At the beginning of the year, everyone anticipated Victor Robles to be a quick call-up; he was going to be the young face of the future that made his mark this season, digging out a role in the outfield and being an important piece for the Nationals off the bench or perhaps in some kind of starting role. That wasn't the case. Robles suffered a freak injury on his elbow at the beginning of April that forced him onto the disabled list until deep into the summer. Instead, it was Juan Soto,...

Right-hander Erick Fedde pitched four scoreless innings Tuesday night as the Nationals faced off against the Cardinals in game two of the series at Nats Park. But the second inning did not go well as he allowed four runs on four hits. The big blow was three runs that scored on Matt Carpenter's two-run single and a fielding error by Adam Eaton in right field. Marcell Ozuna opened the scoring with a solo shot. Look at innings one, three, four and five: The Cardinals managed a walk in the fourth....

SEATTLE - Cedric Mullins will return to the Orioles lineup tonight with the Mariners starting right-hander Mike Leake. Manager Buck Showalter already confirmed it yesterday when pressed for reasons why the rookie was missing again from last night's lineup. Mullins continues to sit against left-handers even though he bats from both sides of the plate, and fans on social media are growing more agitated. They might form a mob. Hide the pitchforks or replace them with plasticware. Though his hip...

SEATTLE - Alex Cobb gave up a run only three batters into tonight's game and nothing else through the sixth inning. One measly run. His seventh quality start in his last eight outings brought down his ERA and threatened to bring up more concerns and frustrations over an offense that failed to make the road trip. It showed up late, announced its presence with authority and wondered if the output was going to suffice. Cobb surrendered only four hits and settled into a nice groove, Renato...

The Nationals had 12 pitchers sitting in their bullpen Tuesday night, but that doesn't mean Davey Martinez had an abundance of appealing options when he needed to call down there for an arm. Of those 12 relievers, only two were on the club's opening day roster: Matt Grace and Sammy Solís. Only four of them have pitched in 30 or more games for the Nats this season: Grace and Solis, Justin Miller and Wander Suero. Tim Collins has made 27 appearances over two stints in Washington. Greg...

Left-hander Sammy Solís came into this season as healthy as he has felt in some time. But April was not that good a month, as he struggled to a 0-1 record and a 5.59 ERA. May was much better, as he worked well in 15 games to a 1-0 record and a 2.61 ERA. But June (6.14 ERA) was rough, and then July (8.10 ERA) and August (0-1, 9.00 ERA) got worse. Due to his erratic outings and an inability to get that clutch out, Solis went up and down to Triple-A Syracuse twice this season: June 30 to July...

In this summer of extremes for the Nationals, tonight's 11-8 loss to the Cardinals somehow felt appropriate. The Nats pitching staff posted zeros in six different innings during this game, often in impressive fashion. The lineup posted a four-spot in the bottom of the fifth with an impressive rally, then scored three times in the bottom of the ninth and brought the tying run to the plate. Unfortunately, the top of the second, sixth and ninth also counted in this contest, so the 11 combined...

The Orioles (40-98) are 0-4 so far on a nine-game road trip. They lost 2-1 in Seattle last night to start a three-game series at Safeco Field. The Orioles have scored just eight runs on just 26 hits in the four games at Kansas City and Seattle. The last two games the Orioles have scored one run in each and both came on solo homers by Jonathan Villar. The Orioles are 1-for-12 with runners in scoring position on this trip. Right-hander Alex Cobb (4-15, 5.11 ERA) will make his 26th start. In his...

SEATTLE - Pitcher Luis Ortiz said he wasn't expecting the Orioles to contact him. He was prepared to go home after the minor league season and was glad to have his plans interrupted. One phone call and Ortiz was poised to make his major league debut. "I was not anticipating anything," he said this afternoon. "I was just going about my business and everything fell in place. Just was thinking about going home. It was a long season. I did what I had to do this year and then this happens. So,...

After a season when he led all Orioles minor league pitchers in ERA and strikeouts, left-hander Zac Lowther has a strong resume to contend for the Jim Palmer Award, which goes to the Orioles' minor league Pitcher of the Year. Lowther had success at two levels, and did so without a blazing fastball. But his velocity didn't keep him from pounding the zone with a high percentage of fastballs this year. It didn't keep him from soaking up knowledge and adding to his education in learning to read...