Trey Mancini is getting a rest tonight as the Orioles continue their series against the Rays. Chris Davis is playing first base and DJ Stewart is in right field. Jace Peterson is in left field. Jonathan Villar is batting second and playing shortstop. Rio Ruiz is playing third base. Left-hander John Means has made three appearances (two starts) against the Rays and allowed eight earned runs (nine total) and 14 hits with one walk and 13 strikeouts in 15 innings. Mike Brosseau homered...

The Orioles have recalled right-hander Ryan Eades from Triple-A Norfolk this afternoon as the latest pitcher to enter their bullpen. Eades replaces left-hander Ty Blach, who was optioned to Norfolk following last night's 7-1 loss to the Rays. Blach worked four innings and the Orioles don't have a pressing need for a fifth starter with two off-days next week. Eades could become the 55th player used by the Orioles, one short of the club record set last season. He'd also be the 38th...

CHICAGO - The left-hander the Nationals went out of their way to acquire at the trade deadline is getting closer to rejoining the active roster. Roenis Elías, who strained his hamstring in his team debut, threw off the bullpen mound at Wrigley Field this morning. If the session went well, he should be able to ramp up his rehab and potentially come off the injured list in short order. "We'll have to evaluate how he does today," manager Davey Martinez said, "and then we'll go from...

CHICAGO - It's another beautiful day at Wrigley Field, where the Nationals look not only to beat the Cubs again but continue a pretty remarkable run over a longer stretch of time. They've now played .667 ball (52-26) since May 24. Thanks to the Dodgers' loss last night, that's now the best record in baseball during that prolonged stretch. And they've won 13 of their last 17, with all four losses coming after they blew a lead in the eighth or ninth inning. So they've led in the eighth...

The news that came out yesterday that the Orioles had severed ties with 11 members of their scouting and front office staffs was perhaps inevitable. New general manager Mike Elias has to be able to bring in his own people and set up his staff however he sees fit. He didn't get his job until last November so he inherited much of his staff and of course there was going to be some turnover. That doesn't mean change is easy though. According to MASNSports.com, among those let go were director of...

CHICAGO - The way the Nationals are hitting as a whole right now, sometimes it feels like Juan Soto gets overlooked. It's hard to give everyone proper due when so many are contributing at the plate, especially a prominent free-agent-to-be like Anthony Rendon. Make no mistake, though: Soto has played a significant role in the Nationals' offensive onslaught of the last week and a half. Over his last 13 games, the young slugger is batting a cool .346 with eight homers, 12 RBIs, 10 walks and a...

Hunter Harvey didn't warm in the bullpen last night, the Orioles falling behind by seven runs in the second inning and a high-leverage situation nowhere to be found. Dillon Tate got the call behind starter Ty Blach and responded with three scoreless innings. His first appearance in the majors without allowing a run. Last night marked only his fourth game, but he had permitted seven runs in six innings prior to the Orioles optioning him to Triple-A Norfolk. Tate returned yesterday with Shawn...

Orioles right-hander Mychal Givens and his Givens Back Foundation today hosted students from the Baltimore Collegiate School for Boys and the Orioles RBI program, who got free back-to-school haircuts and dinner at Oriole Park. Each student also got a backpack and a ticket to the Orioles' game against the Tampa Bay Rays. Givens and his wife, Tiffani, launched the Givens Back Foundation with the mission of enhancing the lives of inner city youth through sports. The Baltimore Collegiate School...

As he stood outside the clubhouse for his pregame media scrum, Orioles manager Brandon Hyde talked about the importance of left-hander Ty Blach providing length tonight. Of the need to protect a "beat up" bullpen. Hyde has one fewer reliever with a four-man bench, and he used three last night following the rain delay. He's being careful with Hunter Harvey. He didn't issue a challenge to Blach. More like a plea. "It's a little dicey," Hyde said. "I'm going to keep him out there as long...

Sometimes when you get down by a touchdown early, there is plenty of time to get back in the game. But the Orioles couldn't do it tonight in a 7-1 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays. Lefty Ty Blach, making his third start for Baltimore, gave up six hits and sevens runs in the second inning and the Orioles couldn't dig out of the big early hole. The Orioles (42-87) are 2-3 on this homestand and have lost 10 of 12 and 15 of their last 18 games. After winning a series against Kansas City, the best they...