They're here! Finally, we have actual baseball being played as spring training games started this week. MASN's Jim Hunter probably couldn't wait to get out of Baltimore and to Sarasota, Fla., faster (especially since we saw snow last night) to call some Orioles spring training games on the radio for 105.7 The Fan. Time to get started. Bonnie dropped me off at BWI to head to Sarasota. @Orioles @masnOrioles #SpringTraining pic.twitter.com/TWZ1L0vyBx -- Jim Hunter (@JimOriolesTV) February 28,...

If you've been following along with the Nationals this spring training, you've probably come across a few mentions of top pitching prospect Lucas Giolito and his baking. Giolito and his roommate at big league camp, catcher Spencer Kieboom, have posted pictures here and there of the pitcher's tasty creations. But this week, we got some good views of Giolito's banana bread. Spring Training Monday baking round 3... pic.twitter.com/ua1ySMQS1m -- Lucas Giolito (@LGio27) February 29, 2016 The...

SARASOTA, Fla. - Jimmy Paredes tried to force a smile this morning while talking to reporters at his locker, but the disappointment over his latest injury kept pushing to the surface. Paredes began last season on the disabled list with a strained lower back, and now he's wearing a plastic cast on his left hand today after spraining his wrist. An X-ray taken last night confirmed the injury. "That's what they said, but I don't know how long it will take for me to be ready," Paredes said....

SARASOTA, Fla. - The X-ray on Jimmy Paredes' left wrist last night confirmed that he suffered a sprain after attempting a diving catch in the second inning in Port Charlotte. Paredes is wearing a plastic cast on his hand and said he's unsure how long he'll be sidelined. Jonathan Schoop is starting at second base for the Orioles in today's game against the Blue Jays in Dunedin. Mark Trumbo is the designated hitter. For the Orioles Joey Rickard CF Jonathan Schoop 2B Mark Trumbo DH Christian...

JUPITER, Fla. - Early spring training games typically are more about pitching than hitting, and that may apply even more this afternoon than usual when the Nationals face the Marlins at Roger Dean Stadium. They'll be sending three prominent starting pitchers to the mound in this game, each of them for two innings: Gio Gonzalez, Bronson Arroyo and Lucas Giolito. Gonzalez has nothing really to prove this spring; he simply needs to get himself prepared for the regular season. But this is a very...

SARASOTA, Fla. - The Orioles will send another batch of reserves and minor leaguers on the road today with their 1:05 p.m. game against the Blue Jays in Dunedin. Only the short straws board the bus. Hyun Soo Kim will stay back for the first time, challenging manager Buck Showalter to come up with enough "starters" to satisfy the league office. Meanwhile, is it really the league office's business how a manager prepares his club for the regular season and chooses to evaluate the talent on his...

When many or probably pretty much all Orioles fans think about third baseman Manny Machado, eventually two questions likely come to mind: Will the club be able to sign him to a long-term deal and how much will it cost? At 23, he already has won two Gold Glove Awards, one Platinum Glove and made two All-Star teams. In 2013, he finished ninth for the American League Most Valuable Player award and last year he finished fourth. For Machado, 2015 was a special season and he filled up the stat sheet....

VIERA, Fla. - Daniel Murphy knew he'd be the center of attention today in the Nationals' spring home opener. Not because this was his first game appearance with his new team, but because it just happened to come against his old team. Murphy seemed a bit uncomfortable with all the attention he received, especially from the more than dozen Mets reporters who crowded around him outside the Nats clubhouse after he departed the game. Ultimately, Murphy felt most at ease on the field, especially...

PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. - Jimmy Paredes sprained his left wrist today while diving for a fly ball from Logan Forsythe in the second inning that fell for a double. He's scheduled for X-rays later tonight. Reliever Brian Matusz underwent an MRI on his lower back and the Orioles are waiting for a team physician to examine the results. Manager Buck Showalter didn't provide much information beyond confirming that the left-hander will miss his next turn. Paredes bent back his wrist after hitting the...

NATIONALS QUICK WRAP Score: Nationals 9, Mets 4 Recap: The first of at least 25 head-to-head meetings in 2016 (six in spring training, 19 in the regular season) between these National League East rivals didn't have near the importance that future showdowns likely will, but the Nationals happily put together a quality performance all around to thump the defending division champs. Their new-look lineup burst out of the gates for four runs in the bottom of the first against right-hander Rafael...