Nationals outfield coordinator Tony Tarasco has worked with Bryce Harper from Day One on getting the No. 1 prospect to make a smooth transition from his early days in high school and college as a catcher to his time now as a professional outfielder. "His progress has taken huge leaps," Tarasco said. "It is pretty impressive considering that he has only played outfield for about a year and also considering that he is coming from behind the plate and going to the outfield. A lot of times you...

VIERA, Fla. - Chien-Ming Wang was grooving right along, pounding the strike zone and sitting down Yankees hitters. Then he went down himself. Wang had to leave today's game in the third inning after awkwardly landing around first base. The Nationals right-hander moved toward the first-base bag to pick up a chopper off the bat of Yankees catcher Russell Martin, and as he tried to tap the base, his leg buckled. The veteran hit the ground, landing on his shoulder, but it appeared to be his...

LAKELAND, Fla. - The Orioles have reduced their camp roster to 47 players by optioning pitcher Oliver Drake (Navy) to Double-A Bowie. Catcher Caleb Joseph has been informed that he'll be reassigned to minor league camp, but he's likely to stay with the team through the weekend. Drake and Joseph are here for today's game against the Detroit Tigers. The Orioles are keeping tabs on the catching situations in other camps, gauging who might become available, but manager Buck Showalter seems...

The Orioles today announced that they have optioned right-handed pitcher Oliver Drake to Double-A Bowie, bringing their spring roster to 47 players.

VIERA, Fla. - Davey Johnson would prefer that the Yankees weren't in town today. He has nothing against the Pinstripes, other than possibly from his time as a player and a manager with the Orioles, when he would battle with the Yanks a bunch of times each season. But Johnson's concern with Joe Girardi's bunch is that the logo on their helmets will cause his starter today, Chien-Ming Wang, to push things too hard against the team that he played for from 2005-2009. Wang is still in the...

VIERA, Fla. - The Yankees didn't exactly bring their A-team with them today. Brett Gardner, Russell Martin, Andruw Jones and Bill Hall are the only real recognizable names in New York's lineup, leaving Nationals manager Davey Johnson to wonder why Derek Jeter wasn't able to make the trip. "It would probably be just a half-hour trip in his jet," Johnson joked. Johnson offered a few injury updates during his pregame session with reporters, saying that left fielder Michael Morse still...

VIERA, Fla. - The Nationals host the Yankees today for a 1:05 p.m. game, and as promised, Bryce Harper is in the lineup, hitting seventh and playing right field. And please, no jokes about him secretly trying to slip on a Yankees uniform. Michael Morse is not in the Nats' lineup again today, but Roger Bernadina is back in there after being scratched from last night's game because of lightheadedness after having a tooth pulled. Bernadina will lead off and play left field. Here's the Nats'...

SARASOTA, Fla. - Catcher Taylor Teagarden received an epidural yesterday to alleviate the pain in his lower back after a CT scan revealed a slightly torn ligament that supports a disk. Now he must wait a few weeks and wonder whether he can be ready for the April 6 opener. "I'm not really sure what the timeframe is," he said. "It's not as serious, ... it could have been worse, but it's going to take a little more time to heal. I've just got to play each day by day and see how it...

SARASOTA, Fla. - The Orioles are headed to Lakeland today to play the Detroit Tigers, with left-hander Brian Matusz looking to build on his impressive outing against the Philadelphia Phillies. Ronny Paulino, suddently the favorite to be the backup catcher on opening day, gets his first start behind the plate. For the Orioles: Endy Chavez CF Nolan Reimold LF Nick Johnson DH Chris Davis 1B Wilson Betemit 3B Ronny Paulino C Ryan Flaherty SS Jai Miller RF Matt Antonelli 2B Brian Matusz...

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. - It's always nice watching a young player begin to grow in front of our eyes, to evolve from a guy getting by on talent to one who starts to really get it. We saw a bit of that with Stephen Strasburg tonight; but we didn't see it until the Nationals starter's jersey was off and he had large bags of ice taped to various parts of his right arm. Strasburg's line tonight wasn't pretty. He went four innings against the Braves, and allowed four runs on five hits with...