It's too early in the new season to focus on trends that we are seeing on the field. But for the Orioles, the last three games have just featured too many strikeouts. They actually fanned 15 times when winning 11-3 Sunday at Boston. And then in two losses in New York there have been 27 strikeouts. Through five games the O's strikeout rate of 31.4 percent is tied with Seattle's for the most in the American League. "I'm going to give credit to Gerrit Cole last night," O's manager Brandon...

Maikel Franco is the designated hitter tonight and Rio Ruiz is at third base, as the Orioles try to avoid a sweep at Yankee Stadium. Ramón Urías is the second baseman. Cedric Mullins stays in center field and atop the order. Mullins is only the third Orioles player to record at least 11 hits in his first five games of the season, joining Adam Jones (12 in 2013) and Eddie Murray (12 in 1982). Left-hander John Means started on opening day in Boston and tossed seven scoreless innings with...

Who's ready for some more baseball? With the opener of today's doubleheader in the books, the Nationals and Braves will get right back at it with another seven-inning game on South Capitol Street. And because of the events of Game 1, in which Erick Fedde lasted only 1 2/3 innings, the Nats really could use a quality (and long) start from Stephen Strasburg. The veteran right-hander built his arm up as much as needed during spring training, even with that brief calf injury scare in mid-March....

The Orioles pitched one shutout last year during the shortened 60-game season. Thanks to lefty John Means, they matched that total on opening day. Tonight the left-hander will try to pitch Baltimore to a win in the final game of the series at Yankee Stadium. New York has posted 7-0 and 7-2 wins to begin the series. They've won 12 in a row over the Birds at Yankee Stadium and could sweep the series tonight. The Orioles were an out away from back-to-back shutouts when Rio Ruiz hit a two-run...

Five runs in two innings against the opposing ace should be a pretty air-tight formula for success. For the Nationals, it somehow meant a frustrating loss in the opener of a 14-inning doubleheader. Despite getting to Braves left-hander Max Fried early and often, the Nats watched helplessly as Erick Fedde gave it all back and then some during an eventual 7-6 loss at Nationals Park that took some of the luster out of Tuesday's thrilling opening day win. They nearly pulled off another last-second...

The Nationals could have some of their quarantined players back on the active roster at some point during this weekend's series in Los Angeles, but there will be complications to get them to Dodger Stadium and available under Major League Baseball's strict protocols. "It's a possibility, it really is," manager Davey Martinez said during his pregame Zoom session with reporters. "The good news is these guys are testing negative with the nasal swab and the saliva test. They have been, so...

And we're back. Already. For a doubleheader. Already. Hey, no complaining about anything this season, alright? It's certainly got to be easier for the Nationals to get right back to work after Tuesday's walk-off win over the Braves in the season opener. Now, they realistically just need to think about winning at least one of today's seven-inning games to win the series against the three-time defending division champs. It's a nice position to be in. It'll be Erick Fedde on the mound for...

Jonathan Lucroy wasn't a National on Saturday. Three days later, he somehow found himself squatting behind the plate to catch Max Scherzer's first pitch of the 2021 season. And then playing a significant role in the Nationals' 6-5 walk-off win over the Braves. How did the 34-year-old catcher process all of that? "It's kind of funny, but I feel like a mercenary," he said during a postgame Zoom session with reporters. "You know the movie 'The Replacements' with Keanu Reeves as the...

It is a question I often get from fans, and when I recently interviewed Jim Callis from MLBPipeline.com, I asked him to identify a couple of under-the-radar or underrated Orioles prospects. We often talk about those at the top of a top 30 list, but those down the list deserve some mention, too. Callis is a big fan of a couple of O's prospects rated in the second half of the MLBPipeline.com Orioles top 30 list. One is outfielder Hudson Haskin, ranked No. 16 by MLBPipeline.com. He was the...

Dean Kremer's three most important pitches tonight didn't require a batter or plate umpire. His line and the score wouldn't be impacted. He did, however, draw a small crowd near the mound. An unexpected pod. Aaron Judge lined a fastball up the middle that slammed off the back of Kremer's leg in the first inning, threatening the rookie's start just two batters into the game. An exit velocity near 110 mph could have sent Kremer to the clubhouse almost as quickly. But Kremer convinced manager...