Power hitters generally strike out at a pretty good rate. That is the trend in baseball over many years. But at a time when strikeout rates all around the sport are up, putting the ball in play more often is valued. Doing that with power is potentially something special. The Orioles have a player who in the shortened 2020 season showed the ability to strike out less while still hitting the ball with plenty of authority. On his way to winning the Most Valuable Oriole award, Anthony Santander...

Eric Thames went to Asia to resurrect his career once before. He'll attempt to do it again after signing with a Japanese club Wednesday following his disappointing season with the Nationals. Thames signed a one-year deal with the Yomiuri Giants of Nippon Professional Baseball. He'll earn roughly $1.2 million, according to Sports Hochi. That's a bit of a fall from grace for Thames, who one year ago signed with the Nationals for a guaranteed $4 million in 2020, plus a $4 million mutual option...

A new year always conjures up old memories of poor judgement while waiting for the ball to drop in Times Square. A second countdown pertaining to how long a stomach is going to cooperate before beginning to reject everything inside it. The ball is lowered and your dinner comes up. Here's hoping that none of you are experiencing such misery. Like the time decades ago when I thought tequila was the perfect nightcap. And the morning of Jan. 1, 2012, when my friend stood at his front door as I...

It's just another New Year's Eve, another night like all the rest. It's just another New Year's Eve, let's make it the best. (If I can reference Garrett Cleavinger twice within a week, I can sing along with Barry Manilow to close out 2020. There are no rules.) I feel bad for the people who keep acting as though the world is returning to normal after tonight. The "I can't wait for 2020 to be over" crowd. I've got bad news for you. It won't feel any different in the morning or the next...

The Nationals need a corner outfielder. This is not news to anyone who has paid even scant attention this winter. This to-be-determined outfielder most likely will come from outside the organization, acquired either via free agency or trade. Unless the front office decides to gamble and stay in-house with Andrew Stevenson, who looked awfully impressive when given a chance to play in September but has very little track record. What, though, about the other in-house option, the other outfielder...

He might be someone a bit overlooked among Orioles pitching prospects. But he probably should not be, despite the fact he has yet to advance beyond high Single-A ball and is not yet on the O's 40-man roster. He doesn't need to be there yet, but right-hander Kyle Bradish will get there when the time comes. He joined Isaac Mattson, Kyle Brnovich and Zach Peek when the four right-handers were acquired from the Los Angeles Angels for pitcher Dylan Bundy on Dec. 4, 2019. Bradish will not need to...

Shortstop Richie Martin remains in the Puerto Rican Winter League with Criollos de Caguas, where he's appeared in 14 games and gone 13-for-51 (.255) with six doubles, two home runs, six walks and a .345 on-base percentage. More at-bats and reps in the field after a wasted 2020 season. The Orioles are expected to bring in a shortstop to replace José Iglesias, who was traded to the Angels for minor league pitchers Garrett Stallings and Jean Pinto. It won't be Adeiny Hechavarría, who...

The Nationals system is strong from a pitching standpoint, even with the recent trade of prospects Wil Crowe and Eddy Yean to the Pirates. The Nats' top 10 prospects were all pitchers prior to the move that acquired All-Star first baseman Josh Bell, so now it is top eight, according to MLBPipeline.com. Prospects Jackson Rutledge, Cade Cavalli and Cole Henry are the top three. All three were drafted in 2019 or 2020. No. 5 prospect Mason Denaburg was a 2018 top selection. Nats assistant general...

It's a common practice to look at a team in the moments after it wins a championship and wonder if it's good enough to come back the next year and win another. And rarely in recent baseball history has that sentiment been more prevalent than in the moments after the Cubs won the 2016 World Series. Yes, they broke the Billy Goat Curse with their first title in 108 years, but this didn't appear to be some kind of one-in-a-million convergence of events. The Cubs roster was loaded with young...

Well, we know there will not be any controversies surrounding Blake Snell's time on the mound in a playoff game for Tampa Bay during the 2021 season. In the 2020 postseason, Snell and Charlie Morton started 10 of the Rays' 20 playoff games including three of six in the World Series. Now both are gone from the Rays. But this team has been here before. This organization, which does more with less than any big league club, is at it again. They had both pitchers under contract for the 2021 season...