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Marty Niland: Bam-Bam, Big Train and the lore of legends

July 05, 2015, 1:56pm

As if Bryce Harper had not already endeared himself to Washington baseball fans, his legend grew even further when he stepped into the batter's box at Nationals Park on the Fourth of July, wielding a star-spangled bat emblazoned with the D.C. skyline, and launched a two-run homer to spark a 3-for-4 day. Add that to Harper's other legendary shots: A reported 502-foot blast at Tropicana Field in 2009, when he was a kid from Las Vegas nicknamed Bam-Bam, playing in a high school showcase; his...

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Matthew Taylor: Remembering 1974, when the O's went on an historic streak

July 03, 2015, 5:10am

Orioles

Matthew Taylor: Remembering 1974, when the O's went on an historic streak

Last Friday, the Nationals' scoreless innings streak by starters ended at 48 innings when the Phillies' Cody Asche laced an RBI double against Max Scherzer. It was the longest scoreless inning streak in franchise history and the second-longest streak in baseball history to the 1974 Orioles. Two days later, the Orioles shut out the Cleveland Indians in both games of a doubleheader. The last time the O's swept a doubleheader with two shutouts was ... 1974. Not only did both of the...

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Zach Wilt: Reacting to O's decision to DFA Delmon Young

July 02, 2015, 5:08am

Orioles

Zach Wilt: Reacting to O's decision to DFA Delmon Young

For weeks, we have speculated. But on Wednesday afternoon, the tough decision was finally made. Dan Duquette opted to designate Delmon Young for assignment and added reliever Tyler Wilson to the Orioles roster. Unlike previous seasons, the Orioles roster is filled with players who are out of options, which forced the club to part with a guy who slashed .270/.289/.339 for them this season. Like many fans in Charm City, on October 3, 2014, I screamed so loud that I lost my voice. I could actually...

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David Huzzard: Savoring July as baseball's most enjoyable month

July 01, 2015, 5:22pm

Nationals

David Huzzard: Savoring July as baseball's most enjoyable month

Welcome to July, one of the busiest months on the baseball calendar. First off, today is the opening of the international signing period which means a bunch of 15- and 16-year- olds out of the Caribbean will be signed by major league teams with the hopes of one day making it to the American minor leagues and then possibly the majors. This is only interesting in the fact that one day some of these players will be good but that is so far off it isn't even worth thinking about. Wilmer Difo has...

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Rachel Levitin: Nats' depth has come in handy

July 01, 2015, 5:22am

Nationals

Rachel Levitin: Nats' depth has come in handy

The Nationals are 3 1/2 games up over the New York Mets in the National League East after their 6-1 victory over the Braves in Atlanta on Tuesday night. They've won nine of their last 10 games, have battled through injuries to realign their starting rotation and have witnessed several hitting hot streaks for various players up and down the lineup. Despite a little bit of struggle to get back to first place within their division and stay atop the baseball standings as one of the teams with the...

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Domenic Vadala: Playing roster roulette with the Orioles

June 30, 2015, 6:19pm

Orioles

Barring a trade or injury, the Orioles are probably going to have to risk losing at least one player this week by designating them for assignment. If they opt not to option Jonathan Schoop to the minors to continue his rehab, they'll potentially have to DFA a second player at some point. This is never easy, both from a personal and a business standpoint. The last thing that any team wants is a guy that's literally on their payroll and playing for someone else. Having said that, the time is...

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Matt Kremnitzer: Is it time to dump Norris from the rotation?

June 30, 2015, 5:20am

Orioles

Matt Kremnitzer: Is it time to dump Norris from the rotation?

The Orioles both receive and deserve credit for constantly working and reworking the fringes of the roster. They are again seeing the benefits of minor league signings like Chaz Roe, Chris Parmelee and Nolan Reimold, with the main goal being to eliminate the presence of bad players on the 25-man roster. Doing so can certainly be useful. If the O's are going to continue in that direction, then they may need to resolve the current issue that is Bud Norris. Heading into the season, the Orioles...

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Andrew Stetka: Return of Schoop could provide O's with a boost

June 29, 2015, 6:58am

Orioles

Andrew Stetka: Return of Schoop could provide O's with a boost

The Orioles that is plugging along and moving up the standings in the American League East, but also seem to be getting healthy. Yesterday's return of Adam Jones to the lineup provided the O's with a sense of relief after he missed just over a week with a shoulder ailment. Matt Wieters has returned from Tommy John surgery, and though he isn't playing every day, he's still providing a boost to the batting order and behind the plate. J.J. Hardy, Ryan Flaherty, David Lough, Miguel Gonzalez and...

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Marty Niland: Nationals bench has stepped up

June 29, 2015, 6:33am

Nationals

Many Nationals fans might have predicted at the start of the season that by the end of June, the team would have settled into first place in the National League East and reeled off a season-high eight straight wins. Even their most ardent supporters, however, might not have predicted that they'd have done it largely without the players projected to be their top offensive weapons. Jayson Werth and Ryan Zimmerman have been on the disabled list and were not a part of the Nats' recent run of...

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Matthew Taylor: On opposite directions and changing fortunes

June 26, 2015, 5:09am

Orioles

Matthew Taylor: On opposite directions and changing fortunes

June has provided me with renewed appreciation for the Orioles' success since 2012. It's not simply that the team seems to have turned things around after a slow start to this season, although the early struggles certainly served as a reminder not to take things for granted. Rather, my appreciation stems from the O's wins - seven of them in nine tries - against the Boston Red Sox and the Philadelphia Phillies. Beating two teams that have a combined 58-90 record isn't typically cause for...

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Zach Wilt: Have the O's replaced Markakis' production?

