coronavirus

Unable to accept the 2020 baseball season as genuine

July 14, 2020, 5:02pm

Orioles

Unable to accept the 2020 baseball season as genuine

Major League Baseball is attempting to start up a season. That much we can agree on. Is it a legitimate season? Don't get me started. I respect most opinions. You won't sell me on Caddyshack II or Gary Cherone fronting Van Halen. You won't convince me that a plant-based burger is a burger and zoodles replicate a bowl of pasta. Or that pickleball is equal to or better than tennis. But I'll accept most opinions because you're entitled to them. Baseball in 2020 is a shell of its former self,...

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Roster reductions out of team's control, Stewart's rotation candidacy

July 12, 2020, 10:10am

Orioles

Roster reductions out of team's control, Stewart's rotation candidacy

Camp reductions aren't supposed to happen due to injury. The Orioles would prefer maintaining control of the process, but it keeps slipping from their grasp. Forty-five players in the pool are supposed to be competing for spots on the 30-man roster for opening day. The rest are headed to the alternate camp in Bowie, with the Orioles having the freedom to call upon them. They were counting on Anthony Santander and Dwight Smith Jr. being at Fenway Park for the opener, but the odds keep shrinking...

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Nats try to make most of limited games, MLB releases test results

July 10, 2020, 9:50am

Nationals

Nats try to make most of limited games, MLB releases test results

With only three true exhibition games on their schedule, the Nationals aren't going to get much of an opportunity to build themselves up into regular season shape before opening night arrives July 23. They have to make the most of whatever game-like situations they can draw up in the meantime, such as today's four-inning intrasquad contest at Nationals Park. "I don't feel like these guys are not going to be ready or not be prepared for what's to come," manager Davey Martinez said. "I...

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Leftovers for breakfast

July 10, 2020, 5:07pm

Orioles

Alterations made to the 2020 season haven't changed how outsiders in the industry view the Orioles' chances of contending. However, the club keeps drawing praise for how it's conducted business during and after the shutdown. Refusing to reopen the complexes in Sarasota and Baltimore proved to be wise decisions. And the precautions and protocols at summer training camp are giving players a greater sense of security. "I think our medical staff has been unbelievable with all of this," said...

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Orioles back in Boston for 2021 opening day

July 09, 2020, 5:02am

Orioles

After going a substantial length of time without opening their season in Boston, the Orioles suddenly could be making a habit of it. The 2021 schedule was released today and the Orioles again will play the Red Sox in their first game on Thursday, April 1. The home opener is a week later, also against the Red Sox, on April 8. Until this year, the Orioles hadn't opened in Boston since 1966. The truncated 2020 season begins on July 24. The Orioles won't play at Camden Yards next season until...

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Hunter Harvey: "I couldn't wait to get back to a ballfield"

July 08, 2020, 5:32pm

Orioles

Hunter Harvey: "I couldn't wait to get back to a ballfield"

Hunter Harvey was craving the chance to work a complete season out of the Orioles bullpen. A schedule consisting of 162 games. With the removal of signs suggesting that the team proceed with caution. Just as past injuries have been out of Harvey's control, so too is a pandemic that leaves teams with only 60 games and a slew of adjustments to the roster and rules. What hasn't changed is Harvey's mullet, unless the top of the grading scale has gone from spectacular to ultra-spectacular. He...

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A few notes on openers, testing and some draft math

July 07, 2020, 3:37pm

Orioles

A few notes on openers, testing and some draft math

There are a few ways the Orioles could go with their rotation come opening day on July 24. They could have the traditional five-man look or go with a six-man rotation. If pitchers are not built up enough yet, teams can even piggyback starters, where one pitches the first half of the game and another the rest. They could also go with an opener. If they do sometimes use a starter in that role - following a reliever and becoming the so-called bulk pitcher - they have two pitchers with a lot of...

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Elias explains policy on testing (plus workout notes, draft signings)

July 07, 2020, 12:27pm

Orioles

Elias explains policy on testing (plus workout notes, draft signings)

Orioles outfielders Dwight Smith Jr. and Anthony Santander remained absent for a fifth consecutive day of workouts. Explanations are going to be withheld for now based on a club policy that executive vice president/general manager Mike Elias shared this afternoon. While other teams have confirmed the numbers of positive tests for COVID-19, making names public if given permission, the Orioles are giving the silent treatment. "We have a really elaborate testing setup that has been issued by the...

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Nats to host Yankees in nationally televised MLB opener

July 06, 2020, 1:32pm

Nationals

Nats to host Yankees in nationally televised MLB opener

Major League Baseball's attempt to play the 2020 season will begin at Nationals Park with a nationally televised matchup between the reigning World Series champions and the sport's most storied franchise. The Nationals will host the Yankees on July 23 at 7:08 p.m., the first half of an opening night doubleheader on ESPN that - if successfully pulled off - will serve as the highly anticipated return of major professional team sports in America. MLB's shortened, 60-game planned schedule, which...

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More on players adapting to changes, Hyde on Hays and Davis

July 06, 2020, 3:21pm

Orioles

More on players adapting to changes, Hyde on Hays and Davis

The 2020 schedule is official, with the Orioles on the road for their first two series prior to the July 29 home opener against the Marlins. More weirdness in an unprecedented season. Never before has Major League Baseball held opening day at such a late date, with two games on July 23 and the rest July 24. The Orioles haven't opened in Boston since 1966. And the Marlins as their first opponent at Camden Yards? If you seek normalcy, set the alarm clock for 2021 and say a few prayers. Players...

