Josh Land

Heath Bintliff: Orioles need some Yankee killers

May 19, 2011, 3:51am

Orioles

As the Orioles struggled to put up runs in a 15 innings struggle last night, it got me thinking that we really needed a Yankee killer to come to the plate and put this one away. Someone. Anyone to get that big hit. So who are/were the greatest Yankee killers in Oriole history? I looked up the Baltimore players who racked up the most big games against the Bronx Bombers in Orioles history Multiple HR games Boog Powell 4 Brooks Robinson 2 Ramon Hernandez ...

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Will Yoder: Rizzo nixes Harper in D.C. this season, but why?

May 19, 2011, 3:21am

Nationals

Will Yoder: Rizzo nixes Harper in D.C. this season, but why?

Washington Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo told ESPN 980 yesterday that mega-prospect Bryce Harper would not play in the major leagues this year, despite the fact that he is currently playing well above the level of the league he is currently in. Through 37 games, Harper is hitting .366/.448/.657 with nine home runs and 31 RBI,s which leads all Nationals minor leaguers in just about every important offensive category. Still, Rizzo remains steadfast in his assertion that Harper, under no...

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Anthony Amobi: As O's near the quarter-pole, is .500 within reach?

May 18, 2011, 7:09am

Orioles

Anthony Amobi: As O's near the quarter-pole, is .500 within reach?

The question on my mind - and a lot of fans' minds - is this: Can the Orioles finish at or above .500? As we're close to the one-quarter mark of the 2011 (unofficially) season, there have been a lot of ups and downs with this team. We all know the Orioles have struggled since the end of the 1990s and this year is centered with focusing on the development of the young arms, but also to some respect - wins, losses and being competitive. As of May 18, there is some good and bad with the 2011...

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Younging/Yoder: Mourning the passing of Harmon Killebrew

May 18, 2011, 6:59am

Nationals

Younging/Yoder: Mourning the passing of Harmon Killebrew

The baseball world is mourning the death of Harmon Clayton Killebrew, who died Tuesday at the age of 74. As such, it would seem unfitting to blog about anything else this morning. The 13-time All-Star, 1969 American League Most Valuable Player and 1984 Hall of Fame inductee played 22 seasons in the majors, collecting 2,086 hits, 573 home runs and 1,584 RBIs. "It's a sad day. We lost an icon. We lost Paul Bunyan," former Minnesota Twins star Kent Hrbek said Tuesday, speaking about...

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Heath Bintliff: Orioles bullpen has been a money pit

May 18, 2011, 3:58am

Orioles

Monday night in Boston, $16.5 million worth of relievers conspired to give up eight runs and blow a 6-run lead. You would think that the Orioles would have learned by now. You can't fix your bullpen by spending big buck in free agency. And trying to do so has contributed a bunch to the 13 years of losing. A look at some of the free agent relievers over the last 10 years: G ERA Total Salary (in millions) Mike Gonzalez 44 5.54 ...

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GroupOn discount for Nats games

May 17, 2011, 4:40am

Nationals

On Tuesday, GroupOn DC has a special discount for Nationals fans. The deal works for three different games (Padres on Friday, May 27; Padres on Saturday, May 28; Cardinals on Wednesday, June 15). There is a 12-purchase limit. The costs and discounts are as follows: For $23, an LF/RF-Corner ticket (a $34 value), plus a $10 concession credit For $16, an Outfield Reserved ticket (a $22 value), plus a $6 concession credit For $8, an Upper-Infield Gallery ticket (a $17 value) Also, Nats News...

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Will Yoder: For slump busters, Monday's win a welcome relief

May 17, 2011, 3:17am

Nationals

Will Yoder: For slump busters, Monday's win a welcome relief

The Nationals won a 4-2 decision last night over the Pittsburgh Pirates to help them get within one game of .500. It was their second win in a row, after dropping their three previous games by a combined three runs. It has clearly been an up-and-down few weeks for the club, but for some it had been more down than up lately. One such player was Danny Espinosa. There was a time when he was the only hitter in the Nats lineup manager Jim Riggleman could rely on, but the rookie second baseman had...

