The Orioles haven't announced their rotation for the series in Kansas City that begins Friday night, but it won't include Jorge López. López was placed on the bereavement list this afternoon, a move that makes him unavailable until at least the series that follows against the Rays in St. Petersburg. Fla. The bereavement list is used for a player needing to leave the team to attend to a serious illness or death in his immediate family or his spouse's immediate family. The player is...

The Orioles drafted a second baseman in the second round, Connor Norby of East Carolina University, but he isn't blocking Jahmai Jones. I already saw and approved that joke on Twitter. Norby is praised by scouts for his solid tools across the board. He's a career .392/.458/.596 hitter at East Carolina. He led the nation with 102 hits this year. But I'm betting that Jones beats him to the majors. Any takers? Jones is batting .279 with an .863 OPS after Tuesday night's single and triple and...

This wasn't the best first half in Nationals history, nor was it the worst. It was arguably the most eventful they've ever had, a 3 1/2-month roller coaster ride that began with a shocking drop (the COVID-19 outbreak), slowly began to climb back up, then gave everyone a June thrill ride before hitting some major bumps in early July. The end result of all that was a 42-47 record at the All-Star break. Some years, that would leave the Nats out of contention and looking to sell at the trade...

Although the American League won its eighth straight All-Star Game 5-2, the Nationals were well represented on the National League side Tuesday night. In taking the mound to kick off the game at Coors Field in Denver, Max Scherzer went from one of the last players named to the NL roster to making his fourth Midsummer Classic start. He is now one of just six pitchers in the game's history to make that many starts. Scherzer started the game by getting opposing starting pitcher and leadoff...

Cedric Mullins was able to serve as a leadoff hitter tonight in the All-Star Game at Coors Field in Denver. Just in a different manner than his usual role with the Orioles. Batting ninth in the American League's order but the first to the plate in the top of the third inning. Mullins struck out against the Brewers' Corbin Burnes and watched from the dugout as the Blue Jays' Vladimir Guerrero Jr. hit a long home run to left field for a 2-0 lead. But he got one more chance in the fifth,...

Under former Orioles general manager Andy MacPhail, the motto "Grow the arms, buy the bats," was popular. Under current exec Mike Elias, the motto could be, "Take elite college bats with good contact skills and draft pitchers later on that you are confident you can develop." OK, that might be way too many words for a T-shirt. But in the 2021 First-Year Player Draft, the Orioles selected 21 players with just one from the high school ranks. They drafted nine pitchers, but just one in the...

Just because it's the All-Star break that doesn't mean teams can't make roster moves and trades this week, although Major League Baseball probably prefers no major moves are made to take attention away from its midsummer showcase of the sport's best players. Commissioner Rob Manfred doesn't have to worry about that because this move won't be headline news as the All-Star Game gets underway later tonight: The Nationals have traded left-hander Kyle Lobstein (who was designated for...

The Washington Nationals selected ten players on the third day of Major League Baseball's 2021 First-Year Player Draft. Nationals President of Baseball Operations and General Manager Mike Rizzo, Assistant General Manager & Vice President of Scouting Operations Kris Kline and Director of Scouting Operations Eddie Longosz made the joint announcement. The Nationals selected right-handed pitcher Marc Davis out of Florida Southwestern State College in the 11th round. Davis went 4-1 with two...

The 2021 First-Year Player Draft concludes today with the 11th through 20th rounds, as the Nationals continue to fortify their farm system with young talent. With picks in each of the first 10 rounds, the Nationals have strayed away from their traditional approach of stocking up on pitchers by selecting seven position players and only three hurlers over the first half of this draft, headlined by high school shortstop Brady House with the No. 11 pick Sunday night. "We accomplished what we kind...

The Orioles started the final day of the First-Year Player Draft by selecting senior right-handed pitcher Dylan Heid from Division II Pitt-Johnstown after he posted some eye-popping stats during the 2021 season. Taken No. 317 overall in round 11, Heid went 7-2 with an ERA of 1.37 in nine starts with four shutouts and six complete games. He allowed 25 hits in 59 1/3 innings with 15 walks and 105 strikeouts. He posted a WHIP of 0.67 and allowed a batting average against of just .126. He was a...