As the Orioles face Chris Sale (10-2, 2.01 ERA), one of baseball's best pitchers tonight, maybe they will be encouraged by how they did against him on June 23. Sale has held American League batters to a .196 batting average this season. But that night, the Orioles had 11 hits off Sale in six innings and batted .423 against him. They beat the White Sox 6-4 that game. They didn't pin a loss on Sale, but that is easily his season-high for hits allowed. He has not given up more than eight hits...

CHICAGO - Orioles third baseman Manny Machado drifted over to his locker around 5 p.m. today, making his first appearance in the visiting clubhouse at U.S. Cellular Field since reporters were allowed inside about 90 minutes earlier. "What do you want to talk to me for?" Machado asked playfully. Told that the local media wanted to check how he was feeling, Machado replied, "I feel like (crap). How else would I feel? I'm not playing. "You guys can put that on there. I don't...

CHICAGO - Part of the Orioles rotation has started to take shape for the weekend series against the Cubs at Wrigley Field. Manager Buck Showalter said Kevin Gausman will start Friday's opener, keeping the right-hander on normal rest. The next two spots haven't been announced. Showalter won't reveal his plans for Ubaldo Jimenez, who allowed six runs over 4 1/3 innings Saturday night in Cleveland. "We're not there yet," Showalter said, adding that Jimenez will hear it from him...

Nationals third baseman Ryan Zimmerman told Craig Heist of 106.7 The Fan that he has been able to do light walking on an underwater treadmill has he recovers from a Grade 3 right hamstring strain. Zimmerman has been on the disabled list since July 23. "It's one of those where if you try to rush it too much, your chance of re-injury are through the roof," Zimmerman told Heist. "I don't think it's a 'see you in spring training kind of thing', but that's me." The Nationals hope they...

CHICAGO - Chris Davis is starting at third base and batting seventh for the second straight game as the Orioles open a three-game series at the White Sox. Davis went 2-for-4 with two doubles and an RBI yesterday, so the Orioles decided not to mess with a good thing. Steve Pearce is at first, Nelson Cruz is in left and Delmon Young is serving as the designated hitter. Jonathan Schoop is starting at second for the eighth straight game. He has three homers and five RBIs in his last five...

Right fielder Jayson Werth, who hasn't started since Aug. 7 while nursing inflammation in the AC joint in his right shoulder, will be back in the Nationals lineup tonight for the opener of a four-game series against the Diamondbacks. The sprained AC joint limited Werth, who got a cortisone injection late last week to reduce the imflammation and discomfort. Right-hander Jordan Zimmermann opposes Arizona left-hander Vidal Nuno. The Nationals are seeking their seventh straight victory. For the...

The Orioles today announced that the club is accepting deposits on 2015 season ticket plans, and that fans placing a deposit will receive access to 2014 Postseason tickets. Fans who place a non-refundable $250 (for 13-game plans), $500 (for 29-game plans) or $1,000 (for full season plans) per seat deposit on a 2015 Season Ticket Plan will be guaranteed the opportunity to purchase 2014 Orioles Postseason tickets before the general public. The deposit must be placed by Monday, September 15 at...

How important are home runs to the Orioles? Well, when they hit more homers than their opponent this year they are 45-6, and that is an .882 winning percentage. They are perfect, 14-0 in the second half, when out-homering the opposition. That stat is pretty amazing and it was brought to my attention when I first saw it on a graphic during a MASN telecast over the weekend. We already know the Orioles get a high percentage of their runs from the longball and are not a good team most nights at...

The Nationals have signed outfielder Nate Schierholtz to a minor league contract, adding some depth to the organization and positioning the veteran for a September call-up into a pennant race. The 30-year-old Schierholtz batted .192 with six homers and 33 RBIs in 99 games for the Cubs this season before being released on Aug. 13, but is only one year removed from his finest offensive season in an eight-year career. In 2013, Schierholtz batted .251 with 32 doubles, 21 homers and 68 RBIs....

The Washington Nationals today agreed to terms with outfielder Nate Schierholtz on a minor league contract. Schierholtz will be assigned to Syracuse of the Triple-A International League. Nationals President of Baseball Operations and General Manager Mike Rizzo made the announcement. Schierholtz is a .254 career hitter (520-for-2050) with 117 doubles, 51 home runs and 224 RBI in 776 career games with the Cubs (2013 - '14), Phillies (2012) and Giants (2007 - '12). Earlier this season, he...