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Already losing designated hitter Nolan Reimold to the 15-day disabled list earlier in the day, the Orioles elected to send out struggling second baseman Ryan Flaherty following their 10-6 loss to Tampa Bay on Saturday night.

Red-hot Norfolk infielder Danny Valencia was recalled to take his place on the 25-man roster and in the lineup as the designated hitter on Sunday.

Not in the Tides lineup on Saturday night, Valencia was hitting .306 with 11 homers and 35 RBIs in 160 at-bats at Triple A this season. His .939 on-base plus slugging percentage would seem to be an appropriate fit for an audition at the designated hitter spot while Reimold is sidelined with a hamstring injury.

With Tampa Bay left-hander Matt Moore scheduled to take the hill against the Orioles on Sunday, Valencia was deemed a good fit for the lineup after receiving the promotion. He’s hit .316 with an .831 OPS in his major league career against southpaw pitching. Valencia has primarily played third base for Norfolk, but he has also seen time at first base and the outfield this season.

The 28-year-old is already on the 40-man roster and owns a .257 career average with 25 home runs and 133 RBIs in 1017 at-bats in the big leagues split between the Minnesota Twins and the Boston Red Sox. In 2010, Valencia finished third in the American League Rookie of the Year balloting after hitting .310 with the Twins.

He will wear No. 35 for the Orioles.

The 26-year-old Flaherty was optioned to Triple-A Norfolk as he was hitting just .133 in 29 games this season while serving as the club’s primary option at second base in the absence of the injured Brian Roberts. Flaherty spent the entire 2012 season on the 25-man roster as a Rule 5 pick and hit .216 with six home runs and 19 RBIs.

Playing improved defense at second base this season, Flaherty is held in high regard by manager Buck Showalter, but it was becoming increasingly clear that his immense struggles at the plate weren’t improving enough for a contending club. Flaherty owns just 227 career plate appearances at the Triple-A level and could benefit from the opportunity of playing every day in a pressure-free environment to regain his confidence at the plate.

Showalter said the bullpen should be fine in terms of available arms for Sunday’s game despite starter Jair Jurrjens going just five innings on Saturday, and the club would have been down to a three-man bench if it had decided to promote another pitcher instead of tabbing Valencia for a promotion.

The Orioles held their first workouts for pitchers and catchers to officially kick off spring training in Sarasota on Wednesday.

Trying to build on a 93-win campaign that included their first trip to the playoffs in 15 years, the Orioles have several questions marks after a quiet offseason void of significant moves.

Here are five questions to ponder as Baltimore begins preparations for the 2013 season:

1. Can Nolan Reimold stay healthy and be the impact bat the Orioles failed to acquire in the offseason?

Executive vice president of baseball operations Dan Duquette failed in his quest to acquire a middle-of-the-order bat, but a healthy Reimold would go a long way in providing the extra offense the Orioles are looking for after they finished ninth in runs scored and 11th in on-base percentage in the American League last season. Of course, expecting Reimold to stay injury-free has only resulted in frustration over the years as the left fielder missed most of last season after undergoing spinal fusion surgery.

The good news is Reimold is already taking live batting practice and appears to be 100 percent for spring training as he will compete with Nate McLouth for the starting job in left field. McLouth is the superior fielder and has more speed, but few would argue Reimold’s ability at the plate as he hit .313 with five home runs in 67 at-bats last season.

The club could elect to use Reimold as the designated hitter more frequently to keep him healthy, and he would be an ideal fit in the No. 2 spot because of his plate discipline (a career .338 on-base percentage in 916 plate appearances in the majors) or in the fifth or sixth spot because of his power. At 29, Reimold appears to be running out of time as a viable option on which the Orioles can depend moving forward, but the club signed him for $1 million in the offseason and maintains control of him through the 2015 season.

Duquette didn’t acquire an established veteran bat and also parted ways with slugger Mark Reynolds, so this spring will be critical for Reimold to prove he can provide extra punch to the lineup. If he’s again unhealthy, the Orioles will be forced to lean more heavily on McLouth, who carries his own baggage despite a 2012 renaissance in Baltimore.

