Taking a lead has come easily to the Orioles over the past few games. It's holding the lead that's proven to be too difficult. The offense goes cold again, a price is paid for pitches that miss their marks and a losing streak refuses to die. Matt Harvey cruised into the fourth inning and by the fifth had allowed more than three runs for the only time since the All-Star break. Kevin Kiermaier and Brandon Lowe homered off Harvey, who didn't complete the fifth. Brett Phillips had an...

On the same day that Baseball America upgraded the Orioles farm system to No. 2 behind the Mariners, their highest ranking since the publication began keeping count 37 years ago, the club announced a boatload of minor league promotions headed by 2021 first-round draft pick Colton Cowser moving up from the Rookie-level Florida Complex League to low Single-A Delmarva. Infielder Jordan Westburg advanced from high Single-A Aberdeen to Double-A Bowie, leaving behind infielder Gunnar Henderson. They...

Trying to snap a losing streak that has reached 11 games, the Orioles begin a four-game series tonight in St. Petersburg, Fla., against the Tampa Bay Rays. The Orioles got swept three straight at Boston over the weekend, scoring just five runs in the series. They were swept for the 14th time this season. Orioles right-hander Matt Harvey (6-11, 6.10 ERA) will make his 24th start of the year. He has recorded a WHIP of 1.558 for the season, allowing 11.2 hits and 1.2 home runs per nine innings...

The Orioles begin a four-game series against the Rays tonight at Tropicana Field with Jorge Mateo at second base, Richie Martin at shortstop and Ramón Urías at third. Mateo has hit safely in eight of his nine games since joining the Orioles, going 10-for-35 (.286). Austin Wynns is catching. Anthony Santander, who's the designated hitter, has registered a .378 average (17-for-45) in 12 games this month. He has a .318 average (21-for-66) with six walks in 18 games since the break. DJ...

Heading into the 2021 season, the Orioles were rated No. 7 in the Baseball America organizational rankings in January. It was their highest rating in the 37 years Baseball America has published such information. Well, the club just made another nice move up and today, in the newest rankings, the Orioles are No. 2. In March, they were ranked No. 5 by MLBPipeline.com, so the club is movin' on up. The Baseball America organization rankings include players that are prospect-eligible as of Aug. 15....

On Sunday afternoon, Lane Thomas became the 54th player to appear in a game for the Nationals this season. That's an exceptionally high number, only three shy of the club record set way back in 2006. And with 44 games still to go, and more players likely to join the roster before this is over, it's quite possible this year's team will establish a new record. The pertinent question right now, though, isn't how many guys will play for the Nationals in 2021. It's how many of the guys...

Rylan Bannon has been hearing the same message from his hitting coach upon returning to the dugout after launching another home run for Triple-A Norfolk. "This is who you are." This isn't how Bannon played earlier in the season, but the turnaround has picked up speed like a tornado. Bannon came to the plate yesterday with the bases loaded in Game 1 of a doubleheader against Memphis and cleared them with a double. He had two hits and was 7-for-11 with five home runs and nine RBIs in his last...

For a while when the 2021 season began, the Orioles were playing some competitive baseball. They went 4-2 on an opening road trip to Boston and New York and 7-8 after 15 games. After 31 games, they were 15-16. When the second half began after the All-Star break, the Orioles went 10-6 in the first 16 games. You add those two stretches together and you get 25-22, or .532 baseball over a 47-game stretch. But with Sunday's loss at Boston, the club's 11th in a row, the Orioles are 13-56 (.188) in...

As miserable as things have been lately for a Nationals team that has turned winning baseball games into an increasingly difficult task, one not insignificant truth has emerged: They've given themselves an opportunity to win just about every one of these games. Sure, there have been a few duds along the way, and Saturday night's blowout loss to the Braves was probably the worst of them all. But most of the time, the rebuilding Nats step to the plate in the ninth inning with a chance to turn a...

The Orioles had their brief moment this afternoon. The early rally, the hit with a runner in scoring position, a lead against the Red Sox. Keegan Akin took his turn on the mound in the bottom of the first inning and surrendered a three-run homer to J.D. Martinez among his 22 pitches. The next three innings saw Akin bend but not break, keeping the Orioles in the game, unsure whether it keeps him in the rotation. But the losing streak is rolling into St. Petersburg, Fla., for the next stop on the...