NEW YORK -- The firsts have come hard and fast for Richie Martin this weekend in the Bronx: his first game, starting at shortstop at Yankee Stadium, where his childhood idol Derek Jeter spent two decades; his first big league at-bats, against Masahiro Tanaka, James Paxton, Adam Ottavino -- as Martin puts it, "Everybody is electric."

The first payoffs came Saturday: the hit, stolen base and run scored he compiled in the Orioles' 5-3 win over the Yankees. And the first real sense of notoriety, that whoa, people are watching.

"I can't even keep up with it, these past three days, I might as well just throw my phone away," said Martin, ranked as the O's No. 15 prospect by MLB Pipeline. "I kind of feel bad I haven't been able to reach back out to everybody, but maybe I'll be able to on tonight's plane ride to Toronto."

Consider it a crash course in Major League life for Martin, the rookie Rule 5 pick who the Orioles are hoping can stick up the middle in an everyday role. The Orioles know it's a tall order, asking Martin to jump straight from Double-A, where he enjoyed an offensive breakout last summer. But they had reasons for targeting him with the first pick in December's Rule 5 Draft, namely his defensive ability and athleticism. That's why their message to him is simple: Emphasize those skills, even if it takes time for others to develop.

"I talked with him the day I told him he made the club, about, just, 'Listen, I want you to focus on your defense and catch the ball in the middle of the field, do what you did in Spring Training defensively,'" Orioles manager Brandon Hyde said. "It's a tough league, and he's making a big jump. I just didn't want him to get discouraged defensively. However he starts offensively, I just want him to focus on his defense and compete at the plate."

Martin has handled himself just fine in the field; Saturday brought some offensive rewards. The 24-year-old plans to give the ball from his sixth-inning single off Paxton -- a jam shot off the fists that landed just beyond the reach of Luke Voit up the first-base line -- to his father. Richard Martin, whom Richie calls his role model, was on hand this weekend, along with a smattering of family and friends to witness in the Bronx.

"He was just so proud, I could just tell in his eyes, how proud he was," Martin said of his father. "I thought [Voit] was going to OBJ [Odell Beckham Jr., star NFL wide receiver] me! You need a little luck in this game. I'm not complaining."

No closer, no problem
Mike Wright was summoned Saturday to lock down his first career save -- and the Orioles' first win of the season -- but that doesn't mean he gets the call next time. He also very well could. The Orioles' ninth-inning situation will remain fluid, Hyde said Sunday, and that's by design.

"It might change over the course of the year," Hyde said. "I'm not really sure. There might be a guy who steps in who I want to pitch the ninth inning. But as of right now, we're going to piece it together the best way we can."

It's a sentiment the Orioles have expressed consistently since the beginning of Spring Training. They simply see more value in being able to deploy their best relievers in high-leverage situations regardless of inning, rather than assign ninth-inning duties to one particular person at the current juncture. Naming a closer just to name one would limit their flexibility.

"Whoever gets the save that night, that's who it is," Hyde said. "There are certain guys I'll use in big spots. Against the meat of their order, there are certain guys I have highlighted. But when it comes to a lock-down closer right now, we're not there yet. We don't have [Aroldis] Chapman. We don't have [Mariano] Rivera. We don't have Brandon Morrow. We don't have those type of guys right now."