Josh Land

Yard Work: Episode 4

May 03, 2017, 7:13am

Orioles

Hey, O's fans! Welcome to the latest installment of Yard Work. On this week's episode ... Last weekend it seemed like the hearts of Orioles fans were filled with despair and disgust. A three-game series in the Bronx was full of drama and heartache, most notably the team's collapse Friday during the series opener. Still, it was foolish to think any team was going to win every series. It's a long season and pitfalls happen. But what did this past weekend's series say about the Orioles - and...

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Dillon Atkinson: Machado displaying maturity through incidents with Red Sox

May 03, 2017, 6:33am

Orioles

Dillon Atkinson: Machado displaying maturity through incidents with Red Sox

In a 10-day span, Orioles third baseman Manny Machado has been thrown at five times in two games. After the fifth one, Tuesday night from the live arm of Red Sox's ace southpaw Chris Sale, Machado finally had some choice words for the Red Sox, and he certainly didn't hold back his true feelings. He used many expletives in his postgame rant, stating that he has lost all respect for the Red Sox organization. I'll note that there may now be 29 teams - instead of 30 - in contention for...

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Luke Erickson: What it means to be the next man up on the farm

May 02, 2017, 6:30pm

Nationals

Luke Erickson: What it means to be the next man up on the farm

For those of you interested in gambl ... er, fantasy baseball, you're probably well aware of the depth charts that are created for the minors for dynasty leagues. But even if you're not, the Nationals have made you aware of who's the supposed next man up with their inability to dodge injuries. Adam Eaton is the latest starter to be lost for the season, and for now, the plan is to give backup Michael A. Taylor the chance to win the center field job for the third season in a row. This hasn't...

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Andrew Stetka: Baseball fandom is difficult

May 01, 2017, 4:55am

Orioles

Andrew Stetka: Baseball fandom is difficult

Being a baseball fan is very hard. If you are devoted to a specific team in the way many readers of this website are devoted to the Orioles, it can be even harder. This is something I've written about in length over the years, but it deserves to be repeated. Especially after what we just saw. You live and die with every game and react to every play. That couldn't have been more on display this weekend in New York City, as the O's battled the Yankees. Over the past three days, the Orioles...

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Hitting the Books with Gary Thorne: "Fiesta: The Sun Also Rises"

April 29, 2017, 12:40pm

Orioles

Hitting the Books with Gary Thorne: "Fiesta: The Sun Also Rises"

"I mistrust all frank and simple people, especially when their stories hold together, and I always had a suspicion that perhaps Robert Cohn had never been middleweight boxing champion, and that perhaps a horse had stepped on his facer, or that maybe his mother has been frightened or seen something, or that he had, maybe, bumped into something as a young child, but I finally had somebody verify the story from Spider Kelly." Not bad for the writer considered to be the master of the simple...

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Zach Wilt: Checking in on the O's at the 20-game mark

April 28, 2017, 5:31am

Orioles

Zach Wilt: Checking in on the O's at the 20-game mark

I'll be honest, in baseball terms 20 is a pretty arbitrary number. Sure, it's nice and even, but it's just 12.3 percent of the way through the baseball season. In fact, if the Orioles weren't off yesterday, we probably all would have completely ignored the 20-game milestone and moved on without thinking twice about. But they were off, they're beginning a new series today, and 20 games seems like a great time to take a moment and reflect on what we've seen from our O's so far. The Birds...

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Opposite dugout: Mets scuffling as injury bug bites hard

April 27, 2017, 5:20pm

Nationals

Opposite dugout: Mets scuffling as injury bug bites hard

Manager: Terry Collins (7th season) Record: 8-13 Last 10 games: 1-9 Who to watch: RF Jay Bruce (.289 average with 6 HR, 14 RBIs); OF Michael Conforto (.302 average with 4 HR, 8 RBIs); 2B Neil Walker (17 hits, 27 total bases); SP Jacob deGrom (0-1, 2.55 ERA); RP Addison Reed (3.38 ERA, 4 saves) Season series vs. Nationals: 0-3 Pitching probables: April 28: RHP Jacob deGrom vs. RHP Stephen Strasburg, 7:05 p.m., MASN2April 29: RHP Zack Wheeler vs. RHP Max Scherzer, 1:05 p.m., MASN2April 30: TBA...

