Right-hander Jason Hammel hasn't even been an Oriole for three months yet. But after coming to the club in the February trade of Jeremy Guthrie to Colorado, he is off to a great start with the Birds with a record of 3-0 and ERA of 1.73 over his first four starts. He currently ranks third in the American League in ERA. "It's been a lot of fun, that sums it all up. Just trying to get off to a good start," he said Sunday in the Orioles clubhouse. After going 7-13 with an ERA of 4.76 in 170...

Or will they find a worm? The Orioles are back on the road, with three games in New York and three in Boston over a seven-day period that will further test their resolve. And their rotation. And their lineup. And their bullpen. And their depth. Jason Hammel will have another chance tonight to silence his critics - the ones who thought he'd get eaten alive in the insatiable American League East. He's 3-0 with a 1.73 ERA in four outings. He's posted quality starts in three of them. Hammel...

Those kinds of catches must be second nature to Bryce Harper. But they are new to Nationals fans. Get used to it. The kid can make the spectacular seem routine. Showing no fear, the 19-year old went hard to his left toward the center field wall at Dodger Stadium after a shot off the bat of Juan Uribe on Sunday. Not breaking stride, Harper jumped into the padded concrete wall and caught the ball as the collision occurred. Falling onto his back it took a moment or two for Harper to get back...

Gio Gonzalez has now made five starts in his Nationals career. In that brief time, he already has set a Nats team record. Including his three scoreless innings starting today's ballgame, Gonzalez has now thrown 23 straight scoreless frames, the most in team history. It breaks the previous record of 21 consecutive scoreless innings, shared by John Lannan (2008) and Drew Storen (2011). Over the course of these 23 shutout innings, Gonzalez has allowed just seven hits and five walks, and if you...

Wilson Betemit's three-run walk-off homer may have touched off a wild scene on the field today as the Orioles came from behind in the ninth to beat Oakland 5-2, but minutes later the Orioles clubhouse was low key and business-like, even after they had completed a 5-1 homestand with a stirring win. Betemit was asked how he felt when he touched home plate with the first walk-off homer of his career and first by an Oriole since Nolan Reimold last Aug. 10 against Chicago. "Feeling nice. Great....

The Orioles are six games above .500 for the first time since July 20, 2005. That's impressive and depressing at the same time. Wilson Betemit gave the Orioles their first walk-off home run since Nolan Reimold on Aug. 10, 2011 against the White Sox. The Orioles have won 57 straight games when allowing two runs or fewer. Their last loss was Aug. 20, 2010, when Texas beat them 2-0. The Orioles improved to 5-6 when trailing after seven innings. Last year, they were 5-83 when behind after the...

What a way to end a homestand. Wilson Betemit's three-run homer to right center snapped a 2-2 tie and gave the Orioles a stunning 5-2 walk-off win over Oakland in front of 31,793 this afternoon at Camden Yards. Betemit's third homer of the year capped a five-run rally for the Orioles in the last of the ninth. They had been shutout on five hits by Oakland starter Bartolo Colon through eight innings this afternoon. The ninth started with the Orioles down 2-0, but J.J. Hardy came up with an...

It turns out Tyler Moore will start today, after all. The Nationals have made a few late changes to their starting lineup: Jayson Werth has been scratched, and with the right fielder out, manager Davey Johnson has decided to move Xavier Nady from left field over to right and insert Moore into the starting lineup in left. Danny Espinosa, originally scheduled to hit sixth, will now bat third today. Moore will make his major league debut just hours after arriving in Los Angeles. The 25-year-old...

Tommy Hunter took a four-hit shutout into the sixth inning today, one more hit than Oakland's Bartolo Colon allowed in his five scoreless frames. Hunter retired the first two batters on fly balls, but Josh Reddick continued to torture the Orioles with a single into left field, and Yoenis Cespedes smoked a line drive into the left field corner that gave him a double and the A's a 1-0 lead. Third baseman Wilson Betemit made a leaping attempt, but the ball barely cleared his glove. It probably...

The Orioles are trying to end a very good homestand, one that has featured some solid pitching, with more good pitching on a beautiful Sunday afternoon at Camden Yards. The Orioles and A's headed to the top of the fifth in a 0-0 game. Tommy Hunter, coming off an outing where he gave up just one run and three hits over six innings versus Toronto, held Oakland off the board on four singles through the first four innings this afternoon. Hunter entered this start with a career mark of 5-0 and...