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Jon Shepherd: Will the true home run king please stand up?

April 14, 2014, 6:23pm

Orioles

Jon Shepherd: Will the true home run king please stand up?

Last week, USA Today revisited Orioles first baseman Chris Davis' thoughts on whom he considers the true home run king. Davis said, "Bonds was a great player for a long time. But it's hard to say that Hank Aaron's record isn't the legitimate home run record because of all of the allegations, the accusations regarding Bonds." This sentiment is not an uncommon one on the field and in the stands. It is a perspective that speaks of what we want baseball to be, a display of pure ability and...

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Stuart Wallace: Decrease in Jordan's velocity is troublesome development

April 14, 2014, 6:38pm

Nationals

Stuart Wallace: Decrease in Jordan's velocity is troublesome development

It has been a rough start to the season for sinkerballer Taylor Jordan. An ERA a little under 5.00, a FIP a little under 4.00 and a hike in walks/nine innings (3.18 compared to 1.92 in 2013) all point to the 11-plus innings pitched so far not being kind to the young righty after an encouraging spring training that solidified his standing as the Nationals' No. 5 starter. While this tiny selection of numbers is troublesome, there is one other set of numbers that are more concerning for the...

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Andrew Stetka: Is Chris Tillman on pace for ace status?

April 14, 2014, 5:36am

Orioles

Andrew Stetka: Is Chris Tillman on pace for ace status?

There's always a discussion each year about baseball's aces and what really defines an ace pitcher. I personally hate the term. How is it defined, and what are the statistical criteria for someone to be called an ace? There are only four aces in a standard deck of playing cards, so every team can't have one. Or does that mean there are actually four on each team? No matter how you look at it, the term "ace" is very subjective and can lead to a lot of debate. I'm not here to debate...

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Marty Niland: Flashing back to happier times after a lost weekend

April 14, 2014, 5:09am

Nationals

Marty Niland: Flashing back to happier times after a lost weekend

The Academy Award-winning film "The Lost Weekend" details an alcoholic's troubles in giving up his bad habits during an especially rough weekend. Sound familiar, Nationals fans? There will be plenty of time to reflect on the Nats' lost weekend in Atlanta. The injuries, the errors, the baserunning mistakes and all their other failures in their sweep at the hands of the Braves will no doubt be analyzed ad nauseum in the coming days. Where we choose to begin today, however, is the part of the...

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Matthew Taylor: Developing patience for the Orioles' lack of patience

April 11, 2014, 6:45am

Orioles

The opening weeks of the 2014 season are offering Orioles fans a contrast in team hitting styles that will continue into this weekend's series with Toronto. Orioles batters do not see a lot of pitches; their opponents do. One approach is not inherently better than the other despite assumptions to that effect. I'm therefore working to accept this team as the largely free-swinging bunch that it is even if its lack of patience at the plate occasionally tests my patience. The 3.68 pitches per...

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David Huzzard: Early returns on Matt Williams and the Nats

April 10, 2014, 6:52am

Nationals

David Huzzard: Early returns on Matt Williams and the Nats

The early-season magnifying glass is intense. Coming into the series against the Marlins, Bryce Harper was in a bad slump. His upper and lower halves were not in sync and he struggled to get around on the ball, and because it was the only sample size people had, they put more meaning to it than it deserved. If Harper had had two bad series in the month of June, no one would have noticed, but because it is April everything is noticed. The same can be said of Stephen Strasburg and the two bad...

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Zach Wilt: Revisiting Adam Jones and plate discipline

April 10, 2014, 5:38am

Orioles

Zach Wilt: Revisiting Adam Jones and plate discipline

As I watched the Orioles battle the Yankees last night on MASN, I kept a watchful eye on Tweetdeck to read the continuous stream of commentary, as I typically do. On this particular night, one tweet from former major league outfielder and 2004 World Series champion Gabe Kapler stuck out to me. It's a point that has been made before, but one that proved to be valid throughout the remainder of the game in the Bronx. "I salivate at how good Adam Jones could be with 15% more plate discipline. He...

