In the fourth inning today, Detroit right-hander Justin Verlander threw a pitch behind Nelson Cruz. An inning later Cruz hit a three-run homer to cap off a five-run O's rally. What did Cruz think about the Verlander pitch that went behind him? "I cannot tell. I think he was dealing. I don't know if it was on purpose or not. Only he knows that. I think that got me going, woke me up," Cruz said. He felt that did fire up the Orioles, who had that big inning but still lost 7-5. "Yeah, kind...

Orioles manager Buck Showalter confronted plate umpire John Tumpane this afternoon after both teams received warnings following a Justin Verlander pitch that sailed behind Nelson Cruz in the bottom of the fourth inning. Bud Norris was ejected Friday night after hitting Tigers outfielder Torii Hunter. Verlander wasn't tossed today, and Showalter sought an explanation. "I'm just trying to figure out the consistency of it," he said after the Orioles lost 7-5 at Camden Yards. "You get one...

We've got a pitchers' duel in Arizona. After scoring a combined 15 runs in the last two games, the Nationals and Diamondbacks are scoreless through three innings. Doug Fister has thrown 52 pitches, allowing three hits and striking out four in three innings. Three of Fister's outs have come via the groundball, which is a good sign for the Nats' sinker ball pitcher. Fister's counterpart on the mound, Brandon McCarthy, has not allowed a hit and has struck out two through three. Update:...

It was Justin Verlander against Kevin Gausman, but this was no pitchers' duel. Detroit moved out to a 6-0 lead this afternoon and then held off the Orioles for a 7-5 win and sweep of this three-game series in front of 36,727 at Camden Yards. The Orioles have lost four in a row to fall to 20-18. They are 1-5 against the Tigers and 3-9 against the American League Central. Detroit scored two in the third and three in the fourth off Gausman to take a 5-0 lead, and added an unearned run in the...

Wednesday's starter Doug Fister would like nothing more than to put aside his season debut from last Friday in an 8-0 loss at Oakland. Manager Matt Williams believes Fister will have a better showing in today's start against Arizona. "I think he just needs to be down in the strike zone," Williams said. "I anticipate that today being on normal rest. We pushed him through an inning the last time out just to make sure his pitch count stayed up there and all of that worked the way we wanted it...

Tigers starter Justin Verlander threw a fastball behind Orioles designated hitter Nelson Cruz in the bottom of the fourth inning, an apparent retaliation for Monday night's bench-clearing incident. Plate umpire John Tumpane warned both dugouts, bringing manager Buck Showalter onto the field for a brief discussion. Showalter most likely wondered why Verlander wasn't tossed and why the Orioles were warned. Verlander bounced a curveball in the dirt and fired a 94 mph fastball behind Cruz, who...

Kevin Gausman wears glasses and the Orioles are peering into their future. What they've seen so far today has mostly been good, but they're playing from behind. Making his first start of 2014 for the Orioles, Gausman retired the first seven Tigers before Bryan Holaday reached on an infield hit and Danny Worth singled into right field in the third inning. Ian Kinsler also reached on an infield hit with two outs, his ball deflecting off Gausman's foot, and Miguel Cabrera singled to left field...

The Nationals are continuing their efforts to move their spring training headquarters to Palm Beach County, and they may not be the only team exiting Space Coast Stadium in Viera, Fla. The Single-A Brevard County Manatees, a Brewers affiliate that plays in the Florida State League are listening to a pitch from Winter Park, Fla., near Orlando, where a new $30 million stadium would be built on a site owned by Rollins College. News of the Manatees' proposed move came on the same day that...

PHOENIX - The Nationals will try to end their six-game road trip on a winning note. Ian Desmond will be batting cleanup while Nate McLouth will hit eighth and play left field in the series finale against the Diamondbacks. Doug Fister will make his second start of the season. For the Nationals: CF Denard Span 3B Anthony Rendon RF Jayson Werth SS Ian Desmond 2B Danny Espinosa 1B Tyler Moore C Jose Lobaton LF Nate McLouth RHP Doug Fister

A couple of hard-throwing right-handers match up today at Camden Yards - one an ace pitcher and one that hopes to be an ace one day. Justin Verlander (4-2, 2.67 ERA) pitches against the Orioles' Kevin Gausman (0-1, 2.08 ERA at Triple-A) here this afternoon. In six Triple-A starts for Norfolk, Gausman went 26 innings allowing 23 hits with 14 walks, 26 strikeouts and .242 batting average against. Over his last three Tides starts, he pitched 14 1/3 scoreless innings on nine hits with six walks...