There's still so much to process about Thursday night's 9-8 loss in San Diego, a Nationals loss that can't begin to be adequately explained merely through the final score. Let's try to delve into a few more aspects of this wackadoodle game at Petco Park, which at times defied explanation. ... * Max Scherzer's meltdown was as quick as it was shocking. It's not just that he gave up seven runs in the bottom of the fourth. It's that he gave up seven runs in the bottom of the fourth after...

They led by eight runs after 3 1/2 innings, with Max Scherzer cruising and looking very much like he wanted to make a definitive statement about his exclusion from the All-Star Game roster for the first time since 2012. How that somehow turned into a one-run lead 10 batters into the worst nightmare of a fourth inning Scherzer or anyone else on the Nationals could ever have dreamed up, a nightmare that included the first grand slam by a relief pitcher in the major leagues since 1985, defied...

The Orioles confirmed again yesterday how their starters will line up heading into the All-Star break. The rainout didn't force an adjustment beyond denying Dillon Tate his first major league assignment as an opener. Jorge López, Thomas Eshelman and Spenser Watkins are going to oppose the White Sox in the weekend series that begins tonight at Camden Yards, followed by four days without games. Four days to pretty much make anything possible. There are only a few certainties to begin the...

Baseball America recently did a mock draft with their staff picking for the teams. High school shortstop Jordan Lawler went first to Pittsburgh, followed by Vanderbilt pitcher Jack Leiter to Texas, high school shortstop Marcelo Mayer to Detroit and high school shortstop Kahlil Watson to Boston. That left the Orioles, selecting No. 5 overall, with Vandy pitcher Kumar Rocker still out there in this exercise, along with highly rated high school shortstop Brady House, high school pitcher Jackson...

The Nationals have been talking for months about the need to monitor Joe Ross' workload after the he opted out of the 2020 season. They weren't necessarily planning to give the right-hander time off right now in advance of the All-Star break, but when he reported tightness in his forearm following his between-starts bullpen session Wednesday, it was an easy decision for the club to take him off the active roster. Ross was placed on the 10-day injured list with right elbow inflammation before...

We talked about the daunting two-week stretch the Nationals were going to face heading into the All-Star break, with 14 games in 14 days against five contenders. Well, 10 games in they've managed to go 5-5 despite a swath of injuries and a four-game sweep at the hands of the Dodgers last weekend. And tonight they have a chance to win three of four on the road from the Padres. That's not bad at all. It's a premier pitching matchup for the series finale at Petco Park, with All-Star Yu Darvish...

Tonight's scheduled game between the Orioles and Toronto Blue Jays has been postponed due to inclement weather. The game will be made up as part of a traditional (single-admission) doubleheader on Saturday, September 11. Both games of the doubleheader on Saturday, September 11, will be seven innings. The first game will begin at 4:35 p.m. ET, followed by game two approximately 45 minutes after the first game concludes. Fans holding tickets for the originally scheduled 7:05 p.m. game on...

The Orioles have optioned left-hander Zac Lowther to Triple-A Norfolk this afternoon and recalled pitcher Shaun Anderson from the Tides. Anderson can become the 47th player used by the Orioles this season. He was on the field earlier today to do some throwing while a light rain fell at Camden Yards. Lowther worked two innings last night, escaped a bases-loaded jam in the seventh and surrendered a run in the eighth. He can return to Norfolk's rotation. The Orioles claimed Anderson, 26, off...

In another unexpected twist to the Orioles' season, Dillon Tate is making a start tonight against the Blue Jays at Camden Yards. Rookie left-hander Keegan Akin has been scratched, with the Orioles providing more information later this afternoon. Akin could be working in a bulk role behind Tate, who's making his first major league start. Or Akin could be dealing with a physical issue. Manager Brandon Hyde will explain it during his media scrum, with the weather dictating if it's done on the...

There was the tone-setter, the three-run homer by Juan Soto in the top of the first that seemed to leave Petco Park in 1.3 seconds. There were the back-to-back, two-run singles by Josh Bell and Starlin Castro in the top of the second that kept the pressure on Padres starter Chris Paddack. And then there were the three additional runs the Nationals scored soon thereafter to extend their lead to a whopping 10 runs by the top of the fourth and ensure this would be a very good (albeit very long)...