Steve Johnson tossed four innings today in an extended spring training game in Fort Myers, throwing 70 pitches and withstanding a line drive off his thigh. The Orioles will send Johnson on a rehab assignment, with the affiliate to be determined. He's finally getting out of Florida. Johnson will be a starter during his assignment. No relief work, though he came out of the bullpen today. There's a good chance that Johnson will join Triple-A Norfolk and make a start in Charlotte. Manager Buck...

Steve Pearce is serving as the Orioles' designated hitter tonight against Tampa Bay Rays left-hander David Price. Nolan Reimold is starting in left field. Matt Wieters, 9-for-29 (.310) with three doubles and a home run lifetime against Price, is behind the plate. For the Orioles Nick Markakis RF Manny Machado 3B Adam Jones CF Matt Wieters C Chris Davis 1B J.J. Hardy SS Steve Pearce DH Nolan Reimold LF Alexi Casilla 2B Miguel Gonzalez RHP For the Rays Desmond Jennings CF Kelly Johnson...

A good start for Harper. That is left-hander Bryan Harper, who is 1-0 with a 1.59 ERA in three games for low Single-A Hagerstown. From April 6-14, Harper pitched 5 2/3 innings, surrendering only one run on five hits with seven strikeouts and three walks. He is the only left-handed reliever in the 'pen for pitching coach Franklin Bravo's Suns. Update: Suns left-handers Brett Mooneyham and Harper have both been placed on the disabled list. Right-handers Cody Davis and Christopher McKenzie have...

There were a few moves in the Orioles minors today. Double-A Bowie reinstated lefty pitcher Rick Zagone off the disabled list and released the club's sixth-round pick from 2008 out of Missouri. The release of the 26-year-old Zagone is a bit surprising and perhaps an indication of the pitching depth at the higher level of the minors. He went 9-5 with an ERA of 3.41 in 28 games and 22 starts last season between Single-A Frederick, Bowie and Triple-A Norfolk. Zagone led O's minor league...

So let me get this straight: Bryce Harper missed Tuesday's game with flu-like symptoms and was still feeling ill on Wednesday, but talked his way into the Nationals' lineup anyway. Harper told reporters in Miami that he threw up during the second inning during last night's game and felt his head spinning at the plate. Then he goes out and smacks four hits, including a double, and drives in a run. This guy is something special, all right. And at this point, I truly don't understand any...

Last Friday night, I found myself surrounded by native Chicagoans and fellow D.C. transplants at a bar near Union Station when a group of Braves fans walked in. I hadn't been able to watch the Nats-Braves game that night and didn't check my iPhone for any scores, so I decided to do the easy thing and ask those Braves fans, "Who won the game?" They cheerfully obliged my question by saying, "The Braves," with a smile on their faces. My group grabbed a table by a few folks donning Nationals...

Orioles manager Buck Showalter hinted at tonight's lineup while meeting with reporters yesterday in the auxiliary clubhouse at Camden Yards. Nolan Reimold is expected to start in left field against Tampa Bay Rays ace David Price. Steve Pearce is expected to serve as the designated hitter. Showalter is trying to squeeze some production out of the DH slot, and he's giving Pearce another turn. It's a tall order. The club's designated hitters are a combined 3-for-47 after Reimold struck...

The Orioles' first home series of the season, a three-game set against Minnesota, drew a total attendance of 121,788. The last two games against Tampa Bay have drawn a total of 27,182 fans. Frankly, I thought we'd see a little better attendance than that. The club is playing a division rival and the weather has been good. But then I remembered the deal. It's a weeknight home game in April. They usually are pretty poorly attended and so these two games have fit the bill. Will the...

For the second straight night in this series, an O's starting pitcher failed to get one out in the sixth inning. Tonight, Chris Tillman gave up six hits and four runs over five innings as Tampa Bay beat the Orioles 6-2. "It's disappointing," Tillman said of not getting deeper in the game. "I have some things to work on right now and the biggest thing is strike one. Maybe five or six guys tonight, I was able to get strike one. "It's huge, we need to start giving the bullpen a break....

The Orioles' No. 6 through No. 9 hitters in the lineup went 1-for-14 last night and 1-for-14 tonight. There's good consistency and bad consistency. There's also the postgame media session with manager Buck Showalter, who addressed his starters going five innings in back-to-back outings. "The off day and some of the good starts, we were in a position the last two days to cover it," Showalter said following tonight's 6-2 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays. "Mac (T.J. McFarland) gave us some...