Many around minor league baseball, and scouts I talk to, believe high Single-A Potomac Nationals shortstop Jason Martinson deserves to be playing in Double-A. This week he demonstrated he certainly deserves attention for his play at Potomac, earning Carolina League Player of the Week honors. Martinson started the season hitting .303 (10-for-33), with a .429 on-base percentage and a .788 slugging percentage through nine games. The 24-year-old Texas State product had a pair of doubles, one...

Davey Johnson is using this series against the Marlins as a chance to get his bench guys into the mix. After resting Adam LaRoche yesterday and starting Tyler Moore at first base, Johnson has opted to give Bryce Harper and Denard Span their first days off of the season tonight. Harper has struggled over the last few games, going 0-for-13. Moore will play left field tonight, while Roger Bernadina will get the start in center. With Span out, Jayson Werth will return to the leadoff spot in the...

Back home for just their fourth game at Camden Yards this season, the Orioles are using a pretty familiar lineup - the very same one they employed in each of their last two contests. Nate McLouth is in left and leading off for the third straight game. Nolan Reimold is at designated hitter and Ryan Flaherty is playing second. The rest of the usuals are in their normal spots for the series opener against the Rays. For the Orioles Nate McLouth LF Manny Machado 3B Nick Markakis RF Adam Jones...

We're only 13 games into the regular season, so we all need to be careful not to read too much into a starting pitcher's numbers just yet. Teams are not even three turns through the rotation at this point, after all. That said, we've seen some very encouraging signs from both Jordan Zimmermann and Ross Detwiler early in the 2013 campaign. Zimmermann made his third start of the season last night, throwing the first nine-inning complete game in his career, and now has three quality starts...

In recognition of the 66th anniversary of Jackie Robinson becoming the first African-American player in Major League Baseball, the Orioles will honor a Jackie Robinson Foundation scholar in a special pre-game ceremony before their game this evening against the Tampa Bay Rays. Brittany Thomas, a sophomore at Johns Hopkins University majoring in Public Health Studies and Global Environmental Change and Sustainability, will be presented with a #42 jersey by Orioles outfielder Adam Jones and will...

Teams are scrambling as a slew of big-name players wind up on the disabled list. The Blue Jays lost shortstop Jose Reyes with an injury to his left ankle, and the Dodgers will be without pitcher Zack Greinke because of a broken collarbone suffered in a fight with the Padres' Carlos Quentin. The Angels are without pitcher Jered Weaver because of a broken left elbow. The Nationals lost catcher Wilson Ramos. Oakland is without outfielder Yeonis Cespedes, and the Reds, after not having an injury...

Baseball has a way of evening out the numbers over time. For the past few seasons, Jordan Zimmermann has been known as a hard-luck pitcher, the kind who cannot buy a run when he needs it, whose run support every time he takes the mound seems to be wanting. Or at least that is the way it used to be. In 2011, he was the best pitcher in the Washington rotation with an ERA of 3.18, but he had a losing record, only eight wins against 11 defeats. His 2012 statistics suggest a pitcher who should...

After struggling as a starting pitcher last season, the Orioles moved Tommy Hunter to the bullpen where he proved to be a successful, power right-handed reliever. Hunter appeared in 13 games in relief in 2012, pitching 17 innings with a 3.71 ERA and impressive 4.00 K/BB ratio. He also showed the Orioles that, in small doses, he could crank up his velocity to triple digits. Hunter is back in the bullpen this season and he brought his velocity with him. In four appearances in 2013, he's peaked...

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...