At a time when the Orioles are adding some promising pitchers during the First-Year Player Draft, today they put a hurler taken early in last year's draft on the disabled list. Pitcher Mike Wright, the Orioles' 2011 third-round pick who was just recently promoted to Double-A Bowie, today was placed on the DL, retroactive to Monday, due to a hamstring injury. The severity of the injury is not yet known, but Wright is expected to see Dr. John Wilckens, the Orioles' orthopedist. His last...

BOSTON - Another version of Family Ties is airing in the Orioles organization today. Earlier this afternoon, they selected Ryan Ripken, the son of Hall of Famer Cal Ripken in the 20th round of the First-Year Player Draft. And a few minutes ago, they used their 32nd-round pick on Midland (Tx.) College catcher William "Steel" Russell, the son of bench coach John Russell Steel Russell has been with the team for a few days and sat in the visiting clubhouse at Fenway Park when the Orioles...

BOSTON - Wilson Betemit is back in the Orioles' lineup tonight after being shelved with a fever and sore throat. Chris Davis is making his first appearance since June 2 in Tampa. For the Orioles: Endy Chavez RF J.J. Hardy SS Adam Jones CF Matt Wieters C Chris Davis DH Mark Reynolds 1B Wilson Betemit 3B Ryan Flaherty LF Robert Andino 2B Wei-Yin Chen LHP In the 31st round of the First-Year Player Draft, the Orioles selected pitcher Anthony Bazzani of Eastern Kentucky. In the 32nd...

Who would you rather face if you were the Nationals - Johan Santana, coming off a no-hitter his last time out, or Jeremy Hefner, making his third career start? Yeah, me too. Santana might have been a bit tired had he pitched tonight on normal rest, but if I'm Nats manager Davey Johnson, I'll take a matchup with an unproven hurler over one with a worn-down yet in-the-zone veteran any day. The Mets have opted to push Santana back to Friday to give him a chance to rest up from his lengthy...

BOSTON - In the 29th round of the First-Year Player Draft, the Orioles selected right-hander Jake Pinar of San Juan Hill (Calif.) High School. In the 30th round, they took center fielder Anthony Vega of Manhattan College in New York. Here's the Red Sox lineup: Mike Aviles SS Dustin Pedroia 2B Kevin Youkilis 1B David Ortiz DH Will Middlebrooks 3B Adrian Gonzalez RF Jarrod Saltalamacchia C Darnell McDonald LF Marlon Byrd CF Josh Beckett RHP Matt Wieters has eight hits in his last 16 at-bats...

You've certainly heard the saying, "The friendly confines of Fenway Park." Well, the Orioles are sure finding the place friendly this year. They are now 4-0 this season at the Fens and that is more wins at that ballpark than they have had in five of the last six entire seasons and keep in mind they play nine games a year there. The Orioles at Fenway Park the past six seasons: 2006: 1-8 2007: 3-6 2008: 2-7 2009: 1-8 2010: 4-5 2011: 3-6 The Orioles have won their last six games and seven of...

BOSTON - The Ripken name may be staying in the Orioles family. The Orioles just drafted Ryan Ripken - Cal Sr's grandson, Cal's son and Billy's nephew - in the 20th round of the First-Year Player Draft. Ripken, a left-handed-hitting first baseman at Gilman who also played basketball, has committed to the University of South Carolina. He received plenty of scholarship offers after batting .353 as a junior. This year, Ripken hit .377 with 25 RBIs at Gilman. Ripken, listed at 6 foot 6, 205...

BOSTON - It's Day 3 of the First-Year Player Drafts, and the picks are coming fast and furious. Teams don't need five minutes between selections. They don't stay on the clock for more than a few seconds. The Orioles used their 16th pick on pitcher Luc Rennie of Torrey Pines (Ca.) High School. Their 17th pick was used on pitcher Nick Grim of Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo. That's 12 pitchers chosen in the first 17 rounds. Rennie was 9-1 with a 0.89 ERA, 10 walks and 73 strikeouts in 70 2/3...

Groups are the backbone of baseball attendance numbers. It's a simple equation, really - a block of tickets sold to a group inevitably includes ducats in the hands of casual fans or people who have never been to a game before. They come to a game at a usually discounted price and hopefully like what they see and feel. Amid all the sodas and hot dogs, beer and peanuts, souvenirs and actual baseball action, maybe you entice them back again at full price. And maybe a non-fan or casual fan becomes...

The Nationals have spoken to a good amount of teams since the beginning of the season regarding left-hander John Lannan. General manager Mike Rizzo said their had been "mild interest" in early April. Now, Ken Rosenthal of FOXsports.com reports that the Colorado Rockies and Los Angeles Dodgers have had "recent discussions" with the Nationals about their former front line starter. It seems that the talks have yet to intensify, but with Lannan's latest impressive start Tuesday, and team's...