The Washington Nationals reinstated right-handed pitcher Stephen Strasburg from the 15-Day Disabled List and optioned left-handed pitcher Xavier Cedeno to Syracuse of the Triple-A International League. Nationals Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations and General Manager Mike Rizzo made the announcement. Strasburg, who missed the last 12 games with a right latissimus dorsi strain, is 3-5 with a 2.54 ERA and 8.8 strikeouts per 9.0 innings in 12 starts this season with Washington. The...

Saturday's thrilling 7-6 comeback victory over the Indians reveals a lot about what this 2013 version of the Nationals are capable of. Ryan Zimmerman, Jayson Werth, Ian Desmond, Chad Tracy and Anthony Rendon all hit homers. All of them solo shots. That power is both a strength and a weakness. There have not been enough two-run or three-run homers this season as compared to last season. But it cannot be underreported that this team crushed five home runs Saturday. The three shots by...

Yesterday's game at Camden Yards ended with Alexi Casilla standing on third base with a confused look on his face, first base coach Wayne Kirby holding his arms in the air and Chris Dickerson standing in the on-deck circle. Dickerson was pinch-hitting for catcher Taylor Teagarden, except he never got to home plate. Manager Buck Showalter was willing to give up his designated hitter if the game went into extra innings. Matt Wieters most likely would have moved behind the plate. I doubt that...

Five solo homers. A blown 5-0 lead. Late-inning heroics. Impressive relief. If you were looking for some excitement Saturday night, Progressive Field in Cleveland might've been the place to be. The Nationals were able to overcome a rare poor start from Jordan Zimmermann and a big Indians comeback to win 7-6 for their third victory in four games. The Nats looked like they'd cruise to a win after jumping out to a 5-0 lead and chasing starter Scott Kazmir in the third behind homers from Ryan...

The most players the Orioles have ever had voted to start the All-Star Game is three and that has happened twice. Right now, four O's are leading at their positions to start the game July 16 at New York's Citi Field. Adam Jones is first and Nick Markakis third among outfielders, while Chris Davis leads all vote getters at first base and J.J. Hardy leads among shortstops. In 1971, the Orioles saw Boog Powell, Brooks Robinson and Frank Robinson voted in. In 1997, they had Roberto Alomar, Cal...

This one's starting to look a lot like Jordan Zimmermann's rough May 29 start in Baltimore. Given a 5-0 lead in the third, Zimmermann has let the Indians come all the way back to take a 6-5 advantage in the fifth. Cleveland scored once in the third, twice in the second and three times with two outs in the fifth. Nick Swisher slimmed the Nationals' lead to one with an RBI single before Michael Brantley's two-run double to center put the Indians on top. Zimmermann's line so far: 5 IP, 8...

Orioles manager Buck Showalter was going to speak with Alexi Casilla after meeting with reporters following today's 5-4 loss to the Red Sox. Casilla has some explaining to do after going from first to third on Ryan Flaherty's liner to right field and being doubled off to end the game. Showalter relayed the explanation from third base coach Bobby Dickerson. "Bobby, I think, talked to him. Said he thought the ball was a sure double, I believe, but I haven't talked to him yet," Showalter...

Alexi Casilla had been out with an injured finger and had not played in a game since last Sunday. He wasn't in this one too long today. Entering in the last of the ninth as a pinch runner, Casilla was doubled off first base on a Ryan Flaherty lineout to right to end today's game as the Orioles lost 5-4 to the Red Sox. He didn't lose track of the outs it turns out, but he clearly didn't track the ball too well. "Flaherty hit that ball very good," Casilla said. "He crushed that over my...

If the 84th All-Star Game were played tonight, the Orioles would have four starters in the American League lineup. Nick Markakis has moved into third place among AL outfielders with 1,463,392 votes. Teammate Adam Jones is first with 2,740,505 votes, followed by Mike Trout with 2,710,115. Chris Davis continues to lead all first basemen with 2,999,094 votes - the second-highest total in the league - to extend the margin over Prince Fielder (1,980,129), and J.J. Hardy leads shortstops with...

To set Jordan Zimmermann up with an early cushion, the middle of the Nationals' order dialed up the longball with two outs in the first. Ryan Zimmerman took Scott Kazmir deep before Jayson Werth made it back-to-back homers for a 2-0 Nationals lead. It was Zimmerman's eighth of the season and second in three games after an 11-game drought. Werth hit his sixth of the year. The Nats have hit back-to-back homers four times this year and now hit at least one longball in 79 consecutive series...