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Heath Bintliff: Ranking the pitchers in the Orioles Hall of Fame

May 16, 2011, 11:18am

Orioles

Based off a couple comments from my previous post about Jeremy Guthrie, I decided to revisit the great Orioles pitchers, more specifically, the pitchers that have been voted into the Orioles Hall of Fame. Of the pitchers in the O's Hall of Fame, I have included those who spent a significant percentage of their Orioles career as starters. The lone exception will be Hoyt Wilhelm, who made only 43 starts over his four-plus years in Baltimore, but the reasons for that will become apparent. I am...

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Will Yoder: Where are the Jim Bowden gambles of 2008 now?

May 15, 2011, 7:16pm

Nationals

Will Yoder: Where are the Jim Bowden gambles of 2008 now?

Former Nationals general manager Jim Bowden was well-known for his ability to buy really cheap talent and sell it as gold. Not sell it to opposing franchises in transactions, mind you, but to the fan base. Year after year, fans were convinced that Bowden had found a good group of diamonds in the rough, and that given the right opportunity in Washington, we could help tap into their true talent. It wasn't until Bowden was gone that we realized he had us looking through rose-colored glasses....

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Rachel Levitin: Horning in on an unsound change of plans

May 13, 2011, 5:22am

Nationals

Rachel Levitin: Horning in on an unsound change of plans

It's Friday night in Washington, D.C. The Nationals are in town to start a series against the Florida Marlins. If this was 2010, there would be fireworks to look forward to. But in 2011, there are no more fireworks at Nationals Park. In April, fans found out about the change. According to Dan Steinberg at the DC Sports Bog, there had been some complaints from neighbors about the noise and some fans said their children were scared by the noise. Nationals Chief Operating Officer Andy Feffer...

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Matthew Taylor: Recalling O's first trip to The Trop

May 13, 2011, 5:05am

Orioles

Matthew Taylor: Recalling O's first trip to The Trop

The third-place Orioles head to Tampa Bay this weekend looking to avenge last week's three-game sweep at the hands of the Rays. Thirteen years ago, the Birds flew south for their first-ever series in St. Petersburg from May 8-10, 1998. The O's took two of three at The Trop that weekend behind their veteran players. Baltimore batted around and scored five runs in the seventh inning of the series opener to break open a tight ballgame they ultimately won 8-2. Eric Davis got things started with...

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guest blogger guestblogger matthew taylor orioles orioles buzz

Rachel Levitin: Would Veeck's wacky promotion play at Nationals Park?

May 12, 2011, 5:34am

Nationals

It was August 24, 1951 when the St. Louis Browns owner Bill Veeck Jr. decided to host Grandstand Manager's Day. This ballpark promotion had fans sending in a newspaper form that allowed them to set the last-place Browns' lineup against the Athletics, in addition to getting free admission the special Grandstand Managers Section at Sportsman's Park. When a decision from the manager was necessary, a sign was raised over the Browns dubout asking the fans sitting in the Grandstand Managers...

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Matthew Taylor: Will Adam Jones ever homer against Seattle, his former team?

May 12, 2011, 5:01am

Orioles

Matthew Taylor: Will Adam Jones ever homer against Seattle, his former team?

Adam Jones has seven hits in 10 at-bats in the past two games against the Mariners. With four singles, two doubles and a triple, he's nearly hit for the cycle in this series. All that's missing is a home run, which should come as no surprise. Jones has never homered in 29 games versus the Mariners, who made him a first-round draft pick in 2003. It's a quirky outlier among Jones' career numbers. He has homered at least once against every other team that he's faced more than six times. So...

