A departure from the press box after 2 a.m. sure doesn't lend itself well to early morning blog posts. But I figured I had plenty to discuss after last night's wackiness. Blake Treinen will make his first major league start tonight. Who will the 25-year-old oppose? Only the best pitcher on the planet in Clayton Kershaw. What type of lineup will Treinen face? One that features Adrian Gonzalez, Hanley Ramirez, Matt Kemp, Carl Crawford, Dee Gordon (don't scoff, he's hitting .342 and has stolen...

It was a game that officially took two hours and 59 minutes to play. But, in reality, it had another three hours and 17 minutes of a rain delay sandwiched inside the regular game. The Nationals ended up winning the opener against the Dodgers, 4-0. The pair of two-run shots by Anthony Rendon and Danny Espinosa were critical. Also crucial to the victory was the bullpen's ability to stay focused and hold the Dodgers scoreless for the final five innings of the game. Nationals reliever Aaron...

We have finally learned who will start Tuesday night (or, shall I say, later on today) for the Nationals. It'll be right-hander Blake Treinen, who will be called up from Triple-A Syracuse. Right-handed reliever Ryan Mattheus will be optioned to Syracuse to make room for Treinen on the roster, manager Matt Williams announced after tonight's 4-0 Nats win, which featured a 3-hour, 17-minute rain delay. This will be Treinen's first major league start. He made a brief stint with the Nats...

Nationals catcher Wilson Ramos caught nine innings of a rehab game for the Double-A Harrisburg Senators on Monday night in their 8-2 loss to Richmond. Ramos went 0-for-4 and grounded into a pair of double plays, but called 149 pitches from four Senator pitchers. On Sunday, he was the designated hitter for the Hagerstown Suns and hit a three-run homer. Ramos has been out since opening day with a left hamate fracture. He has had a few extended spring training games and now a pair of rehab games...

Does anyone sleep well the night before an early-morning flight? Show of hands. The Orioles begin a three-game series tonight against the Rays at Tropicana Field, and they're prepared to make another roster move. As I wrote yesterday, left-hander T.J. McFarland was scratched from his scheduled start with Triple-A Norfolk and likely will be recalled to aid a bullpen that's in danger of burning out from excessive use. He'd be the only true long man of the bunch. The rotation has produced only...

To say the least, Nelson Cruz is off to a very strong start at the plate. Where would the Orioles be without him? Fortunately, they don't have to answer that question. Cruz has hit three homers over his last six games and seven in his past 13 contests. Over his last 15 games, Cruz is batting .328 (20-for-61) with seven homers, 22 RBIs and eight multi-RBI games. Impressive, indeed. Cruz's start rivals what Chris Davis did at a similar stage last year. Here are the stats of both after 28...

In two starts against the Nationals last season, Dodgers starter Zack Greinke won both times and allowed a grand total of two earned runs. The Nationals managed to score two earned runs in their first inning against Greinke in 2014. After a double by Denard Span to lead off the bottom of the first, Anthony Rendon got a hold of a 1-2 offering from Greinke and deposited it into the red porch seats over the wall in left-center. It was Rendon's first ever hit against Greinke in three recorded...

Double-A Harrisburg left-hander Matt Purke has had a tough start to the season, but the Nationals have no immediate intention of removing him from the starting rotation, a team source told MASNSports.com. They also confirm Purke's shoulder is fine. Purke was a third-round 2011 selection for the Nationals who missed most of the 2012 season because of a shoulder injury. He had left shoulder surgery in August of that season and pitched in 18 games in 2013 between high Single-A Potomac and the...

Manager Matt Williams is excited at the prospect of getting three starters back by the end of the week. He got one back Monday. Nationals catcher Wilson Ramos (hand) started for Double-A Harrisburg on Monday night. Scott Hairston (oblique) was activated off the disabled list before Monday's opener against the Dodgers. Doug Fister (lat) is expected to make his Nationals debut Friday night at Oakland. But Williams would like it even more if no one else gets hurt for a little while. "We just...

The Dodgers come into town for a three-game series with the Nats, who are trying to take advantage of a struggling Braves squad which has dropped its last six games. The Nationals currently sit a half-game out of first in the National League East, and look to end a two-game skid of their own. For the Nationals: CF Denard Span 3B Anthony Rendon RF Jayson Werth 1B Adam LaRoche SS Ian Desmond 2B Danny Espinosa LF Nate McLouth C Sandy Leon P Jordan Zimmermann Dodgers star Yasiel Puig will miss...