The Orioles today announced that they have placed right-hander Steve Johnson (right lat strain), infielder Wilson Betemit (right knee ligament sprain) and left-hander Tsuyoshi Wada (left elbow surgery) on the disabled list. Wada is retroactive to March 22, Johnson is retroactive to March 23 and Betemit is retroactive to March 26. The Orioles had previously placed right-hander Chris Tillman on the disabled list with a left abdominal strain, retroactive to March 22. The club has selected the...

Prior to the Nationals' exhibition game against the Yankees on Friday, with spring training all but over, I asked Danny Espinosa when the last time was that his left-handed swing had felt as good as it currently does. "More than two years," Espinosa responded. "Since I've been in the big leagues. By far." When Dr. Lewis Yocum, perhaps the leader in treatment for shoulder and elbow injuries among athletes, told Espinosa this offseason that he felt the Nationals second baseman could rehab...

SARASOTA, Fla. - The Orioles will break camp today and head to St. Petersburg, boarding their bus for the hour-long ride to the team hotel. The only news, and I'm using the term loosely, will come when they officially place Tsuyoshi Wada, Wilson Betemit and Steve Johnson on the disabled list and get down to the required 25 players. "We're ready," said manager Buck Showalter. "I feel good about where we are." Brian Roberts, Nick Markakis and Nolan Reimold are healthy and on the 25-man...

The Orioles, like just about any team, have question marks. Can some of their starting pitchers repeat last year's success? Can Nolan Reimold and Brian Roberts stay healthy? There are others, but one area of the team that looks very strong again is the bullpen - and particularly the back end of the 'pen. The Orioles, on many nights, can send out Pedro Strop to pitch the seventh, Darren O'Day in the eighth and Jim Johnson in the ninth. And that is without even mentioning the lefty matchup...

The Orioles' four full-season minor league affiliates will open their seasons soon with Single-A Frederick starting next Friday and the other three clubs - at Triple-A Norfolk, Double-A Bowie and Single-A Delmarva - beginning new seasons on Thursday. Before the rosters officially come out, here are some guesses about some of the pitchers we could see in each rotation and some possible position player assignments. I've listed the 2012 draft picks by round. Norfolk: Dan Duquette confirmed...

The Orioles today announced that they have reassigned right-hander Jair Jurrjens, left-hander Mark Hendrickson and infielder/outfielder Conor Jackson to minor league camp. With these moves, the Orioles now have 28 active players, plus injured right-hander Chris Tillman, at major league spring training, including one non-roster invitee (infielder/outfielder Steve Pearce).

SARASOTA, Fla. - Orioles manager Buck Showalter has chosen Steve Pearce over Conor Jackson for the final roster spot. Pearce will accompany the team to St. Petersburg on Sunday. Jackson has been reassigned to minor league camp and will begin the 2013 season at Triple-A Norfolk, where he could play first base, left field and right field, and serve as the designated hitter. He also could be used at third base. "I don't want to use something as callous as a flip of the coin, but they're very...

With today's crowd of 7,642 for their Grapefruit League finale against the New York Mets at Ed Smith Stadium, the Orioles set a franchise record by drawing 120,455 fans for their 17 home games. The figure also represents a new spring training season attendance record for Sarasota, a community which has held spring training since 1924. The previous record for both the Orioles and Sarasota, set in 2011, was 115,506 in 16 home dates. On March 14, the Orioles drew an Ed Smith Stadium record...

SARASOTA, Fla. - Steve Pearce took another swing today at winning the last spot on the Orioles' 25-man roster. Pearce hit his seventh home run after striking out in his first two at-bats. He cleared the fence in left field to increase the Orioles' lead to 7-1. Pearce also has driven in 18 runs this spring. He's batting .340. Conor Jackson hasn't played today and we're in the top of the eighth. Miguel Gonzalez turned in his finest start, holding the Mets to one run and one hit over five...

SARASOTA, Fla. - Consecutive singles by Chris Davis, J.J. Hardy and Nolan Reimold with one out in the second inning gave the Orioles a 1-0 lead over the Mets in their final spring training game. Nate McLouth led off the bottom of the third inning with his third home run, the ball hitting the batter's eye in center field. Manny Machado doubled and later scored on Matt Wieters' single - the catcher's 15th RBI this spring. Orioles 3, Mets 0. Miguel Gonzalez is cruising. He retired the first...