The rally was coming, of this Davey Martinez was sure. Give a lineup like this enough chances, the rookie manager figured, and it would happen. Even if that lineup featured only four regulars and a couple of names even the die-hards might not have known prior to a week ago. Sure enough, the rally did finally come. It came in the bottom of the sixth today at Nationals Park. And once it did, the Nationals finally could breathe the sigh of relief they'd been holding in for days. With a four-run...

BOSTON - Alex Cobb can't be judged on one start. Signing him as a free agent can't be deemed a colossal failure after one inning. The same patience required to prepare him for today's debut with the Orioles is needed to grade him. He didn't pass today. There will be plenty of other tests. The first four Red Sox batters reached against Cobb this afternoon and he allowed three runs and threw 28 pitches before retreating to the visiting dugout. The storms forecast for the next two days arrived...

If the Nationals, with a makeshift lineup, needed Max Scherzer to be perfect today, they found out very quickly that wouldn't be the case. Scherzer issued a four-pitch walk to Gerardo Parra and then served up a two-run homer to Charlie Blackmon in the top of the first this afternoon, leaving the offensively challenged Nats in an early 2-0 hole against the Rockies. Not that Scherzer is pitching poorly in his fourth start of the season. Through five innings, that early walk-homer combo...

The time has finally come for new Orioles right-hander Alex Cobb. After signing with the club on March 21 and making four starts in Florida, Cobb's first game for the Orioles is set for this afternoon at Fenway Park. The 30-year-old right-hander was 12-10 with a 3.66 ERA for the Tampa Bay Rays last season. His ERA was 4.52 after his first 12 starts. But in his last 17, Cobb went 8-5 with an ERA of 3.07, allowing three earned runs or less 14 times. He set career highs in wins, innings (179 1/3)...

BOSTON - The Orioles finally got their bullpen settled after two extra-inning games in New York and now they're proceeding without their starting second baseman. The shuffling and worrying doesn't cease. Jonathan Schoop went on the 10-day disabled list today with a strained right oblique, creating a corresponding roster move for starter Alex Cobb in his debut with the club. "We knew we were going to have to make room for Alex today," manager Buck Showalter said this morning. "I wish it...

Anthony Rendon isn't in the Nationals lineup this afternoon. That's not a surprise, given the third baseman had to come out of Friday night's game after fouling a ball off his left big toe. The real question now is how much time Rendon will need before he is ready to return to an already-struggling lineup that keeps losing key players to injury. "He's sore, real sore," manager Davey Martinez said this morning. "So he's probably going to be day-to-day." Rendon hurt himself fouling a...

BOSTON - The Orioles placed second baseman Jonathan Schoop on the 10-day disabled list today with a strained right oblique, creating a roster spot for pitcher Alex Cobb in a way they hadn't anticipated or desired. Schoop underwent an MRI this morning and the club received the results shortly before noon. Cobb officially was recalled from Double-A Bowie today and is making his debut with the Orioles. The injury occurred last night as Schoop took his final swing in the top of the seventh inning....

BOSTON - The Orioles are listing Jonathan Schoop among their reserves for today's game against the Red Sox. Schoop was removed last night in the eighth inning with discomfort in his side. No move has been announced to accommodate starter Alex Cobb. Pedro Álvarez is batting second as the designated hitter. Tim Beckham is the second baseman and Danny Valencia is playing third. Adam Jones is batting .333 (12-for-36) on the road this season. His 181 career hits against the Red Sox rank third...

BOSTON - The wait is over. The plastic comes off Alex Cobb today and the Orioles are allowed to play with their new toy. Cobb finally gets to make his 2018 debut after simulated and extended spring training games. And he'll try to give the Orioles their fourth quality start in the last five games. This will be Cobb's first major league outing since Sept. 22 at Camden Yards, when he allowed three runs over six innings in an 8-3 win. Chris Davis homered off him in the fourth inning. The Orioles...

Pitching against Houston, New York and Boston on the road would be a challenge for any pitcher. But the Orioles' Chris Tillman has gone 0-3 with a 11.91 ERA in those games. Last night it went from bad to worse for the right-hander who once was the club's top starting pitcher and an opening day starter. It is tough to watch a pitcher with such a different past struggle so badly. Last year Tillman went 1-7 with a 7.84 ERA. After he pitched at Houston April 2, he insisted we would not see a...