June 24, 2015, 5:18pm

Orioles

Zach Wilt: Have the O's replaced Markakis' production?

It took 71 games, but I can now comfortably say that the Orioles have effectively replaced Nick Markakis' production from last season. Markakis was a lot of things to the Orioles in 2014. He was a Gold Glove corner outfielder, a table-setter atop the lineup and, of course, a clubhouse leader who provided a veteran presence on a team that advanced to the American League Championship Series. That's a lot to replace; no one player could fill those shoes. Defensive metrics were never a fan of...

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David Huzzard: Another possible reunion to consider

June 24, 2015, 5:21pm

Nationals

David Huzzard: Another possible reunion to consider

With the addition of David Carpenter, the return of Casey Janssen from the disabled list and Tanner Roark transferring out of the rotation, the Nationals bullpen might have found some stability. An upgrade would still be a good idea, but it isn't of the urgency that it seemed just a couple weeks ago. On the other hand, the Nationals bench is still depleted due to injuries to starting position players. Danny Espinosa, Clint Robinson, Michael Taylor, and Tyler Moore are now needed for...

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Domenic Vadala: Properly aligning baseball's All-Stars

June 23, 2015, 10:43am

Orioles

Domenic Vadala: Properly aligning baseball's All-Stars

There's been a lot of talk lately about the voting process for the upcoming All-Star Game, and how the Kansas City Royals are monopolizing it. I've written about it on Birds Watcher, you've heard about it here on MASNsports.com, and as well on numerous other outlets. Let me be only the latest person to say that the entire scenario is a poor one - both for players and for baseball as a whole. There's a part of me that does, however, see the point that the Royals fans aren't doing anything...

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Matt of Matt's Bats: Could Ross be real steal from offseason deal?

June 23, 2015, 6:06am

Nationals

Matt of Matt's Bats: Could Ross be real steal from offseason deal?

Last offseason, Nationals fans were expecting the team to make a big move for a second baseman, after Asdrubal Cabrera left in free agency and people thought Danny Espinosa's hitting troubles would continue. Instead, the Nats were part of a blockbuster three-team deal that landed them a shortstop prospect and a pitching prospect. On Dec. 17, the Tampa Bay Rays acquired Rene Rivera, Burch Smith, Jake Bauers, Steven Souza Jr. and Travis Ott. The San Diego Padres got Gerardo Reyes, Jose Castillo,...

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Matt Kremnitzer: Delving into Ubaldo Jimenez's revival

June 23, 2015, 5:48am

Orioles

Matt Kremnitzer: Delving into Ubaldo Jimenez's revival

Surprised by the resurgence of Ubaldo Jimenez? Maybe you shouldn't be, considering the amount of unexpected productive performances from random Orioles these last few years. The 2015 season hasn't been any different. There are Jimmy Paredes, Chaz Roe, Nolan Reimold, Chris Parmelee, Tyler Wilson, and Mike Wright (temporarily, at least) - all have contributed in some way. But Jimenez has arguably been the best O's starting pitcher so far this season, which is hard to believe considering how...

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Matthew Taylor: Baseball as a family bond

June 19, 2015, 5:40am

Orioles

Matthew Taylor: Baseball as a family bond

I had the pleasure of visiting Parnassus Books in Nashville, Tenn., this week. With Father's Day approaching, the wonderful independent bookstore had a display of books for dad that, as you might expect, included titles celebrating the father-son bond as expressed through baseball. I'm fortunate to share that bond with my father and to be developing that bond with my son. However, the bookstore display had me thinking about my daughter. My kids are too young to really know what they like...

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David Huzzard: Examining the Nationals offense

June 18, 2015, 5:34am

Nationals

Coming into Wednesday night's game, the Nationals sat second in the National League in runs scored per game and eighth in runs allowed. Ask most people before the season started and they'd likely have told you that those rankings would be reversed. Turn on the radio or browse social media today after the Nationals got shut out and all the talk will be about how putrid their offense is. In past seasons, when I'd inform people the Nationals offense was better than they think, it was right...

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Zach Wilt: Machado flourishing as O's leadoff hitter

June 18, 2015, 5:18am

Orioles

Zach Wilt: Machado flourishing as O's leadoff hitter

We often underestimate the importance of the leadoff hitter. He's the guy that gets things started, sets the table for the rest of the order and ends up with the most plate appearances at the end of the season. A struggling hitter atop a lineup can doom an inning or, at the very least, limit the damage against an opposing pitcher. One of my biggest concerns when the Orioles lost Nick Markakis to free agency was how they would be able to replace his production at the top of the lineup. Markakis...

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Domenic Vadala: Crab cakes, cheesesteaks and forced rivalries

June 16, 2015, 6:39pm

Orioles

Domenic Vadala: Crab cakes, cheesesteaks and forced rivalries

This week could be called "forced rivalry week" in Major League Baseball with lots of teams playing two-game home-and-home series against regional or natural rivals. Admittedly, some of these so-called rivalries are more forced than others. This would normally be O's vs. Nats week; however, those two teams will play two three-game series later this summer and into the autumn. So the Orioles ended up with Philadelphia this week, which makes sense based on geography. The Atlanta-Boston series...

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Matthew Taylor: Orioles history flush with Yankees ties

June 12, 2015, 5:09am

Orioles

It may seem a strange choice for an Orioles blogger to write about a former Yankees manager and a former Yankees outfielder on the weekend that the Bronx Bombers visit Camden Yards for a three-game set. However, there's good reason for that decision. With his next win, former Yankees manager Buck Showalter will tie former Yankees outfielder Hank Bauer on the Orioles' all-time managerial wins list at 407. Should the Orioles win the weekend series, Showalter will pass Bauer while New York is in...