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Zimmerman's Night at the Park fundraiser set for June 30

May 11, 2011, 5:44pm

Nationals

Zimmerman's Night at the Park fundraiser set for June 30

Ryan Zimmerman's second annual Night at the Park fundraiser will take place Thursday, June 30 at Nationals Park. As always, the event will benefit the ziMS Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to funding multiple sclerosis treatment and research programs. Last year's event raised over $200,000 for the ziMS Foundation, a cause close to Zimmerman's heart. Though the ziMS Foundation hasn't announced the talent or celebrity lineup yet, the ziMS Foundation website mentions that...

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Nix getting more playing time

May 11, 2011, 2:25pm

Nationals

ATLANTA - Laynce Nix will make his sixth consecutive start for the Nationals tonight in left field. Before the game, manager Jim Riggleman explained that his decision to use Nix has more to do with Nix's recent success than the lingering knee injury to Michael Morse. "Basically, I'm just choosing to play (Laynce) Nix, but Mike (Morse) can play. He's just not going to move around as good as maybe he would if he was 100 percent," Riggleman said. "Nix is a strong guy. He's got power....

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Riggleman wants Ramos to play more back-to-back games

May 11, 2011, 2:10pm

Nationals

Riggleman wants Ramos to play more back-to-back games

ATLANTA - According to Nationals manager Jim Riggleman, catcher Wilson Ramos performs better when he plays in back-to-back games. As a result, Riggleman plans to utilize Ramos in two or three game stretches moving forward. "Wilson (Ramos) just plays better when he plays more," said Riggleman. "He showed us that in spring training. The games that he's played this year, whenever I get him two or three days in a row, he just seems to produce more." Ramos went 5-for-11 during his only...

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Rachel Levitin: Learning to cope without Zimmerman's impact

May 11, 2011, 4:59am

Nationals

Rachel Levitin: Learning to cope without Zimmerman's impact

John Feinstein of The Washington Post once wrote that anyone playing one of the major sports "knows that the way to make the highlight shows isn't to hit a jump shot or a home run, it is to dunk and dance; score a touchdown and salute; or hit a home run and pose." Ryan Zimmerman, 26, is a poser - and not the bad kind. Since it was first announced April 11 that Zimmerman would be heading to the disabled list for the longest stint of his young career, the Nationals have been playing in a...

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Matthew Taylor: O's walk-off against Mariners extends streak that began in 1954

May 11, 2011, 4:39am

Orioles

Matthew Taylor: O's walk-off against Mariners extends streak that began in 1954

The Orioles earned their first walk-off win of the 2011 season Tuesday night with a two-run rally in the bottom of the 13th inning against the Mariners. The victory keeps alive a streak that has been in existence as long as the team itself. The Orioles have had a least one walk-off win every year since the St. Louis Browns moved to Baltimore in 1954. They don't call it Orioles Magic for nothing. Seattle was among the Orioles' walk-off victims last year, as well, thanks to Adam Jones'...

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Georgia on my mind

May 11, 2011, 3:51am

Nationals

I'm off to Atlanta this morning - land of peaches, CNN, Coca-Cola and Braves baseball. I thought I would check in quickly from Dulles airport to mention a few odds and ends for the Nationals' next homestand. I'll be at the Turner Field on Wednesday and Thursday, so check back for more updates. And make sure to follow Matthew Kaminski, the Braves' organist, on Twitter. Kaminski asks fans for suggestions on songs played for visiting team at bats. Other news: * The Nationals recently...

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kristen hudak nationals nationals buzz

Rachel Levitin: Giving thanks for endearing features at Nationals Park

May 10, 2011, 5:31am

Nationals

Last Wednesday marked the five-year anniversary of the groundbreaking at Nationals Park. Since then, there hasn't been too much activity around the Navy Yard, minus the days the Nats are in town. To celebrate, I took a few minutes to remind myself why Nationals Park is a treasured entity over the Nats old home, RFK Stadium. It's not RFK: Here's the thing - I'm a baseball traditionalist. If it's got a Monument Park or ivy, I'll jump on it like Ryan Zimmerman hitting a walk-off to win it....