Danny Valencia gets the start at third base tonight and Joey Rickard is in right field as the Orioles continue their series against the Rays at Camden Yards. Caleb Joseph is behind the plate again. Andrew Cashner has allowed two earned runs or fewer in three of his last four starts, but is 0-1 with two no-decisions. He faced the Rays on May 26 and allowed five runs and 11 hits in five innings in a 5-1 loss. Cashner has registered a 2.14 ERA and 1.000 WHIP in three career starts against the Rays...

The 2018 season has been a constant struggle for the Nationals due to injuries to key performers and subpar performance from others. Presently, the Nationals have a record of 51-51 and are seven games behind Philadelphia in the National League East and 4 1/2 games back for a wild card berth. With the news of Stephen Strasburg returning to the disabled list, Washington's playoff chances are dwindling by the day. The stark reality is general manager Mike Rizzo and the Nationals should probably...

MIAMI - More from Thursday night's 10-3 victory over the Marlins ... * This wasn't the first time the Nationals needed to summon a starter from Triple-A Syracuse to fill in for a regular member of the big league rotation. They previously had called upon Erick Fedde, Jefry Rodriguez and Austin Voth for situations such as the one they faced Thursday, when Stephen Strasburg landed back on the disabled list. It took until now, though, for the Nats to call upon Tommy Milone, and that was the...

Orioles center fielder Adam Jones called it "uncommon territory." He was talking about trade rumors and his name being involved with them. After Manny Machado was traded, so was Zach Britton. Now the Orioles center fielder could be next. He's patrolled center for the Orioles since the 2008 season, when he played in a lineup that included Ramón Hernández, Kevin Millar, Brian Roberts, Luke Scott, Melvin Mora, Nick Markakis and Aubrey Huff. Jones was just 22. Among active players in most...

While the Orioles are fielding calls from numerous teams on a variety of players, they still seem more intent on moving their veterans who are pending free agents, a stance they've taken since early in the process. There's been interest in second baseman Jonathan Schoop, starters Kevin Gausman and Dylan Bundy and reliever Mychal Givens. Only Schoop can leave via free agency after 2019. Again, executive vice president Dan Duquette will listen on anyone. His phone isn't set up to cut off...

Change is inevitable, but knowing that fact doesn't make dealing with change any easier. Over the last week, Orioles fans have witnessed two cornerstone players get moved to different contenders, while prospects come to Baltimore in hopes of building the franchise's next successful team. Manny Machado and Zach Britton contributed a lot to the success and turnaround of the club and played an integral part of the team's run to the postseason in three of five years from 2012 to 2016. On his way...

MIAMI - Their No. 2 starter back on the disabled list with a mysterious neck injury, two of their top hitters out of the lineup and their emergency starter in a three-run hole early, the Nationals had given even their most ardent supporters no legitimate reason to be optimistic after one inning of baseball tonight at Marlins Park. If this weekend series really is going to determine the front office's approach to Tuesday's trade deadline, and by extension determine whether a late-season run is...

The Orioles offense didn't get much going yet again. Right-hander Alex Cobb pitched pretty well. But the Tampa Bay Rays did just enough against him tonight to produce a 4-3 win over the Orioles in the opener of a four-game series at Oriole Park. The Orioles (29-74) are 1-5 since the All-Star break and 1-2 on this homestand. They have lost eight of 11, 15 of 20 and 22 of the last 28 games. Tampa Bay (53-50) is 10-6 over its past 16 games and 6-4 versus the Orioles for the season. In a 2-2 tie,...

This is Alex Cobb's pitching life with the Orioles. Winless at home and trying to divert his eyes from the 13 losses attached to his record, Cobb retired the first eight batters tonight and faced the minimum through three innings. The split-changeup was working for him, but the Orioles couldn't give him a lead. The Rays scored twice in the fourth on ground balls through a drawn-in infield and against the shift. More a case of bad luck than poor pitches. More of what Cobb has grown accustomed...

MIAMI - When Daniel Murphy, originally listed in the Nationals lineup for tonight's series opener against the Marlins, was scratched about 3 1/2 hours before first pitch, it was only natural for conspiracy theorists out there to wonder if the veteran second baseman had just become the first victim of an unexpected late-July fire sale. Rest assured, the Nationals didn't trade Murphy, nor have they made any decisions to become surprise sellers in advance of Tuesday's trade deadline. Not yet,...