Runs galore? Check. Dominant pitching? Check. Winning homestand? Check. Above .500? Check. The Nationals checked off a lot of boxes while going 7-3 over this past homestand, and Paul Mancano and I are back on the "MASN All Access" podcast to wrap it all up. Now back over the .500 mark and just two games back in a tight National League East, the Nats are playing some good baseball lately and are hot heading back out west. Wilmer Difo capped off the happy homestand with a walk-off base hit in...

Well, there's no way to really sugarcoat it, but the Orioles are not playing great. After an 0-6 road trip in California, the Birds are now 8-26 on the season. Paul Mancano and I are back on the "MASN All Access" podcast to try to make sense of the West Coast swing on the Orioles' off-day. Yes, it doesn't look good right now. But there are some positives we point to as the Orioles come back home. Manny Machado is playing really well. Mark Trumbo has been hitting strong since his return...

Sunday was a great day for Washington sports. Before celebrating the Nationals' first walk-off victory of 2018, fans at Nationals Park got to see another set of local heroes inducted to the Washington Hall of Stars. In addition to fairly recent greats, like basketball stars Len Bias, Grant Hill and Walt Williams, came Buddy Myer, a baseball star from the distant past. His induction to the local hall was a step toward righting what his fans feel is the injustice of Myer's exclusion from the...

The Orioles are getting exactly what they need from one of their keys to a successful season. That sounds strange to say for a team that has the worst record in baseball, but if you look back about six weeks, there was one big thing everyone was pointing to as crucial to the team's success. It's the development of their two young starting pitchers, Dylan Bundy and Kevin Gausman. The pair has been great, there's no other way to put it really. Both have taken steps to be productive members of...

Of all the records Max Scherzer has accrued in his career of pitching, consider he set another mark in Sunday's 6 1/3 innings against the Phillies: .@Max_Scherzer is the first pitcher EVER to strike out at least 15 batters while recording 19 outs or less. pic.twitter.com/lpYhGLePIl -- MLB Stat of the Day (@MLBStatoftheDay) May 6, 2018 The list of amazing feats from this Scherzer gem doesn't end there: 1. 15 strikeouts in game were a season-high. 2. He struck out the side three innings in a...

The Orioles seem like a boat taking on water right now and every hole that gets plugged just seems to open another. Or two others. The rotation has been inconsistent, the bullpen worse than expected, the defense has been at times just terrible and other times very mediocre. Good has not been part of the equation many nights on defense. But the Orioles offense has under-performed in a big way. For several years the Orioles have been around or just above a league-average run-scoring offense in...

OAKLAND, Calif. - The schedule can be torturous for teams and the Orioles have felt the effects of its cruel nature over the years. Too many consecutive games in a row, playing until late at night before changing cities, oddly timed West Coast excursions. But the arrival today of another break should be embraced like a loved one. Wrap both arms around it, squeeze tightly and fight back the tears. The Orioles desperately need to regroup and revisit their level of patience with a team that's 18...

OAKLAND, Calif. - The starting pitcher allows one earned run today in six innings, the bullpen offers up two scoreless innings and the potential tying run reaches third base with one out in the ninth. And the Orioles board their charter for the flight home also riding a six-game losing streak. No wins on the road trip and multiple reasons why they're stuck on only eight for the season. Does the club need the offense or defense to snap out of its funk? Which area must improve immediately? "All...

Manager: Andy Green (3rd season) Record: 13-22 Last 10 games: 4-6 Who to watch: 1B Eric Hosmer (.297 with 5 HR, 12 RBIs), 3B Christian Villanueva (.265 with 9 HR, 20 RBIs), LF Jose Pirela (.250 with 35 hits, 11 RBIs), RHP Tyson Ross (2-2, 3.28 ERA); LHP Joey Lucchesi (3-2, 3:13 ERA), LHP Brad Hand (8 saves, 2.70 ERA) Season series vs. Nationals: First meeting (2-5 in 2017) Pitching probables: May 7: RHP Stephen Strasburg (3-3) vs. RHP Tyson Ross (2-2), 10:10 p.m., MASNMay 8: RHP Jeremy...

OAKLAND, Calif. - The rotation is fixed again, for however long it lasts. Nine shutout innings last night for Kevin Gausman, only one earned run today from Alex Cobb over six innings. The Orioles were put in positions where they could win, but firing on only one cylinder won't get them moving forward. The batters were befuddled by former farmhand Andrew Triggs, who retired the last 12 and was hurt only by Pedro Álvarez's solo home run in the second. The defense committed two more errors,...