Orioles manager Brandon Hyde can keep talking about the bad at-bats and tough luck that run through his lineups, or he can just lean on the dugout railing and make mental notes as examples play out in front of him. There isn't much that Hyde can do to silence the effects of a screaming line drive today from Maikel Franco in the second inning that produced a double play and another layer of frustration. Red Sox third baseman Rafael Devers making a backhanded grab - the glove somehow staying...

It was a series that began amid a lot of hope for the Orioles. They were coming home for the first time this season off a thrilling, 11-inning win Wednesday night at Yankee Stadium. They were facing a Boston team they swept three straight last weekend, winning 11-3 in the final game. But the results this time were very, very different. The Red Sox have not lost since the Orioles left Fenway Park. They scored four in the third inning and five in the fifth today to build a midgame 10-1 lead, and...

The Nationals are hoping their four remaining quarantined players will be cleared by Monday, and there's a chance Josh Bell, Kyle Schwarber and Josh Harrison could be with the club for the start of their three-game series in St. Louis, though Jon Lester is going to need more time to build his arm back up before he pitches in a big league game. "Until we have clearance, I don't know anything yet," manager Davey Martinez said today at Dodger Stadium during his pregame Zoom session with...

It's hard to call a ballgame on April 11 a "must-win," but here we are. The Nationals, having dropped four in a row since their walk-off win on opening day, kind of really need to find a way to emerge from Los Angeles with a victory this afternoon. Not that it would doom their season, but another loss to complete a sweep would leave them 1-5 and needing to win two of three in St. Louis just to come home 3-6. That's not a situation Davey Martinez and Co. want to find themselves in. The good...

The Orioles have recorded a three-game sweep over Boston this year, and the Red Sox will have one over the Orioles if they win this afternoon at Camden Yards. Boston has won 7-3 and 6-4 in 10 innings to take the first two games in this series. The Red Sox (5-3) now have the longest win streak in the American League - five in a row - and have moved into sole possession of first place. They lead the division by a game over the Orioles and Tampa Bay, both at 4-4, and by two games over New York and...

The run-scoring single that Freddy Galvis poked into left field last night in the eighth inning to give the Orioles a short-lived lead could be an indication that his early hitting woes are evaporating. Or it was a tease - just like the lead that also disappeared. Galvis struck out in the 10th to close out a 6-4 loss to the Red Sox, raising his total to 13 in 31 at-bats. Three of those strikeouts came last night. Going to the opposite field on a 0-2 pitch from Adam Ottavino offered a glimmer of...

DJ Stewart is in left field again today as the Orioles try to avoid a sweep against the Red Sox at Camden Yards. Ryan Mountcastle is the designated hitter. Trey Mancini is at first base after hitting his first home run last night since Sept. 28, 2019. Rio Ruiz remains at second base. Freddy Galvis has been lowered to ninth in the order. Cedric Mullins has a 12-game hitting streak dating back to last September and is the first Oriole to hit safely in the team's first eight games of the season...

It was a tough crowd on the blogs and Twitter around Birdland late last night. Blowing a late lead to the Red Sox had fans stirred up. I guess I can understand. But jumping on César Valdez because he suffered a blown save seemed a bit harsh to me. The Orioles have four wins this year. He had two saves and win in those games. His ERA was 0.00 and his WHIP was 0.923 when he took the mound last night. In his first 12 games with the Orioles, dating to last year, he was 5-for-5 in saves with an...

Orioles manager Brandon Hyde ran through five relievers last night in an extra-inning loss to the Red Sox. Dillon Tate wasn't intended to be among them, his rest period ruined by circumstances. César Valdez fumbled a save opportunity and Tate was handed the ball in the 10th. He retired one batter, on a fly ball from Kiké Hernandez that pushed center fielder Cedric Mullins near the fence. A wild pitch broke the tie. Back-to-back walks sent Tate to the dugout. Christian Vázquez's...

Patrick Corbin talked about the benefits of getting stretched out and admitted that his sinker lacked its usual bite. If not for the fact that he was facing the defending world champion Dodgers, he could have been critiquing a spring training start where pitchers are more focused on getting their work in than anything results-oriented.Corbin got his pitches in, totaling 80 and pitching into the fifth inning of his 2021 debut for the Nationals on Saturday night. But the left-hander struggled...