SARASOTA, Fla. - Orioles manager Buck Showalter said outfielder Nolan Reimold will make the trip to Dunedin and will be in the starting lineup for Sunday's exhibition game against the Toronto Blue Jays. Reimold will face Blue Jays left-hander Mark Buehrle. Jair Jurrjens will start for the Orioles. First baseman Conor Jackson is taking batting practice today. Assuming that his lower back doesn't flare up, he also will make the trip to Dunedin and play against the Blue Jays. Danny Valencia,...

SARASOTA, Fla. - Brian Roberts is starting at second base and leading off today in the Orioles' exhibition opener against the Minnesota Twins. Nate McLouth is batting second, and J.J Hardy has dropped to seventh. Also, Nick Markakis is serving as the designated hitter - no health issues, just his choice - and Chris Dickerson is playing right field. For the Orioles: Brian Roberts 2B Nate McLouth LF Nick Markakis DH Adam Jones CF Matt Wieters C Chris Davis 1B J.J. Hardy SS Manny Machado...

VIERA, Fla. - The last couple weeks have been fun and all, with players reporting to camp, discussing their goals for the 2013 season and kicking off the start of spring training. But you can bet the guys in the Nationals clubhouse are glad the start of the Grapefruit League season is finally here, and frankly, so are the beat writers. There are only so many blog entries one can get out of watching players take part in baserunning drills or field comebackers. There are only so many times you...

SARASOTA, Fla. - Orioles manager Buck Showalter will post his lineup for today's exhibition opener against the Minnesota Twins after the media arrives at the Ed Smith Stadium complex. It's safe to assume that Nate McLouth will start in left field, since Showalter indicated that most of his "regulars" will play the first few innings, the Twins are starting right-hander Kevin Correia and Nolan Reimold is being eased into competition. The left-handed-hitting McLouth seems like a...

When it comes to baseball prospects, do you want quantity or quality? Do you want stars or depth? These questions were raised again this week when the Orioles had just two players ranked in the Baseball America top 100 prospects list, with Dylan Bundy at No. 2 and Kevin Gausman at No. 26. Of the American League East teams, Tampa Bay and Boston had five players in the top 100, New York had four and Toronto joined the Orioles with just two. But it's not just how many are ranked, but where...

VIERA, Fla. - The Nationals believe that the lingering tightness in the area between Christian Garcia's right wrist and forearm is due to a strain, but they are awaiting a second opinion on the right-hander's MRI results, which they hope will clear up what manager Davey Johnson has called "a strange injury." Garcia has been feeling tightness in his right arm for the last few days, but he doesn't notice any discomfort when throwing curveballs or changeups. The tightness is only present...

VIERA, Fla. - Right about now, Chris Young should be toeing a mound somewhere at the Nationals' spring facility, throwing a bullpen session in front of his new pitching coach, Steve McCatty, and other Nats staffers. Young got to the Nationals' complex this morning after signing a minor league deal with the team last night, and spent the early part of today going through various medical procedures. He was scheduled to throw at 2:30 p.m., after which the Nats will determine how to utilize the...

This week, the Nationals revealed their accelerated development roster. The intrasquad games with this roster begin around March 1. Some fans asked what is the accelerated development roster and what is its purpose? Nationals director of minor league operations Mark Scialabba says the development program has three main goals: 1. To place the Nationals' top prospects on one roster for focused one-on-one work with the coaching staff and instructors. The idea is to get the best together and...

SARASOTA, Fla. - Nick Markakis returned to the Orioles this morning after flying back to Baltimore on Wednesday to attend a funeral. Markakis underwent a test before leaving to determine the cause of his acid reflux symptoms - the same procedure given to third baseman Manny Machado and left-hander Zach Braddock. "I had the test done in 2005 and they just wanted to go in and do a checkup and make sure everything was OK," Markakis said. "I had a little reflux and everything turned out...

VIERA, Fla. - Gio Gonzalez has received word from the Major League Baseball Players Association that he has tested negative for performance-enhancing drugs. Two days after the Miami New Times listed Gonzalez among a group of players linked to Biogenesis, a Miami-area anti-aging clinic that was allegedly supplying performance-enhancing substances to players, Gonzalez had both his blood and urine tested by MLB. The Nationals left-hander, who finished third in the National League Cy Young...