A lot had to happen last night before Manny Machado could stun about 30,000 Red Sox fans and delight who knows how many Orioles fans looking on from the homefront and places beyond. Chris Davis had to hit a massive center field homer. Ryan Flaherty had to get his first base hit of the year when he was down to his last strike on a 2-2 pitch. Nolan Reimold and Nate McLouth had to work walks and McLouth, especially, took a few close pitches to get on base. But after the tying run scored on a wild...

BOSTON - You see the way Tommy Hunter can overpower hitters. He replaces starter Jake Arrieta after the rain delay last night and immediately strikes out Mike Napoli and Will Middlebrooks. You see the way Hunter can frustrate himself and a fan base that no longer has Kevin Gregg to kick around. He pumps fastballs at Daniel Nava and Jarrod Saltalamacchia and watches the two players circle the bases, their back-to-back home runs giving the Red Sox a 5-3 lead. All of it happened in the same...

BOSTON - Orioles starter Jake Arrieta watched the ninth-inning rally tonight on one of the televisions in the visiting clubhouse at Fenway Park. "We were freaking out pretty good," he said. The Chris Davis leadoff homer. The two-out single by Ryan Flaherty. The back-to-back walks to Nolan Reimold and Nate McLouth. The wild pitch from Red Sox closer Joel Hanrahan that tied the game. The three-run homer by Manny Machado, his first of the season, that untied it. "It really didn't matter...

BOSTON - Orioles manager Buck Showalter spent about seven minutes with reporters following tonight's 8-5 victory over the Boston Red Sox. Here's a sampling: "Chris (Davis) gave us a little hope there, but our guys battled. A really nasty night to play. It's very easy to give in, but it was a battle and I'm real proud of them. Their bullpen is something. To be able to string together an inning like that... Jake (Arrieta) kept us in the game. A little frustrating for him. He had good stuff...

The umpires might have hit a traffic jam on their way to the stadium this afternoon, causing a 16-minute delay, but there are plenty of guys in the Nationals clubhouse who can relate. Ian Desmond is one of them. "I've got no problem with it. I've been stuck in traffic many a time here in D.C.," Desmond said. "I'm surprised they got here as fast as they did. It's always an adventure." White Sox starter Gavin Floyd had a bit of an adventure in the middle innings tonight. After putting...

Shortstop Ian Desmond rolled to another big day at the plate in Wednesday's 5-2 Nationals win over the White Sox. Desmond went 3-for-4 with two doubles and a triple, scoring two runs. On Tuesday, he also had a pair of hits, including his second homer of the season. He now has seven extra-base hits in eight games. Saturday was his first homer, which came after he had made two errors in a game the Nationals won 7-6 in 11 innings at Cincinnati. Desmond said he was itching for the opportunity...

Some starting pitchers map out their pregame routine so carefully that an unexpected 16-minute delay would totally throw them out of whack. Jordan Zimmermann is not one of those pitchers. Zimmermann needed to wait a bit longer than normal to throw his first pitch tonight because the umpires got stuck in traffic and were late to the stadium. There apparently was an immigration rally at the Capital today, which caused a massive backup, and the unsuspecting umps got caught up in it. The game...

The Nationals' Jordan Zimmermann put together another quality start Wednesday night. A delay because the umpires were stuck in traffic was no distraction for the right-hander. He went seven innings and allowed just two runs in a 5-2 victory over the White Sox. Did the delay at the start of the game shake his preparation? "I had plenty enough time," Zimmermann confirmed. "They let me know pretty early. They told me to be prepared to sit around a little bit." So what did Zimmermann...

Down to their last strike, the Orioles erupted for four of their five runs in the top of the ninth to storm back and beat Boston 8-5 in front of a stunned fan base at Fenway Park tonight. Joel Hanrahan came on in the ninth to protect a 5-3 Red Sox lead, but Chris Davis greeted him with a leadoff homer, his fifth, to pull the Orioles within one. After two outs were recorded, Ryan Flaherty singled to left for his first hit of the year, ending an 0-for-17 drought and Alexi Casilla came on to...

Backed by a strong seven innings of work by Jordan Zimmermann and three extra-base hits from Ian Desmond, the Nationals beat the White Sox 5-2 in front of 24,586 at Nats Park. The Nats' second win over Chicago in as many nights gives them the series win, and Dan Haren will take the mound tomorrow night as Washington will shoot for the sweep. Zimmermann allowed two runs and seven hits over seven tidy frames. He needed just 90 pitches to get his way through seven and surely could've gone...