JUPITER, Fla. – James Wood, a pleasant young man of few words, was surprised to see reporters waiting to speak to him after today’s game at Roger Dean Stadium, less than 24 hours after the same group interviewed him following the Nationals’ exhibition opener in West Palm Beach. Sorry, kid. But when you homer in each of your first two Grapefruit Lea
BRADENTON, Fla. – Cole Irvin’s first exhibition start today featured a significant increase in velocity and routine disposal of the six Pirates batters that he faced. Irvin struck out three, on a 95.3 mph sinker, 92.2 mph fastball and 88 mph cutter. His four-seamer touched 95. All five of his pitches showed an increase over the 2023 season. The cut
BRADENTON, Fla. – Second baseman Connor Norby downplayed the soreness in his left side that caused the Orioles to shut him down, and he planned on swinging a bat today to test it. Norby said he felt some discomfort four or five days ago and wanted to remain active, but the club obviously chose to be careful with him. “It’s not bad at all,” he said
JUPITER, Fla. – Trevor Williams faced live hitters Friday, same as other members of the Nationals pitching staff. He just happened to do it in San Diego instead of West Palm Beach, facing high school players instead of major leaguers, returning home afterward to be with his wife and his five children, the youngest of which was just born last week.
JUPITER, Fla. – The first game of the spring is always a big event, everyone excited to get started and watch real baseball. Now, though, the grind begins. The Nationals play their first road game this afternoon, making the short 15-minute drive north to Jupiter to face the Marlins. They’ll do so with a very different lineup from Saturday night’s o
SARASOTA, Fla. – Orioles closer Craig Kimbrel cut short yesterday’s live batting practice session by about five pitches due to some tightness in his lower body. He said this morning that he’s fine and is scheduled to pitch again on Monday. Kimbrel was facing James McCann when the discomfort became apparently. He threw one more pitch and a member of
They are three of the Orioles' longest-tenured players. They have been teammates for a long time and are three of the biggest contributors on the team. Again this year for the Orioles, a lot is expected from their starting outfield of left fielder Austin Hays, center fielder Cedric Mullins and right fielder Anthony Santander. With Santander a free
SARASOTA, Fla. – A finality of a two-run walk-off homer has to begin somewhere. For the Orioles in yesterday’s exhibition opener, Colton Cowser couldn’t send everybody home unless a batter ahead of him reached base. Errol Robinson, who’s going to be working out at Twin Lakes Park, dumped a single into left field and moved up on a wild pitch before
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Spring training results are a tricky thing to decipher. The final scores of games mean nothing. Individual performances can mean something, but you always have to include the context in which they were achieved. What, then, to take away from the Nationals’ spring training opener tonight, a 7-4 loss to the Astros that started
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – The Nationals have backed off Dylan Floro’s throwing program after he reported shoulder tightness earlier this week, though the veteran reliever insisted it’s nothing serious and he has continued to play catch each day. Floro, one of only three free agents to sign a major league deal with the Nats this winter, threw a live b