The Nationals went to the college ranks with their second selection in Thursday's night's first round of the First-Year Player Draft And as it turned out, seven of their first nine selections were from Division I college baseball. With the 29th pick, the Nats selected right-hander Dane Dunning out of the University of Florida. The Gators are in the NCAA super regionals against Florida State this weekend. The winner gets a ticket to Omaha and the College World Series. Florida's starting...

TORONTO - Orioles manager Buck Showalter today took the occasion of the baseball draft to defend his team's farm system. As teams all around the majors are looking to add players in the draft right now to one day help their big league team, Showalter feels the O's system has been productive for the big league team, a team that leads the American League with 391 wins since 2012. "I look at last night and I do think about this," Showalter said. "We've got two rookie pitchers - Tyler Wilson...

Manager Dusty Baker and the Nationals arrived home early this morning, and the manager didn't get back to his place until 5 a.m., making for a stressful back-to-back tonight in D.C. as the Nats open a home series against the Phillies. "They are tough," Baker said. "You wish baseball could do something about this. Baseball is trying to make the game more competitive and more parity, but this is going the complete opposite way. We are not the only ones. There are a bunch of teams. Today is...

TORONTO - Orioles reliever Dylan Bundy had been scored on in five of his six previous outings when he took the mound in the sixth inning at Rogers Centre last night. The Orioles were trailing 5-4 and if Bundy could keep Toronto off the board, they might have a chance to post another comeback win. He did just that with one of his best outings in the majors. Over 2 1/3 scoreless innings and 47 pitches (his second most this year), Bundy allowed just one hit - a bunt single - and fanned three...

The Orioles are bringing another Palmeiro into the organization. In the seventh round of the 2016 First-Year Player Draft, the Orioles used the 211th overall pick on first baseman Preston Palmeiro of North Carolina State. He's the youngest son of former Oriole Rafael Palmeiro. We're not talking just another player's son. Preston batted .337 with 20 doubles, nine home runs and 55 RBIs in 59 games as a junior. Some scouts question his power potential, but they like his ability to hit. The...

It's a shame nothing memorable or exciting happened this past week with the Orioles. Ok, despite the poor attempt at humor, the last seven days have been some of the most action-packed this season. The Orioles completed a 10-game homestand with an impressive 7-3 record, made more impressive when you consider that mark includes the Birds dropping the first two games against the Red Sox. But, following a split with Boston, a series win against the Yankees, and a sweep of the Royals, the Orioles...

Nolan Reimold is in right field tonight for the Orioles as they continue their series against the Blue Jays at Rogers Centre. Mark Trumbo is the designated hitter. Pedro Alvarez is 3-for-21 with nine strikeouts against Blue Jays right-hander Marco Estrada. Chris Davis has hit 14 home runs in 146 at-bats at Rogers Centre, or one every 10.4 at-bats. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Davis owns the best home run ratio for any of the 345 players with at least 100 at-bats at the ballpark. Zach...

TORONTO - The Orioles started off a tough road trip with a comeback win last night, beating Toronto 6-5 at Rogers Centre. With the win they gained ground on both the idle Red Sox and the third-place Blue Jays. Winners of five in a row and eight of nine games, the Orioles are 36-23 and leading Boston by two games and Toronto by 5 ½ at the top of the American League East. The Orioles are a season-best 13 games over the .500 mark. The Orioles trailed 5-3 last night when they pulled within a run...

The Orioles tonight selected right-hander Cody Sedlock from the University of Illinois with their first selection as the 27th overall pick of the 2016 First-Year Player Draft. The Orioles also selected left-hander Keegan Akin at No. 54 overall from Western Michigan University and right-hander Matthias Dietz at No. 69 overall from John A. Logan College (IL). Sedlock, 20, went 10-6 with a 2.96 ERA (54 ER/164.1 IP) and 175 strikeouts in 47 games (19 starts) over three seasons with the University...

The Nationals' top selection in the 2016 First-Year Player Draft met with the media on a conference call Friday. Shortstop Carter Kieboom, the younger brother of Double-A catcher Spencer Kieboom, was selected with the 28th pick in the opening round on Thursday night. "To be selected by the Nationals, that's very special," said the 6-foot-2, 185 lb. Carter Kieboom. "I've never been able to play with my older brothers. Now to be given the opportunity to potentially to play with Spencer in a...