ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - A short bench for the Orioles has reached its tiniest stage with Chris Davis unable to play due a stomach virus. Manager Brandon Hyde needs length from his starters. He won't get it from his bench, which is down to infielder Hanser Alberto and backup catcher Pedro Severino. It's risky to use the second catcher, leaving Hyde with Alberto and fingers crossed. "Options are a little short," Hyde said. "It's part of it. This happens a lot throughout the year where things...

In making some changes to his lineup for tonight's game, Davey Martinez had a couple of goals in mind: * Get Matt Adams and Howie Kendrick, both swinging hot bats in recent days, in the lineup. * Give Brian Dozier, who fouled a ball off his toe Tuesday night, a breather. * Move Anthony Rendon, the team's best hitter to date this season, up to try to give him more at-bats and more early opportunities to give the Nationals a lead. The end result of all that is the lineup card that Martinez will...

Shortstop Trea Turner had his workout gear, glove and baseball cleats on for batting practice Wednesday prior to the Nationals' game with the Giants at Nats Park. Turner fielded grounders at shortstop, but did not throw the ball. He had no wrap or tape bandaging on his broken right finger prior to heading to the field. "He's actually keeping his legs in shape," said Nationals manager Davey Martinez. "He's doing everything he possibly can without using his index finger. That's where we...

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Chris Davis feels much better at the plate. It's his stomach that's keeping him out of the lineup. Davis was scratched yesterday due to a stomach virus and he's on the bench for tonight's game against the Rays. He's in the visiting clubhouse at Tropicana Field, but unable to play unless there's significant improvement in his physical condition. "I don't think there's really a whole lot I can do," Davis said this afternoon. "You just have to let it run its...

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Chris Davis is out of the Orioles lineup tonight after being a late scratch yesterday due to an illness. The Orioles are carrying a three-man bench. If Davis isn't available, manager Brandon Hyde's late-inning options are further compromised. Renato Núñez is making his first start in the field this season by replacing Davis at first base. Trey Mancini is the designated hitter. Joey Rickard is in right field, with Dwight Smith Jr. in left and Cedric Mullins in...

Davey Martinez has stuck with a pretty consistent lineup since opening day. When he's made changes, he's simply plugged in a Matt Adams or a Howie Kendrick or a Kurt Suzuki into the same spot in the batting order as the regular said player is replacing. But after struggling to score runs Sunday and again Tuesday night, Martinez is going with a different look. Adams and Kendrick and Suzuki are all in there against Giants right-hander Jeff Samardzija. But the order has changed, with Anthony...

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - The Orioles didn't need much convincing about catcher Austin Wynns' readiness to play on a regular basis. Wynns was reinstated from the 10-day injured list this afternoon and optioned to Triple-A Norfolk after only four injury rehab games. A strained oblique and placement on the IL denied Wynns a shot at breaking camp with the Orioles. He went 2-for-5 with two RBIs last night for Double-A Bowie and was 5-for-17 with two doubles and four RBIs. Wynns has been catching...

Nationals reliever Trevor Rosenthal battled through the eighth inning Tuesday night of the club's 7-3 loss to the Giants. Although he did allow a run in the frame, he recorded three outs and that's a big deal considering where he had been less than a week ago. In the eighth, Rosenthal hit the Giants' Brandon Belt in the leg with a pitch and then walked Brandon Crawford. But he caught Evan Longoria looking for the first out on three pitches. The last two pitches of the at-bat were 99 mph...

For the second outing in a row, Orioles right-hander Dylan Bundy had a real encouraging start to his start. But once again, he could not keep it going. Two outings ago at home versus Oakland, Bundy had a shutout and no-hitter through three innings. His slider was sharp and he got five of his first nine outs on strikeouts. Last night he had a strong pitch mix to get through three without allowing a run or hit versus Tampa Bay. But against Oakland, Bundy allowed six runs and four homers over the...

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Orioles manager Brandon Hyde has confirmed that Alex Cobb is in line to start Friday night's series opener against the Twins at Camden Yards, the veteran nearing a return from the injured list after throwing yesterday without discomfort in his back. However, Hyde isn't able to divulge plans for the corresponding move and how Cobb fits back into the rotation. One scenario is to option reliever Josh Lucas to Triple-A Norfolk and move John Means to the bullpen again as a...