The latest ballot for baseball's Hall of Fame has been released, and it includes first-timers Mike Mussina, Armando Benitez and Mike Timlin. Other former Orioles include Rafael Palmeiro, Sammy Sosa, Curt Schilling and Lee Smith. Tim Raines appeared in four games with the Orioles in 2001, allowing him to play in the same outfield as son Tim Raines Jr. Eligible voters may choose up to 10 players, and 75 percent of the votes is the threshold necessary for induction in Cooperstown, N.Y. No...

One Direction announced today that the band will perform at Nationals Park - home of the Washington Nationals - on Monday, August 11, 2014 as part of the North American leg of their worldwide "Where We Are 2014" tour. Tickets and parking will go on sale to the general public on Saturday, December 7 at 10:00 a.m., online at www.tickets.com and by phone at 888.632.6287. Nationals Season Plan Holders will be able to participate in a special pre-sale to purchase tickets. An email notification...

In the spirit of Thanksgiving, which is by far my favorite holiday of the year and is now just a couple days away, I figured I'd start off a string of blog entries listing what various people affiliated with the Nationals have to be thankful for during this holiday season. These few days tend to be fairly quiet ones on the baseball calendar, as the closer we get to Thanksgiving, the more front office execs start to table trade negotiations or talks with agents until after the holiday has...

Wait, Jhonny Peralta won't be playing left field next year for the Orioles, but Nolan Reimold might? Plenty of fans have written Reimold off, and after seeing him play just 56 games the last two years, he's become somewhat of a forgotten man around here. But for a projected $1.2 million, the O's are taking a low-risk gamble that Reimold may be able to stay healthy next year. Dan Duquette said yesterday that Reimold will be tendered a contract by the club for 2014. I might be the last one...

During my second conversation yesterday with Orioles executive vice president Dan Duquette, I mentioned how fans are growing impatient with the lack of a big move. How they get the impression that nothing is happening in the warehouse beyond a few small signings and trades. How the offseason is moving along without the club. Duquette chuckled and said, "There's always things going on around the Orioles." We just aren't privy to every conversation. Trust me, I've tried to tap the phones...

Executive vice president Dan Duquette indicated today that the Orioles will tender a contract to outfielder Nolan Reimold. Reimold, 30, is rehabbing from a second surgery to fuse two vertebrae in his neck. He expressed optimism in his recovery during an interview last month with MASNsports.com, and Duquette seems convinced after checking with the Orioles' medical personnel. "He's coming along pretty well. He's ahead of where he was," Duquette said. "We'll see how it goes, but right...

Nationals vice president of player development Doug Harris recently returned from a trip to the team's baseball academy in the Dominican Republic. He again had positive things to say about the progress of the academy. Nationals fans will begin to see a steady influx of players from the Dominican in the next few seasons. Every one of them started at this academy. The academy is run by Fausto Severino, who is their academy administrator. Severino keeps the academy running on a daily basis, and...

The Washington Nationals today acquired outfielder John Wooten from the Oakland Athletics in exchange for left-handed pitcher Fernando Abad. Nationals President of Baseball Operations and General Manager Mike Rizzo made the announcement. A 6-foot-3, 190-pound right-handed hitter, Wooten spent the 2013 season playing primarily in right field for Single-A Beloit (Midwest League). There, he hit .257 with a .333 on-base percentage and a .430 slugging percentage, clubbing 20 home runs and 22...

The Nationals and Athletics have collaborated on a trade yet again. This time, the Nats are sending left-handed reliever Fernando Abad to Oakland for minor league outfielder John Wooten, a source confirms. MLB Network's Peter Gammons was first to report the trade. Abad was designated for assignment by the Nationals last week, giving the team 10 days to trade or release Abad, or assign him to the minor leagues if he cleared waivers. By sending Abad to the A's, the Nats got back Wooten, a...

We have another roster move. Try to keep up. The Orioles announced that they claimed switch-hitting infielder Cord Phelps off waivers from the Indians. Phelps, 26, appeared in 53 games for the Indians over the last three seasons, batting .159/.221/.248 (18-for-113) with two homers and 11 RBIs. He played second base, third base and shortstop. Phelps batted .267/.333/.443 (68-for-255) with nine homers and 46 RBIs in 65 games for Triple-A Columbus this year and went 0-for-9 in four games for...