The Nationals' opponent in the National League Division Series is finally set. It'll be the Giants coming to D.C. to face Matt Williams' ballclub. San Francisco advanced with an 8-0 win over the Piratesin the NL wild card game. Half of those runs came from one Brandon Crawford swing of the bat, as the Giants shortstop crushed a fourth-inning grand slam to put his team on top and give the dominant Madison Bumgarner more than enough run support. Bumgarner was terrific, and the good news for...

If the Orioles want to get the lead in the American League Division Series against Detroit, all they have to do is beat last year's AL Cy Young Award winner in Game 1 today. After that, they face another former Cy Young winner. And then another. If the series gets to a fourth game they are expected to face Rick Porcello and, hey, he's never won a Cy Young Award. The Detroit starter today, right-hander Max Scherzer (18-5, 3.15 ERA), won the award in 2013. Game 2 starter Justin Verlander...

We are officially less than 24 hours away from the beginning of the Orioles' 2014 postseason run. This is it, Baltimore. After you pinch yourself, make sure to follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat. Trust me, you won't regret it. We'll be giving fans behind-the-scenes glances at the O's playoff run through our social media networks. On top of that, we'll be running a live Operation October blog each day, allowing you to keep up with us all in one place. So without...

Orioles manager Buck Showalter and Game 1 starting pitcher Chris Tillman were brought into the interview area - it's not actually a room - before today's workout at Camden Yards. The clubhouse opened to the media for an hour, but it will be closed prior to the Division Series games, per Major League Baseball rules. Here's a portion of the transcripts from today's interviews, starting with Showalter: On whether the intensity is picking up "I don't feel like it's picking up. I mean,...

The Orioles clinched the American League East on Sept. 16 and they played 11 games since with a postseason berth already assured. We saw the Orioles end the season playing with less intensity than they had before the clincher. Now they need to get that back for the AL Division Series that starts at Camden Yards Thursday against Detroit. Will it be hard to get it back? "No, I don't think so," shortstop J.J. Hardy said before today's workout. "Not with the way these fans are going to be....

The Orioles are working out at Camden Yards this afternoon before opening the Division Series on Thursday against the Tigers. Hall of Famer Brooks Robinson spoke to the team before they headed out to the field. Manager Buck Showalter was late to his media session, but as he said, "I couldn't shorten Brooks up." "I didn't want to miss that," Showalter added. "That's pretty good there. Wish he could have kept going. He may come back. That was pretty cool." Showalter still hasn't...

During separate press conferences this afternoon at Camden Yards, Detroit Tigers manager Brad Ausmus and Game 1 starting pitcher Max Scherzer gave quite different answers when asked about the club's playoff experience. This is the fourth year in a row that Detroit has reached the postseason and the Tigers have won the American League Division Series the last three years by winning Game 5 on the road each time. "For guys that have been through it, the experience is an enormous help," Ausmus...

The Orioles today announced an updated list of their series of "We Won't Stop" rallies to generate excitement for the team's push for the postseason. A "We Won't Stop" street team will travel throughout Baltimore and surrounding areas over the next few week, with several former Orioles players and the Oriole Bird also participating. The "We Won't Stop" team will give away promotional items, and fans will have the chance to win autographed memorabilia. The current list of rally dates...

Manager: Brad Ausmus, first year Record: 90-72 Last 10 games: 6-4 Who to watch: 1B Miguel Cabrera (.313/.371/.524, 52 doubles, 25 HR, 109 RBIs, 101 R); DH Victor Martinez (.335/.409/.565, 33 doubles, 32 HR, 103 RBIs); RHP Max Scherzer (18-5, 3.15 ERA, 1.18 WHIP); LHP David Price (15-12, 3.26 ERA, 1.08 WHIP) Season series vs. O's: 5-1, 33 runs scored, 20 runs allowed Pitching probables Game 1, Oct. 2: Max Scherzer vs. Chris Tillman, 5:30 p.m., TBS Game 2, Oct. 3: Justin Verlander vs. TBA, 12...

The postseason is officially under way, and we've now reached October. And if what we're about to see over the next month in any way resembles the drama and excitement we witnessed last night during the American League wild card game, we'll be in good shape. The Royals pulled out a thriller over the A's last night, coming back from a four-run deficit in the late innings to tie the game in the bottom of the ninth, and then again coming from behind with two runs in the bottom of the 12th to...