This is the Aberdeen IronBirds' 12th year in the short-season Single-A New York-Penn League. With 16 games left in the regular season, Aberdeen is hoping for its first playoff berth. The IronBirds are 30-26 and lead their division by 1 1/2 games over Brooklyn and 4 1/2 over Hudson Valley. They host Hudson Valley tonight at Ripken Stadium as Hunter Harvey, the Orioles' 2013 first-round pick, makes his debut with Aberdeen. The IronBirds have won 10 of their last 15 games and manager Matt...

CHICAGO - As reported by FOXsports.com's Ken Rosenthal last night, just hours after the Nationals acquired David DeJesus in a trade with the Cubs, they placed him back on revokable trade waivers. In essence, that means DeJesus might not be around for all that long, after all. This is a strange bit of news, and I'm not entirely sure what to make of it, but there are a couple of theories here. First, it's possible that the Nationals simply made a mistake putting in a waiver claim on...

I talked to a few fans today while running errands, and they unanimously classified last night's loss as the most frustrating of the season. And it didn't include a blown save, which I thought was a prerequisite. Must have been all those wasted scoring opportunities. The four consecutive innings with a runner at third base and one out that didn't alter the score. The failings coming against a division rival that's trying to pull away in the wild card race. Going into tonight's slate of...

As an organization, the Washington Nationals have largely eschewed big international signings. Last week, they paid $900,000 for Anderson Franco and the front office has said it will be more aggressive in international markets moving forward. Prior forays have been disappointing at best. They got nothing except legal fees for the $1.4 million they paid to Dominican phenom Smiley Gonzalez in 2006. They tried again in 2009 when they landed Cuban emigre, Yunesky Maya, who commanded a four-year, $8...

The Nationals won't be moving their spring training headquarters to Kissimmee, Fla. Last night, Osceola County commissioners voted 4-1 against constructing a new complex and stadium for the Nationals, who want to move their Grapefruit League operations out of Viera, Fla. Those commissioners voting against the $98 million deal said that any potential benefits from the project were outweighed by the county's investment in it. Monday's vote followed last month's 3-2 rejection of the team's...

I'm sure you've heard people say "baseball is a funny game." It's typically the cliche saying that fans throw out when they can't explain the outcome of the three-hour sporting event they dedicate their life to over the course of 162 days between April and September. For me, that inexplicable nature is part of the reason I love this game so much. Though, I can certainly understand it driving some people absolutely bonkers. On Tuesday night, the Texas Rangers clobbered the Houston Astros...

CHICAGO - I failed to mention this here on the blog last night, but if you're able to stomach a depressing stat, I've got one for you. Last night's loss marked the 64th defeat for the Nationals this season. That evens their number of losses from all of 2012. In other words, in order for the Nats to match their record from last season, they'll need to go 38-0 the rest of the regular season. I'm no Major League Baseball scout. I'm no mathematician. Neither of those roles would suit me...

For the Orioles, what a difference a year makes in one-run games. From an amazing 29-9 mark last season to 14-22 this year. Last season, from June 1 through the end of the regular season, the Orioles went 21-4 in one-run games. That is a remarkably low total of four one-run losses in four months. In comparison, the Orioles lost four one-run games on their last road trip of eight games. They have now lost six consecutive one-run decisions and are 1-8 in their last nine one-run games. That is...

The Orioles completed the interleague portion of their schedule when the Rockies left town on Sunday, which didn't bring a tear to the eye of manager Buck Showalter. Showalter jokingly referred to the interleague matchups as exhibition games. The schedule has gotten a whole lot more serious. It's loaded with division opponents and teams outside of it that remain in playoff contention. The Orioles have two more games against Tampa Bay before Oakland comes to town, then they head to Boston...

CHICAGO - Jordan Zimmermann has had a couple solid starts since the All-Star break, throwing six scoreless against the Brewers and allowing just one run over seven innings against the Giants. Both those strong outings have been sandwiched by a number of poor starts, which are rare to see from a starter as consistent as Zimmermann. Tonight's five-inning, eight-run outing was the third time in seven starts since the break that Zimmermann has allowed five earned runs or more, and it was the...