Stephen Strasburg left little doubt that he still disagrees with the Nationals' decision to shut him down for the season. Regardless of whether the plan was accelerated - the Nats pulled the plug on his 2012 season Saturday, even though they had previously announced he would make his final start Wednesday at Citi Field against the Mets - or not, the idea of sitting while his team continues to play leaves a sour taste in the ace's mouth. "I don't know if I'm ever going to accept it, to be...

Right-hander Nathan Karns is most thankful to be able to complete a full season with the Nationals organization. Karns missed 2010 because of shoulder surgery and half of the 2011 season rehabbing from the surgery. Karns, who was honored Friday as the minor league Pitcher of the Year within the organization, said being healthy this season will really important to advancement of his career. "To have a full season and stay healthy was an accomplishment for me," Karns said. "I have to thank...

There won't be any talk of a perfect game for Joe Saunders tonight. Saunders retired the first 17 batters he faced in Monday's start in Toronto, but the Yankees took a 1-0 lead against him in the first inning. Derek Jeter continued his Saunders assault with a leadoff single, making him 9-for-20 lifetime against the veteran left-hander. Jeter moved to third on a one-out double by Mark Teixeira, who was activated from the disabled list earlier in the day, and scored on Alex Rodriguez's fly...

Considering all the success that CC Sabathia has had pitching against the Orioles in his career, they have done pretty well against the Yankees left-hander this year. Sabathia faces the Orioles for the third time in 2012 tonight. In each of the first two starts he went six innings and gave up eight hits and four runs. Both times. He is 0-1 with an ERA of 6.00 against the Orioles in those games. He is 16-3 with an ERA of 2.97 in 24 career starts vs. the O's. Buck Showalter is putting out a...

The Orioles have a few players with playoff experience on their current roster and reliever Darren O'Day is one of them. The 2010 Texas Rangers lost in the World Series and played 16 playoff games. O'Day pitched in 11 of them. He got to experience a playoff-like atmosphere here at Camden Yards on Thursday. His key out of Derek Jeter ended the top of eighth in a 6-6 tie before the Orioles scored four in the bottom half to make him the winning pitcher. "Thursday night's game was pretty...

Chris Tillman was scheduled to throw a bullpen session today, but the Orioles decided to wait another day or two. The delay is a precaution. Tillman says his elbow feels good and he's ready to throw off a mound, but the Orioles want to make certain that the inflammation is gone. "Probably going to slow down a little bit and make sure the anti-inflammatories, make full use of that," said manager Buck Showalter. "I think he's on his fifth day with them. He's done two things. He's played...

So much for the duplicate lineups we've been seeing around here. Robert Andino is batting second tonight against Yankees left-hander CC Sabathia. Steve Tolleson is serving as the designated hitter and Taylor Teagarden is behind the plate. For the Orioles: Nick Markakis RF Robert Andino 2B J.J. Hardy SS Adam Jones CF Mark Reynolds 1B Lew Ford LF Manny Machado 3B Steve Tolleson DH Taylor Teagarden C Joe Saunders LHP Andino is 8-for-20 with a double and home run lifetime against...

Oh, by the way, there's a game today, though it's been rendered somewhat secondary by this morning's news that the Nationals are shutting down Stephen Strasburg, effective immediately instead of after what was supposed to be his final start Wednesday at Citi Field against the Mets. Lefty Ross Detwiler is struggling early. He's getting squeezed by home plate umpire Todd Tichenor, has yielded home runs to Gorkys Hernandez and Giancarlo Stanton in the first inning, and trails 3-0 after three...

If you expected any sense of relief from Mike Rizzo that Stephen Strasburg's shutdown day had finally arrived - albeit five starts earlier than anticipated - think again. The Nationals general manager painted Saturday's announcement that his prized right-hander had thrown his last pitch with resolution rather than resignation. "Business as usual," Rizzo said at the end of a conversation with reporters following the news that Strasburg would not pitch again in 2012. "It's a plan we put...

Nationals manager Davey Johnson's announcement that Stephen Strasburg has thrown his final pitch in 2012 caught many off guard. Just last night, there seemed to be a glimmer of hope that his shortened outing against the Marlins might prod the Nationals to scrap plans for the right-hander's final start to be Sept. 12 at Citi Field versus the Mets. Instead, the Nats moved to distance themselves from the intense spotlight surrounding their unprecedented plan to shut down their ace in the...