The Nationals were again entrenched in a close game, again against the Diamondbacks. Right-hander Jeremy Hellickson entered the top of the sixth inning nursing a 2-1 lead and then allowed a solo shot to David Peralta, his second homer of the game. The blast to right field tied the game at 2-2. Hellickson had not labored, holding at just 57 pitches, 43 for strikes. Later in the 10th inning, manager Davey Martinez wanted to pitch Austin L. Adams because he thought Arizona was going for...

After Chris Tillman's gem last night and a 6-0 win, the Orioles (7-19) host the Detroit Tigers (10-14) tonight in the second game of a weekend series. Tonight's game will not start on time. At around 6:30 p.m. the Orioles annouced a delayed start due to inclement weather. No start time has been announced. Update: Now we do have a start time. The Orioles announced tonight's game will start at approximately 7:30. Last night's win, as Tillman allowed one hit over seven scoreless, snapped...

A combination of factors allowed outfielder Joey Rickard to make it back to Baltimore. The desire to have a four-man bench. The reduced need for a second left-handed reliever. Opposing left-handed starters the next two games. And most important, Rickard's scorching stretch at Triple-A Norfolk. The former Rule 5 pick batted .345/.456/.473 with five doubles, one triple and 10 RBIs in 16 games with the Tides. He went 5-for-5 on April 20 and 3-for-5 on April 23 and he reached base in all 15 games...

The Nationals finally solved left-hander Patrick Corbin and the answer came from Ryan Zimmerman. Moved up to the No. 2 spot in the order, Zimmerman crushed a Corbin four-seam fastball with a man on base in his second at-bat. David Peralta quickly answered as well in the top of the fourth with a solo shot down the left field line off of Nationals starter Jeremy Hellickson. Arizona got two more men on in that inning thanks to a single by Daniel Descalso and a walk to Christian Walker. But...

The Orioles optioned left-hander Tanner Scott to Triple-A Norfolk this afternoon and recalled outfielder Joey Rickard from the Tides, giving them a four-man bench and Richard Bleier as the sole left-handed reliever. Scott has allowed three runs and six hits with one walk and five strikeouts in 4 2/3 innings over his three appearances. He goes back in Norfolk's bullpen, where the Orioles want to get him more consistent work and have him pitch on back-to-back days. Manager Buck Showalter is...

April 28, 2012, 19-year-old Bryce Harper made his major league debut at Dodger Stadium as the Nats faced off against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Harper went 1-for-3, a double off of Chad Billingsley, with one RBI. Manager Davey Martinez is now his manager on that "birthday" six years later. "Hey, by the way, happy major league birthday to Bryce Harper, 25 years old, six years, pretty impressive," Martinez announced during his pregame media session Saturday before the Nationals faced off...

The Orioles haven't posted their lineup tonight, but outfielder Joey Rickard walked through the clubhouse. Are the Orioles going back to a four-man bench? Is there an injury? Stay tuned. Rickard is batting .345/.456/.473 with five doubles, one triple and 10 RBIs in 16 games with Triple-A Norfolk. The Orioles are facing left-handed starters in the last two games of their series against the Tigers before heading to the West Coast. Trey Mancini was removed from last night's game for a defensive...

Nationals manager Davey Martinez decided to tweak the lineup a bit for Saturday's second game of the series against the Diamondbacks and their 4-0 left-hander Patrick Corbin. Center fielder Michael A. Taylor is back after just pinch-hitting in game one. But the bigger eyebrow raiser was seeing Ryan Zimmerman moved up to the No. 2 spot and Howie Kendrick placed in the cleanup spot at No. 4. "I kind of like it," Martinez said. "I've done it before with Joe (Maddon), moving guys around. Just...

Manager: Mike Scioscia (19th season) Record: 16-12 Last 10 games: 3-7 Who to watch: CF Mike Trout (10 HR, 18 RBIs, 5 steals), 1B Albert Pujols (5 HR, 14 RBIs), SS Andrelton Simmons (15 RBIs), DH Shohei Ohtani (4 HR, .341 average), RHP Garrett Richards (3-1, 4.88 ERA), RHP Kenyan Middleton (six saves, 2.40 ERA) Season series vs. Orioles: First meeting (4-2 in 2017) Pitching probables: May 1: RHP Alex Cobb (0-3) vs. RHP Nick Tropeano (1-2), 10:07 p.m., MASN2May 2: RHP Dylan Bundy (1-3) vs. LHP...

While Orioles right-hander Chris Tillman had to be thrilled with his outing last night, he was firm in saying this doesn't yet mean he is back or that he has turned a corner or turned around his poor pitching of the last two seasons. "No. Absolutely not," Tillman said. "Every start is a challenge. The next team could care less what the heck I did tonight. You have to keep working. Just a piece of the puzzle and you have to keep on going." But seeing Tillman throw seven scoreless innings in...