The Orioles bats are heating up which means they are climbing in the standings and just as importantly, the Maryland Lottery "Contestants of the Game" are winning more and more cold hard cash! On Sunday, the O's hit fivehome runs, which meant Margaret Piatt of Brandywine, Md., won $3,000! It was the 11th time this season the Orioles hit four or more home runs in a game. All in all, the Orioles have hit 161 home runs this season, third-most in the American League. How do you become a Maryland...

This Saturday, August 12 and Sunday, August 13, MASN and COX will be hosting Social Media Weekend at The Bullpen next to Nationals Park! Fans will have the opportunity to collect unique Nationals prizes at both the MASN and COX booths, and can try their swinging luck at the Cox Virtual Home Run Derby! Think you can hit a homer? Try your luck! The Cox Virtual Home Run Derby is available prior to each game Saturday and Sunday. For updates on the event and how to win prizes, be sure to RSVP on...

One reason why the Nationals have been able to sustain their big lead in the division with all their injuries is the play of all of their call-ups. The depth of the organization has been tested and these call-ups have been able to play close to the level of the starter they replaced. Another case in point Wednesday was the play of second baseman Adrián Sanchez. Sanchez went 2-for-3 with two runs scored in the No. 2 spot in the order. The Nationals rolled past the Marlins 10-1. Manager Dusty...

Manager: Bruce Bochy (11th season) Record: 46-70 Last 10 games: 6-4 Who to watch: C Buster Posey (.321 with 51 RBIs), CF Denard Span (24 doubles, 4 triples), 2B Joe Panik (20 doubles, 4 triples), LF Gorkys Hernández (9 stolen bases) RHP Hunter Strickland (2.09 ERA, 13 holds), RHP Mark Melancon (11 saves) Season series vs. Nationals: 0-3 Pitching probables: Aug. 12: RHP Chris Stratton vs. RHP Edwin Jackson, 7:05 p.m., MASN Aug. 13: RHP Jeff Samardzija vs. RHP A.J. Cole, 1:05 p.m., MASN Aug....

ANAHEIM, Calif. - They say momentum in baseball is only as good as the next day's pitcher. When Manny Machado hit a seventh-inning grand slam on Monday night, the Orioles grabbed momentum and a win in Anaheim. At that point they had gone 14-7 the previous 21 games to get back to .500. You had to like their chances to win the series against the Angels and get the long West Coast road trip off to a good start. But then the unlikely duo of Parker Bridwell and Troy Scribner held the Orioles to two...

There are few compliments one ballplayer can heap on another more telling than to refer to him as a "professional hitter." It sounds silly, but that's the kind of designation that is reserved for only a select few, those who consistently produce the kind of quality at-bats that impress even the best this game has to offer. So when Dusty Baker referred to Howie Kendrick last night by that term, you knew he meant it as the highest compliment. "He knows how to hit," the Nationals manager...

Some athletes try to compartmentalize their professional lives and their personal lives, making sure not to let one impact the other. Gio Gonzalez just decides to embrace it all and enjoy both to the fullest, even if they sometimes intersect. For the veteran left-hander, there was no way to separate the two this week, not with everything he experienced. Nine days ago, he nearly threw a no-hitter in Miami, on the night the Marlins were memorializing José Fernández on what would have been...

First baseman Ryan Zimmerman started off the season well at the plate, hitting .330 with 19 homers in the first half of the season. But his average has declined each month since the beginning of April: .420, .319, .283 to .234 in July. August continued that trend as he went 2-for-23 (.087) prior to Wednesday night's game against the Marlins. But then Wednesday, Zimmerman reminded everyone of how he can turn that trend on its head with one swing, or four. Against Miami, Zimmerman tallied a...

The Orioles lost two of three games in Anaheim, Seth Smith has a sore hamstring and Joey Rickard took a fastball off his batting helmet. The West Coast is no joke. This week's portion of the road trip now takes the Orioles to Oakland, where they lost three of four games last season - a 9-6 win in the finale allowing them to avert an embarrassing sweep. They lost the first three games 3-2, 2-1 and 1-0. The Orioles haven't swept the Athletics in a four-game series in Oakland since...

An altered pitching schedule due to the birth of his son over the weekend did nothing to throw Gio Gonzalez out of whack. The left-hander was back on the mound tonight and dominated the Marlins just as he did nine days earlier in his near-no-hitter. This time, he tossed seven innings of one-run ball, leading the Nationals to a 10-1 victory on a night in which they did just about everything right. Ryan Zimmerman led the Nats' offensive barrage against Miami's pitching staff with one of the...