The First-Year Player Draft resumes today with the Orioles launching the third-round selections at 1 p.m. It will continue through the 10th round and move much faster than last night's proceedings because there's no television coverage. Teams won't be on the clock. They'll just take their respective turns as the baseball gods intended. The Orioles will try to improve their pitching depth in the system. No one was worthy of the first selection, but they'll hunt for it in the later...

The Nationals selected Texas junior college right-hander Jackson Rutledge with the No. 17 selection in the first round of the 2019 First-Year Player Draft. The 6-foot-8, 250-lb. Rutledge is rated as the No. 12 prospect in MLBPipeline.com's Top 200 prospects list. Rutledge features a 94-97 mph fastball that touches 99 mph, has a wipeout slider and a curveball with the classic 12-to-6 drop. Rutledge verbally committed to the University of Kentucky for baseball and hails from a suburb of St....

In a live interview tonight on "MASN All Access" coverage of the First-Year Player Draft, Orioles executive vice president and general manager Mike Elias explained his reasons for making Oregon State catcher Adley Rutschman the No. 1 pick. "Well, just the switch-hitter (aspect). A polished college bat," said Elias, minutes after making the selection. "The approach, the plus hit, plus power from both sides. Really, the mental makeup, I think, is a separator with him. He brings leadership...

The Baltimore Orioles tonight announced that they have selected catcher Adley Rutschman from Oregon State University with the first overall selection of the 2019 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft. Rutschman, 21, hit .411/.575/.751 (76-for-185) with 10 doubles, 17 home runs, 57 runs, 58 RBI, and 76 walks in 57 games during his junior season. He guided Oregon State to their 20th NCAA Tournament appearance in program history. His .575 on-base percentage and 76 walks led all of Division...

The mocks didn't miss the mark. The Orioles were projected by numerous outlets to use the first-overall pick in the First-Year Player Draft tonight on Oregon State catcher Adley Rutschman and that's exactly what they did, with the announcement coming on MLB Network. A round loaded with high-ceiling position players began with the Orioles selecting a catcher for the first time since Matt Wieters went fifth overall in 2007 out of Georgia Tech. They passed on Texas high school shortstop Bobby...

The Orioles made the anticipated roster move this afternoon, leaving one more to go before opening their series Tuesday night against the Rangers. Catcher Chance Sisco has been recalled from Triple-A Norfolk as the replacement for Austin Wynns, who was optioned after Sunday's 8-1 loss to the Giants. The Orioles didn't wait any longer to make it official. Sisco was batting .289/.383/.530 with 10 doubles, 10 home runs and 37 RBIs in 44 games with Norfolk. The 10 home runs already are a career...

When you select with the No. 1 pick in the First-Year Player Draft, as the Orioles will do tonight, you could select a future Hall of Famer like Ken Griffey Jr. or Chipper Jones. You could also select Matt Bush, Matt Anderson or Brien Taylor. Who? Exactly. There are no guarantees, no sure things, no such thing as can't miss. They can all miss. You aim for the stars and hope you don't just produce wind with a big swing and miss. But the baseball draft is very different from all others. You...

CINCINNATI - The Nationals are in their best groove so far this season, winning seven of their last nine games. They have won three series in a row for the first time this season: 3-1 versus the Marlins, 2-0 against the Braves and 2-1 versus the Reds. The Dodgers beat the Phillies again, so the Nats, at 26-33, are seven games back in the National League East. The Nats still have a significant mountain to climb, because the Braves and Mets are not going away either, but Washington has to be...

The day has arrived for the Orioles to unveil the first overall pick in the amateur draft. Executive vice president and general manager Mike Elias wore his poker face on Friday while sitting in the dugout and taking questions from the media. He didn't suggest that the Orioles would select Oregon State catcher Adley Rutschman. He didn't lead anyone to believe that they no longer held interest. The same goes for Texas high school shortstop Bobby Witt Jr., University of California first baseman...

CINCINNATI - Nationals right-hander Max Scherzer started off well Sunday, striking out five in a row at one point, holding the Reds without a base hit through three innings. Then he finished in another world. Scherzer ended up firing eight strong innings, grunting all the way and punching out a season-high 15 batters in a start where he threw a season-high 120 pitches as the Nationals won the series by beating the Reds 4-1. Scherzer put on a vintage performance, allowing only one walk on three...