Dylan Bundy handled the role of stopper tonight, which comes with the staff ace territory, and an offense that's now showing signs of life rose up in the middle innings to squash a losing streak. Bundy held the Indians to one run over six innings before his elevated pitch count forced manager Buck Showalter to call upon the bullpen, and the Orioles' skid stopped at six games with a 3-1 victory before an announced crowd of 20,004 at Camden Yards. Trey Mancini broke a 1-1 tie in the fifth...

LOS ANGELES - Anthony Rendon fouled a ball off his left big toe one week ago, in the fifth inning last Friday night at Nationals Park. He hasn't played since, and despite initial hope he'd be back for tonight's series opener against the Dodgers, he's not in the lineup. Which begs the question: Why, given the fact he's now been out seven days, was Rendon not placed on the 10-day disabled list? "He constantly kept saying he was getting better and better," manager Davey Martinez said. "And...

Buck Showalter's comments on Felipe Alou are on the back cover of "Alou: My Baseball Journey." When the Orioles skipper received an advance copy, he was kind enough to let me read it. I'm glad he did. This is an important book. This is a Jackie Robinson story from a different place in a different time. The baseball stories are here. Three Alou brothers playing in the same outfield in a major league game; Felipe Alou's assessments of the best players he saw at the different positions; his...

As the Orioles get reacquainted with their home surroundings tonight, they're also trying to end a six-game losing streak and regain their footing after absorbing a hard fall on the road. Asked earlier today what message he would send to his team and the fans, manager Buck Showalter replied that there was nothing to "sum up." It couldn't be done as a quick hit. "What does that mean? To sit here with two sentences? I think there's a lot more to it than that," he said. "It's frustrating,...

LOS ANGELES - The sun is shining, the mountains in the distance aren't being obscured by smog and Max Scherzer is facing Clayton Kershaw tonight at Dodger Stadium. Yep, this is about as good as it gets. The Nationals and Dodgers open up a big weekend series at Chavez Ravine, and they're starting it off in style with as good a pitching showdown as you can get. Scherzer versus Kershaw represents only the 13th head-to-head matchup in major league history (postseason included) between pitchers...

LOS ANGELES - Needing a fresh arm in their bullpen after a taxing series at Citi Field, the Nationals promoted veteran right-hander Carlos Torres from Triple-A Syracuse and made the decision to cut ties with A.J. Cole. Cole, who was out of options, was designated for assignment and now is available to any other club to claim off waivers over the next week. If he clears waivers, the Nationals could then either outright Cole to the minors or release him. General manager Mike Rizzo had been...

The Orioles keep receiving positive news on closer Zach Britton, who threw off a half-mound today for the first time since undergoing surgery on his right Achilles tendon. Twenty four-seam fastballs and not a single regret. "Felt really good," he said. "It was the first bullpen, so I had to think about that, too. My arm felt really good and really just thinking about getting over that foot, no hesitation whatsoever, especially as we got going. Maybe the first couple of throws. But once we...

The Washington Nationals selected the contract of right-handed pitcher Carlos Torres and designated right-handed pitcher A.J. Cole for assignment on Friday. Nationals President of Baseball Operations and General Manager Mike Rizzo made the announcement. Torres, 35, joins the Nationals after making four scoreless appearances for Triple-A Syracuse. He did not allow a hit, walked one and struck out three batters along the way. A veteran of eight Major League seasons, Torres spent the previous...

The Orioles are back home after their winless road trip and tonight they open their longest homestand of the season. They'll play 10 games over the next 10 days. The homestand begins with four games vs. Cleveland and then three each against Tampa Bay and Detroit. Tonight the Orioles look to end a six-game losing streak. They are 2-4 at home and have lost five of six series' thus far, getting swept three straight times by Houston, Boston and Detroit. Cleveland, which led the American League...

The Orioles added a second left-hander to their bullpen this afternoon by recalling Tanner Scott from Triple-A Norfolk and optioning infielder Engelb Vielma to the Tides. Vielma went 0-for-3 Wednesday afternoon against the Tigers in his only major league start. He appeared in three games. Manager Buck Showalter complimented Vielma for his work ethic, good hands and intelligence. "His ball security has gotten real good," Showalter said. "He kind of knows what we're looking for. I think he's...