The weather has been remarkably cool and crisp for late July, as if a hand reached out and parted the humid air to allow fans a better ending to the last homestand of July. On Sunday, before the team went to Detroit, there were little kids running the bases. Surprisingly, there were Nationals running them as well, and with almost as much joy and abandon. It was a perfect day in D.C., almost too perfect, like one of those television shows that paints a Washington political scene so much more...

Is it possible that this weekend got the Nationals on track and can set them up for a final push for the postseason over the next two months? Maybe. Maybe, maybe, maybe. I'm done talking about momentum until the Nats prove they can carry it over a period longer than three days. They're on a three-game roll right now and have won four of five, but they haven't put together more than a four-game winning streak since early May. We've seen too many mini hot streaks followed by flat...

In desperate need of a break from all the non-waiver trade deadline chatter, speculation and conflicting reports, I set up a phone interview with pitcher Kevin Gausman, who is scheduled to make his next start Friday for Triple-A Norfolk. Gausman has made two starts for the Tides since being optioned, allowing six runs and 11 hits in 7 2/3 innings. He had been working in relief for the Orioles, so the first order of business upon his return to Norfolk was getting him stretched out. For...

The Orioles have made just 32 errors on the year over 106 games. At that pace, they will make 49 this year over the full season. The major league record for fewest errors is 65 by the 2003 Seattle Mariners. The major league record for single-season fielding percentage is .989 by the 2007 Colorado Rockies. The O's percentage right now is .992. No matter how you stack it, we are watching the defense that is likely the best in baseball every night. It might rank with the best in club history...

With less than 48 hours remaining before the non-waiver trade deadline, executive vice president Dan Duquette said the Orioles are "still looking around to see if we can add a piece here or there to help the team." The Orioles are still looking at "hitting and pitching options," Duquette said. "We're looking at both." Not much has changed since last year's non-waiver deadline. Duquette still feels good about the minor league depth, whether it enables him to make another deal or can...

Commentator and former Nationals general manager Jim Bowden tweeted on Sunday that the Nationals are looking for a left-handed bat off the bench, but that they wouldn't be spending too much or trading big prospect chips to acquire one. Nationals continue search for LH Bench Bat....not expected to make a major deal— JIM BOWDEN (@JimBowdenESPNxm) July 28, 2013 If the Nationals cannot find another left-handed bat for the bench, they do have outfielder Corey Brown available at Triple-A...

The good news: The Nationals have won four of their last five games. The bad news? They trail the Braves by 8 1/2 games heading into play this week. Some more good news: The Nats still have nine games head-to-head with Atlanta before the end of the season. By getting the deficit back under that nine games, the Nats still kind of control their destiny. It's a tough road, but it looks better than before the series with the Mets over the weekend, which started with the Mets clobbering the Nats...

Right-hander pitcher Mike Wright, the Orioles third-round pick out of East Carolina in 2011, has put together a very solid month of July at Double-A Bowie. Wright is 2-0 with a 2.12 ERA in five starts this month. Over 29 2/3 innings, he has walked just six and fanned 26. This followed a June where his ERA was 6.33 in four starts. In 20 starts on the season for the Baysox, Wright is 8-2 with an ERA of 3.57 and has fanned 101 over 108 2/3 innings. Also at Bowie, Eduardo Rodriguez allowed six...

So much for trading Chris Dickerson. The Orioles were unable to swing a deal involving the outfielder, and he will stay in the organization after clearing waivers and being outrighted to Triple-A Norfolk. Dickerson, 31, batted .245/.274/.412 with five doubles, four home runs and 13 RBIs in 46 games. The Orioles designated him for assignment to make room for Henry Urrutia on the 25- and 40-man rosters. Dickerson could have refused the assignment and become a free agent. However, he knows that...

This isn't a blog entry about a Nationals winning streak, the upcoming non-waiver trade deadline or Taylor Jordan's improved slider. Those entries can wait. This is a blog entry about a father-son relationship that was strengthened over the Nationals and a Craigslist post that touched a portion of the D.C. baseball community. Like in many parent-child relationships, Kent Wilson and his father Richard bonded over baseball. For years, dating back to 2005, when baseball returned to D.C. and...