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Drew Kinback: An early look at Jim Riggleman's future in D.C.

April 28, 2011, 4:33am

I peg manager Jim Riggleman as a whiskey man. I don't base this off much of anything or know if he actually partakes in the American firewater, but let's pretend a little bit. He just looks and carries himself like a whiskey man: staunch, regal, a touch of book-smart intellect mixed with barroom pugilism. A lover and a fighter. It is the sort of thing you want in a baseball manager running a team of bosky greenhorns and slightly fossilized gray-hairs. I've always imagined Riggleman walking...

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Heath Bintliff: Statistically speaking, Derrek Lee just needs some luck

April 27, 2011, 8:14am

Orioles

Heath Bintliff: Statistically speaking, Derrek Lee just needs some luck

Derrek Lee, one of the two old veterans that the Orioles signed this offseason to stabilize the lineup and inject the offense with some punch, is hitting an abysmal .222/.300/.284 thus far with only three extra-base hits. His .584 OPS is the worst among the regulars in the lineup. But fear not, I bring you good news about Lee and his apparent struggles: He's actually hitting much better than his stat line shows. Looking up his batted ball data on FanGraphs.com, Lee's Batting Average on...

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Anthony Amobi: Regardless of manager, players need to perform

April 27, 2011, 4:55am

Orioles

Anthony Amobi: Regardless of manager, players need to perform

It's been a tough two weeks for the Baltimore Orioles and we all know it. After a promising start to the season, there's been a lot of losing thanks to inconsistent pitching and a lack of offense. After the sweep by the Yankees this weekend, a lot of fans either on sports talk radio and various places online started to question the decisions of Orioles manager Buck Showalter. It's hard to rationalize, but there's a difference in the perception of a manager when they are either losing or...

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Dave Nichols: Nationals face daunting schedule over next two weeks

April 27, 2011, 8:33am

Nationals

The 2011 Washington Nationals have been hovering around .500 most of the season. They currently sit at 10-12 as a result of dropping five of their last six games, including Tuesday night's 6-4 loss to the New York Mets, an imminently winnable game as manager Jim Riggleman said in his press conference after the game. "A little something happen here or there and we could have won that ball game," Riggleman rationalized after the loss. That seems to be a popular sentiment. But the fact that...

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Anthony Amobi: Remembering what made me a fan

April 26, 2011, 5:46am

Orioles

Anthony Amobi: Remembering what made me a fan

It's been a tough stretch for Baltimore Orioles fans over the past decade. No matter where you reside - whether it's in Maryland, Florida, California or any part of the world - it's been startling to see what has happened to the Orioles. Sadly, they have not had a winning season since Bill Clinton was president of the United States of America. Yet, despite it all, I and most of my friends who rooted for the Orioles growing up still do so today. It's obvious that the Birds have lost more...

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Drew Kinback: With Nats, there's simply no margin for error

April 26, 2011, 5:01am

Nationals

Drew Kinback: With Nats, there's simply no margin for error

It was the most amazing thing I had ever seen on a Monday night. I was reading over the standard Nationals news from the usual rogue's gallery of sources when I decided to take a break and take in something non-baseball related. I find a quick dose of tabloid entertainment, a music video off YouTube or a random news story usually cleans out the colon of your baseball mind. Man cannot survive on baseball alone - unless you are Pete Rose at a sporting memorabilia convention. Somehow, someway I...

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Drew Kinback: Nats-Pujols marriage not a far-fetched notion

April 25, 2011, 5:57am

Nationals

Drew Kinback: Nats-Pujols marriage not a far-fetched notion

In March, I got the unique opportunity to spend all month in Viera, Fla., following the Nationals during their 2011 spring training campaign. I run the online rag known as Nationals Inquisition and spring training is usually the Super Bowl of my blog. I've attended the Nationals' Viera sessions since 2007 and have seen many curious and wondrous things in the Sunshine State during this time. But on March 25, I saw something at a Nationals game that was plain inspiring. The game was one of the...

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Anthony Amobi: Amid struggles, O's still deserve fans' support

April 25, 2011, 5:15am

Orioles

Anthony Amobi: Amid struggles, O's still deserve fans' support

Good morning everyone, I'm Anthony Amobi and this is my first entry as a guest blogger for MASNsports.com First and foremost, I'm a hardcore Orioles fan and have been through thick and thin. It's a been rough time for us fans over the past 13 years; however, I'm an eternal optimist and believe better days are head for Orioles fans. I'm a native of the Washington, D.C., area and currently reside in Maryland. Growing up, I was introduced the Orioles as a teen and I've been a fan ever...

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Heath Bintliff: WAR says Guthrie rates among O's all-time best pitchers

April 21, 2011, 7:46pm

Orioles

Heath Bintliff: WAR says Guthrie rates among O's all-time best pitchers

Jeremy Guthrie turned in yet another good performance last night against the Minnesota Twins, even though he was handed the defeat. He went seven innings, gave up two runs, walked no one and struck out four. This is Guthrie's fifth season with the Orioles. Is it time to start considering him among the great Oriole hurlers of all time? It sounds like an odd question. He's not a strikeout king. His career record is 39-51. Even though he has been the staff ace by default, nobody really...

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Will Yoder: Stairs embraces niche to prolong productive career

April 22, 2011, 6:15am

Nationals

Will Yoder: Stairs embraces niche to prolong productive career

Sticking out like a sore thumb on the youthful Washington Nationals is 43-year-old Matt Stairs, a former All-Star turned pinch-hitting specialist who gets woken up once every 18 innings to attempt to hit a home run. It's a role he has come to embrace over the course of an incredible and arguably underappreciated 19-year-career. One of the greatest minds in baseball history, Bill James, once wrote of Stairs: "Look at it. Somebody decided he was a second baseman, he tears through the minor...

