If you study the 2020 Nationals instructional league roster, you will notice a good amount of talent drawn from Venezuela. Of the 65 players on the roster, 16 are from Venezuela. Here is a list of those Nats prospects in attendance at the October camp in West Palm Beach, Fla., along with their top 30 prospect ranking, according to MLBPipeline.com: Pitchers RHP Tomas Alastre RHP Mirton BlancoRHP Niomar GomezRHP Angel GuillenRHP Andry Lara (No. 4)RHP Carlos RomeroRHP Karlo Seijas LHP Alfonso...

Today is sort of a follow-up on yesterday's entry, where we discussed whether defensive shifts should be eliminated or at least reduced. Today I pledge my personal support for two rules I would like to see continue in 2021. And maybe just in 2021. The current collective bargaining agreement runs through the coming season. Why not take another look at some of these rules and then decide whether they stick around more long-term starting in 2022. See what they look like through 162 games - or...

The Baltimore baseball media often was promised during manager Buck Showalter's tenure that its curiosity soon would be satisfied. Mostly, yes. Sometimes, no. I'm curious whether spring training is going to start on the dates set for each club. Of course, every team is being told to get ready for it. The same message was sent in October. What's the alternative? Better to keep that mindset and adjust later if necessary, rather than assume a delay and then be surprised when camp opens on time....

We're certainly not out of the woods as far as the pandemic is concerned, but with new vaccines making their way into the world and 2020 now in the rearview mirror, we have entered a season of hope, which is as it should be after the holidays have passed and we start counting down the days until pitchers and catchers report. Or are scheduled to, at least. This week's platter of "Nationals Classics," which includes multiple examples of a determined team snatching victory from the jaws of...

Well, we made it. It's 2021. We can put last year behind us and look ahead. Like about six weeks, when spring training begins in Sarasota at the Ed Smith Stadium complex. For the moment, we'll assume camp starts as scheduled, but as we all know, these days everything is subject to change. Fingers crossed. In the meantime, we'll warm the winter chill with some "Orioles Classics" on MASN. This week's smattering of retro games includes a trip in the wayback machine to October 1970 and a...

The new year began four days ago, but for practical purposes the new business year begins today. So perhaps that means we're about to get an influx of transactions by the Nationals? Hey, it's 2021. Anything's possible, right? Who knows if general manager Mike Rizzo will be making any announcements today, tomorrow or some other day later this week, but if nothing else you've got to think the pressure to get more aggressive is going to start building here soon. The Nationals' season ended 14...

Are defensive shifts hurting the game of baseball? I would expect many fans to answer yes. Many players may well answer yes, too. The defensive shifts are taking away hits, and some feel they are taking away action in the game. The game needs more balls in play, not fewer. I have never been against shifts for one basic reason - I don't think we should tell the defense where to play. Years ago, advance scouts helped teams set their defense by scouting opponents and noting where they often hit...

It's Nostalgia Weekend here on the blog. If you missed it yesterday, we looked at the long list of guys who never played in the major leagues again after playing for the Nationals. Today we're looking at the best of the best in Nats history. Yes, it's time to revisit the club's all-time leaderboards. Now that they've got 16 seasons under their belts, the Nationals have compiled enough history to make this exercise both informative and fun. There are a few highly recognizable names that...

It was about this time last year when I wrote something similar to this, asking what will keep fans engaged in 2020? Now it's time to ponder the same question about 2021. An obvious answer is the ability to get back to attending games. That goes without saying. We all want that back. But the interest level in this rebuilding team remains high, even though fans could not attend this past year. So what is keeping the fans' interest right now? Here are a few possibilities. The young pitchers...

Anyone can perform under the lights, but what about a microscope? A few Orioles are destined to attract more attention than others in camp and during the season, whether due to prospect status, health, recent hiring or set of responsibilities. There's no escaping it. Rather than wait, let's get it started now and avoid the rush. Third base coach Tony Mansolino The coaching staff has undergone more changes, with Mansolino the outside hire as the replacement for José Flores. Being a third...