Manny Machado has made several big plays and delivered a few big hits since he joined the Orioles from Double-A Bowie. Tonight he produced one of his biggest when his solo homer to left led off the last of the seventh, broke a tie and carried the Orioles to a 4-3 win over Boston and back into a first-place tie with New York. "I was just looking for a fastball," Machado said of his at-bat versus Felix Doubront. "He threw me a two-seamer away, trying to get that corner. So far, that is the...

The Orioles' magic number for clinching a playoff berth is down to two. If they win tomorrow and the Angels lose one of their doubleheader games, the Orioles clinch. If the Orioles lose and the Angels are swept, they clinch. If the Dempsey's sign on the warehouse lights up in a certain inning... OK, not that one. The Orioles have scored 25 runs in their last three games, 21 coming via home runs. Chris Davis had a two-run shot, his 30th homer, and Manny Machado went deep in the seventh to...

The amazing emergence of catcher Kurt Suzuki has been another example of how general manager Mike Rizzo finds a way to make the right choice in a time of need for the Nationals. With a major injury to starter Wilson Ramos, Rizzo was looking for a veteran backstop who could handle a young pitching staff. He focused on Suzuki, who had hit well in his career and had done a good job over the years of throwing runners out, something the Nationals had struggled with in 2011. Suzuki was brought in...

ST. LOUIS - The Nationals will not clinch the National League East title tonight, regardless of what happens here at Busch Stadium. The Braves have just put the finishing touches on a 2-0 win over the Mets down in Atlanta, meaning that even with a win over the Cardinals tonight, the Nationals' magic number will only be cut to one. They'll have to wait until tomorrow, at the earliest, to wrap up the division title. The Mets threatened in the ninth against Braves closer Craig Kimbrel, but...

On the night they honored Brooks Robinson, the Orioles' 20-year-old third baseman, Manny Machado, started a nifty double play and drove in two runs as the Orioles beat Boston 4-3 to move into a first-place tie with the Yankees. The eighth sellout of the year of 46,311 roared its approval at Camden Yards. Both the Orioles and Yankees are 91-67 with four games to play. The Oakland A's won today and remain one game back of the Orioles for the AL's top wild card spot. The Orioles' magic...

ST. LOUIS - The Nationals lead 4-0 after the top of the first thanks to what is easily one of the strangest scenes I've ever witnessed on a baseball field. Up with the bases loaded and none out, Michael Morse went with a Kyle Lohse, first-pitch, two-seam fastball and drove it to right. The ball bounced off an advertisement banner just above the right field wall and kicked back on the field. The guys on the bases for the Nationals all seemed to think the ball was gone and Morse should have...

Brooks Robinson received plenty of loud ovations today during his statue unveiling and his on-field ceremony. The crowd really erupted when he said, "I don't like to call you fans, I like to call you friends." Among the players attending the statue unveiling were Adam Jones, Mark Reynolds, Jim Thome, Chris Davis and Ryan Flaherty. Robinson summoned manager Buck Showalter to come over and say hello before the ceremony started. Hall of Fame manager Earl Weaver had tears in his eyes as...

ST. LOUIS - It's not difficult to keep tabs on the out-of-town scores at here Busch Stadium. They've got an entire big screen dedicated strictly to what's going on around the rest of the majors, so the scores kind of jump out and smack you in the face. The Nationals will be glancing up at that scoreboard throughout the night tonight, keeping tabs on what's going on down in Atlanta. Should the Mets beat the Braves, and if the Nats win as well, Davey Johnson's team will get to break into...

In typical Brooks Robinson fashion, he spent most of a roughly 17-minute speech after the unveiling of his statue today, talking about others and thanking them, much more than himself or anything about his career. "You know Paul Blair, the last six or seven years we played together, he'd always say 'when is your next Brooks Robinson day?' This is it Paulie. You won't have to do that anymore. "I just want to say to all the fans here. I don't like to call you fans, I like to call you...

The Orioles have arranged for Jason Hammel to pitch four or five innings in a simulated game Monday morning at Ed Smith Stadium in Sarasota. He will face both left-handed and right-handed hitters. Hammel threw a sim game in the bullpen yesterday and said his knee felt good today. Steel Russell, son of Orioles bench coach John Russell, will catch Hammel on Monday. Pitching coach Rick Adair will attend the game, and manager Buck Showalter may join him. The Orioles won't know whether Hammel...