Well, we have our World Series pairing. It'll be a rematch of the 2004 World Series, as the Cardinals will face the Red Sox, both of whom have advanced after winning their respective League Championship Series in six games. Two big swings propelled the Red Sox to their ALCS win - David Ortiz's grand slam into the bullpen in Game 2 and Shane Victorino's Green Monster grand slam last night in Game 6. Boston got average starting pitching, a mediocre offensive effort and tremendous work out...

By almost any measure, Hunter Harvey's first pro season was a rousing success. The 18-year-old right-hander, drafted with the 22nd pick in Round 1 by the Orioles in June, went 0-1 with a 1.78 ERA over eight starts between the Gulf Coast League and short-season Single-A Aberdeen. Today I'm beginning an offseason series of blogs where I provide information and opinions on an aspect of the Orioles minor leagues with a closer look at their 2013 top pick. If you count five no-hit innings Harvey...

I can't say whether Cal Ripken Jr. would make a great manager. Won't know until he gets the chance. But let's keep in mind that Mike Matheny didn't coach or manage at any level until taking over the Cardinals before the 2012 season. Now they're in the World Series. No knock on Matheny, but he doesn't know more about the game than Ripken. I can't sit here and measure which one is better at handling people. My point is that Ripken's lack of experience coaching and managing shouldn't...

The Nationals are already working their way through the first round of interviews for their vacant managerial position, having met with Diamondbacks third base coach Matt Williams and Padres executive Brad Ausmus, as well as Randy Knorr, who has served as Nats bench coach the last two seasons. But don't expect to hear any final word on who lands the Nats' managerial job until November. Things have ramped up a bit in general manager Mike Rizzo's search for a new manager, but according to...

Mike Griffin didn't know that Rick Adair wasn't returning as Orioles pitching coach until early Thursday morning. Now, he's waiting for a call that will enable him to interview for the vacant job. The Orioles will consider their in-house candidates, though they're expected to make a hire from outside the organization. "We have under consideration some internal candidates who we know," said executive vice president Dan Duquette. That list includes Griffin, Bill Castro, Scott McGregor...

The Boston Red Sox are one win away from the World Series. They host Detroit later today and have a 3-2 lead in the American League Championship Series. The Red Sox need five more wins to claim what would be their third World Series title in 10 years. So how would that sit with Orioles fans? Are more O's fans rooting against or for Boston? I would guess against by a large margin, there doesn't seem to be much love lost between Orioles and Red Sox fans. The Orioles are 24-13 against Boston...

It was an historic day in Arizona. Why you may ask? Well, it was the first time Mesa lost a game in the 2013 Arizona Fall League. Surprise defeated Mesa 11-9 with two runs in the ninth inning. But this was after a dramatic comeback by the Solar Sox fell just a bit short. Mesa rallied from 3-0 and 9-5 deficits to tie the game at 9-9 through eight innings. Surprise scored two runs in the ninth on a sac fly and a Tyler Naquin run-scoring single. Surprise pounded out 17 hits to go with the 11...

The Orioles have officially announced that Rick Adair will not return as pitching coach in 2014. They sent out a tweet a few minutes ago. Adair had one year left on his contract. The Orioles will begin interviewing candidates next week. They've scheduled a meeting on Tuesday with Phillies pitching coach Rich Dubee. Also, the Orioles are interested in Rangers bullpen coach Andy Hawkins, but they haven't set up an interview with him. They would need to receive permission from the...

Rick Adair offered further confirmation today that the Orioles will change pitching coaches in 2014. The club apparently won't make an announcement until a replacement is hired, which may not occur until the end of the month or beyond. Adair took a personal leave of absence on Aug. 15, in part to be with his terminally ill father, who passed away in September near Birmingham, Ala. He met twice with manager Buck Showalter after the season. "I feel good about it," Adair said. "There was a...

Like many of you, I watched Koji Uehara continue late last night to mow down hitters at an amazing rate in the late innings. Uehara, who has served as the Red Sox closer for the last five months, was called upon to record a five-out save in a one-run game in Game 5 of the American League Championship Series - by no means an easy task. He faced five batters and retired them all. This is nothing new for the Japanese right-hander, who started his major league career just up the road in...