Left-hander Sammy Solis demonstrated his ability to come through in a clutch situation again. After all, he started two championship round contests for high Single-A Potomac in September. So, this was old hat. Solis went five strong innings, scattering six hits, allowing one run on no walks with four strikeouts as Mesa downed Glendale 9-3 to advance to the AFL championship game on Saturday. Brian Goodwin went 1-for-4 with a double and a run scored. Adrian Nieto went 1-for-5. But the story...

In recent days, we've seen reports that the Orioles discussed a J.J. Hardy trade with the St. Louis Cardinals and that they are willing to discuss a deal for Matt Wieters. What is going on here? Aren't these two of their best players and players they should look to keep, not trade? As always, such reports bring an avalanche of reaction around Birdland. If nothing else, I guess it shows the fans are hungry to talk baseball and for some, the hot stove season is about as much fun as the...

Woke up this morning and realized we're fresh out of hour-long baseball awards shows. Went back to bed and pulled the covers over my head. Without checking, I'm pretty sure that I missed on only one prediction. I had Boston's John Farrell winning American League Manager of the Year, but he placed second to Cleveland's Terry Francona. As for the Orioles, I did a little research and came up with a few more things that they're "willing" to do: 1. Sell peanuts at Camden Yards 2. Mow the...

Had the Nationals put together a stronger season than they did, and had Jayson Werth not missed a month with a hamstring injury, the veteran outfielder might very well have played a major factor in the National League MVP voting. Instead, Werth finished 13th in the NL MVP vote, which was won by Pirates center fielder Andrew McCutchen. Werth received 20 points overall, and the highest he came in on any ballot was seventh. The Nats right fielder posted a strong .318/.398/.532 slash line with 25...

Orioles first baseman Chris Davis will have to be satisfied with his Silver Slugger Award and a hefty raise that's coming to him this winter. As expected, Tigers third baseman Miguel Cabrera won his second consecutive Most Valuable Player award in the American League. The announcement came tonight on MLB Network. The Angels' Mike Trout finished second in the BBWAA voting, and Davis placed third after receiving one first-place vote, four second, 11 third, 12 fourth, one fifth and one...

The Washington Nationals today requested release waivers on third baseman Mauro Gomez, who plans to play the 2014 season in Japan. Nationals President of Baseball Operations and General Manager Mike Rizzo made the announcement. Gomez, 29, briefly joined the Nationals organization, but never appeared in a game, after being claimed off waivers from the Blue Jays on September 5, 2013. Last season, Gomez hit 29 home runs for Buffalo of the International League to match Nationals infielder Zach...

The Nationals announced today that they have requested release waivers on corner infielder Mauro Gomez, who has told the team that he plans to play the 2014 season in Japan. Gomez, 29, never actually played a game in the Nationals' system. The Nats claimed him off waivers from the Blue Jays back on Sept. 5 of this year. Last season, Gomez hit 29 homers for Triple-A Buffalo, tying Nationals infielder Zach Walters for the home run lead among all Triple-A players. Gomez and Walters won't get...

The Washington Nationals Youth Baseball Academy is well under construction, with three baseball fields and an 18,000 square foot training facility nearing completion at Ward 7's Fort Dupont Park in Washington, D.C. Marla Lerner Tanenbaum, principal owner and chairperson of the Washington Nationals Dream Foundation, made the announcement from the construction site on Thursday. "Major League Baseball and the city decided that there was a need for a baseball academy of some sort in the...

The Orioles' director of player development has received a nice honor. Minor League Baseball today announced that it has selected Brian Graham as the winner of the sixth annual Sheldon "Chief" Bender Award, presented to an individual with distinguished service who has been instrumental in player development. Graham just completed his sixth season with the Orioles, his first in his current role and his 32nd in professional baseball. Prior to joining the Orioles, he spent six years as the...

While Jordan Zimmermann tied for the National League lead in wins this season and led the majors in ERA at one point about midway through the 2013 campaign, I guess he still has a little ways to go before he starts getting truly appreciated and known by those outside the D.C. area. For at least the first few hours after the NL Cy Young Award results had been posted on the Baseball Writers' Association of America Web site last night, Zimmermann's last name was spelled incorrectly. This...