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Yard Work: Episode 3

April 26, 2017, 7:05am

Orioles

Hey, O's fans. Welcome to the latest edition of Yard Work. On this week's episode... Following their first road trip of the season, the Orioles returned home for a quick six-game homestand against American League East foes Boston and Tampa Bay. Of course, despite the fact the Birds took two out of three vs. the Red Sox, the biggest news seemed to be last Friday's incident between Manny Machado and Dustin Pedroia, not to be outdone by Sunday's drama between Machado and Red Sox reliever Matt...

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Dillon Atkinson: It's early, but Adam Jones looks like a new player

April 26, 2017, 5:46am

Orioles

Dillon Atkinson: It's early, but Adam Jones looks like a new player

When you think of Orioles center fielder Adam Jones in his prime, what comes to mind? If you asked me, I'd bring up the obvious observations: 25-plus home-run hitter, .280-plus batting average, low on-base skills, free swinger and an all-around above average defender in center field. Oftentimes as Orioles fans, we took the good with the bad. Jones has been known as a frustrating hitter in two-strike counts, as fans would always point out, "Here comes the 1-2 slider in the dirt, and we know...

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Luke Erickson: Checking out some early-season surprises on the farm

April 25, 2017, 6:56pm

Nationals

Luke Erickson: Checking out some early-season surprises on the farm

We're roughly three weeks into the minor league seasons - still in small sample size territory, but large enough to use as a story peg take notice. Before you start champing at the bit for these guys to get promoted, remember two things: The entire league hasn't seen them yet, and there has to be a space for him at the next level. At Single-A Hagerstown, Daniel Johnson caught my eye last season by racking up nine assists and four errors last summer in 62 games for short-season Single-A...

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Andrew Stetka: A few thoughts on baseball's unwritten rules

April 24, 2017, 5:22am

Orioles

Andrew Stetka: A few thoughts on baseball's unwritten rules

Baseball is stupid. It's a game that I love dearly and that I follow obsessively, but it's quite stupid sometimes. Maybe that's more of a referendum on me than anything else. Why would I pay so much attention and spend so much of my life on something that's stupid? I honestly don't have a good answer for that. Perhaps it's because baseball's stupidity only rears its ugly head occasionally, like this weekend in Baltimore. Grown men playing a game can seem silly to many people. Grown men...

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Marty Niland: Healthy Zimmerman makes a big difference for Nats

April 24, 2017, 4:58am

Nationals

Marty Niland: Healthy Zimmerman makes a big difference for Nats

One big difference between the Nationals and Mets that allowed the Nats to sweep the weekend series with their National League East rivals was overall team health. Several key members of the Mets lineup were out with injuries all weekend, while the Nats' starting lineup was intact by Sunday. One member of the Nats who is clearly benefiting from relative good health early this season is first baseman Ryan Zimmerman. The team's first draft choice after moving to Washington made it through four...

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Opposite dugout: Rockies living up to hype ... so far

April 23, 2017, 5:41pm

Nationals

Opposite dugout: Rockies living up to hype ... so far

Manager: Bud Black (1st season) Record: 13-6 Last 10 games: 7-3 Who to watch: 3B Nolan Arenado (.329 average with 6 HR, 13 RBIs); 1B Mark Reynolds (.318 average with 5 HR, 16 RBIs); CF Charlie Blackmon (.270 average with 20 hits); RHP Antonio Senzatela (3-0, 2.08 ERA); RHP Greg Holland (2.00 ERA, 9 saves). Season series vs. Nationals: First meeting (4-2 in 2016) Pitching probables: April 24: RHP Jacob Turner vs. LHP Tyler Anderson, 8:40 p.m., MASN2April 25: RHP Joe Ross vs. TBA, 8:40 p.m.,...

