time for opening day, the Orioles might have to start messing around with new infield combinations the next few weeks just to be prepared.

O’Neill scratched ahead of loss to Pirates: The Orioles played their first night game of the spring Thursday, facing Pirates right-hander Paul Skenes for the second time this week. They originally had Tyler O’Neill in the lineup at left field but scratched him about 40 minutes before first pitch with left rib cage soreness.

O’Neill has played only three games so far this spring after dealing with an illness early in camp. Hyde said after the game that he would take the next couple of days to rest and recover.

“We’re not concerned about it,” Hyde said.

Colton Cowser took his place and went 1-for-3 with a double as the Orioles’ starters pushed two runs across that were charged to Skenes, one of which came when they rallied for four runs in the bottom of the fourth. O’Hearn delivered the big blow with a two-run single, but Vázquez chipped in with a sacrifice and Cedric Mullins scored on a passed ball to cap off the frame. Westburg (back) also made his return to the lineup, starting at second and going 0-for-3 with two strikeouts.

Right-hander Zach Eflin wasn’t particularly sharp in his second start of the spring. The walk-averse starter wasn’t happy with himself for issuing two free passes but left the outing pleased with his buildup process. He finished with three earned runs allowed on three hits with no strikeouts.

“I feel like the stuff is good,” Eflin said. “Command can be a little better, trying to sync up my mechanics a little bit so it springs forward. So, just getting out there and getting repetition and getting the work in.”

After Baltimore (5-5) took the lead in the fourth, the Pirates chipped away before first baseman Nick Yorke took Orioles left-hander Luis González deep to left with a go-ahead home run in the eighth. Pittsburgh then put the game away by scoring three runs in the ninth off right-hander Rodolfo Martinez.

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