The Orioles' top two draft picks are at Camden Yards today. They've already been officially signed and have already spent a few days working out in Sarasota, Fla. And this afternoon, outfielder Colton Cowser, the No. 5 overall pick in round one from Sam Houston State, and infielder Connor Norby, taken No. 41 overall in round two from East Carolina, were presented jerseys in a brief on-field ceremony with O's executive vice president and general manager Mike Elias. Their families joined them...

The Orioles reinstated third baseman Maikel Franco from the injured list this afternoon and he's in the lineup for the series opener against the Nationals at Camden Yards. Roster space for Franco was cleared yesterday with infielder Kelvin Gutiérrez optioned to Triple-A Norfolk. Franco hasn't played for the Orioles since spraining his right ankle June 30 in Houston following back-to-back three-hit games. He's batting .221/.265/.376 with 18 doubles, nine home runs and 42 RBIs in 309 plate...

This season's edition of the Battle of the Beltways concludes this weekend in Baltimore after the Nationals swept the Orioles in D.C. in May. Manager Davey Martinez has been asked a lot recently about how he can use Josh Bell and Ryan Zimmerman in the same lineup, with Bell getting some reps in left field during batting practice recently and Zimmerman trying to get his swing back from earlier in the year. That won't be a problem this weekend, though, in an American League ballpark. Bell is...

There may no prospect in baseball, certainly no pitching prospect, whose stock has risen around the sport this season more than Cade Cavalli. The Nationals felt all along they had something special in their 2020 first-round draft pick. Now the rest of the industry is catching on and recognizing the right-hander's immense talent and potential, which was on full display during the All-Star Futures Game in Colorado last week. Cavalli is not, however, a finished product yet. Not even close, given...

We know that the Orioles starting rotation has not covered a lot of innings this year, said Captain Obvious. Through Wednesday's games, the Baltimore rotation has thrown 430 2/3 innings to rank last in the majors. That is 15 fewer innings than Kansas City, although the Royals had played one fewer game than the Orioles. The Baltimore bullpen has had to cover 389 2/3 innings, which ranks as the third most in the majors. So we have a bit of an imbalance here. The O's need more starter innings,...

The ability of Alexander Wells to give the Orioles 5 2/3 innings Wednesday on such short notice, with only three runs allowed, doesn't guarantee the rookie a second major league start. Not until someone in the organization is willing to make the commitment and there's still some uncertainty in the rotation. The Orioles don't know the length of Keegan Akin's absence after his placement on the 10-day COVID-19 injured list. It doesn't come with a minimum requirement. No one knows whether Akin...

An off-day for the Orioles didn't deter them from making a roster move. The club announced today that it optioned infielder Kelvin Gutiérrez to Triple-A Norfolk. The second half of the transaction is withheld until Friday, when the Orioles begin a three-game series against the Nationals at Camden Yards. Gutiérrez showed off a strong arm at third base but was 4-for-23 (.174) with two RBIs, two walks and nine strikeouts in eight games. The Orioles purchased his contract from the Royals on...

The All-Star break ended one week ago, and suffice to say, it's been an awfully eventful first week back for the Nationals. There's been some good. There's been some bad. And there's been some chaos, as well. This is a critical stretch of the season for the Nats, who begin the day six games back of the Mets, still five games under .500 at 45-50. They've got a day off, then open a three-game weekend series in Baltimore on Friday as the final push to the July 30 trade deadline...

They waited all night for the hit that would break a deadlocked ballgame. Just one hit at the right moment to drive in the go-ahead run and put them on a path to sweep the Marlins. And when the Nationals couldn't get the job done during nine innings of traditional baseball, they were left to try to do it in extra innings of non-traditional baseball. Which didn't suit them very well. It was Miami that pushed across two runs in the top of the 10th off closer Brad Hand, while the Nats went down...

This is the story of someone we lost too soon. But it's much more than that. It's about someone that was a great friend to many and impacted many lives, including mine when we were college classmates at Towson University, then known as Towson State University, in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Brice Marden Freeman died from pancreatic cancer on April 10. He was 60. He made it to opening day this year, but after bravely battling this disease for about 18 months, he passed away early on this...