Here are the latest updates on pitching prospects Sammy Solis (Tommy John) and Matt Purke (shoulder). Each are continuing to rehab in Florida and are making their mound progressions. These are rough estimates, but the Nationals are hoping for a mid-May return for Solis and a late May return for Purke. These estimates can change, depending on how both progress this month, but this gives us a general idea. There also was a good number of adjustments on every level because of injuries in the...

There's never a bad time for a 10-3 victory. Any team out there will take such a ballgame on opening day, in September, when it's hot, cold, or when that team is in the middle of a lengthy winning streak. But there's got to be something a little extra satisfying about bashing an opponent by seven runs after just coming off of a three-game sweep at the hands of a division rival. The Nationals went into Miami after a rough weekend series against the Braves, and they got back on track...

Buck Showalter often talks about playing the game 90 feet at a time. Try not to give up the extra base with mistakes in the field and advance runners and get that extra base when you can when batting. In one aspect of the game, the Orioles are doing very well at this early stage. They rank first in the American League in caught stealing percentage and the O's are second in stolen base percentage. AL leaders in caught stealing percentage as of Monday: .833 - Orioles (5-for-6) .500 - Texas...

The Orioles are preparing for only their fourth home game of the 2013 season. They can be excused if they accidentally head to the visiting clubhouse and wait to take batting practice after their opponent. The Tampa Bay Rays were able to fly out of Boston last night following the bombings that killed at least three people and injured several more, another senseless act of violence that peels away the layers of comfort and security in our daily lives. Rays manager Joe Maddon sent the following...

Six batters into tonight's game, Marlins starter Wade LeBlanc had yet to retire a Nationals hitter. Five hits - four singles and a double - and a walk led to four Nats runs, and just like that, Washington has a nice 4-0 lead after the top of the first inning. Nothing like a three-game set against the Marlins to get the Nats back on track after a rough sweep at the hands of the Braves over the weekend. Denard Span and Jayson Werth led off the ballgame with singles, and after a Bryce Harper...

I couldn't resist filing a blog entry today that didn't include a dateline. It's good to be home. Conor Jackson's contract has been placed on Triple-A Norfolk's restricted list pending receipt of a letter stating that the first baseman/outfielder desires to voluntarily retire, according to executive vice president Dan Duquette. Yesterday, Jackson informed Tides manager Ron Johnson of his decision to retire. Johnson texted Orioles manager Buck Showalter with the news. The Orioles...

The Nationals will look to snap their three-game losing streak tonight in Miami with the first of three games against the Marlins. They'll go into tonight's game without both Danny Espinosa and Adam LaRoche in their starting lineup. Espinosa was hit by a Paul Maholm pitch on the right wrist yesterday and needed to leave the Nationals' game against the Braves after four innings. X-rays on Espinosa's wrist were negative, but the second baseman said after the game that the wrist was sore and...

He has worked his way up and sometimes down on those top Orioles prospects lists. Back at Single-A Delmarva this season, 21-year-old right-hander Parker Bridwell hopes a cleaner, more consistent delivery will lead to better results. The Orioles drafted Bridwell out of Hereford (Texas) High School in the ninth round in 2010. He was ranked by Baseball America as the organization's 12th-best prospect after that season, was fourth after 2011 and rated 23rd after last year, when he went 5-9 with a...

The Nationals entered their weekend series with the Braves trailing Atlanta by a game in the division and feeling pretty good about themselves following a three-game sweep of the White Sox. The Nats leave their weekend series against the Braves suddenly trailing their division rivals by four games in the National League East after they were handed a spanking over the last three days. "I don't think they took us by surprise at all," Denard Span said. "We knew they were a good team coming...

It's hard to blame Nationals fans for feeling down after last weekend's three-game sweep at the hands of the Atlanta Braves. After a big buildup to a supposed early season showdown between the top teams in the National League East - if not the entire NL - the Nats fell flat. Almost every aspect of the game was a disappointment at some point in the series, from Ryan Zimmerman's crucial throwing errors in Friday and Saturday's losses to the bullpen on Friday to the starting pitching and...