BOSTON - Trey Mancini makes his third start in left field tonight, stationed in front of the Green Monster, for the series opener against the Red Sox. DJ Stewart, reinstated from the seven-day concussion injured list, is in right field and Anthony Santander is in center. Jace Peterson is playing second base and Jonathan Villar is the shortstop.. Rio Ruiz is starting at third base, with Hanser Alberto on the bench. Chance Sisco is catching and batting ninth, one spot behind first baseman Chris...

The Nationals have announced starters for this weekend. Aníbal Sánchez will start Saturday night, with Erick Fedde taking the mound Sunday afternoon. Obviously, neither of those guys is named Max Scherzer, so it appears the ace's return from the injured list isn't happening quite yet. But before you panic, he's out throwing in the outfield right now, so it doesn't appear he's had any setback. The Nats are just taking a more cautious approach with his return. But enough about the rest...

BOSTON - The Orioles have increased the number of reserves on their bench today to four by reinstating outfielder DJ Stewart from the seven-day concussion injured list and optioning reliever Chandler Shepherd to Triple-A Norfolk. Chandler made his major league debut Tuesday night in New York and held the Yankees to one run over four innings. Stewart attempted to make a sliding catch in left field in an Aug. 6 game against the Yankees and the ball struck him on the left temple. He played two...

It's decision day for the Nationals, who must figure out when and where Max Scherzer will next pitch. If it's up to Scherzer, the answer to the first question is "Saturday" and the answer to the second question is "at Nationals Park against the Brewers." But it's not up to the ace of the staff. Davey Martinez, Mike Rizzo and the club's medical staff will have the final say on the plan for Scherzer, who believes he's ready to return from the injured list ASAP. The Nationals have not...

The Orioles are three-quarters through the 2019 season and, much to the chagrin of the most optimistic of fans, a winning record no longer is a mathematical possibility. I've lost count of how many times I've responded to the same questions. Of how many times I've made a mockery of the mailbag format for interacting with readers. You keep coming back, so you must get the joke. Or you just keep coming back and are thinking, 'What joke?' In which case ... never mind. You ask and I answer and...

This all could change because there are a couple of weeks to go in the minor league season, and it's just one man's opinion, but at this point there are probably four to five strong contenders for the Jim Palmer Award. It goes to the O's Minor League Pitcher of the Year. Right now in some order you can list Single-A Delmarva's Grayson Rodriguez, Double-A Bowie's Michael Baumann, Alex Wells and Zac Lowther as prime contenders. I'll add to that a pitcher who has flown under the radar but...

Bench players have turned into starters throughout the season to help the Nationals turn things around. The first spark was from Gerardo Parra, who arrived in May from the Giants. Parra and his "Baby Shark" started it all off with a grand slam against the Dodgers. The most recent spark has come from veteran Asdrúbal Cabrera, in his second stint with the Nats after playing in Washington for 49 games in 2014. Cabrera started the season with 93 games for Texas. Cabrera went 3-for-5 with two...

They've won seven of their last nine, but fans are fuming over the two games they lost in New York last weekend. They've seen Erick Fedde and Joe Ross go a combined 5-0 with an 0.90 ERA this month, but fans are convinced Max Scherzer will reinjure his back as soon as he returns to the mound in the coming days. They've seen the three relievers acquired at the July 31 trade deadline post a 1.46 ERA in 15 combined appearances, but fans are insisting Sean Doolittle's arm is about to fall...

The Nationals ended up taking care of business with a memorable 10-run fifth inning in a 17-7 win over the Reds that completed a series sweep. Stephen Strasburg ignited the rally with a well-placed full-count single to right field off Reds starter Trevor Bauer. The hit made it 2-1 Nats and put his team on top to stay. The right-hander was able to use his bat to provide offense when the game was still in doubt. "He's got great stuff," Strasburg said of the matchup with Bauer. "Just trying to...

Getting away from the Yankees offers the kind of relief to the Orioles that the bullpen has struggled to provide this season. Sixteen losses in a row to them. Seventeen total out of 19 games. Some ugly, some competitive. They count just the same. Among the lessons learned is the wisdom in walking Gleyber Torres. Doesn't matter whether first base is open. Down five runs in the eighth, two on and two outs, you hold up four fingers. Manager Brandon Hyde would have been roasted by media and fans...