NEW YORK - The Orioles lineup on Tuesday should include catcher Matt Wieters and shortstop J.J. Hardy. Hardy is more of a certainty to play against the Yankees. He's ready to come off the disabled list today, but he must wait one more day. Manager Buck Showalter said Hardy could have played today if eligible to return. He's doing full baseball activities and hasn't experienced any discomfort in his groin. Outfielder Dariel Alvarez will rejoin the Orioles on Tuesday after being optioned to...

NEW YORK - Catcher Matt Wieters tested his injured left wrist in the batting cage today, but reported that there's still some soreness in the joint, which he hurt in a diving play at first base on Friday night. Wieters isn't in the Orioles lineup today for the opener of a three-game series against the Yankees and doesn't expect to play. Caleb Joseph will catch left-hander Wei-Yin Chen today. Manny Machado is playing shortstop, Jimmy Paredes is the designated hitter and Nolan Reimold is in...

For baseball fans, the season's final weeks can be a manic-depressive time when fortunes turn on a dime. At least that's how it's been for followers of the Washington Nationals. We've gone from hope to despair and back so many times in the past few weeks, it's hard to count. Remember that awful western road trip when the Nats returned with a five-game deficit to the New York Mets? Wasn't the season basically over then? How about last week's trip to St. Louis when the deficit grew to 6...

As the Orioles continue to carry about a 1 percent chance to make the postseason this year, they also are approaching one of the more important offseasons in their recent history. There are plenty of big decisions to be made as the games start to dwindle. While the O's won't completely give up on the prospect of making the playoffs, reality will eventually set in and I have a feeling some players from the minors will begin to see playing time. Perhaps one of the biggest decisions the O's...

The Nationals were able to get almost to the fifth inning Sunday with right-handed rookie starter Joe Ross in an 8-4 win over the Braves. But manager Matt Williams and pitching coach Steve McCatty saw that Ross' fastball velocity was down from what he had delivered in the past. "Today starting in the third inning, the fastball was down to 90 mph, which is a sign of fatigue," Williams said. "He got through that one, he got through the fourth. But with the lefties coming up there, we're not...

The Orioles three-game series in Toronto was a lot like most of the 2015 season. Just when it looked like something good could happen, it didn't. Friday's 10-2 blowout win was impressive and the Orioles crushed the red-hot, high-scoring Blue Jays. Given a chance to win a series at Rogers Centre, the Orioles scored just one run Saturday and gave up 10 runs yesterday. Friday, the Orioles scored 10 runs on 13 hits with four doubles and four homers, and they went 5-for-10 with runners in scoring...

NEW YORK - Is this the day that the Orioles fall a season-high seven games below .500? Is this the day that they drop into a last-place tie with the Red Sox in the American League East? Will it continue to get worse for them before it gets better? The Orioles begin a three-game series today against the Yankees, while the Red Sox take their turn against the Blue Jays. They're 27-44 on the road and 28-28 against division opponents. It just doesn't get any easier the rest of the way. The Blue...

A day before taking the mound to begin a crucial series against the Mets, Max Scherzer watched his teammates complete a four-game sweep of the Braves, allowing the Nationals to gain 2 1/2 games on New York over the weekend. "You just come to the park ready to play and do your job," Scherzer said of the Nats' focus. "You don't worry about what the Mets are doing or anything like that. I mean, even though we're in a playoff race with them, you just understand where you're at within the...

The Nationals took care of business, sweeping the reeling Braves with this afternoon's 8-4 win and setting the stage for a three-game showdown with the division-leading Mets. Jayson Werth, Bryce Harper and Anthony Rendon all homered and Michael A. Taylor returned to the starting lineup with a two-run double to get the Nats on the board early. With all of their offensive damage done in the first four innings and the Nationals comfortably ahead late, the only drama left was watching to see...

Manager: Joe Girardi (8th season) Record: 76-59 Last 10 games: 7-3 Who to watch: DH Alex Rodriguez (.257/.361/.491 with 28 HR, 76 RBIs), RF Carlos Beltran (.276/.338/.474 with 14 HR, 50 RBIs), 1B Mark Teixeira (.255/.357/.548 with 31 HR, 79 RBIs), C Brian McCann (.245 with 25 HR, 86 RBIs), RHP Masahiro Tanaka (11-6, 3.73 ERA), LHP Andrew Miller (31 saves, 1.80 ERA) Season series vs. Orioles: 8-5 Pitching probables: Sept. 7: LHP Wei-Yin Chen vs. RHP Michael Pineda, 1:05 p.m., MASN Sept. 8: RHP...