SARASOTA, Fla. - Catcher Matt Wieters was removed for a pinch-hitter today in the bottom of the first inning and we're waiting for the Orioles to provide an explanation. Wieters caught the top half of the inning and made a throw to second base that sailed as Eduardo Nunez slid in safely. Henry Urrutia pinch-hit for Wieters after Mark Trumbo's two-run single gave the Orioles a 3-1 lead. Twins right-hander Trevor May struck out Urrutia and J.J. Hardy. Audry Perez replaced Wieters behind the...

SARASOTA, Fla. - Still no word on the next round of cuts as we wait for first pitch. "We'll have some more between now and the end of the day," manager Buck Showalter said during batting practice. "Do some at lunch, maybe some after the game. Hopefully, by the end of Sunday I think we'll have a lot of those out of the way." Caleb Joseph looked fine while performing early drills and taking batting practice, the flu-like symptoms no longer holding him back. "He's OK," Showalter said....

SARASOTA, Fla. - Pedro Alvarez will make his Orioles debut on Sunday against the Twins in Fort Myers. His one-year deal included a pair of gray pants. Alvarez took batting practice on the main field and got in some extra swings while Jeff Beliveau threw live batting practice on a back field. Earlier in the day, Alvarez and Chris Davis shared first base and performed a variety of infield drills. Chris Tillman will make his first Grapefruit League start on Tuesday against the Blue Jays in...

SARASOTA, Fla. - Caleb Joseph is back in the clubhouse this morning after experiencing flu-like symptoms that swept through his spring training home. Joseph wasn't on yesterday's trip to Tampa due to his illness. "They wanted me to come in today because I'm feeling more normal," he said. "Yesterday, I probably could have come in, but still kind of speculating in terms of contagiousness. It was a bad case. Me, my wife, my son and my mother-in-law all got it within hours. That entire house...

SARASOTA, Fla. - Hyun Soo Kim isn't in today's lineup, as the Orioles host the Twins at 1:05 p.m. Nolan Reimold is in left field and leading off. Mark Trumbo is in right field and Alfredo Marte is serving as the designated hitter. It's another workout day for Pedro Alvarez. The Orioles didn't announce any cuts, but left-handers Cesar Cabral and Andy Oliver no longer have lockers in the clubhouse. T.J. McFarland said his left elbow feels much better. The inflammation is gone and he played...

VIERA, Fla. - Right-hander Tanner Roark will start this evening against the Braves, and is scheduled to go four innings. If he can hit that benchmark, Roark will be the first Nationals pitcher to do so this spring. In five innings spread across two previous Grapefruit League appearances, including one start, Roark has allowed five hits and no runs with two walks and six strikeouts. He's hopeful of returning to the Nationals rotation after spending last season working out of the bullpen and...

SARASOTA, Fla. - The Orioles will load up on the roster cuts today after putting it off again last night. They need to whittle down the pitching to a more manageable number. Meanwhile, I'm trying to learn more about Pedro Alvarez as he shows up each morning at the complex. He wasn't sitting at his locker yesterday morning during the one hour that the doors were open to the media. He actually walked past our workroom on his way to the half-field, an equipment bag strapped over his...

VIERA, Fla. - Jonathan Papelbon's line in Friday's 9-5 victory over the Mets may not look pretty, but the Nationals closer says he's not worried. Papelbon said he was feeling no ill effects after a bug making its way through the clubhouse forced him to miss his scheduled outing Thursday. It wasn't a matter of having not pitched for four days. "I just was a tick off," Papelbon said. Papelbon, making his second ninth-inning appearance of the spring, couldn't complete the frame. Manager...

A few more notes and thoughts on the Orioles - and, yes, we are still waiting for the first spring training win. * After Friday's 7-1 loss to the Yankees, the Orioles are 0-10-2. According to STATS, the last team with a longer winless streak to start spring training was the 2009 Astros at 0-16-3. That Houston team went 74-88. After Thursday's loss left the Orioles at 0-9-2, they were the first team to go winless in their first 11 spring games since the 2012 Nationals, who were 0-10-1. That...

TAMPA - The first round of cuts for the Orioles are coming later today. They'll probably arrive while the beat crew is back on the road after the Orioles' 7-1 loss to the Yankees. The cuts will continue through Sunday. "It's a pretty good number," said manager Buck Showalter. "Same (list) I've been carrying around for three or four days. "The innings are going away for the pitchers. You see a guy get stretched out three or four innings now. The relief innings for guys aren't...