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Rachel Levitin: Injuries to Zimmerman, Ramos put early obstacles in Nats' path

April 09, 2014, 4:56am

Nationals

Rachel Levitin: Injuries to Zimmerman, Ramos put early obstacles in Nats' path

The 2014 season won't be easy for the Washington Nationals. If anything, the biggest hurdles thus far have unmasked themselves within the first seven games of the season. After dropping two of three to their division rivals over the weekend, the Nationals proceeded to shut out the Miami Marlins 5-0 in Game 1 of the three-game series at home Tuesday night. The Nationals' current obstacles still remain at the forefront of conversation. First off, Ryan Zimmmerman's shoulder isn't going to...

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Daniel Clark: Looking at how the newest Orioles have fared

April 08, 2014, 6:23pm

Orioles

The Orioles are now eight games into the 2014 season and have a record of 3-5. However, the team is on a high after a great win over the Yankees on Tuesday. Prior to that, there seemed to be a lack of spark and many rallies were being killed by poor baserunning and poor pitch selection. Thankfully, it's only the early days of a new season and it could have been worse. There's also the encouraging thought of Manny Machado's future return, which will likely be later this month. Of the 25...

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Stuart Wallace: The good and bad of an aggressive approach at the plate

April 07, 2014, 12:27pm

Nationals

Stuart Wallace: The good and bad of an aggressive approach at the plate

In the infancy of the 2014 season, the Nationals have already had a pair of at-bats that sans a hit or run scored have resonated with the team and fans alike. Last week, it was Danny Espinosa's eight-pitch at-bat against New York Mets reliever Bobby Parnell, culminating in a walk and a new look for the oft-maligned second baseman - that of a patient, strike zone-savvy hitter. In Sunday's game against Atlanta Braves starter Alex Wood, it was Nate McLouth's 13-pitch duel that turned heads,...

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Daniel Clark: Following the Orioles from Melbourne, Australia

April 01, 2014, 10:31am

Orioles

Fresh from a long offseason in which Orioles fans experienced a rollercoaster of emotions, the 2014 regular season has finally commenced. Lead by impressive performances from Nelson Cruz, Adam Jones and Zach Britton, it started on a positive note after a thrilling win against the American League East rival Boston Red Sox on Monday afternoon at Camden Yards. The season which awaits Orioles fans is set to be full of excitement - and hopefully a return to the playoffs. From a personal...

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Andrew Stetka: What will Hardy's future bring?

April 07, 2014, 5:17am

Orioles

Andrew Stetka: What will Hardy's future bring?

There were a lot of questions entering spring training for the Orioles, and a few answers were found along the way. We discovered who would fill out the rotation. We've learned who would get playing time at second base and in left field. The bullpen has filled in and roles have been mostly defined. The one thing that didn't resolve itself during the spring was the future of shortstop J.J. Hardy. There were multiple reports, even from MASNsports.com's own Roch Kubatko, that the O's were...

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Marty Niland: Rizzo's moves take some sting out of Zimmerman's injury

April 07, 2014, 5:02am

Nationals

Marty Niland: Rizzo's moves take some sting out of Zimmerman's injury

A collective sigh of relief swept through Nationals Park when Ryan Zimmerman stepped up to pinch-hit in the eighth inning against the Atlanta Braves. Although he struck out (a bit awkwardly, at that), the appearance was a sign that whatever is bothering Zimmerman's troublesome right shoulder is not enough of a concern to keep him from swinging a bat. Zimmerman has insisted since he was first injured in 2012 that he does not feel any soreness at the plate, but this was a sure sign that the...

