PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. - Austin Hays will be shut down for three days after receiving an injection yesterday behind his right shoulder to alleviate discomfort that's kept him away from the outfield since the intrasquad game on Feb. 22 in Sarasota. Hays has served as the designated hitter in two Grapefruit League games, with a late switch on Tuesday removing him from right field. He underwent an MRI yesterday on his shoulder/lat area that revealed some inflammation and led to the...

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. - Good morning from Walt Disney World. If it feels like we were just here ... well, we were. The Nationals played the Braves in this ballpark three days ago. Now they're back after another 2 1/2-hour drive up Florida's Turnpike. On the bright side, the club has only one more road trip longer than 45 minutes the rest of the spring (one game in Lakeland against the Tigers) so it won't be facing this situation much more. Because it's another one of these long trips, the...

SARASOTA, Fla. - Pedro Álvarez is making his first start today since rejoining the Orioles, playing first base against the Rays in Port Charlotte. Jaycob Brugman is in left field and Éngelb Vielma is playing shortstop. For the Orioles Alex Presley RF Joey Rickard CF Anthony Santander DH Pedro Álvarez 1B Ryan Mountcastle 3B Jaycob Brugman LF Luis Sardiñas 2B Chance Sisco CÉngelb Vielma SS Nestor Cortes Jr. LHP For the Rays Denard Span CF Mallex Smith LF C.J. Cron 1B Jake Bauers...

SARASOTA, Fla. - The Orioles are boarding a bus today for Port Charlotte and if it seems like they were just there, you've been paying attention to the schedule and game coverage. Two days ago. Same ride down I-75. Under an hour if the traffic and law enforcement cooperate. Left-hander Nestor Cortes Jr. makes his second start of the spring after allowing one run in two innings against the Twins. Trey Mancini probably won't wear the gray pants today after going 2-for-3 yesterday with a single...

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - If you have been paying attention to the Grapefruit League scoreboard - and, truth be told, you probably shouldn't be paying that much attention to it - you've no doubt noticed the Nationals exhibition season isn't off to a rousing start. The Nats have played six games to date, going 1-4-1 overall. (Ties are allowed in the spring, cause who really wants to watch extra innings in February and March?) They've also scored only 17 runs, and nine of those came in...

When Baseball America ranked outfielder Austin Hays at No. 21 on its latest top 100 prospects list, that was a nice, lofty ranking for the youngster who went from Single-A Frederick to the major leagues last year. He was the Orioles' 2017 minor league Player of the Year, winning the Brooks Robinson Award. In fact, Hays is just the fourth Orioles outfielder since Baseball America's first top 100 ranking in 1990 to be ranked that high or higher. There have been 29 polls since the first...

SARASOTA, Fla. - Orioles first baseman Chris Davis switched to designated hitter today to accommodate a sore right forearm and launched a three-run homer to left-center field. The bat is fine. "I just had a little tightness in my forearm," Davis said after the Orioles' 10-9 loss to the Cardinals at Ed Smith Stadium. "I noticed it a few days ago. I think it's a combination of sleeping with my arm tucked up underneath me and not really being able to get it stretched out the next day. Just...

It's widely considered that the rivalry between our nation's military and naval academies is the greatest in all of American sports. And while that rivarly is mostly associated with the annual Army-Navy football game, don't think that it doesn't carry over into other sports (or just about anything, for that matter). How cool is it that we have the Naval Academy right in our backyard in historic Annapolis and get to witness this rivalry firsthand year-round? Now that rivalry is being brought...

JUPITER, Fla. - On a day when hits were scarce and runs were even scarcer, the most attention-grabbing moment of the Nationals' 3-1 loss to the Marlins came via Michael A. Taylor's legs and outstretched left arm. Retreating to the center field wall on Derek Dietrich's third-inning drive, Taylor perfectly timed his leap and robbed the Marlins cleanup hitter of a likely home run. The sleepy Roger Dean Stadium crowd of 1,987 oohed and aahed and then applauded as Taylor trotted back to the...

Oriole Park to host Army/Navy baseball doubleheader on March 25 and host more than 1,000 Midshipmen for "Navy Day" in August Orioles to play MLB exhibition game in Annapolis in 2019 The Orioles today announced a new, multi-year partnership with the United States Naval Academy, which will include a variety of programs and events designed to recognize and honor the U.S. Naval Academy. This multi-dimensional partnership includes four primary elements: * The Orioles and Oriole Park at Camden...