The Baseball Assistance Team (B.A.T.) has named the Nationals one of two recipients of the 2019 Bobby Murcer Award, which recognizes the team in each league whose players, managers and coaches pledge to contribute the most amount of money to B.A.T during the organization's annual spring training fundraising tour. The Blue Jays won for the American League. The award is named after the former B.A.T. Chairman who launched the fundraising tour to support the organization in its mission to assist...

BRADENTON, Fla. - Catcher Jesús Sucre appears to have won a job with the Orioles. The opt-out date on Sucre's minor league deal arrives Friday and manager Brandon Hyde said the veteran has "a good shot to make the team." "I've been playing him every other day," Hyde said this morning before heading to Bradenton. "He went down and took a bunch of minor league at-bats a couple days ago to try to catch up on the at-bats. He's catching great, he throws great, does a really nice job...

SARASOTA, Fla. - The Orioles made two more roster cuts this morning, reassigning infielder Jack Reinheimer and pitcher Josh Lucas to minor league camp. Reinheimer follows Alcides Escobar out the door after the veteran was released yesterday, further reducing the competition for a utility job. Reinheimer was 11-for-28 (.393) with two doubles and a home run while mostly coming off the bench later in games. Lucas had a 5.06 ERA in six games with three runs and four hits allowed in 5 1/3 innings....

SARASOTA, Fla. - Orioles manager Brandon Hyde said he wants to get an extended look at outfielder Dwight Smith Jr., who's leading off today and playing left field against the Pirates in Bradenton. Smith hit his second home run last night and is 6-for-14 since joining the Orioles. Trey Mancini is playing first base and Chris Davis is the designated hitter. Renato Núñez remains out of the lineup with biceps soreness and Rio Ruiz gets another start at third base. Hanser Alberto is the...

SARASOTA, Fla. - The Orioles education of Jesús Sucre continued last night as he caught starter Dylan Bundy for the first time in camp beyond a couple of bullpen sessions. A late arrival following a prolonged work visa issue had Sucre scrambling to learn the staff and make his bid for a roster spot after agreeing to a minor league deal on Feb. 1. "It's going really well," he said. "I've been working in the 'pen with a lot of guys. They're mostly here. And even in the games I've been...

SARASOTA, Fla. - Cedric Mullins collected his sixth hit of spring training tonight while leading off the bottom of the first inning. His fifth for extra bases and third home run. And the odd count would continue. Mullins also reached on a bunt single and doubled for his most productive game of the spring, his average climbing to .186. Always at his most dangerous from the left side, Mullins pulled a two-strike off-speed pitch from Red Sox starter Rick Porcello down the right field line to give...

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - I think we can officially say we've reached the home stretch. Following yesterday's off-day, the Nationals now have only four more game days here in Florida before heading north for Monday's final exhibition against the Yankees in D.C. Opening day against the Mets is exactly one week away. So, yes, this is the home stretch of spring training. Which means it's decision time. The Nationals don't have a whole lot of significant decisions still to make, but they do have...

SARASOTA, Fla. - The Orioles have granted infielder Alcides Escobar his outright release this afternoon, a move coinciding with the opt-out date on the veteran infielder's minor league deal. Escobar, 32, is free to sign with another team and drops out of the competition for a utility infield job in camp. The Orioles reached agreement with Escobar on Feb. 16 and he would have earned $700,000 if placed on the 25-man roster. Appearing in 13 exhibition games, Escobar went 7-for-32 with two doubles...

SARASOTA, Fla. - Tony Clark is the executive director of the Major League Baseball Players Association. He heads up the players union and met with the Orioles today at Ed Smith Stadium. After his meeting with the team he took questions from the Baltimore media. He are a few of them and his answers. What is the concern level of so many free agent players signing late or currently unsigned?: "We've got players that see guys at home that can help clubs win ballgames. Guys that have earned their...

The Milwaukee Brewers - thanks in part to former Oriole Wade Miley and former National Gio Gonzalez - won the National League Central last season by a game and then came within a victory of winning their the NL pennant, their first pennant since winning the AL pennant in 1982 and losing to St. Louis in the World Series. Miley and Gonzalez are gone, so the Brewers will bank on young pitchers in the rotation. The biggest addition is Yasmani Grandal, a switch-hitting catcher with power. He played...