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Matthew Taylor: An opening day parade would've been a good way to start 60th anniversary celebration

April 03, 2014, 6:09pm

Orioles

Matthew Taylor: An opening day parade would've been a good way to start 60th anniversary celebration

The Orioles are celebrating the diamond anniversary of their arrival in Baltimore, an occasion the team is marking with a special 60th anniversary website and promotional days at the ballpark in August. If it were up to me, the season-long celebration would have started on Monday with an opening day parade, a nod to the celebratory atmosphere that pervaded Baltimore on April 15, 1954. I enjoy learning about Orioles history, and the story of the 1954 parade is one of my favorites that I've...

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Zach Wilt: Breaking down Britton's successful opening day sinker

April 03, 2014, 5:00am

Orioles

Zach Wilt: Breaking down Britton's successful opening day sinker

Every time Zach Britton took the mound this spring, a number of scouts from opposing teams eagerly watched the Orioles lefty work. The 27-year-old impressed over his 10 2/3 innings in the Grapefruit League, allowing just two runs (one earned), scattering six hits, walking four and striking out 11. Britton is out of options, so if he didn't make the ballclub, he would have been a valuable trade candidate for any team seeking bullpen help. On opening day, we saw Britton do just that. It was...

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Rachel Levitin: Baseball, rebirth and the natural rhythms of life

April 02, 2014, 5:29am

Nationals

Rachel Levitin: Baseball, rebirth and the natural rhythms of life

And so the marathon begins. The 162-game grind that die-hard baseball fans know all too well. Spring is here, too (for the most part), and the Nationals are back at it again. While it's easy to get bogged down in statistics and numbers from seasons past, I prefer looking at the game through a different lens. It's like Paul Dickson once wrote, "beyond the statistics, there are countless fascinating anthropological aspects of baseball." Those are the stories that spark my interest most and...

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Jon Shepherd: In praise of diversity in Birdland

April 01, 2014, 10:08am

Orioles

Jon Shepherd: In praise of diversity in Birdland

With the excitement of a successful opening day fresh in our minds, a common feeling across Birdland is that anything is possible from this point forward. This contrasts with the dread that was felt for much of the cold winter in Baltimore. Pieces finally fell into place in the guises of Ubaldo Jimenez and Nelson Cruz and spring training brought more hope as the club escaped without any significant injury and 22-year-old Jonathan Schoop emerged as the second-best hitting second baseman in...

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Stuart Wallace: For Strasburg and Clippard, still work to be done

April 01, 2014, 9:52am

Nationals

Stuart Wallace: For Strasburg and Clippard, still work to be done

For a pair of Nationals pitching veterans, it was a season opener that would probably be better forgotten. Despite populating the win column, the performances of both Stephen Strasburg and Tyler Clippard, the anchors of the rotation and bullpen, respectively, left a lot to be desired. For Strasburg, the start of his 2014 regular season was a laborious one, highlighted by a 26-pitch first frame and a three-run homer by Mets outfielder Andrew Brown. Despite settling down as the game progressed,...

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Marty Niland: Five reasons the Nationals offense should rebound in 2014

March 30, 2014, 1:48pm

Nationals

Oh, the burdens of Washington sports fans' high expectations. Where else can a team be considered a failure when it completes its second straight winning season after seven straight years of finishing .500 or below? But that's how we roll in the nation's capital, where 86-76 isn't good enough, especially after the retiring manager proclaims "World Series or bust." After the national media jumped on the bandwagon, those expectations seemed to drag down down the Washington Nationals'...

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Andrew Stetka: For seamheads, opening day is packed with memories, optimism and hope

March 30, 2014, 12:46pm

Orioles

Andrew Stetka: For seamheads, opening day is packed with memories, optimism and hope

There's a good reason that Hall of Famer Ozzie Smith has teamed up with Anheuser-Busch this spring in an effort to make baseball's opening day a national holiday: It's got about everything a fan of the greatest game could want. The hope of a new season is upon us, seamheads. Even though three regular season games are already in the books, including two that were played in Australia, today is the real start of the Major League Baseball season. Dreams of high batting averages, low ERAs and a...