The National League West arguably is the toughest division in baseball. Last year, three teams made the postseason with the Dodgers losing to the Astros in the World Series. Now, can the Dodgers win another title by fighting off a World Series hangover after losing Game 7 to Houston in November? Do they have enough pitching to have a second consecutive triple-digit win season? And will Clayton Kershaw stay away from back injuries? The Rockies are trying to prove they're here to stay after 87...

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - There have long been differing opinions around baseball on the proper way to use a No. 5 starter. Should he pitch every fifth game, regardless of any off-days on the schedule? Should teams take advantage of that schedule and skip over the worst starter in the rotation in favor of the best starters? Should teams view that position as something of a revolving door, shuttling different starters back and forth from the minors in an attempt to control their workload? The...

SARASOTA, Fla. - We'll probably overlook some players, but a partial list of Orioles drafted and developed players that showed some talent at major league spring training includes Chance Sisco, Austin Wynns, Hunter Harvey, Tanner Scott, Cedric Mullins, Ryan Mountcastle, Austin Hays and DJ Stewart. This list only includes players with little big league experience and not those from the farm already helping the big club, like Manny Machado, Jonathan Schoop, Kevin Gausman and Dylan Bundy to name...

SARASOTA, Fla. - Orioles first baseman Chris Davis built up his spring at-bats yesterday at Twin Lakes Park, where the spectators included executive vice president Dan Duquette, and he should remain in the lineup for tonight's game against the Rays in Sarasota. MASN is carrying it live, so pull up a sofa and enjoy baseball under the lights. The forecast is calling for rain, of course, because the Orioles are playing at home and we're nearing the start of the regular season. Left-hander Nestor...

LAKELAND, Fla. - When the first two hitters in what could be the Detroit Tigers' opening day lineup singled today, Orioles right-hander Chris Tillman was in immediate trouble. But soon he would finish a scoreless first going through the heart of the Detroit batting order. It was the start of a good day for Tillman, one that produced better radar gun readings on the scoreboard and much better results in the box score. Tillman went five innings and allowed six hits and one run in the Orioles'...

JUPITER, Fla. - Max Scherzer could look at today's ragged outing against the Marlins, one in which he gave up six runs (five of them scoring via three home runs) in five innings, with a glass-half-empty mindset and insist he needs to be better next time. Or he could try the glass-half-full approach and find the positives in what for all practical purposes was an ugly afternoon on the mound. He chose the latter. "I actually liked that I got hit around," the Nationals ace said. "That was...

The Cubs have a revamped rotation to go with a lineup that features Kris Bryant and Anthony Rizzo, two hitters that are potential National League MVP candidates. Their biggest competition in the NL Central could be the Brewers, who had 86 victories last season and have a legitimate shot to make the postseason for the first time since 2011. But the Cardinals, who had 100, 86 and 83 wins in each of the last three seasons, are trying to avoid being left out of the postseason for the third...

After losing the 2016 World Series in seven games and the 2017 Division Series to the Yankees in five games, the Cleveland Indians hope to take a run at a third consecutive American League Central championship. But their biggest competition comes from the Twins, a wild card team in 2017 that has added six players, including five pitchers, two of them starters. The White Sox and Tigers are in rebuild, although the White Sox are, unlike the Tigers, beyond the first step. The Royals lost two key...

After losing four Division Series in the last six seasons, the Nationals go into the season a clear favorite to win the National League East. Last season, they won the division by 20 games over the second-place Marlins. No team has ever won consecutive division titles by at least 20 games. Maybe the Nationals will be the first. Miami, though, is the odds-on favorite to finish last. That leaves the Phillies, Mets and Braves to battle for second place. If the Mets get a healthy rotation, they'll...

JUPITER, Fla. - The ingrown toenail bug has returned to wreak havoc on the Nationals clubhouse for the second time this spring. OK, so that may be overdramatizing the situation a bit, but for the second time this month a key member of the Nats lineup had to undergo a procedure to remove an ingrown toenail. Earlier this spring it was Bryce Harper. Now it's Trea Turner, who was scratched from today's lineup against the Marlins and may need another day or two to heal before he can return to...