Less than an hour prior to first pitch, the Nationals have announced that Jayson Werth has been scratched from tonight's lineup due to right ankle soreness. With right-hander Ryan Vogelsong on the mound for the Giants, Roger Bernadina will slide into the starting lineup in left, with Bryce Harper playing center and Michael Morse sliding over from left field to right. This is the second day in a row that Werth will not start for the Nats. He entered yesterday's game as a pinch-hitter in the...

Goofy. Quirky. Superstitious. Those are some of the words that can be used to describe the Orioles' first-round draft pick, former LSU pitcher Kevin Gausman, who has pitched six shutout innings on one hit over two outings so far for short-season Single-A Aberdeen. Gausman doesn't seem eccentric or weird, he's just got some things he does that are a little different - from the ritual he uses to put on his socks when he pitches to eating donuts during games to what he does with his first...

The Nationals begin a three-game series with the San Francisco Giants tonight. Left-hander Gio Gonzalez will take the mound for the Nats and will be opposed by Giants right-hander Ryan Vogelsong. Jayson Werth is batting sixth and playing right field. Since being activated from the 15-day disabled list on August 2, Werth is batting .400 with five RBIs. For the Nats: 2B Steve Lombardozzi CF Bryce Harper 3B Ryan Zimmerman 1B Adam LaRoche LF Michael Morse RF Jayson Werth SS Danny Espinosa C...

When you have three legitimate aces on your team, it's easy to see how other hurlers can get overlooked. Jordan Zimmermann is having a career year, and is starting to turn heads nationally as a result. Gio Gonzalez's effectiveness on the mound and personality off of it have made him a media and fan favorite. Stephen Strasburg, well, I think I could move to the North Pole for the next few weeks and still find myself inundated with stories from national outlets debating the Nationals' plan...

Manny Machado's first taste of the majors keeps getting sweeter. Machado and Red Sox first baseman Adrian Gonzalez have been named the American League Co-Players of the Week for the period ending August 12th. Machado batted .375 (6-for-16) with a double, triple, three home runs, seven RBIs and five runs scored in four games after the Orioles selected his contract from Double-A Bowie on Thursday. He homered twice on Friday in his second game. Machado shares the record with at least one...

Three members of the short-season Single-A Aberdeen IronBirds will play in tomorrow's New York-Penn League All-Star game at Mahoning Valley in Niles, Ohio. All three were drafted this year from the college ranks. They are 10th-round pick Joel Hutter, Aberdeen's shortstop out of Dallas Baptist University; 18th-round pick Sam Kimmel, a catcher from Stetson; and 26th-round pick Lucas Herbst, a right fielder from Santa Clara. The 22-year-old Hutter is batting .306 with no homers, 23 RBIs and an...

Triple-A Norfolk infielder Blake Davis has been named the International League's Batter of the Week after he hit .565 with four RBIs, four runs scored and five multi-hit games. Davis collected 13 hits in 23 at-bats. He had four hits Friday night against Charlotte. Davis is batting .265/.313/.365 with 17 doubles, four triples, two homers and 32 RBIs in 93 games. Jason Hammel threw in the bullpen this morning at Camden Yards and the results remain encouraging. Hammel expects to take off a...

Right-hander Alex Meyer was bumped to high Single-A Potomac on July 20 and has become even more consistent than he was at low Single-A Hagerstown. On Sunday, Meyer went six innings again, striking out seven hitters, allowing one earned run with no walks. He threw 87 pitches, 56 for strikes, in a loss, but that was because the offense was unable to score a run. A team source reports Meyer has "good fastball command and is getting ahead of every hitter. The changeup is improving. His curveball...

A week in Ocean City, Md., does wonders for perspective. Yes, it's August and the Orioles remain in postseason contention. Hard to imagine, isn't it? But as I rode the Boardwalk tram last week, I was heartened by the amount of orange and black being worn from the Dunes Motel down to Trimper's Rides and Amusements. Seems the Orioles have replaced the Steelers as Ocean City's favorite team - really, shouldn't they always have been? - if the absence of those annoying Polamalu and...

Let's forget the final game in Phoenix, though the Nationals did not go easily in their only loss in nine games. Rather, it is easier to remember the loose and easy smiles all around the dugout and positive demeanor of the eight-game winning streak. What's not to like when you are 27 games over .500 with the best record in baseball? But in truth, there is a very serious confrontation under way. Like arm wrestlers locked into combat across a barroom table, the Nationals and the Braves are...