As pumped up as Michael Morse was after his grand slam in the fourth inning tonight - and he was plenty pumped up - his teammates were just as animated. Guys gave him high fives, low fives, pats on the helmet. They pushed him out of the dugout for a curtain call, tossed bubble game at him and messed with his hair. You can tell this group is thrilled to see the guy that clubbed 31 homers last season back producing the way he did in 2011. "Morse is unbelievable," Ian Desmond said. "Last...

Michael Morse wasn't in the clubhouse postgame to talk about his monster grand slam which gave the Nationals a 4-2 lead in the fourth inning, but his manager talked about it for him. In Davey Johnson's mind, that grand slam was just another big moment in what's been a really hot stretch for Morse over the last couple weeks. "Michael Morse, he had a rough road to hoe, being out for a long time (with a strained lat) and then coming back, and just off this last homestand, I think it started...

Friday's start was certainly the measure of how far Ross Detwiler's career has advanced. In the past, two runs, three hits and 23 pitches in the first inning would have been the beginning of the end. In this game it was his sinker. It wasn't sinking. And that caused problems. But Detwiler was able to diagnose that the Mets were realizing they could get hits off his sinker. Without the sink, it was a very hittable pitch. So he went to his fastball more than usual, and tried to cut the zone...

Well, for a while it looked like the Orioles might pin a loss on Justin Verlander for the first time ever. In the end, they didn't pin a loss on anyone as the Detroit Tigers beat the Orioles 5-3 in Game 1 to start a big three-game series. The Orioles just could not handle the middle of the Tigers order tonight as Miguel Cabrera and Prince Fielder went a combined 4-for-6 with two walks, three homers and all five Tigers RBIs. Matt Wieters hit a two-run homer for the Orioles off Verlander in...

Johan Santana retired the first nine Nationals he faced tonight. He then gave up hits to the next four Nats hitters. The fourth left the ballpark, giving the Nationals their first grand slam of the season. Michael Morse crushed a 1-1 fastball over the scoreboard in right-center, turning a 2-0 Nats deficit into a 4-2 Nats lead and sending what looks like a nearly sold out crowd into a frenzy. It was Morse's third career grand slam, and he enjoyed every second of the experience. He gave...

J.J. Hardy has batted twice tonight against Tigers right-hander Justin Verlander. He's laid down two sacrifice bunts. Good execution. Bad idea? Neither bunt led to a run, though some of the blame lies at the feet of plate umpire Tim Timmons, who blew a call in the first inning. Nick Markakis clearly was safe, beating Prince Fielders' throw, but Timmons wouldn't remove the blindfold. Manager Buck Showalter didn't call for Markakis to bunt last night, and there's no way to know whether...

The Orioles sure missed some scoring chances in the first three innings tonight against Justin Verlander. The game was tied 1-1 heading to the bottom of the third but the O's left five runners on base over the first three innings. Nick Markakis doubled in the first but later was thrown out at home on a play where it looked like he was safe but the call was out at the plate. Chris Davis walked and stole second in the second, but was stranded there. In the third, the Orioles tied the game 1-1...

With all the injured guys the Nationals have had return to the lineup lately, Davey Johnson is getting a little greedy. "Where the heck is Willy Ramos? Let's get him up here, too," Johnson joked today. "Everybody seems to healing well. Might as well get him." Johnson won't get his top catcher back until spring training at the earliest, but he does have the seven position players in his lineup tonight all in there for the first time together this season. After a host of injuries...

For the first time in nearly a month, Ian Desmond finds his name back in the Nationals' lineup for tonight's game against the Mets. The Nats obviously would have preferred Desmond never landed on the DL with a torn left oblique, but given the 19-6 record they put up without him, Desmond joked that he wasn't missed too much. "They got better (without me)," the shortstop said. Regardless of how the Nats performed without Desmond in the lineup, they'll welcome their All-Star shortstop...

Manager Davey Johnson got a good report on rehabbing right-hander Chien-Ming Wang, who started Thursday for Double-A Harrisburg. Nursing hip soreness, Wang went 4 2/3 innings, allowed three hits, two runs, both earned, two walks and struck out three. It was the fewest number of earned runs he had allowed in four rehab starts since July 23. Wang was back in the clubhouse Friday and Johnson said the right-hander "said he felt pretty good." "The report I got on him yesterday was his delivery...