NEW YORK - Hello from Citi Field, where the Mets host the Nationals in their home opener only one week after the Nats hosted the Mets in their home opener on South Capitol Street. It was a short night for the Metropolitans, who had a 6:05 p.m. game in Miami and didn't arrive back in New York until 2 a.m. The Nationals are a bit more rested after taking the train up from D.C. following yesterday afternoon's wild win over the Phillies. They've also got some fresh blood on the roster: Howie...

The Washington Nationals reinstated infielder Howie Kendrick (left-hamstring strain) from the 10-day injured list and optioned infielder Jake Noll to Triple-A Fresno on Thursday. Nationals President of Baseball Operations and General Manager Mike Rizzo made the announcement. Kendrick, 35, missed the first five games of the 2019 season with a left-hamstring strain suffered on March 5. Kendrick returns to action after rupturing his right Achilles tendon on May 19, 2018. At the time of the injury,...

Nationals manager Davey Martinez said Wednesday that he was not thrilled with the way his team is playing baseball right now. The club has started 2-3, the bullpen has struggled to record outs, the defense has made mistakes and the baserunning has caused opportunities to be taken off the board. The skipper deemed the 9-8 victory Wednesday over the Phillies as a "bittersweet win." Right fielder Adam Eaton, who had a single, a walk and a run scored in Wednesday's come-from-behind win,...

TORONTO - The Orioles did the unexpected. A team predicted for another 100-loss season began the year winning four of six and taking series at New York and Toronto. They've played with energy and enthusiasm, displayed solid defense, gotten some clutch outs from their pitchers and watched Trey Mancini get off to a torrid start at the plate. For a rookie manager in Brandon Hyde, what started in spring training has for now carried into the season. A team that was expected to be outmatched just...

The disappointment of yesterday's 5-3 loss in Toronto should be softened by the realization that few people outside the most optimistic and unrealistic predicted four wins on a six-game road trip introducing a 2019 season that's extremely low on expectations. A season all about the rebuild and what's best for the long-term plan. Instant gratification isn't the primary goal, but can happen in spite of it. The big fear was an 0-6 start and a team staggering into today's home opener against...

TORONTO - As the season's first road trip came to an end with a loss today, the Orioles looked back on the first six games and saw plenty of positive and encouraging signs. Now they're excited to bring their team home to play in front of their home fans for the first time on Thursday. Blanked today on three hits heading to the ninth, they battled back on Trey Mancini's three-run homer to center. But they lost 5-3 to Toronto in front of 11,436 at Rogers Centre. Still, they're heading to...

TORONTO - The Orioles were able to win with just two runs last night, but they couldn't get much going for most of the game today, as they lost the series and road trip finale to the Toronto Blue Jays. Toronto right-hander Matt Shoemaker threw seven scoreless innings, allowing just two hits, as the Blue Jays won 5-3 to salvage the finale of this series. The Orioles head to Baltimore for Thursday's home opener with a 4-2 record. Shoemaker, who threw seven scoreless frames in his first start...

Nationals manager Davey Martinez was happy his club mounted a late comeback to beat the Phillies 9-8 Wednesday, but is not pleased with how the team is playing baseball through its first five games. "Oh, we needed it," Martinez said. "And it's kind of a bittersweet win. I'm not thrilled about how we're playing, but I'm happy that the boys kept pushing. It's a testament to them. But we gotta start playing better. We worked all spring on doing the little things, and we gotta make it...

The day began with words of encouragement from the general manager to the embattled bullpen he assembled. "The bullpen's struggling. There's no other way to put it," Mike Rizzo said. "We need to be more aggressive in the strike zone. We need to follow the game plan. We need to perform like the back of their baseball card says. ... We feel good about the skill set of them. Now we have to put the skill set into the performance and get the guys that we signed to perform like they're supposed...

TORONTO - He is 0-for-12 with seven strikeouts and three walks, but Orioles first basemen Chris Davis is back in the starting lineup today, batting seventh. He did make several solid plays in the field in last night's 2-1 win. "I think he's still searching a little bit," manager Brandon Hyde said before today's series finale at Toronto. "He's taken a couple of good swings and just missed a ball here and there. I love the fact he's playing great defense for us. When you come out of gates...