This week's episode of the District 34 podcast is full of good vibes. The Nationals are coming off a 6-3 road trip that included stops in Cleveland, San Francisco and Arizona. While they split the series against the fellow division-leading Indians and Giants, they took care of business in Phoenix by sweeping the last-place Diamondbacks. The Nats finally had a successful West Coast swing, and it could not have come at a better time entering the dog days of August. They now stand 20 games above...

Closer Zach Britton's signature sinker came about by accident. As a 19-year-old starter for the short-season Single-A Aberdeen IronBirds in 2007, Britton, along with pitching coach Calvin Maduro, was trying out grips that would help him develop a cut fastball. A cut fastball is a faster version of a slider, a pitch that breaks into right-handed batters. Only Britton couldn't get the ball to cut. Instead, his pitch was sinking. "It's definitely not what I had envisioned,'' Britton...

Zach Britton locked it down again for the Orioles last night. The guy seems to be as much of a sure thing as traffic on the beltway at 5:45 p.m. It had been a little while since we've seen that "S" next to Britton's name in the box score. His last save came on July 23 against the Cleveland Indians. It was clear that Britton didn't have his best stuff; he threw 10 strikes of his 20 pitches and issued a walk to Rougned Odor. Jim Hunter commented on the MASN broadcast that Britton may...

If you had asked me where the Nationals were in comparison to the rest of baseball, I'd have guessed they had the fourth or fifth best record in baseball. I knew they were behind the Cubs and figured there were a couple other teams ahead of them. So it surprised me when, leading up to the deadline, I kept hearing about how they had the second best record in baseball. The Nationals are a better team than we realize. I can't say exactly why that is, but I have some ideas. The first is no one...

I heard a lot of buzz from the Nationals coaching staff about Phillips Valdez during the work up to the regular season. Right now, the right-hander is on a roll and pitching the way he was predicted to be able to during spring training. Valdez has won four of his last five decisions after last night's Double-A Harrisburg's 6-1 win at Binghamton. The 23-year-old Dominican allowed one run on six hits with two walks and six strikeouts. He tossed 100 pitches, 63 for strikes. He left the bases...

In the first two innings last night, it didn't look like Kevin Gausman was on his game. The Orioles right-hander allowed a run in the first and threw 35 pitches as Texas cut the O's two-run lead into a one-run game in the second. But without warning, Gausman got locked in. After throwing 50 pitches over those first two innings, he needed to throw just 58 more pitches over the next five innings. With Texas left-hander Cole Hamels getting locked in himself, the Orioles needed Gausman's big...

Any discussion of Cy Young Award candidates in the American League must include Orioles closer Zach Britton. To omit him would be like forgetting to wear pants. OK, that's probably a poor analogy. There are no laws against omitting Britton. It would be a mistake, but not indecent. You'd be exposing yourself in a completely different way. Britton lowered his ERA last night to 0.59 in 45 2/3 innings, best in the majors, while converting his 33rd consecutive save opportunity to start the...

So over the last three games, the Orioles have won games started by Toronto's Aaron Sanchez and by Yu Darvish and Cole Hamels of the Texas Rangers. Sanchez was first in the American League in ERA when they faced him and Hamels was second when he took the mound tonight. But the Orioles scored three in the first off Hamels and their pitching made it stand up for a 3-2 win. Kevin Gausman needed 50 pitches to get through the first two innings, when he allowed single runs each inning. And then he...

Kevin Gausman threw 15 pitches in the first inning tonight and 35 in the second. He served up a home run to the third batter of the game. Nothing about the early portion of this story suggested a happy ending. Gausman did a major rewrite against the Rangers, working through the seventh inning and leaving with a 3-2 lead that held up after manager Buck Showalter turned to his bullpen. Darren O'Day, working on back-to-back nights, retired the side in order in the eighth, and Zach Britton...

Orioles right-hander Kevin Gausman followed up Dylan Bundy's scoreless outing last night with a strong outing of his own tonight. Although it didn't start out that way. Gausman recovered from early trouble to allow two runs over seven frames as the Orioles beat Texas and southpaw Cole Hamels 3-2 tonight at Camden Yards. Darren O'Day pitched a scoreless eighth on seven pitches and Zach Britton a shutout ninth. Britton is now 33-for-33 in save chances. According to STATS, LLC, Britton sets a...