The Nationals were just swept by the Braves in large part because of their lack of offensive production, especially in key moments late in games. On the flip side, though, they were in a position to have a chance to rally late because of their pitching staff, which is starting to perform like it was supposed to all along. The Nats sport a 4.06 ERA overall through 27 games, which ranks 17th in the majors. Nothing to get too excited about. Except the staff is trending in the right direction,...

Through 31 games, the Orioles continue to hover around the .500 mark. They are playing .484 ball via win percentage at 15-16. And they have played a difficult schedule. Of the club's 31 games, 26 have been played versus teams that have a current winning record and 12 have been played versus first-place teams in Boston and Oakland. That strength of schedule at .522 is the toughest in baseball, per FanGraphs.com. The Orioles are 12-14 against winning clubs. They have gone 3-3 against Boston and...

I come to praise Adley Rutschman, not to bury Matt Wieters. The trick is doing one without the other. The comparisons between the first-round catchers and their intensely hyped travels through the minors and anticipated major league debuts are as unavoidable as traffic on I-495. Wieters was dubbed "The baby Jesus," "Jesus in spikes" and "The switch-hitting Jesus," when he simply wanted to be known as "Matt." Teammates at Georgia Tech called him "God." Apparently, he didn't get a...

You can't say the Nationals don't at least give themselves chances. This evening's game against the Braves was right there for the taking late, in the bottom of the seventh, in the bottom of the eighth and again in the bottom of the ninth. In those final three innings alone, they took 10 at-bats with runners in scoring position. And managed only one hit in the process. In their latest bit of late-inning agony at the plate, the Nationals squandered those golden opportunities to finish a rally...

Upon learning he would be pitching on opening day for the Nationals, Max Scherzer began preparing to face the Mets. Erica Scherzer began preparing to give birth to the couple's third child. "My wife, as soon as she knew that I was going to be opening day starter, she had already done the counting out days and knew I was going to be pitching either May 2 or May 4," Max Scherzer said today during a Zoom session with reporters. "So it came down to asking (manager Davey Martinez): 'All right,...

The Nationals need to score runs. Early in games. Too often they've found themselves trailing early and it's cost them. Their record this season when they score first: 10-2. When they don't: 2-12. There are all kinds of factors we can discuss when trying to decide why they're 12-14 overall, but that stat right there pretty tells the entire story. So it's incumbent upon today's lineup to do something early on against Drew Smyly. The good news: They did score early off Smyly back on opening...

There won't be any ceremony to commemorate the occasion. No formal mention of the achievement or announcement on the scoreboard. Nor should there be, because it's not exactly a major accomplishment under the circumstances. And yet it's not insignificant that today Davey Martinez will manage his 411th game for the Nationals. What's significant about 411 games in the dugout? Well, believe it or not, it's the most games anyone will have managed in club history. Yep, that's right. Even though...

A soft liner leaves the opponent's bat, the shortstop catches it and players sprint onto the field to begin a raucous celebration. Teammates surround the starting pitcher. Grown men jump up and down as if reliving their childhood. But enough about the 1983 World Series ... Ramón Urías played the role of Cal Ripken Jr. yesterday in Seattle and John Means was Scott McGregor. Except the Orioles didn't win a championship. They just reacted as if a trophy would be hoisted later and champagne...

With a roster that is less than ideally constructed and a matchup against a left-handed starter this evening, Nationals manager Davey Martinez wound up fielding a lineup loaded with right-handed hitters and a bench loaded with big names who he could choose to insert somewhere along the way when the right situation arose. Trouble is, Martinez never got around to using Juan Soto or Josh Bell when either would've had a chance to bat with a chance to make a big difference. Instead, it was Yadiel...

We have pointed it out before, but it still holds true: John Means was never ranked once among the Orioles' top 30 prospects by Baseball America and barely made it onto the MLBPipeline.com list. But not being ranked doesn't mean you can't make the majors, be good when you get there and be a Rookie of the Year contender. For Means, check, check and check. It doesn't mean you can't pitch a no-hitter. Check. MLBPipeline.com ranked him No. 29 on its O's preseason top 30 in 2015 and 2017, and...