NEW YORK - Nationals right-handed reliever Kelvin Herrera struggled a bit at the beginning of his appearance late in Thursday's 5-4 win over the New York Mets. Brandon Nimmo hit a ball deep to center field that was caught by Michael A. Taylor. Asdrúbal Cabrera followed with a solo homer to right-center field that cut the Nats' lead down to one run. Herrera then walked the next two batters. With two men on and one away, Herrera focused on throwing strikes. He induced a weak pop out to first...

The Orioles (26-68) host the Texas Rangers (40-54) tonight to start a three-game series that will wrap up an eight-game homestand. The Orioles are 2-3 on the homestand after splitting four games with the Yankees and losing last night to the Phillies. Texas just got swept three straight at Boston and is 2-4 on a 10-game, 11-day trip that started with a four-game split in Detroit. Texas has lost five of six and is 2-9 in July, the second-lowest winning percentage in the American League for the...

Jimmy Yacabonis appears to be the choice to start Sunday afternoon's game against the Rangers, which closes out the first half. The Orioles are keeping him available and intend to recall him before the game. Meanwhile, Chris Tillman remains the starter at Triple-A Norfolk. The assignment will mark Yacabonis' third major league start. He's allowed a combined five runs and 12 hits over nine innings, with two walks and 10 strikeouts. Yefry Ramírez gets the start Saturday night and is...

NEW YORK - First baseman Ryan Zimmerman was running the bases during batting practice again today. He is still on schedule for a rehab assignment early next week, and hopes to be activated on Friday, July 20. The high Single-A Potomac Nationals announced that right-hander Koda Glover will be with them on a rehab assignment for their game Saturday against Frederick. Glover made two appearances with the Rookie-level Gulf Coast Nationals July 7 and 10, striking out four, allowing no runs over two...

Danny Valencia is in right field tonight and Trey Mancini is in left for the Orioles' series opener against the Rangers. Chris Davis is batting seventh against left-hander Cole Hamels. Alex Cobb returns to the mound after leaving Sunday's start in Minnesota with a blister on his right index finger. He's made five career starts against the Rangers and gone 1-0 with a 2.91 ERA and 0.971 WHIP in 34 innings. Shin-Soo Choo is 5-for-12 with two doubles and a home run against him. Elvis Andrus is...

NEW YORK - Third baseman Anthony Rendon again reminded fans of his fluid power swing on Thursday, crushing a pair of line drive home runs over the left field wall to help the Nationals take control in a 5-4 win over the Mets. Fans in Flushing are well acquainted with Rendon. In 42 games at Citi Field, Rendon is hitting .302 with 20 runs scored, 11 doubles, 10 homers and 42 RBIs. The modest Rendon said those gaudy numbers at this stadium might be more a product of the frequency of games he has...

The first All-Star Game was played in Chicago's Comiskey Park in 1933. Washington hosted its first All-Star Game in 1937. President Franklin D. Roosevelt, who was dealing with the controversy surrounding his plan to pack the Supreme Court with extra justices, attended the afternoon game in D.C. and threw out the first pitch from his presidential box. FBI director J. Edgar Hoover - as well as many members of the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate and military leaders - was at Griffith...

One of the many terrific events that occur during All-Star Game week is the Futures Game, an annual exhibition consisting of the top prospects in baseball. The Futures Game began in 1999 and the rosters consist of a team of prospects from the United States against a team of players from other countries. Major League Baseball, MLB.com and Baseball America decide the teams and the Nationals will be represented by infielders Carter Kieboom and Luis Garcia on Sunday. I wrote about Kieboom a few...

Maybe in a previous time or on a previous day, the comeback would have been completed. But not by the 2018 Orioles, who just suffered another frustrating loss last night, 5-4 to Philadelphia. The Orioles won a pair of one-run games versus the Yankees, but lost by one Thursday night. Down 5-0, they cut that to 5-4 when Trey Mancini hit a two-run homer and Jace Peterson followed with a solo shot in the seventh. The table was set to pull out a late win. But it didn't happen as the Orioles fell to...

Zach Britton began to warm in the Orioles' bullpen last night as they tried to rally in the bottom of the eighth inning. Manny Machado singled with one out and his club down by a run, and a save situation loomed. And then it was gone. Adam Jones flied to center field, the Phillies brought in left-hander Adam Morgan and Chris Davis struck out for the third time. (It might have seemed like a bold move to pinch-hit Danny Valencia, but if the club was willing to ignore the contract and sit Davis...