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Will Yoder: An early look at the June draft

April 21, 2011, 5:09am

Nationals

Will Yoder: An early look at the June draft

The last two seasons have been unique for the Nationals in that they have realistically had to do little to no research for their first-round pick in the June first-year player draft. They became the first team in history to have back-to-back first overall selections, and they were fortunate enough to have those picks somehow coincide with two of the most hyped pre-draft prospects of all time. As a result, in 2009 and 2010, the question was never who the Nats were going to pick, but whether or...

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Heath Bintliff: How Britton's start stacks up to other O's southpaws

April 20, 2011, 6:11pm

Orioles

Heath Bintliff: How Britton's start stacks up to other O's southpaws

Orioles rookie southpaw Zach Britton moved his record to 3-1 last night as the Orioles narrowly beat the Twins 5-4. Britton gave up three runs over his six innings, giving him three quality starts over his first four career starts. I was curious how Britton's hot start compared to other Oriole lefty starters throughout franchise history. Here's how Britton stacks up to their first four starts (or significant relief appearances, since some of these guys pitched under Earl Weaver, you...

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Will Yoder: On rain delays, empty seats and anticipation

April 20, 2011, 5:07am

Nationals

Will Yoder: On rain delays, empty seats and anticipation

The Nationals game was rained out last night in St. Louis and I was struck with an empty feeling in my gut. For the first time since opening day I would be forced to sit two consecutive nights without enjoying a baseball game, quite a disappointment, to say the least. As I scrolled through the tweets from the Nationals beat reporters about the massive rainstorm they were waiting out, I got to thinking about all of the rain delays I've sat through as a baseball fan. It's an experience with...

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Heath Bintliff: Let's let Jake Fox sit against lefties

April 19, 2011, 9:46am

Orioles

Heath Bintliff: Let's let Jake Fox sit against lefties

Hi, Buck. I'm a big fan. Truly, I am. But I have a bone to pick with you. It's about Jake Fox. I completely understand sacrificing defense for offense, especially when you are in a scoring drought like the Orioles were just slogging through before last night's 11-0 win. (Although, do you have to put him if left with Chris Tillman is on the mound? That kid needs all the help he can get.) And Fox can help with that. But Fox can't hit lefties. So stop letting him. I know he's a...

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Will Yoder: After 15 games, three predictions for the Nats

April 19, 2011, 5:19am

Nationals

Will Yoder: After 15 games, three predictions for the Nats

The Nationals just finished up an exciting homestand that saw them go 4-2 against two teams that were picked by many to win their respective divisions. The club's only losses came to two pitchers who can easily claim the title as the best right- or left-handed starters in baseball, Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee, and by winning both games of the doubleheader Sunday, the Nationals are now 8-7 on the season. With 15 games under their belt, they are just about 10 percent of the way through the year,...

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Heath Bintliff: The longest game in pro ball, 30 years later

April 18, 2011, 10:58am

Orioles

Heath Bintliff: The longest game in pro ball, 30 years later

Thirty years ago this morning, the longest game in professional baseball history was suspended. At 4:07 a.m., after 32 innings of play, umpires finally called the game, still tied at 2, between the Rochester Red Wings, the Orioles' Triple-A affiliate, and the Pawtucket Red Sox of the International League. Famously, future Hall of Famers Cal Ripken Jr. and Wade Boggs played the entire game, both manning third base for their respective teams. But there were other players of note on the field...

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Rachel Levitin: Nats need to put Phils in rear-view mirror

April 15, 2011, 5:15am

Nationals

Rachel Levitin: Nats need to put Phils in rear-view mirror

"If you have played a game and lost it, you cannot erase that loss; but if you have not played a game, there is still an opportunity to win it. A loss is as loss is a loss. Only a game not yet played can become a victory," the late New York-based Hall of Fame baseball scribe Jack Lang once wrote. The Nationals lost their first 2011 series to the Philadelphia Phillies after starting strong Tuesday night by beating right-hander Joe Blanton 7-4. It stings a little extra for the team and for...

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Will Yoder: Prospect pairs don't always add up to greatness

April 16, 2011, 9:11am

Nationals

Will Yoder: Prospect pairs don't always add up to greatness

There are many who will tell you that the Washington Nationals are a team in waiting. After several years of terrible misfortune on the field, they were unprecedented benefactors of great luck off of it. In back-to-back seasons, arguably the two greatest, or at least most hyped, prospects of all time would enter the Major League Baseball draft, and each year the Nationals had the first overall pick. Washington shelled out the money to sign the two, and now the Lerners, general manager Mike...

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Heath Bintliff: Orioles offense offers more of the same

April 16, 2011, 9:15am

Orioles

Hello, MASNsports.com readers. My name is Heath Bintliff and I have been writing Dempsey's Army, a Baltimore Orioles blog, since 2006. Although I grew up in Maryland, I now live in Atlanta and have been away from Maryland for 11 years. As you might imagine, there are not a lot of O's fans down here in Georgia, so I needed an outlet for my Orioles thoughts and the blog was born. Dempsey's Army offers statistical analysis, historical perspective, commentary, prospect watching and various...

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Matthew Taylor: Brooks Robinson's memorable final homer embodied Orioles magic

April 15, 2011, 5:36am

Orioles

I figure it's appropriate to end my first week of guest blogging for MASNsports.com in the traditional manner I end each week on my blog. It's a nod to Orioles history that I call "Flashback Fridays." This week's Flashback Friday relates to the Orioles' next opponent, the Cleveland Indians, and Orioles legend Brooks Robinson, who has been released from Greater Baltimore Medical Center after recovering from an infection. Facing the Indians around this time of year, on April 19, 1977,...