ARLINGTON, Texas - Johan Santana is scheduled to throw five innings or 75 pitches Friday at extended spring training in Sarasota. The rest of Santana's schedule must be determined, but he could report to Triple-A Norfolk to begin a rehab assignment. Kevin Gausman worked one inning and threw 26 pitches tonight for Norfolk, allowing three runs and two hits, walking one, striking out two and serving up a home run. He was removed from the game in case the Orioles need him to start Saturday night...

The matchup between Stephen Strasburg and A.J. Burnett shaped up to be the best of this Phillies-Nats series, and through three frames, it hasn't disappointed. Strasburg and Burnett have matched zeros so far with both starters allowing two hits over three scoreless innings. Strasburg has struck four, walked none and thrown 42 pitches, 30 for strikes. Burnett has answered by striking out two, walking one and throwing 39 pitches, 24 for strikes. The Nationals put runners in scoring position...

ARLINGTON, Texas - Chris Tillman took his normal work day yesterday and is ready to pitch on regular rest Thursday night in the series finale against the Rangers. Tillman is taking Miguel Gonzalez's turn, leaving Saturday's starter a mystery. "This is normal rest and everything," Tillman said. "I was throwing as much in between if I was starting that day anyway." The Orioles are waiting on the results of Gonzalez's MRI, braced for the possibility that he's headed to the disabled list...

It's still too early for Matt Williams and the Nationals to have an accurate read on when Bryce Harper will be able to return from a torn ligament in his left thumb. But Williams does have a target date in mind. The Nats manager would like to see Harper back by July 1. "He's continuing to work with the therapist and do a little bit of strengthening, but he can't swing a bat yet, it's not time yet," Williams said. "He's itching, he's pacing. But that's one of those things where he's...

ARLINGTON, Texas - The Orioles rotation for their upcoming series with the Athletics still has not been set. Wei-Yin Chen is set to start on Friday and Ubaldo Jimenez on Sunday, but the starter for Saturday's game is still unknown. Chris Tillman was originally supposed to start Saturday, but his spot is now listed as TBA. Tillman's health is fine, but he has been moved to start Thursday on normal rest because Miguel Gonzalez woke up yesterday with pain in his right side. Gonzalez is...

The Orioles' offense is trending up, and has been the case even before they scored 17 games over the last two games. It started when the Orioles scored six runs May 18 at Kansas City. Over the next four games they scored nine, eight, seven and eight runs. The Orioles scored 55 runs over a nine-game streak that began with that game against the Royals. They then scored just nine runs in a four-game stretch that included back-to-back losses with one run each at Houston. But now the Orioles...

ARLINGTON, Texas - Nelson Cruz is serving as the Orioles' designated hitter again tonight against the Rangers. David Lough is in left field. Caleb Joseph gets another start behind the plate after going 2-for-4 with a tie-breaking double. For the Orioles Nick Markakis RF Manny Machado 3B Nelson Cruz DH Adam Jones CF Chris Davis 1B J.J. Hardy SS Jonathan Schoop 2B David Lough LF Caleb Joseph C Bud Norris RHP For the Rangers Shin-Soo Choo LF Luis Sardinas SS Mitch Moreland 1B Adrian Beltre...

Not a bad pitching matchup for us tonight here at Nationals Park, as Stephen Strasburg will oppose Phillies righty A.J. Burnett. Strasburg hasn't allowed an earned run in his last 21 innings against the Phillies. He went 2-0 with a 0.53 ERA in two home starts against the Phils last season. Ryan Zimmerman is making his second big league start in left field tonight and again hitting fifth. The Nationals' lineup from 1-8 looks exactly as it did yesterday. So does the Phillies', in fact. For...

Nationals left fielder Ryan Zimmerman caught two balls in his first game in the outfield Tuesday, a 7-0 win over the Phillies. The first game worked out the way manager Matt Williams might have drawn up. Zimmerman contributed two doubles and a RBI, raking the first hit of the game for the Nationals. Williams believes that Zimmerman will play hard in left field, will need to learn as he goes and will not limit his effort worrying about his thumb or shoulder. Williams has not told Zimmerman to...

For the second year in a row, the Orioles are again fielding two teams in the Dominican Summer League. Teams began play in that league on Saturday and the regular season will end on Aug. 23. The Orioles, Rangers, Yankees and Mets are the four other organizations fielding two DSL teams. The players on the teams are from eight different countries. They represent the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, Mexico, Colombia, Panama, Curacao, Guatemala, and the Netherlands. The DSL is a short-season...