This was a bit of a strange ballgame from the get-go. We had a weird umpire ruling in the bottom of the first when Denard Span was called out for unintentional defensive interference and Anthony Rendon was allowed to take first base despite being thrown out on the play. We had two Nationals relievers get the laces dangling off the gloves trimmed by head trainer Lee Kuntz at the directive of the umpires. We had Stephen Strasburg striking out nine and walking just one, but still allowing seven...

Double-A Bowie was being no-hit for eight innings tonight by Altoona's Adrian Sampson before Mike Yastrzemski doubled with one out in the ninth - his fifth hit in two games with the Baysox. First baseman Christian Walker picked up his first Triple-A hit tonight in his second game with Norfolk. He drew three walks last night. Single-A Frederick's Parker Bridwell allowed one run and four hits in seven-plus innings. Hunter Harvey allowed one run and two hits in five innings for Single-A...

Right-hander Stephen Strasburg allowed a grand slam to Scooter Gennett and another home run to Khris Davis on June 25 in a 9-2 Brewers victory over the Nationals. Fast forward to July 18, Strasburg allowed early home runs to Gennett and Davis and the Brewers lead 2-0 over the Nationals after 1 1/2 innings. The Brewers can hit home runs. Six of their starting nine had nine or more home runs this season before first pitch. Now Gennett has eight. The Nationals got called for a peculiar out in...

The Nationals beat today's deadline to sign 2014 draft picks by coming to terms with their first-round pick, right-hander Erick Fedde out of UNLV. Fedde went 8-2 with a 1.76 ERA in 11 starts as a junior this season, but his year was cut short by Tommy John surgery. However, the Nats did miss out on two of their top-10 round picks, failing to agree to contracts with second-round left-hander Andrew Suarez and ninth-round first baseman Austin Byler. The silver lining is that Washington receives...

The Orioles open the second half of their season tonight with a familiar lineup. Once again, Steve Pearce is in left field and Nelson Cruz is the designated hitter. Caleb Joseph is behind the plate for starter Chris Tillman, and Jonathan Schoop is at second base. For the Orioles Nick Markakis RF Steve Pearce LF Adam Jones CF Nelson Cruz DH Chris Davis 1B J.J. Hardy SS Manny Machado 3B Caleb Joseph C Jonathan Schoop 2B Chris Tillman RHP For the Athletics Coco Crisp CF John Jaso DH Yoenis...

The Orioles announced today that they signed right-hander Brandon Koch, their 33rd-round selection in the 2014 First-Year Player Draft out of Temecula Valley (Calif.) High School. Koch had signed a national letter of intent to play for UC Riverside. Today was the deadline for signing picks. The Orioles continue to make changes to their minor league rosters, promoting reliever Jon Keller from low Single-A Delmarva to advanced Single-A Frederick. Keller, 21, was 3-0 with a 1.59 ERA in 24...

The Nationals announced today that the club agreed to terms with right-hander Erick Fedde, the No. 18 overall pick in the 2014 First-Year Player Draft. The 21-year-old Fedde is a 6-foot-4, 180-pound junior out of the University of Nevada-Las Vegas. He was the Mountain West pitcher of the year and underwent Tommy John surgery in early June. He went 8-2 with a 1.76 ERA (15 earned runs in 76 2/3 innings) and 82 strikeouts in 11 starts for the Rebels. UNLV baseball coach Tim Chambers told me...

Right-hander Jordan Zimmermann will start Tuesday night against the Colorado Rockies in Denver if everything goes well during his throwing this week. Zimmermann left last Friday's game at Philadelphia in the fourth inning with a right biceps cramp. An MRI revealed a biceps strain. He was not place on the disabled list. Zimmermann threw from 100 feet yesterday and will throw longer yardage today. Manager Matt Williams confirmed that Zimmermann is good to go and outlined this week's...

The Oakland A's have had a terrific first half. If their 59-36 record didn't tell you that, maybe their run differential will. Not only is Oakland's plus-145 run differential the best in the majors, the 2014 A's are one of five American League teams to have a run differential of plus-139 or better at the All-Star break since 1940. The Orioles are on this list twice. Plus-168: The 1969 Orioles Plus-157: The 1998 Yankees Plus-149: The 2001 Mariners Plus-145: The 2014 A's Plus-143: The 1966...

Right-hander Stephen Strasburg gets the nod tonight as the Nationals open a three-game series against the National League Central-leading Milwaukee Brewers. For the NationalsCF Denard Span 2B Anthony Rendon RF Jayson Werth 1B Adam LaRoche 3B Ryan Zimmerman LF Bryce Harper SS Ian Desmond C Wilson Ramos RHP Stephen Strasburg Note: The time for the Nats' game in Atlanta on Sunday, Aug. 10 has been changed. Originally scheduled for 1:35 p.m., the game will now be broadcast nationwide on "Sunday...