Over the last couple of months, Drew Storen has either been really good or really bad. During a 17-appearance stretch, Storen didn't allow an earned run in 16 of those games. Now, in his last two appearances, Storen has surrendered a total of seven runs. Today, it was the Brewers putting up three runs on Storen in the seventh inning, turning a 5-2 Nationals lead into a 5-5 tie. Storen allowed a solo homer to Yuniesky Betancourt with one out in the seventh, and after striking out Norichika...

Checking in with a few notes and stats as the Orioles play the series finale this afternoon in Chicago: * Here is a good stat for the Orioles: They are 8-3 when they play the third game of a series after splitting the first two as they have in Chicago. They have won five in a row in such situations. They are 3-1 at home and 5-2 on the road when the third game decides the series. * Now here is a strange stat: The White Sox are 8-7 against the AL East and 25-41 vs. the rest of baseball. * The...

Davey Johnson was asked why he flipped Ian Desmond and Jayson Werth in the batting order today. "I don't know. Because I'm supposed to do something," Johnson joked. The man knows what he's doing. Desmond and Werth are a combined 3-for-3 with a walk and an RBI in their new spots in the lineup, and Werth's run-scoring single in the first gave the Nats a lead that has only grown since. The Nats have a 3-1 lead after three innings, with Adam LaRoche, Werth and Ryan Zimmerman each notching...

Orioles manager Buck Showalter is batting shortstop J.J. Hardy fifth and second baseman Brian Roberts sixth for today's series finale against the Chicago White Sox. Hardy has batted fifth in 31 career games, posting a .231/.274/.346 line. Roberts has appeared in the sixth slot in four previous games during his career, going 2-for-2. For the Orioles Nick Markakis RF Manny Machado 3B Adam Jones CF Chris Davis 1B J.J. Hardy SS Brian Roberts 2B Nate McLouth LF Nolan Reimold DH Taylor...

Happy Fourth of July from Nationals Park in Washington, D.C.! It wasn't always the case, but attending baseball games at Nats Park on Independence Day has become a tradition of mine. While I've lived in the District since 2005, I've been able to watch the Nationals as they've developed since their inception. It's been a staple of my summers. Just as being at Nats Park to watch baseball in the nation's capital on the day in which we celebrate our country's birth, heading down to the...

This week, the Baltimore Orioles got an early start on the trade deadline period and did not wait until late July to make a deal. Despite their 48-37 record as of this morning, the Orioles - as most know - have a need for starting pitching, like most teams. They rank 29th in the majors with a 4.41 ERA and obviously if the Orioles want to make a run for the postseason, the pitching situation must improve. The Orioles got some much-needed pitching help as they acquired right-hander Scott...

A sleep-deprived Davey Johnson is the best kind of Davey Johnson. Johnson was in rare form this morning when meeting with reporters before today's 11 a.m. game, ripping jokes - many of which were self-deprecating - and telling stories that even he admitted made him look a bit nuts. The ball got rolling when Johnson was asked why he decided to switch up his lineup by flipping Ian Desmond and Jayson Werth, putting the free-swinging Desmond in the No. 2 hole and Werth in the No. 6 spot. "I...

Catching a new pitcher for the first time might seem like a challenge. For Nationals catcher Wilson Ramos, who returned from the disabled list today to form a battery with rookie right-hander Taylor Jordan, the new alignment might help keep his mind off the left hamstring injury that kept him out of the lineup since May 15. "It was a long rehab for me. ... I'm excited to be back," Ramos said Thursday morning in the Nats clubhouse. "For me, I feel like I can help the team a little bit. I...

Wilson Ramos has been activated from the 15-day disabled list and will catch rookie Taylor Jordan for today's 11:05 a.m. finale of a four-game series against the Brewers at Nationals Park. Ramos has been out since May 15 with a left hamstring strain, an injury which has twice landed him on the DL this season. Today's lineup sees shortstop Ian Desmond move into the second spot in the order, with right fielder Jayson Werth dropped to the six-hole. The Nationals will don patriotic...

The Washington Nationals today returned from rehab and reinstated catcher Wilson Ramos from the 15-Day Disabled List and optioned catcher Jhonatan Solano to Syracuse of the Triple-A International League. Nationals Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations and General Manager Mike Rizzo made the announcement. Ramos, who missed the last 44 contests with a left hamstring strain, is batting .250 (12-for-48) with three doubles, two home runs, six RBI, four walks and four runs scored in 14...