Seeing Tommy Hunter now thriving in a bullpen role, it is hard to remember he used to be a starting pitcher for this team. But he was in the club's season opening rotation last year and made a start as late as Aug. 22. But he went 3-0 with an ERA of 0.71 out of the bullpen last September and he has carried that success into this year. His latest impressive outing was last night. He gave up a run against the Angels, but he also struck out Albert Pujols with one out and the bases loaded and...

Remember back in early May when Orioles second baseman Alexi Casilla sat at his locker in the visiting clubhouse at Target Field and informed reporters that he was prepared to give up switch-hitting and concentrate on batting exclusively from the right side? Well, forget it. Casilla told me yesterday that he's decided to continue batting from both sides of the plate. The experiment is over. "I'm going to stay hitting from the left side, too. I'm going to keep switch-hitting," he said....

Orioles manager Buck Showalter offered praise for the Camden Yards grounds crew and the umpiring crew following tonight's soggy 4-3 victory over the Angels. The rain delay lasted 2 hours, 14 minutes. The game itself lasted 2 hours, 23 minutes. At one point, it seemed highly unlikely that it would resume in the bottom of the sixth as the rain came down in buckets and the field was under water. "What a job the grounds crew did. When they put the tarp out there, you wouldn't like the chances...

Tommy Hunter said it was simple. He issued what he called a couple of bad walks that put him in what he called a pretty sticky situation. But with the O's up 4-2, the bases loaded and one out in the seventh, he got Josh Hamilton to hit a ground ball, but Chris Davis threw late to second as a run scored to make it 4-3. The situation, as he said, was still pretty sticky as Hunter faced Albert Pujols with the bases still loaded. He got ahead 0-2 in the count and threw a high fastball right by...

As he is currently leading all American League outfielders in All-Star Game votes, one thing is for certain: Adam Jones is a tough competitor on the field. But what about off the field? Well, it's up to you to find out. MASN is giving Orioles fans the chance to meet Jones and compete head-to-head with the center fielder during the CareFirst BlueCross Blue Shield Adam Jones Fan Challenge. Maybe you want to challenge him to a bubble-blowing contest, a competitive eating contest or a game of...

Tommy Hunter is warming in the Orioles' bullpen and will replace Freddy Garcia in the seventh inning. Garcia is charged with two runs and six hits in six innings, with one walk, three strikeouts and two home runs. He threw 83 pitches, 52 for strikes. A scoring change resulted in an extra hit off Garcia. Credit Josh Hamilton with a single in the first inning and remove the error from shortstop J.J. Hardy. Garcia has turned in four quality starts out of his eight starts with the Orioles....

The high Single-A Potomac Nationals announced late Monday that left-hander Sammy Solis has been placed on the disabled list. Right-hander Brian Rauh was called up from low Single-A Hagerstown Suns to take the roster spot. Solis, ranked as the No. 8 Nationals prospect by Baseball America, has started four games this season for the P-Nats since his return from rehabbing Tommy John surgery: May 21, 27, June 1 and 6. He had been rehabbing for months at the Nationals' extended spring training...

The Nationals need their leader back. Injuries hit the Nationals pretty hard this season. Bryce Harper being out has made it difficult for the offense to look scary. Every opposing pitcher has to contend with how to pitch Harper or pitch around him. Several times when others were not rolling, Harper was the igniter for the offense. His homer when others can't even connect on a base hit made all the difference to altering the momentum of a game and giving the Nationals a chance. Stephen...

It was not exactly a routine win, and it ended a long time after it started, but the Orioles topped the Los Angeles Angels tonight, 4-3, to take the series and homestand opener at Camden Yards. The teams, and a some hearty fans, waited out a rain delay of two hours and 14 minutes in the last of the sixth, and the O's grounds crew got this field playable when at times that task looked almost impossible. For the fourth time in five starts, Freddy Garcia gave up two earned runs or less. He went...

Finally, the umpires have decided that conditions aren't conducive to playing baseball. Holding a swim meet, perhaps, but not playing baseball. Tonight's game was halted at 8:46 p.m., with two outs in the sixth inning and the Orioles leading 4-2. They picked the right time to rally. Nate McLouth bunted for a hit leading off the inning and stole second, the 22nd base he's swiped in 23 attempts this season and the 19th in a row. This is the first time, however, that he used the...