Mark Daschbach didn't miss a single game of his son's junior season at Stanford. As Andrew Daschbach tore through the Pac-12 in 2019, smashing 17 home runs for the second consecutive year, Mark was there to witness it all. "I think he lives vicariously through me," Andrew said. Mark, a Stanford graduate himself, even made the trip east from Atherton, Calif., several times later that year to see Andrew begin his pro career with the short-season Single-A Aberdeen IronBirds. "He's loved...

So little went right for the Nationals last season that it's easy to get excited about the players that made significant improvement. Tanner Rainey is one of them, a bulldog of a right-hander who used the shortened 2020 season to show that all that fantasy baseball chatter about players making a leap in their age-27 seasons isn't just idle babble. Rainey has something few pitchers possess: a triple-digit fastball with life. And though he is often mentioned as a closer of the future, the...

Hi, folks. It's been a while since we've done one of these. That's in part because there's finally been a nice run of news to report and analysis to write the last couple of weeks. It took long enough, but at last stuff is happening. And now we're a mere 12 days away from pitchers and catchers reporting to West Palm Beach, Fla. Are the Nationals done building their 2021 roster? Is the lineup deep enough? Is the bullpen stocked with enough reliable arms? Is the bench still missing...

Efforts made by the Orioles to find more starting options for the rotation and depth in the infield and upper levels of the farm system are synced with the task of filling out the camp roster for spring training. The amount of players allowed at complexes is expected to be capped at 75. The Orioles are going to treat the process in the same fashion as their 60-man pool and the summer training camp at Camden Yards. They didn't rush to reach their limit. They left room for players to filter in...

If Freddy Galvis is at shortstop and Yolmer Sánchez is at second base for the 2021 Orioles, their up-the-middle infield defense will no doubt be very solid. And they could have some real durability. Between 2017-19, Sánchez played in 148 games per year for the Chicago White Sox. From 2015-19, Galvis averaged 156 games per season. I had a recent conversation with a National League scout, who noted that durability in assessing what the O's might be getting with these two players. The...

The thought of reuniting with Max Scherzer six years since they were last batterymates in Detroit certainly was appealing to Alex Avila. As was the opportunity to catch Patrick Corbin and Jon Lester again after previous opportunities in Arizona and Chicago, plus the chance to work with Stephen Strasburg for the first time in his career. All of that made the Nationals attractive to Avila as he prepared for free agency last fall. But none of that familiarity with the pitching staff was as...

Normally, the signing of a pitcher to a minor league contract who went 1-8 with a 6.40 ERA in his most recent season would not garner much interest. Or much enthusiasm. There would be a story here and fans would await the pitcher getting his shot to prove he still has it during spring training. But it's not every day a rebuilding team can sign someone with the resume of right-hander Félix Hernández. Some fans, certainly not all, did express some excitement last night when the Orioles...

The Orioles' quest for more starting pitching has carried them to a former Cy Young Award winner. The second minor league deal offered in two days. According to an industry source, the Orioles have agreed to terms with veteran Félix Hernández on a contract that pays $1 million if he's on the club. The news on Hernández comes less than 24 hours after confirmation that the Orioles re-signed left-hander Wade LeBlanc to a deal that offers $700,000 if he's on the active...

Though a bunch of members of their World Series roster have now departed, the Nationals are bringing back one beloved player from that championship group few could've envisioned returning: Gerardo Parra. Yes, the Nats have signed Parra to a minor league contract with an invitation to spring training, a source familiar with the deal confirmed. The popular outfielder will report to big league camp in West Palm Beach, Fla., and have a chance to make the opening day roster, which would earn him $1...

The warning came early Monday morning, with pitcher Alex Cobb told by his representatives in a phone call of the pending trade from the Orioles to the Angels. The bags packed for spring training weren't going to make it to Sarasota, Fla. "I had had some discussions with my agents about some possibilities, that things might be happening, so it was on my radar, but also, didn't put my stock into it," Cobb said this afternoon. "I believed I was showing up to spring training. Had my place set,...