Ian Desmond is one of three Nationals to play in all 40 games so far this season. Unlike right fielder Jayson Werth (.304/.391/.453) and second/third baseman Anthony Rendon (.282/.312/.479), the other two Nats to play in all 40, the 28-year-old shortstop has struggled at the plate (.226/.275/.368), while committing a major league-leading 10 errors. With the primary backup at short, Danny Espinosa, pressed into everyday action with Ryan Zimmerman on the disabled list, Nats skipper Matt Williams...

The Orioles are in Kansas City, and while there are plenty of current storylines to consider, I can't help but think of Sam Horn. It happens to me whenever the O's play at Kaufman Stadium. Horn is one of my favorite former Orioles, and he simply had a way of producing against the Royals. Horn's O's debut came at Kansas City on April 9, 1990. He went 4-for-5 with a pair of three-run home runs, including one into the stadium fountain. His eighth-inning homer erased a 6-3 deficit in a game...

Manager: Terry Collins, fourth year Record: 19-21 Last 10 games: 4-6 Who to watch: 2B Daniel Murphy (.317/.364/.460, 16 XBH, 17 RBIs, 9 SB); 3B David Wright (.282/.326/.376, 2 HR, 25 RBIs); LHP Jon Niese (2-2, 2.17 ERA, 1.07 WHIP); RHP Bartolo Colon (2-5, 5.84 ERA) Season series vs. Nats: 0-3, 10 runs scored, 22 runs allowed Pitching probables May 16: Jon Niese vs. Tanner Roark, 7 p.m., MASN HD May 17: Bartolo Colon vs. Gio Gonzalez, 4 p.m., MASN HD May 18: Zack Wheeler vs. Jordan Zimmermann,...

It ain't easy being a late-inning reliever. Say you're Tyler Clippard. You blow a one-run lead in the eighth inning, everyone notices. Fans boo you, reporters are waiting for you at your locker after the game and you feel like you let your team down. If you're Tyler Clippard and you pitch a scoreless eighth, keeping a one-run eighth-inning lead intact, not nearly as many people take notice. That's your job, after all. Fans likely don't give you a standing ovation as you come off the mound,...

Reporters have come to expect it. During his pregame press conferences, Orioles manager Buck Showalter will often drift from the topic of his own team to mention something about the Orioles minor leagues. It happened again earlier this week. "They've really had some good pitching in Delmarva lately," Showalter said. "You know who's had a really good year down there? (Jimmy) Yacabonis. He's an interesting guy, leading that league in saves. Dean Albany, who has quite a good track record of...

The Orioles made another roster move yesterday, optioning Kevin Gausman to Triple-A Norfolk and recalling reliever Evan Meek. If you're catching a whiff of fumes, it's just the shuttle going back and forth again. The Orioles don't have a true long reliever again after optioning left-hander T.J. McFarland, but on any given night, manager Buck Showalter could call upon Meek or left-hander Troy Patton to go multiple innings. Maybe Tommy Hunter, as well, now that he's not closing. It might only...

Yordano Ventura was dominant at times tonight. He struck out six batters in a row at one point. But he also took a tough loss as the Orioles got some good pitching of their own in a 2-1 win over Kansas City in the opener of a four-game series. The drama of who would close the game in a save situation in the ninth was answered and it was Zach Britton. The lefty calmly got three ground ball outs on 12 pitches to record his first major league save. In the O's fourth, Ventura, who entered with a...

Orioles relievers Tommy Hunter and Brian Matusz warmed in the Orioles bullpen in the bottom of the eighth inning tonight as Ryan Webb recorded the last two outs to preserve a 2-1 lead. Webb struck out Salvador Perez, Hunter and Matusz sat down, and the intrigue built. Zach Britton began to warm as the Orioles batted in the top of the ninth, and he entered the game in search of his first career save. None in the minors, none in the majors. The leash on Hunter wasn't as long as the one attached...

Nick Markakis snapped an 0-for-14 skid tonight with a leadoff single in the first inning off Royals starter Yordano Ventura. Time to start another hitting streak. That's one in a row. Manny Machado also singled in the first. He was 5-for-31 in his last eight games before tonight's game. Adam Jones bounced into a double play to kill that rally. Through May 1, the Orioles were batting .315 with runners in scoring position. In the 13 games dating back to May 2, including Jones' at-bat...

As the Orioles face Kansas City for the next four games, they'll need more offense than they got in an earlier three-game series against this same team. The Orioles lost two of three to the Royals in April at Camden Yards. In that series, they were shutout once and scored six total runs on 20 hits. KC pitchers posted a 1.65 ERA in the series. The Orioles scored just seven runs in three games against Detroit and have scored just nine total the past four games. The Orioles have scored three...