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Anthony Amobi: Does O's Guthrie belong on the block?

June 23, 2011, 5:03am

Orioles

Anthony Amobi: Does O's Guthrie belong on the block?

We are a time during each and every season where teams looking forward to playing in October are looking for help via trades. They need an extra piece to contend and often look at second division teams to acquire a player or two for the stretch run. Meanwhile, teams that know they are realistically out of contention for the season are looking to dump expensive or productive players with value in exchange for young talent or a player who is perhaps more cost-effective. For the Orioles, Jeremy...

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Drew Kinback: Reeling from Rizzo's rope-a-dope

June 23, 2011, 4:39am

Nationals

Drew Kinback: Reeling from Rizzo's rope-a-dope

The greatest sporting event I never witnessed took place on Oct. 30, 1974 in the Mai 20 Stadium in Kinshasa, Zaire. It was a title bout for the boxing heavyweight championship of the world. It pitted champion George Foreman against challenger Muhammad Ali. Labeled "The Rumble In The Jungle," the match went on to become one of the most legendary sporting events in history - and I missed it. Foreman was the supposed favorite. He was bigger and younger than Ali and from what they say,...

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Anthony Amobi: Orioles and Pirates fans only want one thing: To see their team win

June 22, 2011, 5:13am

Orioles

The cities of Baltimore and Pittsburgh have been through quite a bit with their baseball teams in the last decade. They are roughly four hours apart in terms of driving distance, and of course, have passionate fan bases when it comes to their sports. As we all know, both cities have quite a few parallels; however, none of them mirror more closely than the futility of their baseball franchises. The Orioles have not had a winning season since 1998, and the Pirates have not had one since Barry...

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Drew Kinback: Cordero represented what's right about baseball

June 21, 2011, 3:53pm

Nationals

Drew Kinback: Cordero represented what's right about baseball

I've actually sat at my computer for the past two hours looking at a blank screen trying to figure out how to exactly put into words at how absolutely heartbroken I am to hear that former Nationals closer

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Drew Kinback: Recipe for Nationals victory waffles

June 20, 2011, 6:11pm

Nationals

It has been a good week in NatsTown. The Nationals pulled off an eight-game win streak, have pulled themselves into third place in the National League East, put themselves within striking distance of .500 and somehow got their name in talks for the Wild Card. They also put the hurting on an NL Central powerhouse in the Cardinals and won Round 2 of the Battle of the Beltways against the Baltimore Orioles. Going 8-1 in the past nine games - not too shabby. If your senses are up to par, take a...

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Anthony Amobi: Should O's fans be worried about Brian Matusz?

June 21, 2011, 3:38am

Orioles

Anthony Amobi: Should O's fans be worried about Brian Matusz?

There's been a lot said about the Orioles' Brian Matusz going into this season. As the O's are still in a rebuilding phase - despite the addition of talent onto the roster - how they will do next season and beyond will depend on their pitching. Well, Matusz is an essential part of that and everyone is hoping for the best for him and the young supply of arms in the organization. Although Matusz started 2010 on a pretty rough note, and included a stretch where he only won one start in the...

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Anthony Amobi: Grateful for my all-time favorite ballplayer

June 20, 2011, 5:35am

Orioles

Anthony Amobi: Grateful for my all-time favorite ballplayer

As long as I have been an Orioles fan, I have always had one name in my mind: Frank Robinson. For me growing up, Frank Robinson was an iconic symbol unlike any other. I always tell everyone Cal Ripken Jr. was my favorite all-time Oriole growing up, but Frank was my all-time favorite ballplayer. Honestly, due to my age, I really didn't see him play at all - well, except on videotape. Really, the only link to his legend for me as a fan was hearing stories about him from other fans that had...

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Heath Bintliff: Time to lock up J.J. Hardy

June 15, 2011, 7:33am

Orioles

Heath Bintliff: Time to lock up J.J. Hardy

Yesterday we talked about the current season. Today, let's talk about the future. The Orioles need to lock up J.J. Hardy. And they need to do it now. Remember how desolate the prospects at shortstop looked for the Orioles this past offseason? Internally, we were looking at Robert Andino and that's about it. In the free agent market, there were retreads like Jerry Hairston Jr., Juan Uribe and Miguel Tejada. We were going to have to choose between either a good glove or a good bat. But there...

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Will Yoder: Nationals' rotation still one of the best

June 17, 2011, 3:19am

Nationals

Entering the 2011 season, many felt the Nationals dropped the ball over the winter in a rather public attempt to shore up their starting rotation. General manager Mike Rizzo made no secret that he was out to get another major league-level starter, and when he failed to sign even one of his targets, many were worried about the rotation the Nats had to offer. Quite surprisingly, the Nats' starting pitching has actually been a bright point for the club this season, with one of the more...

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Heath Bintliff: It could be worse?

June 16, 2011, 6:05pm

Orioles

The Orioles' offense is struggling. It wasn't supposed to be that way. The O's made offseason additions to address the punchless offense of 2010 thorough both trade and free agency. However, those moves have had mixed results. J.J. Hardy has been a great addition to the lineup. Mark Reynolds, in his own unorthodox way, has actually been a productive hitter, even with a .206 batting average. Derrek Lee and Vladimir Guerrero have been disappointing, to say the least. But it could be worse. Or...

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Will Yoder: Is Yunesky Maya running out of chances?

June 16, 2011, 4:49am

Nationals

Will Yoder: Is Yunesky Maya running out of chances?

