SARASOTA, Fla. - Chris Davis isn't in the lineup today for the Orioles after making the trip yesterday to Bradenton. Steve Pearce is starting at first base. Everth Cabrera is leading off and playing second base. Caleb Joseph is catching and Jimmy Paredes is serving as the designated hitter. The bullpen behind starter Wei-Yin Chen includes Brian Matusz, who's made two starts. Other relievers include Rule 5 pick Jason Garcia, Darren O'Day, Ryan Webb and Chaz Roe. For the Orioles Everth Cabrera...

JUPITER, Fla. - Nationals left-hander Gio Gonzalez is coming off his best outing of the spring, pitching four scoreless innings while striking out five and only allowing two hits and a walk last Thursday. After his effort, he turned all of the attention to batterymate Wilson Ramos for confidently guiding him through his afternoon. "For some reason, just talking to Wilson it looked like he knew what he wanted to do," Gonzalez said. "His gameplan was almost as simple as, 'Just follow me and...

Let's check up on a couple of catchers from the Nationals' early camp. Today, we will focus on 2014 third-round selection Jakson Reetz and undrafted free agent Jorge Tillero. The 19-year-old Reetz is from Hickman, Neb., (population 1,657) and is showing a power bat in spring training as he did last season for the Gulf Coast League Nats. He attended Norris High School. Hickman is 15 minutes south of Lincoln and a 73-minute drive southwest of Omaha. Reetz hit .274 in 43 games in the GCL, with...

So what will Steve Pearce do for an encore? Coming off the best year of his life, what can he do to try to repeat the amazing success he had during the 2014 season? Consider that going into last year, Pearce had hit 17 career homers in 743 at-bats over parts of seven seasons with four different teams. Last season, he hit 21 in 338 at-bats with the Orioles and was a real key to the club winning 96 games and an American League East title. Pearce had never homered more than four times in any year...

SARASOTA, Fla. - The next three Orioles starting pitchers have been confirmed, with left-hander Wei-Yin Chen taking the mound today against the Blue Jays in Sarasota, Chris Tillman going Thursday against the Tigers in Lakeland and Bud Norris getting the ball Friday against the Rays in Sarasota. Manager Buck Showalter hasn't announced Saturday's starter against the Yankees in Tampa, but the assignment may go to a minor leaguer. The Orioles didn't play Monday, so no one will be working on...

BRADENTON, Fla. - Logan Verrett had another impressive outing today, retiring the Pirates in order in the ninth inning with a strikeout to seal the Orioles' 9-2 victory at McKechnie Field. Verrett, a Rule 5 pick from the Mets, has allowed two runs in 11 innings, with one walk and nine strikeouts. "Yeah, he's thrown the ball good," manager Buck Showalter said. "Dave (Wallace) was talking about him pitching, waiting one more day and him pitching two innings. I'm not sure how he's going to...

ORIOLES QUICK WRAP Score: Orioles 9, Pirates 2 Recap: Ubaldo Jimenez was superb, shutting out the Pirates on four hits over five innings. He walked none and struck out three. The Orioles broke a scoreless tie with five runs in the fourth inning. Steve Pearce hit his fifth home run of the spring. Jimmy Paredes had another hit, a double in the fourth. Ryan Flaherty singled in his first two at-bats, driving in a run in the fourth, and doubled in the sixth. Paul Janish had a two-run single in the...

BRADENTON, Fla. - Ryan Lavarnway is trying to separate himself from the pack of catching candidates with the Orioles. He's doing it today at McKechnie Field. Lavarnway has thrown out both Pirates runners attempting to steal, cutting down Gregory Polanco in the first inning and Jordy Mercer in the third. He was 1-for-6 this spring. Lavarnway also has grounded into one of the Orioles' three double plays in the first three innings. Alejandro De Aza and Steve Pearce opened the first inning with...

Minor League Baseball issued a press release today detailing pace of play rules coming to Double-A and Triple-A games this season. One big difference I see between earlier rules announced in MLB is that offenders in the majors are subject to fines while offenders in the minors can have a ball or strike issued against them. Here is the release: Minor League Baseball today announced rules and procedures aimed at improving the pace of play in games at the Triple-A and Double-A levels. The...

BRADENTON, Fla. - Orioles outfielder David Lough was scratched from today's lineup due to back spasms. He's listed as day-to-day. Lough was supposed to start in center field against the Pirates. He was hitting off a tee this morning in Sarasota, bent down for a ball and felt his back tighten. Lough is 5-for-27 as he attempts to make the club as an extra outfielder. He missed a few days earlier this spring with a sore left hamstring. "He's fighting for a spot," said manager Buck Showalter....