So much for the recent run of success for Orioles pitchers. After allowing 17 runs over the past six games, they allowed eight over a two-inning span tonight as they lost to Toronto. Blue Jays designated hitter Rowdy Tellez hit a grand slam to highlight a six-run fifth as Toronto beat the Orioles 8-6 to snap a five-game losing streak and move to 24-43. The Orioles fall to 21-46. Right-hander David Hess struggled again and falls to 1-9 with an ERA of 7.20. He began this game tied for the...

David Hess tossed a nine-inning no-hitter against the Blue Jays. He just did it over two starts separated by two months. Hess attached 2 2/3 hitless innings tonight to 6 1/3 back on April 1 that sparked fan outrage over his removal, which was done based on pitch count and the early portion of the schedule. He served up Vladimir Guerrero Jr.'s single with two outs in the third to block another flirtation with history. Scoring against Hess remained an issue for the Jays until the fifth. When...

Unless you've been traveling around the country with them, you probably haven't seen very much of the Nationals in person the last three weeks. They may be finally playing their best baseball, going 12-5 since a late-May sweep in New York, but only six of those 17 games have taken place in D.C.: four against the Marlins, two against the White Sox. So the Nats will be a sight for sore eyes tonight when they take the field for the opener of an 11-game homestand, their longest of the season. And...

After a pitchers' duel last night at Camden Yards, won by the Orioles 4-2 over Toronto, tonight's game could feature something very different. Two pitchers that have struggled square off in the second game of a three-game series. Well we think that will be the case. The Orioles start right-hander David Hess (1-8, 7.08 ERA), who is tied for first in the American League in losses and homers allowed. Toronto was scheduled to start right-hander Edwin Jackson (0-4, 11.90 ERA). Acquired for cash...

The lineup for tonight's game against the Blue Jays was posted later than usual, with Orioles manager Brandon Hyde sifting through various stats and reports on Derek Law. The Blue Jays switched from veteran Edwin Jackson to Law this afternoon and Hyde wanted to know whether changes were necessary. The lineup stayed the same. It still didn't include first baseman Chris Davis. "We wanted to look at some things before we announced our lineup," Hyde said. "I wanted to look at Derek Law a...

After a 1-for-3 game with an RBI double and walk last night, Chance Sisco is back in the cleanup spot for the Orioles tonight - this time as the designated hitter with Pedro Severino batting sixth and catching. After a strong spring training, Sisco began this year back at Triple-A and was hitting just .224 at the end of April. But he was confident in how he was seeing the ball and swinging, even though the numbers were not yet there. In May, the Sisco kid hit .345/.437/.713 with five doubles,...

David Hess finally gets another shot tonight at his favorite opponent. Hess no-hit the Blue Jay for 6 1/3 innings on April 1 for his only win of the season. He's failed in his next 11 attempts, though he posted only his second quality start in his last outing. Hess has made four career starts against the Blue Jays and allowed only two runs and 12 hits in 25 1/3 innings. Justin Smoak is 0-for-11 with eight strikeouts. Randal Grichuk is 3-for-10 with three doubles. Renato Núñez is playing...

Single-A Delmarva manager Kyle Moore admits he didn't know exactly how to feel. His team had just lost 1-0 at West Virginia, but in the visiting clubhouse, his players were listening to the Hickory-Greensboro game. If Greensboro lost, Delmarva would clinch a playoff berth even on a night the Shorebirds didn't win. Well, about 20 minutes after the Shorebirds lost, so did Greensboro. Then a celebration began as the team that has posted the best record in the minors this year at 46-18 enjoyed...

They had just been swept in ugly fashion in New York. Their bullpen was a disaster. Their defensive play was sloppy. Their manager's job security was being questioned. The Nationals were 12 games under .500 on May 24, 10 games back in the National League East, and few gave them any chance of resurrecting themselves at that point. Only a handful of teams this century had managed to even finish with a winning record after playing so poorly through their first 50 games. As the team returned home...

CHICAGO - Just as the Nationals as a whole are rounding into shape and finally resembling a team capable of going on a sustained run, one of the most important members of their rotation - a bright spot even as the team was struggling early on - has turned into one of their biggest concerns. Patrick Corbin, pitching like an All-Star only three weeks ago, has now turned in three consecutive sub-par outings, including tonight's latest effort during a 7-5 loss to the White Sox that put a damper on...