Heston Kjerstad heard the crowd roar, looked up at the video board and locked eyes with himself. Unsure what to do, he smiled and pumped his fist. The fans had found him. They wanted to salute the rookie, but it’s much easier when he jogs back onto the field. Kjerstad was confined to the dugout as the designated hitter. At least it kept him close t

In their first series against each other since Texas swept the Orioles last October in the American League Division Series, the Orioles have beaten Texas 11-2 and 2-1 the last two nights to begin this four-game series. After losing five in a row to Houston and Cleveland, the Orioles (52-30) have won their past three games. During the five losses, B

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – Josiah Gray got the Opening Day assignment based off his 2023 campaign. MacKenzie Gore got the hype based off his reputation and knack for the occasional dominant outing. But the member of the Nationals rotation who had the best spring and most looked poised to break out might well have been Jake Irvin. Three months later, th

Jordan Westburg and Austin Hays were unavailable for last night’s game due to knee soreness. However, Westburg is playing second base tonight and Hays could start Sunday against Rangers left-hander Andrew Heaney. Westburg was on the field with head athletic trainer Brian Ebel early today performing agility drills and stretching. He’s recovered from

Infielder Connor Norby, the No. 6 prospect in the organization per MLB Pipeline, is on the Orioles’ taxi squad. However, it’s a precaution and might not include his return to the active roster. Norby went 3-for-14 with a home run before the Orioles optioned him to Triple-A Norfolk. He’s batting .286/.380/.498 with 20 doubles, a triple, 11 home runs

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – As scared as he was in the moment Friday when his right knee got tweaked and he fell to the ground in pain, Jesse Winker was confident by night’s end he wasn’t seriously injured and hoped he might even feel well enough to rejoin the Nationals lineup Saturday afternoon. Sure enough, Winker is back in there today, starting in l

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – We’ve still got more than two weeks to go until the All-Star break, but technically speaking the second half of the season begins today for the Nationals, who have now played 81 games. At 38-43, they’re probably a little better than most people expected, though they also have to acknowledge they could be even better given how

The Texas Rangers were trying to come from two runs down and the wildness of the O’s bullpen gave them a great chance. They had cut the O's 2-0 lead to 2-1 in the seventh inning and a key batter, leadoff hitter Marcus Semien, batted with the bases loaded and two outs. O’s righty Jacob Webb threw him a 2-2 fastball and he hit it hard toward third ba

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – The sting of a 3-1 loss to the Rays was still fresh, not to mention the frustration of a losing streak that has now reached four games and dropped the Nationals from a temporary spot in the National Leauge’s final wild card slot to a spot well below that key standing. But as Jesse Winker contemplated where this team stood upo

Anthony Santander didn’t purposely begin tracking the All-Star Game balloting to see where he stood among outfielders in the American League. It’s just so hard to avoid. “Social media right now, it’s all over the place,” he said yesterday with a smile. “And actually, the last update I said, ‘I don’t know if my mom is doing a really good job because