As we've seen, there are two major issues plaguing the Nationals right now: starting pitchers who dig them into early holes and a lineup that isn't consistently producing beyond Trea Turner and Juan Soto. Tonight, we'll find out if they can reverse both trends and emerge victorious in Philadelphia. The good news: Patrick Corbin has been pitching well, and he pitched well against these same Phillies last week in D.C. For six innings, the left-hander allowed only a solo homer to Rhys Hoskins....

After a stretch of playing 13 straight games against American League East teams, the Orioles begin a two-game home series against the New York Mets tonight. This begins a stretch of 12 straight games through Sept. 13 against New York teams. They will meet the Mets four times and play the Yankees eight times. The Orioles went 3-10 in the stretch of games against Boston, Tampa Bay and Toronto. They are 8-13 this season against AL clubs and 7-6 versus the National League. They are 7-2 against the...

Baseball fans in the nation's capital can now stream the 106.7 The Fan (WJFK-FM) radio broadcast of Nationals games through RADIO.COM, the fastest growing digital audio platform in America. Fans will be able to listen to Charlie Slowes and Dave Jageler, the voices of Nationals radio, free on the RADIO.COM app and website, or on RADIO.COM via select smart speakers by selecting 106.7 The Fan. Fans using a smart speaker should tell their speaker to play 106.7 The Fan on the RADIO.COM app. The...

A trade deadline passes and the inevitable question is posed. Now what? Or what now? The Orioles are done dealing until after Sept. 27. There's nothing flimsy about this deadline. Executive vice president/general manager Mike Elias has to wait until the offseason to move other parts that don't fit in a rebuild. (I write "parts" knowing these are people with families and feelings, but it's the cold terminology used in this instance. Former manager Buck Showalter called out the media for it...

If you're looking for silver linings from Nationals losses - and lord knows that's fast becoming a nightly pursuit - Sean Doolittle is your man. The left-hander's return from a two-week stint in Fredericksburg to rehab his knee and get his mechanics back in order has gotten off to an especially encouraging start. Sunday's relief appearance in Boston - four batters faced, two outs recorded, two weakly hit singles allowed - was a nice step in the right direction. Monday's 1-2-3 bottom of the...

Juan Soto has popularized the "Soto Shuffle" between pitches as he sizes up the pitcher and what he might throw him during each at-bat. But a lot of times between pitches, it looks like Soto is having a conversation with the umpire or the catcher. Is he talking to them, asking where the pitch was? What is he saying to them during the at-bat? Are they having actual conversations during each at-bat? Soto says he exchanges nothing more than "hellos" with the umpires. But against the Phillies,...

Trea Turner is beyond the zone. He's on a different level. So is Juan Soto. Now if only the Nationals could figure out how to get everyone else in the lineup to join them on the same night. Turner went 4-for-5 with a homer and a run scored in Monday's 8-6 loss to the Phillies, extending his career-best hitting streak to 16 games. His average is a league-best .377 and his OPS is 1.077. According to statistics compiled by Ryan Spaeder, Turner is hitting .515 over his last 72 plate...

If Mike Rizzo's message in standing pat at this afternoon's trade deadline was to let his Nationals players know he still believes this group is capable of a second-half push into a pennant race, the message they sent back to their general manager tonight in Philadelphia was that nothing has changed on the field. This 8-6 loss to the Phillies bore far too much resemblance to so many losses that have preceded it this season. The starting pitcher, Erick Fedde, again dug his team into a sizeable...

On a team that didn't have a true closer going into the 2020 season, right-hander Cole Sulser, a veteran before this year of only 7 1/3 major league innings, was thrust into the role. He's had some big blow-ups recently and now has been moved out of the closer's role. But in my humble opinion, he certainly should not be moved off the team. The Orioles need to give him lower-leverage situations to pitch in and get him back on track, and that is the new plan. One wrinkle in the mix is that the...

The Orioles today launched the "Player's Favorite Things" basket auction to benefit Living Classrooms. Fans have the opportunity to bid on collections of items from their favorite Orioles players including Shawn Armstrong, Paul Fry, Travis Lakins Sr., Rio Ruiz, Chance Sisco, Pat Valaika and manager Brandon Hyde. Fans can bid at Orioles.com/auction from now until Monday, September 7, at 10:00 p.m. ET. Photos and details on each basket are also available at...