To say that Steve Johnson has pitched well for the Orioles this year would be an understatement. He's done something even better than that. Today, he pitched the first five innings without allowing a run and wriggled out of a few jams as the Orioles beat Toronto 4-1 in Game 1 of a doubleheader. In Game 2, Wei-Yin Chen (12-9, 3.98 ERA) pitches against lefty Ricky Romero (8-14, 5.72 ERA). With the win, the Orioles have won seven of their last eight games and 33 of their last 47 contests. They...

The baseball gods might have known they gave the Brewers a break yesterday when the Nationals lost two fly balls in the sun, both of which turned into Milwaukee runs. Today, it was the Nats that got the benefit of a sun-aided hit, which came when Brewers center fielder Carlos Gomez lost track of a Jayson Werth fly ball in the fourth inning. Had Gomez made the catch, the inning would have ended. Instead, the Nats took advantage, scoring five runs from that play on before the fifth inning...

Yesterday's 6-2 Nationals loss was a bit of a sloppy affair. The Nats made a couple errors, lost a couple balls in the sun and struggled to do much of anything offensively against Brewers pitching. Flip that script and you'll get an idea how this afternoon's series finale between the Nats and Brewers played out. The Nats benefited from a fly ball which Brewers center fielder Carlos Gomez lost in the sun, extending an inning and allowing five additional runs to score. They watched Milwaukee...

With nine games remaining in the regular season, the Nationals would like nothing better than their starting rotation to get into a groove right before the postseason begins. No. 1 starter Gio Gonzalez continues to roll, earning win No. 20 Saturday in a 10-4 gem over the Brewers. Two days later, the No. 2 starter Jordan Zimmermann dispatched Milwaukee 12-2. On cue, Zimmermann went 6 2/3 innings on Monday, allowing four hits with just one run, a solo shot by Corey Hart, with just two walks...

Steve Johnson walked the first two batters he faced today, an ominous sign if you believe in such things. Johnson retired seven in a row after the second walk, a positive sign if you're more inclined to believe in those. In the first inning, Johnson struck out Edwin Encarnacion on a 91 mph fastball and retired Adam Lind on a ground ball and Rajai Davis on a pop up. He struck out Jeff Mathis on a 90 mph fastball to end the second inning and Anthony Gose on an 89 mph fastball to open the...

Since his callup to the major leagues on September 11, L.J. Hoes has not appeared in one game for the Orioles although tomorrow could be a very big day for him at Camden Yards, even if he doesn't play in the game. Hoes is considered the favorite to win the Brooks Robinson Award, which goes to the O's minor league Player of the Year. Between Double-A Bowie and Triple-A Norfolk this season, the 22-year-old Hoes batted .287 with five homers, 54 RBIs and an OPS of .759. His stats actually got...

The Orioles are pleased to announce St. Philip Neri School in Linthicum as the Grand Prize winner of the Orioles "Go Orange" challenge. The Orioles issued a challenge on September 12 to all elementary, middle and high schools in the state of Maryland to "Go Orange" and demonstrate their support for the Orioles. Schools were encouraged to decorate their classrooms, gymnasium and other indoor spaces; adorn the outside of their school or athletic fields with an Orioles look; or to involve...

The Nationals lost two fly balls in the sun yesterday afternoon, helping the Brewers pick up a 6-2 win at Nats Park. After the game, Bryce Harper said that the "sun monster" got the best of the Nats. Apparently, the sun monster doesn't discriminate, though. It's attacked the Brewers today. With the Nats leading 2-1 today with two outs in the fourth and runners at the corners, Jayson Werth lifted a lazy fly ball to center. Brewers center field Carlos Gomez had plenty of time to track the...

On Sunday afternoon at Fenway Park, Dylan Bundy threw seven pitches, getting two outs in his major league debut. On Sunday night, when the team arrived back home in Baltimore, he was still pretty excited about that debut and the two key outs he got for the Orioles in the last of the eighth inning. "I didn't go to bed last night until about 12 or 1, which is late for me," Bundy said today in the O's clubhouse. "It was an exciting day. Telling everybody in my hometown and my family about...

Orioles pitcher Randy Wolf began experiencing discomfort in his left elbow Saturday and is expected to receive a cortisone injection later today. Team orthopedist Dr. John Wilckens will exam Wolf's elbow while the Orioles prepare for their doubleheader against the Blue Jays at Camden Yards. The club is hoping that he will be available by Friday. "Dr. Wilckens has talked about injecting him, which would put him down for a couple days," said manager Buck Showalter. "He started feeling it in...