When Triple-A manager Gary Kendall called Tuesday morning to tell Stevie Wilkerson he was getting to return to the majors, Wilkerson was at his favorite Norfolk coffee shop, Cure.
“I love going to coffee shops,” Wilkerson said, “so I had to buy a T-shirt from there, too.”
The jolt of good news plus the caffeine meant Wilkerson played energized in his first game for the Orioles since the finale of the 2019 season, though it came in a 13-6 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays at Camden Yards. At the plate, he doubled in his first at-bat and smacked an RBI single in his second, contributing to the only meaningful run-scoring efforts the Orioles (17-24) managed.