A pair of the top pitching prospects in the Nationals organization are hoping to make a nice jump this season. Left-handers Sammy Solis and Matt Purke have had a similar track recently as they return from injury to pitch well. Solis returned to pitch early in the season for High Single-A Potomac. He pitched in some crucial elimination games for the P-Nats and for the Mesa Solar Sox in the Arizona Fall League with success. "Both pitchers are very important to the organization," said...

I've never been anywhere close to what you would consider a morning person, but I snapped out of bed at 4:45 this morning, terrified that despite spending a couple of hours packing for spring training yesterday, I had forgotten something crucial to my trip. The time last season that I took a cab all the way to the airport for a flight to Atlanta only to realize I'd left my entire laptop bag back at home seems to have left lingering traumatic effects. I'm off to Florida today, taking an 8...

Korean pitcher Suk-min Yoon tweeted a photo of himself tonight wearing an Orioles cap. Is he trying to tell us something? No one from the Korean media has reported an agreement between Yoon and the Orioles, and I haven't received confirmation from anyone in the organization. Three prominent members are unaware of any agreement. A tweet from @MyKBO explained that the caption with the photo basically translated to "ta-da." Have we reached a point where news is broke via selfies? The...

One more day before pitchers and catchers report to spring training and the Orioles still haven't found that elusive veteran starter. The targeted trio remains unsigned - A.J. Burnett, Ervin Santana and Ubaldo Jimenez. For that matter, so do outfielder Nelson Cruz, designated hitter/first baseman Kendrys Morales and infielder Stephen Drew. Anyone surprised that they're still on the market on Feb. 12? Think the draft compensation is an issue here? Burnett doesn't require a draft pick,...

We've seen pitchers go from the bullpen to the starting rotation. We've seen pitchers go from the rotation to the 'pen. Can a pitcher go from starting to relief and back to the rotation? Brian Matusz is going to try to pull that off and his quest begins this week on the sunny fields of Florida. The Orioles are going to take a look at Matusz as a possible starter this spring and this might be his last chance to show the club he deserves a rotation shot. It wasn't that long ago that Matusz...

The Orioles maintain interest in veteran utility player Emilio Bonifacio, but not at his current price. Bonifacio becomes a free agent at 2 p.m. Wednesday if he clears waivers, and teams seem reluctant to pick up his $3.5 million contract. The Orioles won't touch it, according to sources, but he's long been a favorite of manager Buck Showalter and there's definite interest in him. The Yankees are among the other teams with interest in Bonifacio, 28, a switch-hitter who batted a combined...

There are so many reasons why I love sports. Growing up, playing sports was such an amazing experience, teaching me the meaning of teamwork and bringing me so many friends. Then, as I grew out of playing sports every day, I realized how strong of an impact watching sports can have on a person's life. While athletes' drive, determination and talent are inspirational on their own, often the most uplifting stories come from off the field. From personal experience and from my time around...

There are so many reasons why I love sports. Growing up, playing sports was such an amazing experience, teaching me the meaning of teamwork and bringing me so many friends. Then, as I grew out of playing sports every day, I realized how strong of an impact watching sports can have on a person's life. While athletes' drive, determination and talent are inspirational on their own, often the most uplifting stories come from off the field. From personal experience and from my time around...

"Tomorrow! Tomorrow! I love you tomorrow!" Excuse my willingness to quote the musical "Annie," but baseball will be back tomorrow. Nationals pitchers and catchers are set to report to spring training tomorrow. Baseball is back. Here are a few stories involving the Nationals over the last few days. * USA TODAY's Paul White wrote an in-depth feature on how new technological analytics have changed the relationship between managers and general managers. Because of the new analytics,...

As we in Baltimore are preparing for yet another snow storm, I have some news that could warm your heart. Four words: Pitchers and catchers report. That's right, ladies and gentleman, baseball will officially be back in our lives tomorrow. In case you missed what others have said about the Birds nationally over the last week: * For The Win's Ted Berg gives fans five things to watch at Orioles spring training. The top thing, to no surprise, is third baseman Manny Machado's progress back...