ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Orioles manager Buck Showalter is going with a right-handed heavy lineup this afternoon against the Rays. Right-handers are batting .199 against Tampa Bay starter Jake Odorizzi this season, but .249 in his career. Left-handers are hitting .268 this season, but .228 over his career. Joey Rickard is leading off and playing left field and Craig Gentry is batting eighth and playing right. Jonathan Schoop remains in the third slot in the order, with Adam Jones hitting...

The Nationals go for a series sweep today, having already beaten the Reds twice (a 10-inning thriller on Friday, then an 18-3 rout on Saturday) this weekend. They'll attempt to do so with several regulars getting a rest, including Ryan Zimmerman and Matt Wieters. That's nothing new, of course, and with this series in the bag and the Cubs coming to town tomorrow for a big four-game set, it's understandable that Dusty Baker would want to ease off the gas pedal a bit today. Not that the...

More on the amazing game for Trea Turner on Saturday when the Nats blasted the Reds 18-3: Turner went 5-for-5 with a walk, setting a new career high by reaching base six times. The last time a Nationals player pulled off that feat in one game was on April 30, when Anthony Rendon did it against the Mets. The four runs Turner scored also matched a career high. "As he goes, we go," said manager Dusty Baker. "A lot of things happen when Trea gets on base. He was on base all six times, went...

They got some clutch hits late in the game and they held an opponent to three runs. So Saturday was a good day for the Orioles as they beat Tampa Bay 8-3 for just their second road win 15 games. They are still two games under .500 at 36-38 and have lost 28 of 42 games since May 10. The way their starting rotation has been pitching, there is no hint that the club is about to make a dramatic turnaround. But for one day they looked good. Now we see if they can do it again. A win today at Tropicana...

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Chris Tillman wouldn't concede that today's start against the Rays held more importance than previous outings due to his continuing struggles. He wasn't influenced by the jump in ERA from 5.59 to 8.39 over his past three games. He could distance himself from any perceived separators. "Not at all," he said. "A start is a start is a start. I've made a lot of them in my career. A lot of bad ones, a lot of good ones. "It's such a fine line between a bad start and a...

Trea Turner and Michael A. Taylor reached career highs in hits, and Joe Ross pitched seven solid innings as the Nationals crushed the Reds 18-3 before a sellout 40,139 at Nats Park. Turner went 5-for-5 with five singles, four runs, and a walk and two RBIs, setting a career high in hits. After some rough patches early in June, Turner has raised his average to .275. "I feel better," Turner said. "I feel like it starting to come around. I feel more comfortable. Found some holes today. I felt...

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Dylan Bundy finished his warmup tosses and headed into the visiting dugout at Tropicana Field, waiting for the top of the first inning to be completed and his latest start to officially unfold. It was meaningful on various levels. Bundy's schedule moving forward might have been influenced by his performance. Of far greater importance, he could play stopper for a club that lost 12 of its last 16 games and continued to share last place with the Blue Jays. And a quality...

The Nationals got the offense going against right-hander Homer Bailey, who is making his first start of the season. He had surgery to remove bone spurs from his right elbow in February. Trea Turner led off the bottom of the first with a single and Brian Goodwin walked. After Bryce Harper struck out swinging, Ryan Zimmerman delivered a two-run double to make it 2-0 Nats. Daniel Murphy lined out to first base and Anthony Rendon was safe at first on a fielding error by Scooter Gennett. Matt...

The Orioles have been losing a lot lately, while Tampa Bay has been winning lately. The Orioles will try to reverse that trend this afternoon at Tropicana Field. The Orioles (35-38) have lost four of five and 22 of their past 32 games. Tampa Bay (40-36) is a season-high four games over .500 after winning five of six and 11 of its past 16 games. Tampa Bay is 10-3 in its last 13 home games. The Orioles send right-hander Dylan Bundy (7-6, 3.72 ERA) to the mound for his 16th start. After recording...

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Reaching the majors hasn't been an issue for reliever Stefan Crichton. The goal now is to avoid the call into manager Buck Showalter's office and his travel papers. The Orioles recalled Crichton today for the sixth time this season. They needed a fresh arm and optioned Miguel Castro to Double-A Bowie. Crichton threw a scoreless inning Wednesday for Triple-A Norfolk. He qualified as fresh. The shuttle was waiting for him. "I think I'm starting to kind of get a little...