Chris Davis is out of the Orioles' lineup tonight for their first home game of the 2020 season. Renato Núñez is playing first base and Dwight Smith Jr. is the designated hitter. Davis was 1-for-11 with an RBI double in Boston. José Iglesias continues to bat third. Anthony Santander is one spot ahead of him. DJ Stewart is in left field. Orioles pitchers haven't issued a walk in the last two games. The club record is three straight on July 1-3, 1980. For the Orioles Austin Hays CF...

Nationals manager Davey Martinez opened his pregame video call with the announcement that Juan Soto has been cleared to return to play by Major League Baseball. Martinez confirmed the outfielder has had two negative lab tests in a row for COVID-19. But now there is still one more hurdle before the Nats can get him back to playing baseball. "We're still waiting for clearance from the D.C. Health Department," Martinez said. "We hope to have him back Aug. 1, so he could work out with us...

Who's ready for some poutine, fastball velocities measured in kph instead of mph and the Nationals wearing their gray coloured pants inside their home ballpark? It's Bizarro World on South Capitol Street for the next two nights. Because the Canadian government won't allow teams to travel in and out of the United States without going through 14-day quarantines, and because the Triple-A stadium in Buffalo won't be up to major league standards for another week, the Blue Jays are forced to play...

After two days and two games postponed against Miami, the Orioles' season resumes tonight with their home opener. They host the New York Yankees tonight and tomorrow at Oriole Park. The Orioles scored 14 runs in winning the last two games of the Boston series and they are 2-1. So are the Yankees, who have had games with Philadelphia postponed this week. New York opened its season winning two of three at Washington. The Tampa Bay Rays begin today in first in the American League East at...

Already outrighted off the 40-man roster and removed from the player pool, reliever Hector Velázquez is now leaving the Orioles organization. He never got to throw a pitch for them in a spring training, summer exhibition or regular season game. The Orioles traded Velázquez to the Astros this afternoon for a player to be named later. Claimed off waivers from the Red Sox on March 8, Velázquez managed to throw a bullpen session at the Ed Smith Stadium complex before baseball shut down due...

Ask anyone who was around the 2019 Nationals what turned their season around and you'll get two answers: They got healthy after a rash of injuries devastated the roster in April and early May, and they relaxed and started having fun on and off the field. Five games into the 2020 season, the Nationals are again dealing with the absence of several key players (Juan Soto, Stephen Strasburg, Ryan Zimmerman) for a variety of reasons. And they most certainly don't look like they're having fun on...

Momentum in baseball is the next day's starting pitcher. We must remind ourselves as the Orioles sit on their back-to-back wins in Boston. They could have rolled into Miami and been toppled by Pablo López, who registered a 3.39 ERA, 1.084 WHIP and .229 average against in 11 home starts last summer, compared to a 7.36 ERA, 1.448 WHIP and .299 average-against in 10 starts on the road. Of course, we'll never know because both games at Marlins Park were postponed. The softer part of the...

The Nationals did not have a good start again Tuesday night. This time, it was an old friend who made them uncomfortable. In his first start at Nationals Park since Sept. 5, 2018, right-hander Tanner Roark beat his former team as the Blue Jays dropped the Nats 5-1, sweeping the two-game series. Roark spent six seasons with the Nats from 2013-2018, and was a member of three National East championship clubs. His three best seasons in the majors, going a combined 44-31, coincided with...

The Nationals' scheduled series in Miami was postponed due to concerns over COVID-19.

Orioles manager Brandon Hyde was able to joke tonight about his experience Monday at the team hotel in Miami, how he ordered a delicious cheeseburger for lunch with a side of sweet potato fries. He definitely recommends the fries. Hyde was preparing for a game but instructed his players to stay near their phones. Don't leave their rooms. And take advantage of the 24-hour food service. Guys are trying to keep it light, but the last few days have been unsettling. The reports on the positive...