It is the butterflies-in-the-tummy-worthy moment. That moment you walk back into Nats Park and you see the boys in red and white taking pregame grounders and batting practice. Baseball is back in D.C. today as the Nationals face off against the Minnesota Twins in one last exhibition game before they travel to Cincinnati for Thursday's opener against the Reds. The pitching matchup: Left-hander Gio Gonzalez (1-1, 4.30 ERA) vs. Right-hander José Berríos (2-1, 1.69) New manager Davey...

NORFOLK, Va. - He was a popular pregame interview on Monday afternoon in Norfolk. That would be 23-year-old Orioles catcher Chance Sisco. He was the Tides' regular catcher last season, but this time he was just making a visit to Harbor Park. Sisco won the job as the Orioles No. 2 catcher in spring. A lot of the defensive work he put in during his time in the International League last season is paying off now. Being in Norfolk again reminded Sisco that his game took nice steps forward when he...

The time is nearly here. After a quick stop back home to unpack and face the Twins in this afternoon's exhibition game, the Nationals head to Cincinnati and open this season of significance Thursday against the Reds ... weather permitting. (The forecast in the Queen City calls for a 100 percent chance of rain on opening day, then more rain the rest of the weekend. Can't wait!) Byron and Pete will have you covered at the ballpark today, but before things get going down there I figured I'm...

NORFOLK, Va. - The teams combined to score seven runs over the last two innings as the Orioles beat Triple-A Norfolk 7-6 today in front of 9,181 at Harbor Park. For the Orioles, the long exhibition season is over. They finished with four wins in their last five, going 18-12-2. They were happy that no one got hurt this afternoon and they got to spend some time showing appreciation for their top affiliate. They did so in the chill of Harbor Park, where it was 46 degrees at first pitch. Now...

Yesterday we went through the events and promotions portion of the new 2018 lineup at Nats Park. Today we're going to take you through all the new features, concessions, retail and memorabilia concepts, and programs around the ballpark. There are some special activations throughout Nats Park for today's exhibition game today against the Twins to help fans combat the chilly forecasted temperatures. First pitch will be at 4:05 p.m., and tickets are still available at nationals.com/Tickets. This...

Pedro Araujo received the news that he made the Orioles' opening day roster as a Rule 5 pick and promptly served up a home run in his next appearance. Because that's baseball. It's unwise to read too much into one appearance in spring training, and that includes how Araujo was burned by Williams Astrudillo's two-run shot in the ninth inning in a 12-4 loss to the Twins, but it probably brought a certain measure of comfort to the Orioles when the right-hander retired the side in order...

The sun is shining. The days are longer. The grass is freshly cut. The smell of fresh leather and the sound of bats cracking fill the atmosphere in D.C. Baseball season is here. Fans' offseason dreams of strikeouts, home runs, stolen bases, refreshing drinks and steaming half-smokes will soon become realities with opening day just three days away and the Nationals' home opener on South Capitol St. a little over a week away. With the 2018 season about to begin, let's take a look at the...

NORFOLK, Va. - We've heard it before, but two managers that greatly like and respect each other are the Orioles' Buck Showalter and his Triple-A counterpart, Norfolk's Ron Johnson. Johnson is the winningest manager in Tides history with 422 victories in six seasons. Showalter has often praised Johnson and appreciates his opinions on players over the years as he and the club decide which players to call up from the Tides. "We speak a lot during the season and I value his opinion," Showalter...

There's a reason why the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament is also called March Madness. Every year, the tournament is filled with crazy and unexpected upsets. Top seeds struggle to get through their own regions, No. 5 seeds dread their first-round matchups against the No. 12 seeds and national powerhouses get eliminated by mid-major schools. Some would argue it's the best sporting event there is, and if you've been paying attention the last few weeks, you'll know that this year's edition...

The Orioles announced today that they will honor the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC) Men's Basketball team in a special pregame ceremony on Friday, April 20 prior to the 7:05 p.m. ET game against the Cleveland Indians. The UMBC Retrievers captured the nation's attention, and made Baltimore proud, as they became the first ever 16-seed in men's basketball to defeat a 1-seed with their win over the University of Virginia in the first round of this year's NCAA Tournament. In...