BOSTON - Craig Gentry is in right field today as the Orioles continue their series against the Red Sox, who are sending left-hander Eduardo Rodriguez to the mound. Trey Mancini is batting fifth, followed by Chris Davis and Mark Trumbo. Manny Machado leads the American League with 32 RBIs this month, the highest total by an Oriole in any month since Melvin Mora totaled 32 in August 2008. Machado is batting .340 since July 1 with 12 doubles, a triple, 13 home runs, 47 RBIs and 35 runs...

Manager Dusty Baker opted to give left-hander Gio Gonzalez an extra day of rest following a 121-pitch effort in his last start. Today, Gonzalez faces off against the division rival Mets. The 4-1 win over the Padres last Sunday was another prime example of the 2017 Gonzalez: one unearned run in 6 2/3 innings on five hits with one walk and eight strikeouts. Baker is keen on giving Gonzalez and the other starters a day of rest or more in the season's final month with the Nationals well out ahead...

BOSTON - Now that the Orioles have won back-to-back games, do I hear three? They did it on Aug. 5-7 before losing the last two against the Angels during their West Coast trip. They need to get on a serious run. No more stopping and starting and stopping again. The 16 runs last night were the most scored on the road by the Orioles since Aug. 17, 2008 in Detroit and the most at Fenway Park since June 11, 1993. The Orioles were 8-for-16 with runners in scoring position and are batting .301 this...

For the Orioles, finally a two-game winning streak. They haven't had one since winning three in a row from Aug. 5-7. But after a 12-inning win Wednesday, they crushed Boston last night 16-3 in the series opener at Fenway Park. It was a season high in runs for the Orioles and they tied a season high with 20 hits. They surpassed the previous best when they beat St. Louis 15-7 on June 17. This was the seventh time this season the Orioles have scored 12 or more runs and the 15th time they have...

A Nationals lineup already reeling from injuries is without yet another key bat for at least one more day: Ryan Zimmerman. Zimmerman was unavailable to bat during Friday night's 4-2 loss to the Mets and won't be in the lineup again this afternoon for the second game of the series after injuring his left shoulder sliding into the plate during Thursday night's win in Houston, manager Dusty Baker revealed. "I think he hurt his arm or shoulder, really couldn't swing, on his headfirst slide...

BOSTON - It would be premature for the Orioles to petition Major League Baseball to continue wearing the Players Weekend uniforms through the remainder of the season. It also would be unwise because the neon orange could damage the vision of people too stubborn to divert their eyes. A solar eclipse comes with less risk. One game shouldn't carry such influence, but the Orioles proved that it's better to play good than to look good. Some would argue that they did both, depending on personal...

With a makeshift lineup, a fill-in starter and an ace on the mound opposite them, the Nationals entered tonight's series opener against the Mets in a less-than-advantageous position. Sometimes, those seemingly lopsided matchups flip the opposite way and produce memorable and unlikely outcomes. Not this time. This one went according to script. Despite a few dramatic moments late when a last-ditch comeback nearly happened. Despite an effective pitching performance from A.J. Cole, filling in for...

It was 4:20 p.m., 2 hours and 45 minutes away from first pitch, and Dusty Baker was still in street clothes. A decent number of Baker's players had yet to arrive in the clubhouse, with reporting time pushed all the way back to 4:45 p.m., much later than normal. Batting practice? That was canceled. Such were the accommodations the Nationals had to make after a 4:30 a.m. arrival from Houston following Thursday night's game, with the opener of this weekend's series against the Mets looming at...

BOSTON - The Orioles took batting practice today in their bright orange caps, the kind that make it appear as though they should be hunting in the woods instead of chasing a wild card berth. Be very, very quiet. As they celebrate Players Weekend, the Orioles are wearing special T-shirts and jerseys with patches honoring someone or something they hold dear. For example, outfielder Craig Gentry has hitting coach Scott Coolbaugh's last name written on his patch as a tribute to a man who's been...

For the first time since late July, the Orioles will play an American League East opponent tonight. They begin a three-game series at Boston's Fenway Park against the first-place Red Sox. The Orioles (62-65) are tied for third and 11 games behind Boston (73-54). The Orioles are three games out for the second AL wild card, but there are four teams closer to that current second wild card team, which is Minnesota, than the Orioles. The Red Sox own a 4 1/2-game lead in the AL East and have been...