2. What will the starting rotation look like when the Orioles come north to Baltimore?

The starting rotation would appear to have a more definitive outline than it did as this time last year as Jason Hammel, Wei-Yin Chen, Miguel Gonzalez, and Chris Tillman all put forth career seasons in 2012, but none of those four come without questions this spring. Concerns over Hammel’s knee were eased with his ability to pitch effectively in the postseason, but the Orioles hope he can replicate his first half last season when he looked like an ace and was included in the fan vote for the final spot on the AL All-Star team.

Chen and Gonzalez will need to prove their rookie campaigns weren’t flukes as the rest of the league will be more familiar with each and the latter’s 170-pound frame will always cause some to question his durability over a full season. Adjustments made to Tillman’s mechanics by director of pitching development Rick Peterson paid major dividends last year, but the 24-year-old will need to replicate that success over an entire season in the big leagues.

Even if those four pick up right where they left off, manager Buck Showalter and pitching coach Rick Adair must sift through a number of other candidates to replace the fifth spot in the rotation left behind by veteran left Joe Saunders, who signed with Seattle last week. Jake Arrieta, Brian Matusz, Steve Johnson, Zach Britton, and Tommy Hunter will all be in the mix, but each comes with their limitations and concerns.

The Orioles continue to point to strength in numbers as it pertains to the starting rotation as 12 pitchers made starts for Baltimore last season. And to offer some perspective on how quickly things can change due to injury or ineffectiveness, three-fifths of the rotation that began the 2012 season landed in the minor leagues by the All-Star break.

The top four will have the inside track for rotation spots entering the spring, but Showalter won’t hesitate to make changes quickly if anyone isn’t up to the task.

3. Who will step up to play second base?

Yes, Brian Roberts is still with the Orioles as he enters the final season of a four-year contract that’s seen him play 115 games combined in the last three years. The 35-year-old infielder appears to be recovered from hip surgery and an offseason surgery to correct a sports hernia, but viewing Roberts as a viable option feels more like you’re being polite than at all realistic.

The Orioles acquired the slick-fielding Alexi Casilla off waivers from the Minnesota Twins after the switch-hitting second baseman played in a career-high 106 games last season. The 28-year-old is a career .250 hitter and provides good speed (21 stolen bases in 2012), but it remains to be seen whether he can handle full-time duties at the plate or he’ll be exposed over a bigger sample of at-bats.

The most intriguing option from an offensive perspective would be Ryan Flaherty, who split duties at second base with the departed Robert Andino at the end of last season. Thought limited defensively, Flaherty hit six home runs in 153 at-bats as a Rule 5 player who stuck on the 25-man roster all season.

Because of Showalter’s preference for strong defense up the middle, Casilla would appear to be the favorite to handle the bulk of the duties at second base due to Roberts’ frailty and Flaherty’s limitations in the field. However, this will remain a very fluid position to watch as the spring progresses.

4. How will Showalter handle the designated hitter spot in the order?

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With Major League Baseball investigating the Biogenesis clinic and operator Anthony Bosch, the Orioles have now been drawn into the story as third baseman Danny Valencia is listed in the records in a report from Yahoo! Sports.

According to the article, Valencia’s named is not linked to any specific performance enhancing drugs, but his mention will draw scrutiny along with the many others including Alex Rodriguez, Ryan Braun, and Melky Cabrera.

Valencia released a statement Tuesday evening that was passed along by ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick:

“As any innocent person would be, I am shocked and troubled that my name is in any way connected to this story. I have never met or spoken to anyone connected with Biogenesis, in fact I had never even heard of this company prior to the New Times’ story. I take tremendous pride in the hard work and dedication I put into being a professional baseball player and have never taken PEDs or failed a drug test of any kind during my career. I look forward to fully cooperating in MLB’s investigation in any way that I can, and will explore taking legal action if this issue is not resolved in a timely fashion.”

The Orioles purchased his contract from the Boston Red Sox in late November.

Last season, Valencia hit .188 with three home runs and 21 runs batted in in 154 at-bats with the Minnesota Twins and Boston. He will be a candidate to platoon at the designated hitter spot with Wilson Betemit.