BALTIMORE -- The Orioles will continue to play a little short on their bench, as manager Buck Showalter said Friday that outfielder Seth Smith planned to test his tender right hamstring prior to the O's game against the Red Sox.
"He said he feels a little better today," Showalter said of Smith, who exited Tuesday's game with the injury and hasn't played since. "So, we'll see how that goes. He didn't do a whole lot on it other than get treated yesterday. Hoping that he moves around and feels pretty good."
Without Smith, the O's are in a precarious spot, as all of their position players on the 40-man roster are either hurt or with the big league team. Showalter said they toyed with the idea of activating Joey Rickard, who has been dealing with a finger injury, just to play defense and run.
"That's a risky thing unless he has a good day [on Saturday]," Showalter said of Rickard, who is still dealing with some lingering soreness and is slated to take batting practice off of the coaches next. "Say he hits while he's active and it swells up, blows up 'cause you did it too early. You lost all the days on the DL."
For now, the team will wait on Smith with Showalter calling the current roster construction "a little bit of a challenge, but nothing we can't overcome."
The team is also expecting to get news on closer Zach Britton's MRI sometime on Friday. Britton underwent the test of his left elbow/forearm area earlier this week as a precaution while he's on the disabled list.
"He feels good. He's ready to pitch," Showalter said of Britton, who was DL'ed on Sunday. "He was in the dugout, [and] he said, 'I'm ready to throw.' He was champing at the bit yesterday. He said, 'I feel good I'm ready to go.'"
Also Cedric Mullins, the club's No. 18 prospect according to MLBPipeline.com, sustained a strained hamstring on Thursday night and is expected to be placed on the Minor League DL. Mullins turned heads in spring and had been off to a terrific start for Double-A Bowie, earning Eastern League Player of the Week honors.