It has been a rough start to the season for sinkerballer Taylor Jordan. An ERA a little under 5.00, a FIP a little under 4.00 and a hike in walks/nine innings (3.18 compared to 1.92 in 2013) all point to the 11-plus innings pitched so far not being kind to the young righty after an encouraging spring training that solidified his standing as the Nationals' No. 5 starter. While this tiny selection of numbers is troublesome, there is one other set of numbers that are more concerning for the...

Orioles left-hander Wei-Yin Chen picked up the win tonight after allowing one run over 6 1/3 innings. That's a quality start. That's also the result of pitching with a solid defense behind him, one that kept making plays and frustrating the Tampa Bay hitters. "I thought balls went right at some fielders," said manager Buck Showalter following a 7-1 victory over the Rays at Camden Yards. "We played real good defense. I didn't think he was particularly ... I thought they centered a lot of...

Last week, USA Today revisited Orioles first baseman Chris Davis' thoughts on whom he considers the true home run king. Davis said, "Bonds was a great player for a long time. But it's hard to say that Hank Aaron's record isn't the legitimate home run record because of all of the allegations, the accusations regarding Bonds." This sentiment is not an uncommon one on the field and in the stands. It is a perspective that speaks of what we want baseball to be, a display of pure ability and...

Wei-Yin Chen had been struggling to get outs and the Orioles had been struggling to score runs. But Chen had a strong outing and the Orioles came up with their second-highest run total of the season tonight in a 7-1 win over Tampa Bay in the opener of a three-game series. In the first three innings the Orioles scored six runs, one more than they had scored in three games over the weekend against Toronto. In those three at-bats, O's hitters went 9-for-18 with five doubles and 5-for-10 with...

Wei-Yin Chen retired 12 of the first 13 Tampa Bay batters tonight, the only baserunner coming on Desmond Jenning's walk with one out in the fourth. Too soon for players in the dugout to ignore him? Chen's flirtation with a no-hitter ended with one out in the fifth, when James Loney doubled to right-center field. Fans applauded Chen. It was fun while it lasted. Brandon Guyer reached on an infield hit, but Yunel Escobar grounded into a 4-6-3 double play to end the fifth and keep Chen's shutout...

Apparently, there's nothing like the Miami Marlins to bring a team out of its offensive woes. Going to the bottom of the third in Little Havana, the Nationals have a 5-1 lead, with right-hander Jordan Zimmermann on the mound. Zimmermann has given up a run on three hits and struck out three over two frames. In the first inning, it was Washington's extra-base power on display. Jayson Werth doubled off the top of the wall in left-center and then scored easily when Bryce Harper tripled. Tyler...

The Orioles made three nice defensive plays behind Wei-Yin Chen in the first inning tonight, beginning with third baseman Ryan Flaherty's clean pick of Ben Zobrist's scorching ground ball. Zobrist is now 10-for-24 lifetime against Chen, who could use some assistance from his defense. He also will take any clean inning that comes his way, considering his 1.969 WHIP and opponents' .412 average before tonight. The first six Rays have been retired tonight, and Chen has thrown 20 pitches. They...

Injured right-hander Doug Fister, who is on the 15-day disabled list with a right lat strain, threw a 50-pitch bullpen in Miami this afternoon. If he feels good tomorrow, the Nationals will work a simulated game into his upcoming rehabilitation schedule. "Fifty pitches, and he was a little winded, he told me afterward, but physically he was good," manager Matt Williams said. "Everything felt good. He's progressing. It's a very good sign for him to go through that today and have no...

The Orioles have lost three of four series this year. They'll try to turn that around starting tonight, but they will have to do it against a Tampa Bay team that they went just 6-13 against in 2013. Remember that four-game sweep the O's suffered late last season in St. Petersburg? It pretty much ended any of their playoff hopes. The Orioles lost 11 of the last 13 games between these two teams last season, and are 1-5 in thei last six home games against the Rays. Matt Wieters does enjoy...

It might have been a bit of a footnote in a game where the Orioles were blown out and Ubaldo Jimenez did not pitch well again Sunday, but Chris Davis did get into the homer column. Last season Davis hit nine homers in April on his way to 37 by the all-star break and to a club-record 53 for the season. The longest Davis went at any point last season without a home run was 10 games and this year his drought reached 11 games until he connected in the eighth inning Sunday. I asked Davis how he...