The Washington Nationals optioned starting pitcher Yunesky Maya to Triple-A Syracuse yesterday in order to add another bullpen option for Jim Riggleman until Tom Gorzelanny makes his next expected start Sunday. While the demotion was expected, Maya didn't exactly do much to inspire the Nationals to make room on the roster to keep the 29-year-old Cuban. In four starts, Maya went 0-1 and posted a 6.88 ERA and a .325 batting average against. While some viewed his call-up as a chance for him to...

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Heath Bintliff: Late-inning heroics are absent in 2011

June 16, 2011, 4:37am

Orioles

Heath Bintliff: Late-inning heroics are absent in 2011

As the Orioles' ninth-inning rally fizzled out last night to extend their losing streak in Toronto to 16 games, it made me wonder how the team has fared late in games this season. I didn't remember a lot of come-from-behind victories for Baltimore this season and the numbers for the offense kind of show you why. OPS for Baltimore broken down by inning for 2011: Inning OPS 1st .592 2nd .688 3rd .683 4th .663 5th .814 6th .702 7th .798 8th .723 9th ...

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Will Yoder: LaRoche's shoulder surgery renews questions about first base

June 15, 2011, 3:26am

Nationals

Will Yoder: LaRoche's shoulder surgery renews questions about first base

MASNsports.com's Ben Goessling reported Tuesday night that Washington Nationals first baseman Adam LaRoche will, in fact, need season-ending surgery to repair a partially torn labrum in his left shoulder. The left-handed slugger had hit just .172/.288/.258 for the Nationals in 177 plate appearances before the club made the move to shut down the first baseman late last month. After an attempt to rehab the shoulder over the past few weeks, the club decided to have LaRoche undergo surgery in...

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Will Yoder: Zimmerman likely to return today; what effect will he have?

June 14, 2011, 3:01am

Nationals

Will Yoder: Zimmerman likely to return today; what effect will he have?

Third baseman Ryan Zimmerman is scheduled to make his return to the Nationals lineup today after missing 58 games as a result of an abdominal injury. It's been a day the club has been looking forward to practically all season, and it's one that could desperately help the club out of its horrendous offensive slump. In his absence, the Nationals have gone 27-31 overall, but have survived on their stellar pitching. At the plate, the club has hit just .229, and has managed to score only 496...

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Heath Bintliff: Orioles need to win now

June 14, 2011, 4:38am

Orioles

We all know the story. The Baltimore ball club has been a losing club for 13 straight seasons and they have a very good chance to have a 14th straight sub-.500 season in 2011. But for a rebuilding team, how much does that matter? The Orioles took steps in the offseason to improve the offense and turn that trend around. But the Vladimir Guerrero and Derrek Lee signings have not really panned out. Free agency has not really worked out for the bullpen, either, as Kevin Gregg and Jeremy Accardo...

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Will Yoder: Should the Nationals consider trading Clippard?

June 13, 2011, 3:48am

Nationals

Tyler Clippard is a wanted man. Nearly any time you hear about a playoff-bound team speaking with the Nationals about a potential trade, the availability of Clippard is almost always one of the first questions asked. And why wouldn't they? Over the past three years, and especially this season, he has been a lights-out reliever who gets it done in high-pressure situations and has a propensity for the all-important strikeout. This season, Clippard has a league-leading 16 holds with a 1.86...

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Heath Bintliff: Guerrero's troubling power outage

June 12, 2011, 5:08pm

Orioles

Heath Bintliff: Guerrero's troubling power outage

As any of you who have read my posts over at Dempsey's Army know, I love to beat a dead horse. So today I will, once again, examine the addition of Vladimir Guerrero to the Orioles lineup - and the stunning lack of power Guerrero has added to the batting order. When Guerrero was signed this offseason, he was hailed and the final piece of the puzzle to make the Baltimore offense go. He was a proven cleanup hitter who would bring a presence to the heart of the lineup, provide the team with an...

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Matthew Taylor: Remembering Manto's surprising power surge

June 10, 2011, 5:16am

Orioles

Matthew Taylor: Remembering Manto's surprising power surge

Only once in a career that spanned nine seasons and nine different organizations did Jeff Manto have four or more home runs in a single year. But as Orioles fans should well remember, the 1995 season was a special one for Manto, who completed a run of homers in four consecutive at-bats on this day 16 years ago. His power surge tied a record he shared at the time with 23 other players. "When you look at me you don't think I've got a chance to set any kind of record, but when you're having...

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Rachel Levitin: Hair-raising growth of hirsute Twitter accounts

June 10, 2011, 4:50am

Nationals

Rachel Levitin: Hair-raising growth of hirsute Twitter accounts

If you're a baseball fan on Twitter these days, it's likely that you've encountered an account for a ball player's facial hair. Nationals outfielder Jayson Werth's beard has a Twitter handle, as does San Francisco Giants pitcher Brian Wilson's jet-black growth. Nationals farmhands Bryce Harper (and his attempt at upper-lip fuzz) and Collin Balestar's mustache have also gotten into the Twitter game. All this talk over facial hair got me wondering - does Major League Baseball care about...

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Matthew Taylor: Even in minors, hometown roots run deep

June 09, 2011, 5:55am

Orioles

Matthew Taylor: Even in minors, hometown roots run deep

I no longer live in a major league town. Having moved to North Carolina a few years ago, I don't have the luxury I enjoyed for many years in Baltimore of catching a big league game on a moment's notice. It's one of many taken-for-granted things I miss now that I'm away from the place I'll always consider home. These days I find that I'm not breaking old habits so much as I'm finding replacements for them. So I still make regular ballpark visits during the summer; they just happen to be...