Right-hander Aaron Barrett arrived in Friday's game in a critical moment. The Nationals were holding on to a 2-1 lead over the Orioles and starter Gio Gonzalez had reached his max load. Gonzalez had thrown a strong six full innings, but had walked the first batter of the seventh. Suddenly, the Orioles had the tying run on first base with no one out. Barrett was summoned to try to quell the Orioles' potential rally. He did just that. He struck out the first two batters he faced. Then, he...

The Nationals' offensive struggles continued in last night's 3-2 loss to the Orioles. In six of the last 10 games, the Nationals have scored two runs or fewer, resulting in six losses. Tyler Moore and Michael A. Taylor delivered two-out RBIs in the fifth inning yesterday, but that was all the Nats could manage despite collecting 10 hits on the night. Moore's run-scoring double was the Nationals only extra-base hit. "Two runs in this stadium is tough," Moore said. "We need to score more,...

So the Orioles had yet another game where they failed to get even one hit with a runner in scoring position. But that didn't stop Johnny Baseball. Jonathan Schoop's first walk-off home run gave the Orioles a 3-2 win over the Nationals last night. Not a bad way to start a big weekend series in front of a sellout crowd of 46,289. Schoop was on the disabled list with a sprained right knee from April 18-July 4. The Orioles are thrilled to have him back. He's a talent on the field and an...

BALTIMORE - The Nationals' bullpen couldn't protect a one-run lead as Orioles second baseman Jonathan Schoop launched a walk-off homer off Tanner Roark in the bottom of the ninth for a 3-2 win. The only run Gio Gonzalez allowed came on a solo blast from Adam Jones in the fourth. Otherwise, the left-hander pitched brilliantly for the third consecutive start, exiting after walking Jimmy Paredes to begin the seventh as the Nationals held a 2-1 advantage. Aaron Barrett followed Gonzalez to the...

With last night's walk-off win, the Orioles can do no worse than .500 entering the All-Star break. Two games above with two more to play. Miguel Gonzalez is responsible for the only Orioles' win on their last road trip, holding the White Sox to one run over six innings in a 9-1 victory at U.S. Cellular Field. He's 2-2 with a 3.29 ERA in six career interleague starts, but he's never faced the Nationals. Only two Nationals have faced Gonzalez. Yunel Escobar is 4-for-19 and Jose Lobaton is...

BALTIMORE - It is difficult to look back at good pitching in a game that a team loses in walk-off fashion, but the Nationals' 3-2 loss to the Orioles wouldn't have been close early on if not for the pitching of left-handed starter Gio Gonzalez. Gonzalez allowed a solo homer to Adam Jones which gave the Orioles a 1-0 lead in the fourth. But he took a 2-1 lead into the seventh before walking Jimmy Paredes and being relieved by Aaron Barrett. Jones hit a changeup to put the Orioles on the...

The Orioles are 19-2 when Jonathan Schoop hits a home run in his career. Why not have him do it more often and run away with the division? It's a simple game. Why make it more complicated? Schoop belted his first walk-off home run tonight, a solo shot off Tanner Roark with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning, to give the Orioles a 3-2 win before 46,289 at Camden Yards, their largest crowd of the season. The Orioles went 1-5 on the road trip. They lost eight of their last 10 games. They...

Orioles second baseman Jonathan Schoop may have been just following instructions. He came to bat in the last of the ninth of a 2-2 tie with two outs and none on. He got a 2-2 slider from right-hander Tanner Roark that he drove into the left-field seats to send a sellout crowd of 46,289 into a frenzy, giving the Orioles a walk-off 3-2 win over the Washington Nationals to start a big weekend series. "Manny (Machado) told me to hit a double and he could drive me in or hit a home run," Schoop...

As the All-Star Game approaches, here are candidates for baseball's major awards based on the the first half of play: * AL Manager of the Year: A.J. Hinch, Houston; Joe Girardi, New York, Paul Molitor, Minnesota. ... Any of these could win the award, but Hinch is leading Houston's turnaround with two starters, Dallas Keuchel and Collin McHugh, and a lineup that doesn't have a .300 hitter. Jose Altuve was hitting .298 going into Friday. ... Girardi has a dominating bullpen, but there are...

It ended with a walk-off homer. Jonathan Schoop homered to left on a 2-2 slider from Tanner Roark with two outs in the last of the ninth as the Orioles beat the Nationals 3-2 tonight in the series opener. The Orioles failed to get a single hit with a runner in scoring position, but they did post their third walk-off win of the year on Schoop's first career walk-off homer. Down 2-1, the Orioles tied the game in the last of the eighth. Chris Parmelee led off with a pinch-hit, check-swing infield...