Nationals right fielder Jayson Werth got a bigger test on his sore hamstring and appears to have passed. Playing for the high Single-A Potomac Nationals for the second straight night, Werth went 2-for-3 with two singles, one RBI and one run scored in a 7-3 win over the Salem Red Sox. Werth had to make a pair of catches on flyballs in right field and ran the bases two times on his base hits. His final at-bat came in the sixth inning. Manager Davey Johnson had said Thursday in Baltimore that...

While the Orioles continue to rank at or near the top in several offensive categories, they've totaled the third-fewest strikeouts in the majors. Why is this stat significant? Well, the Orioles ranked sixth in the majors last season with 1,315 strikeouts. So, you know, they're not doing it as much this year. Last year, the Orioles struck out 449 times in 1,829 at-bats in their first 53 games. This year, they struck out 337 times in 1,866 at-bats in their first 53 games. The San Francisco...

BALTIMORE - After a 2-0 loss to the Orioles,= in which his team managed just three hits and played some shaky defense, Nationals manager Davey Johnson didn't have a whole lot to say. Johnson wasn't by any means curt with reporters after tonight's game, but he was brief when discussing the latest frustrating loss shouldered by his team, which now owns a .500 record. How brief? Johnson's postgame press conference lasted just 84 seconds. "We got a bunt and a broken-bat hit and one hard...

BALTIMORE - Freddy Garcia outdueled Dan Haren on Thursday night, but not by much. Garcia used his split-finger fastball "60 percent of the time," shortstop Ian Desmond estimated, and the pitcher was on target in beating the Nationals 2-0. But Haren (4-6) hung in there against one of the hottest-hitting offenses in the majors, allowing just two runs and taking the hard-luck loss. "(Baltimore has) an exhausting lineup, one through nine, anybody can get you," Haren said. "I am glad I threw...

Freddy Garcia last tossed at least eight shutout innings on Sept. 19, 2006 for the Chicago White Sox at Detroit. Tonight he matched that, blanking the Nationals on three hits over eight in the Orioles' 2-0 win. So what was working for him tonight? "Everything, man," Garcia said after his 113-pitch outing. "Good to go out there and perform the way I did and throw a lot of strikes. Don't walk anybody, the guys were making good plays and we scored when we needed it. "They've been hitting...

Orioles manager Buck Showalter got eight scoreless innings out of Freddy Garcia tonight. He considered letting Garcia come back out for the ninth. "He's not going to sweat any more than he already is," Showalter said. "Man, he had a great lather going tonight. I think he changed shirts two or three times. He wears a 54 jersey. That's a big shirt, more room to sweat in." Well played. Jim Johnson retired all three batters he faced in the ninth to record his 17th save in the Orioles' 2-0...

One night after the Orioles and Nationals combined to hit eight homers at Camden Yards, Freddy Garcia and Dan Haren hooked up in a pitcher's duel. Garcia was outstanding, and a little bit better, pitching the Orioles to a 2-0 win. Garcia pitched eight innings of three-hit, shutout ball, allowing just three singles. He pitched out of a two on, none out jam in the top of the second and then retired 21 of the last 22 batters he faced. Jim Johnson pitched for the second night in a row and...

BALTIMORE - Through the first five innings of last night's ballgame, the Nationals had put up six runs and smacked eight hits. They'd slugged four home runs - three of which came off the bat of Ryan Zimmerman - and had a nice 6-2 lead. Through the first five innings tonight, the Nats have yet to score and they've managed just two hits off Orioles starter Freddy Garcia. Garcia has struck out five Nats hitters - including Zimmerman once - and the Orioles have a 1-0 lead. Over their last...

The Orioles wasted a prime scoring opportunity in the first inning tonight after Nate McLouth's leadoff double and Manny Machado's sacrifice bunt. The next two batters lined out, including Nick Markakis, who was denied by Nationals second baseman Danny Espinosa. Given another chance in the third inning, Markakis came through with a double off Nats starter Dan Haren that scored Ryan Flaherty and gave the Orioles a 1-0 lead. Markakis has 14 RBIs in his last 15 games, and 32 this season to tie...

As a team, the Orioles are leading the American League in runs scored (271), hits (515), doubles (118), home runs (75), slugging (.464), extra-base hits (197), stolen bases (41) and OPS (.796). The Birds are also second in average (.276) and stolen base percentage (83.7 percent). The Orioles are on pace to hit 230 homers, which would be second-most in franchise history behind the 1996 club that blasted 257 homers. They would score the fourth-most runs (828) in club history, behind the 949 in...