Happy new year, baseball fans! I know 2014 technically started in January, so I guess I should be more specific. Happy baseball new year! The Nationals kicked off the 2014 season in dramatic, extra-inning fashion on Monday. With the excitement of opening day, you may have missed some stories about the team from other media outlets. * Back in 2012 the Nats were in the midst of a division race with the Atlanta Braves. In early September, the team decided to shutdown ace Stephen Strasburg because...

Fresh from a long offseason in which Orioles fans experienced a rollercoaster of emotions, the 2014 regular season has finally commenced. Lead by impressive performances from Nelson Cruz, Adam Jones and Zach Britton, it started on a positive note after a thrilling win against the American League East rival Boston Red Sox on Monday afternoon at Camden Yards. The season which awaits Orioles fans is set to be full of excitement - and hopefully a return to the playoffs. From a personal...

With the excitement of a successful opening day fresh in our minds, a common feeling across Birdland is that anything is possible from this point forward. This contrasts with the dread that was felt for much of the cold winter in Baltimore. Pieces finally fell into place in the guises of Ubaldo Jimenez and Nelson Cruz and spring training brought more hope as the club escaped without any significant injury and 22-year-old Jonathan Schoop emerged as the second-best hitting second baseman in...

With no game to obsess over today, we may as well look ahead to Ubaldo Jimenez's official debut with the Orioles on Wednesday night at Camden Yards. Jimenez made four appearances in Grapefruit League games while trying to get caught up to the other starters. He allowed nine runs and 15 hits in 15 1/3 innings, with six walks, eight strikeouts and a hit batter. He also consented to one interview with me for a feature story in the first edition of Orioles Magazine, which will be available at...

For a pair of Nationals pitching veterans, it was a season opener that would probably be better forgotten. Despite populating the win column, the performances of both Stephen Strasburg and Tyler Clippard, the anchors of the rotation and bullpen, respectively, left a lot to be desired. For Strasburg, the start of his 2014 regular season was a laborious one, highlighted by a 26-pitch first frame and a three-run homer by Mets outfielder Andrew Brown. Despite settling down as the game progressed,...

The major league Orioles began the 2014 regular season in Baltimore this week, following a spring training season that set a new, per-game average attendance record and celebrated the Sarasota area community with a series of game-day events to benefit local youth and non-profits. Although the major league team won't play games at Ed Smith Stadium again until 2015, the club will continue to maintain a year-round presence in the Suncoast community, including year-round athletic training through...

NEW YORK - Back in the early stages of 2012, the Nationals were excited about what Wilson Ramos might be able to do in his second full big league season. Ramos played in just 25 games that year before suffering a devastating knee injury that left him with a torn ACL and meniscus. Entering 2013, after months and months of tireless rehab, Ramos felt the knee was stable and strong, and said he was excited to get back on a big league diamond again. The promising young catcher played in just six...

It was not a start for Danny Espinosa, but his ninth-inning at-bat turned into a positive beginning for a veteran coming off a rough season. With the Nationals down 5-4, two out and Ian Desmond at first base, Espinosa strode to the plate to face Mets closer Bobby Parnell. Espinosa fought off several two-seam fastballs in an eight-pitch at-bat. "I am taking at-bats as they come. I got my name ... called," Espinosa said. "I was ready and I was prepared. I felt good going into that...

NEW YORK - Let's run through everything that happened yesterday at Citi Field, shall we? In Matt Williams' first game as a big league manager, he had his star left fielder, Bryce Harper, take a shin to the head in the second inning, leaving him lying flat on his back for a couple minutes as trainers tended to him. Williams had his cleanup hitter and catcher, Wilson Ramos, leave the game with a hand injury, the severity of which is not yet known. He saw his ace, Stephen Strasburg, give up...

The Orioles win their first game of the season and now they're off? Who planned this schedule? OK, it's pretty typical in the majors. I guess teams get exhausted after that first game. Or fans need 48 hours to find their way back to the ballpark. As I reflect on the 2-1 win on opening day, my thoughts keep returning to Ryan Flaherty's play at third base. He easily could be overshadowed, but he played a critical role in the outcome. Flaherty isn't Manny Machado. He isn't trying to be...