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Looking at MLB's pandemic response and the 2020 schedule

July 07, 2020, 6:58am

Nationals Orioles

Looking at MLB's pandemic response and the 2020 schedule

Major League Baseball's summer version of spring training is off to a rocky start with conflicting messages for a sport trying to restart during a pandemic. On Monday, the fourth day of training, the inefficient return of the players' coronavirus test results brought new questions about whether baseball can get its 60-game season off the ground. Also on Monday, Major League Baseball announced the schedule for a 60-game season that reduces travel by keeping American League East, West and...

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Orioles opening in Boston as part of shortened season

July 05, 2020, 1:21pm

Orioles

A baseball season cut down to 60 games will start for the Orioles later this month in Boston. Major League Baseball released the schedules tonight and the Orioles are going to play the Red Sox in a three-game series that begins July 24. First pitch for the opener is 7:30 p.m. They won't return to Camden Yards until completing a two-game series against the Marlins in Miami. The first home game is July 29 against the Marlins, with the starting time set at 7:05 p.m. The coronavirus pandemic has...

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Orioles working to stay together while pushed apart

July 05, 2020, 12:41pm

Orioles

As the Orioles transformed yesterday's summer training camp workout from batting practice in the cage to live BP sessions for a group of relievers, projected starter Asher Wojciechowski emerged from the home dugout and headed over to the visiting side. Long hair tied back and a smile on his face as he joined a couple of his teammates. Maybe a chance to feel normal again if only for a few minutes. There isn't much mingling for the Orioles and other clubs during the pandemic. Pitchers dress in...

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Orioles hold their fourth workout as other teams cancel

July 06, 2020, 11:00am

Orioles

Multiple teams canceled their morning workouts today, including the Nationals and Astros, due to the delays in receiving results of the COVID-19 testing over the weekend that's done on a regular basis as camps opened across the country. Other teams have pushed back their workouts. The Orioles gathered at Camden Yards for their fourth workout, pitchers and position players subjected to a stifling heat that's never going to be the most pronounced health risk in 2020. No one on the team is known...

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Doolittle playing for now, but has several concerns

July 05, 2020, 12:22pm

Nationals

Doolittle playing for now, but has several concerns

Sean Doolittle is here. He's been on the field, participating fully in early summer training workouts. He has thrown off the mound, at times while wearing a mask. He wants to be around for the entire 2020 season. But he's not completely convinced yet he's willing to take the risk. "So far - and we're only three days into this - our medical staff has been doing an incredible job," the Nationals reliever said. "I think it's running as smoothly as it can at this point. Like a lot of...

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Hyde on pitching updates, roster flexibility and more

July 05, 2020, 11:47am

Orioles

Hyde on pitching updates, roster flexibility and more

Orioles pitchers Alex Cobb and Mychal Givens will throw live batting practice on Monday after doing side work earlier in summer training camp. They, too, are marked as present and active. "Really good. They threw the ball well," manager Brandon Hyde said in today's Zoom conference call when asked how the two right-handers have looked after three days. Cobb threw to hitters on a back field at the Ed Smith Stadium complex on the day that baseball shut down due to the coronavirus pandemic. He...

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Two Nationals players tested positive for COVID-19

July 05, 2020, 9:52am

Nationals

Two Nationals players tested positive for COVID-19 during the team's initial intake testing program, manager Davey Martinez revealed today. The club has not publicly identified the names of the two players and may only do so with the players' permission, per Major League Baseball's protocols this season. No player is allowed to report to Nationals Park before the intake testing results are returned, so neither player who tested positive has been to the stadium yet and come into contact with...

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John Means: "I was ready to feel like I was worth something again"

July 05, 2020, 8:42am

Orioles

John Means: "I was ready to feel like I was worth something again"

The Orioles haven't named their opening day starter for July 24, an announcement shelved due to baseball's shutdown. John Means was lined up for the assignment and nothing has happened to change the narrative. Means worked four "innings" yesterday while throwing live batting practice, which actually meant dialing down from his home activity. "I think I'm very close," he said today in a Zoom conference call. "Over the quarantine, I had built up to five innings, 75 pitches, but since the...

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Contending vs. evaluating remains a popular storyline

July 04, 2020, 12:59pm

Orioles

Contending vs. evaluating remains a popular storyline

The ability of a 60-game season to thrust teams with normally low expectations into contender status has become a fascination of sorts in Baltimore. Fans wonder if the Orioles can make the playoffs, or at least flirt with the possibility from their lowered bar until closing time, due to the unusual dynamics brought by the coronavirus pandemic. Media is, at the least, curious about the possibility. The playoff field isn't expanded, since Major League Baseball had to implement its own vision of...

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Hyde on the big picture, Davis on clubhouse accountability

July 03, 2020, 2:55pm

Orioles

Hyde on the big picture, Davis on clubhouse accountability

Orioles manager Brandon Hyde understands that anything can happen in a short season of 60 games. It's a sprint, not a marathon. He'd love nothing better than for his team to surprise people and be contending deep into the summer. He also surely realizes that - short year or not - the odds of that are still long. And the Orioles still have a bigger picture in mind. That should include playing some prospects throughout the 60 games, although some are not yet in the Orioles' 60-man player pool,...