That lat strain that sent Stephen Strasburg to the disabled list seems a distant memory. Through three innings at Progressive Field, the Nationals right-hander has yet to allow a hit, walked two and struck out two in a scoreless tie. Strasburg has thrown 47 pitches, but has only 25 strikes - an unusually high rate of balls for the power pitcher. He's got five outs on ground balls. Now the Nationals have to generate some offense. They had Anthony Rendon on second in the first on a one-out...

As Jon Lester faces the Orioles at Camden Yards this afternoon, maybe his aura of invincibility against them is over. The Orioles pinned their first-ever loss on Lester the last time the Birds faced him on Sept. 21, when Lester went seven innings and gave up eight hits and four runs in a 4-2 Orioles win at Fenway Park. While Lester is 14-1 with an ERA of 2.63 in 21 career starts against Baltimore, he was 0-1 with an ERA of 4.26 in three starts last season. The Orioles were 3-0 in those games...

The way Nick Markakis explains it, he has a pretty good view to watch Manny Machado hit. He has watched other top hitters and had a good angle to see their swings from right field over the years. Now he bats behind Machado at times, where has a good view of the kid's work from the on-deck circle. "From right field I have a good view of a lot of right-handed hitter's swings," Markakis said. "I've always said Alex Rodriguez has one of the best swings, he and Manny Ramirez from what I see...

Orioles manager Buck Showalter is making contingency plans in case Jason Hammel can't start Monday night in Detroit. An announcement is expected following today's game against the Red Sox. Jake Arrieta is a possibility if he isn't used in relief today. Zach Britton, scratched from his start with Triple-A Norfolk, also is an option. T.J. McFarland isn't a consideration after he worked 3 2/3 innings yesterday. Hammel stayed home the past two days with a stomach virus and hasn't regained...

Orioles pitcher Jason Hammel returned to Camden Yards this morning after being away the last two days because of a stomach virus. Hammel said he's feeling better, but didn't know whether he'd make Monday night's start in Detroit. He didn't sound encouraged, and the Orioles are making other plans. Left-hander Zach Britton was scratched from today's start with Triple-A Norfolk. Chris Jones is taking Britton's turn in the Tides' rotation. The Orioles may be keeping Britton available to...

It's a Father's Day special at Progressive Field, as the Nationals seek their third straight series win. Last night, the Nationals come back to beat the Indians 7-6 on the first major league home run by Anthony Rendon. Sunday is special in many ways, but for the Nationals, the top return of Stephen Strasburg (3-5, 2.54 ERA) is at the top of the list. Xavier Cedeno was optioned to Triple-A Syracuse to make room on the 25-man roster. The Indians counter with Corey Kluber (4-4, 4.08 ERA) Here...

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...