VIERA, Fla. - While Bryce Harper's chances of making the Nationals' opening day roster have taken a hit as he's missed the last six days because of a left calf injury, general manager Mike Rizzo says that Harper still is in the mix for the team's starting right fielder job. "We haven't made any decision to the contrary," Rizzo said. "He's still in the picture, and we're still early in the decision-making process." Harper, the Nats' top prospect, has gone 5-for-11 (.455) in...

VIERA, Fla. - Teams around the majors have expressed interest in Nationals lefty John Lannan, but the Nats aren't anxious to move the 27-year-old starter, general manager Mike Rizzo said today. "I am not actively shopping him," Rizzo said. "I haven't actively shopped him all year, all winter." Rizzo wouldn't go as far as to say there's been "a lot" of interest in Lannan, but did say that teams in need of rotation help have inquired as to what it would take to land the lefty. "I...

SARASOTA, Fla. - A CT scan on catcher Taylor Teagarden's lower back revealed a slight tear in a ligament that supports a disk. Teagarden received an epidural this morning to reduce the inflammation. He'll mostly be shut down for a week, though he could begin hydrotherapy in three days. The recovery time for Teagarden's injury is roughly three weeks. Asked if Teagarden will be ready for opening day, manager Buck Showalter replied, "It could happen but I'd say it's in jeopardy." Ronny...

SARASOTA, Fla. - Managers always issue the same warning about not falling in love with spring training numbers, but it's pretty easy to crush on Jai Miller. Miller leads the Orioles with seven RBIs, two more than Rule 5 pick Ryan Flaherty. He's batting .333 and is one of only three players on the team with a home run (Chris Davis and Flaherty are the others.) "I definitely feel good," Miller said. "I've been having good ABs, been making good contact. It's just one of those things where...

SARASOTA, Fla. - If you want to see a reliever with a look of relief on his face, check out Willie Eyre today. Eyre was given quite a scare yesterday when informed that his 3-year-old daughter, Lily, had fallen into a hotel pool and was being rushed to a local hospital. Eyre was told during warmups to call his wife, and she gave him the news. "Everything kind of stopped for me. It was surreal," he said this morning. "I got to the hospital and, I won't say she was hysterical, but she was...

VIERA, Fla. - Manager Davey Johnson isn't ready to announce how his starting pitchers will line up for the first couple regular season series just yet, but that decision will come fairly soon. While we've now been through the Nationals' rotation twice, Johnson wants to see each starter go one more time and get up around that 75-pitch limit before he makes any decisions on how things will play out in early April. The two obvious candidates get the honors as the Nats' opening day starter...

SARASOTA, Fla. - Nick Markakis will make his spring debut today against the Pittsburgh Pirates, serving as the designated hitter and batting third. For the Orioles: Endy Chavez RF J.J. Hardy SS Nick Markakis DH Matt Wieters C Adam Jones CF Nick Johnson 1B Mark Reynolds 3B Nolan Reimold LF Robert Andino 2B Jake Arrieta RHP Jim Johnson, Willie Eyre, Luis Ayala and Kevin Gregg also are scheduled to pitch for the Orioles. Tsuyoshi Wada will throw a simulated game at 11:15 a.m.

VIERA, Fla. - Bryce Harper made it through today's workout without experiencing any issues with his ailing left calf, and the right fielder will return to the Nationals' lineup tomorrow evening against the Braves, as planned. Left fielder Michael Morse will not travel to Disney to face Atlanta after seeing action at DH the last two games. As reporters walked into the clubhouse following tonight's 6-3 Nats' loss to Detroit, the replay of the game was airing on MASN on the lone clubhouse...

The Orioles have the fourth pick in round one of the First-Year Player Draft in June after adding talents like Manny Machado and Dylan Bundy with their top picks the last two years. With another draft fast approaching, it's a good time to check in with Orioles first-year scouting director Gary Rajsich, who was hired by the club on Nov. 28. Rajsich was with Boston from 1994-2006, Texas from 2006-2009 and Toronto since late in the 2009 season as a professional cross-checker until joining the...

VIERA, Fla. - Edwin Jackson should have been out of the first inning having retired the side in order. Instead, he needed to face an extra hitter when left fielder Jason Michaels dropped a lazy fly ball, and Jackson followed by giving up a two-run homer to the next batter he faced. Jackson could've benefited from a double play on a sharply-hit ground ball hit up the middle in the fourth inning. Instead, shortstop Ian Desmond stumbled and only managed to get a force at second base by taping...