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Five tips for preventing sports-related injuries (via Johns Hopkins Medicine)

April 21, 2017, 9:32am

Orioles

Five tips for preventing sports-related injuries (via Johns Hopkins Medicine)

Many people are heading outdoors to ramp up their exercise programs. But before you or your young athlete start playing, it's important to learn how you can prevent sports-related injuries. "Sports injuries generally occur for two different reasons: trauma and overuse," says Dr. Andrew Cosgarea, an orthopedic surgeon and sports medicine expert. "And while traumatic sports injuries are usually obvious, dramatic scenes, like when we see a player fall down clutching their knee," continues...

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Zach Wilt: O's lucky to have Brach with Britton sidelined

April 20, 2017, 6:35pm

Orioles

Zach Wilt: O's lucky to have Brach with Britton sidelined

Zach Britton was one of the most dominant players in baseball in 2016. Not that I'm telling you something you didn't already know. The guy had a season for the record books, converting 47 saves without blowing a single one. His stuff - and by stuff, I mean his sinker, because he threw it 91.97 percent of the time - was so nasty that hitters were limited to a stingy .162 batting average. They knew it was coming and there wasn't anything they could do about it. Like many Orioles fans, when I...

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David Huzzard: A closer look at Nats' closer troubles

April 20, 2017, 6:24pm

Nationals

David Huzzard: A closer look at Nats' closer troubles

A couple of days ago, the Nationals made a much-needed change by removing Blake Treinen from the closer's role and replacing him with Shawn Kelley and Koda Glover. This is the current best option and the only option the Nationals truly have at this point. After the Nationals got outbid for Mark Melancon and Kenley Jansen, and Arlodis Chapman only wanted to play for the Yankees, the Nationals were no longer going to get a closer during the offseason. Earlier in the offseason the Nationals'...

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Dillon Atkinson: With Mancini's emergence, Showalter may have to get creative

April 19, 2017, 5:58am

Orioles

Dillon Atkinson: With Mancini's emergence, Showalter may have to get creative

Orioles converted-outfielder Trey Mancini has gotten off to a tremendous start at the plate, slashing .348/.400/.913 with four home runs in 25 plate appearances. He has been used in a platoon role to start against left-handed pitchers - which has worked out well for him with playing time, considering the American League East is filled with left-handed starters - and also has gotten one start against a right-handed knuckleballer, who he hit two longballs off of. Since his quick emergence to...

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Yard Work: Episode 2

April 18, 2017, 7:51pm

Orioles

Hey, O's fans! Welcome to the latest episode of Yard Work. In this week's episode ... The Birds are off to another hot start to the season, posting an 8-3 mark heading into their three-game series in Cincinnati. That record is tops in the majors, and looks like a good omen to open the year. What's been the biggest key for the Orioles so far? Steve Melewski and I will discuss. It was a heavy news week off the diamond, as closer Zach Britton was placed on the disabled list with a strain in...

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Andrew Stetka: O's pitching staff bound to be tested

April 17, 2017, 4:59am

Orioles

Andrew Stetka: O's pitching staff bound to be tested

Things look pretty rosy at the moment for the Orioles, having taken three of four from the Blue Jays in Toronto and sitting atop the American League East at 8-3. The Birds even enjoyed the spoils of four straight strong performances from starting pitchers over the weekend in Canada. Though if the front office's recent actions are any indication, big tests are ahead for this pitching staff. In the past month or so, the O's have acquired a bunch of pitchers you've never heard of. They've also...

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Marty Niland: Roy Sievers was a true hero, but can today's stars match him?

April 16, 2017, 8:46pm

Nationals

Marty Niland: Roy Sievers was a true hero, but can today's stars match him?

Somewhere last night, an excited kid of 10 or 11 proudly hung a Bryce Harper poster in his or her bedroom, and fell asleep to dream of the day when they, too, would hit a walk-off homer for the Nationals, sending the crowd into delirium. It's not hard to find heroes on the Nats these days. The team is off to another great start at 7-5. The past two victories came on Daniel Murphy's walk-off double and Harper's mad dash home Friday, and Harper's game-winning shot Sunday. Murphy came within...