The Nationals get Erick Fedde and Kyle Finnegan back from the injured list tonight, surprisingly quicker than most expected in Fedde's case. And at some point in the not-too-distant future, they believe they'll get Stephen Strasburg back as well, the final and most significant return to a rotation that has needed some patching together through the season's first half. The Nats have been going without Strasburg and Fedde since June 24, when Fedde woke up with a strained oblique one day after...

After a 4-6 road trip that ended with two walk-off losses in the last three games, the Orioles return home for a six-game, two-team homestand that will lead them into the All-Star break. Two homestands ago, the Orioles went 5-3 against the Twins, Indians and Mets. Last homestand, they went 1-5 against the Blue Jays and Astros. They won the first game of that homestand but lost the last five. They are 12-26 at home for the season. The Orioles are 10-23 versus American League East opponents,...

Davey Martinez promised roster moves (plural) after Monday night's win, and the Nationals manager meant what he said. The Nats added two healthy pitchers to their staff today, activating both Erick Fedde and Kyle Finnegan off the 10-day injured list. And Fedde (surprise, surprise) will start tonight in San Diego. That was not expected, because as far as we know, Fedde has not faced any live hitters since going on the IL with an oblique strain two weeks ago. We'll see if that means he's...

The Washington Nationals reinstated right-handed pitchers Erick Fedde and Kyle Finnegan from the 10-day Injured List and optioned right-handed pitcher Ryne Harper and left-handed pitcher Kyle Lobstein to Triple-A Rochester on Tuesday. Nationals President of Baseball Operations and General Manager Mike Rizzo made the announcements. Fedde, 28, will start for the Nationals on Tuesday night. He is 4-4 with a 3.90 ERA in 11 starts this season. Prior to being placed on the Injured List with a...

Third baseman Maikel Franco has been scratched from the Orioles lineup and replaced by Domingo Leyba, a failed attempt to play for the first time since Wednesday night in Houston. Franco sprained his right ankle while chasing the last out and slipping on the track in foul territory. He sat out the series in Anaheim. Blue Jays starter Steven Matz catches a break. Franco is 7-for-13 with two home runs and six RBIs lifetime against him. For the Orioles Cedric Mullins CF Austin Hays LF Trey Mancini...

Orioles pitcher Travis Lakins Sr. underwent successful surgery this morning to repair a "recurrent olecranon stress fracture" in his right elbow, per a team announcement. Dr. Steve Shin performed the surgery in Los Angeles. Lakins was transferred to the 60-day injured list on Saturday. The olecranon is the part of the ulna that cups the lower end of the humerus, creating a hinge for elbow movement. It's the pointy area, if that makes more sense. John Means threw a bullpen session this...

Spenser Watkins got his major league debut out of the way last week. Now comes his first start. Watkins will be handed the ball tonight against the Blue Jays at Camden Yards, the final homestand for the Orioles before the All-Star break. He retired all three batters he faced Friday night in Anaheim and needed only eight pitches to do it. Manager Brandon Hyde needed a starter with Travis Lakins Sr. on the 60-day injured list. The team confirmed only that Lakins has right elbow pain and it's...

Every National League All-Star team assembled since 2010 has included at least one member of the Nationals pitching staff. Every All-Star Game since 2013 has included a roster with Max Scherzer. So imagine the surprise on South Capitol Street on Sunday when manager Davey Martinez walked into the clubhouse and informed everyone three of his players had been selected to this year's Midsummer Classic: Trea Turner, Juan Soto and Kyle Schwarber. Not Scherzer. Some in the room didn't believe...

Ask anyone who has watched him - shoot, ask Josh Bell himself - to evaluate his performance through the season's first half, and the answer almost certainly will be negative. And a quick glance at Bell's season totals - .247 batting average, 12 homers, 39 RBIs, .775 OPS - would give reason to believe that. Let's not forget, though, just how big a hole Bell dug for himself six weeks in. On the morning of May 13, the Nationals first baseman owned a horrific .133/.198/.289 slash line that...

The questions are piling up again. They'd thin out a little if my original answers stuck, but you know how this works. You know why the sequels exist. How many times must we go over this? You ask, I answer, someone else asks the same thing, I tweak or completely change my response to see if anyone notices or cares. It's probably a desperate cry for attention. My therapist thinks so. The only time there's crying in baseball. Here's what I won't do, and you have my word: Edit for length,...