The Baltimore Orioles and Pittsburgh Pirates today joined Sarasota County and the Miracle League of Manasota in the dedication of the first Miracle League Field in the Sarasota-Bradenton area. As part of the partnership, which also includes dozens of private-sector supporters, the Pirates and Orioles donated a total of $150,000 towards the construction of the baseball field designed specifically for children and adults with special needs. The Miracle League of Manasota Field presented by the...

VIERA, Fla. - Ryan Zimmerman's representatives continue to discuss a contract extension with the Nationals even after a Saturday morning deadline for a resolution passed, and the third baseman said a no-trade clause is "the only thing" that stands between himself and a deal with the team. "Something creative to ensure me that I will be here, because that's the reason I'm signing the deal here," Zimmerman said Saturday afternoon after the Nationals had completed their first full-squad...

SARASOTA, Fla. - The Orioles will play intrasquad games on March 2 and 3, and they'll probably add at least one more before breaking camp. My guess is the off-day on March 19 will end up being a pretty busy day for the hard-working media. Same as last spring. The Orioles will take live batting practice Sunday, though it's mostly "tracking," with hitters instructed not to swing. You'll still get some guys hacking here and there, but it's more like pitching practice. The Orioles will use...

SARASOTA, Fla. - Orioles reliever Jason Berken received treatment on his sore left hamstring again today and didn't take the field with the rest of his teammates. Berken iced the back of his leg and also did some stretching exercises. "It's feeling better," he said. "It's improved from yesterday. That's a good thing. As far as a timetable goes, I can't tell you, but it feels like it's improved." Pitchers have returned to the clubhouse, but position players continue to take batting...

SARASOTA, Fla. - The Orioles will take the field at 10 a.m. for today's workout. No bullpen sessions are scheduled, just more pitchers fielding practice, pick-off drills and batting practice. Continue to breathe normally. Jim Johnson got his days mixed up. He's scheduled to throw off a full mound on Sunday, not today. I'm not sure what I'll do with my free time. Johnson (lower back) has progressed from flat ground to a half mound to a full mound. He still hasn't been told whether he's...

VIERA, Fla. - No one can say the Nationals aren't displaying a wicked sense of humor as full-squad workouts commence at Space Coast Stadium. Top prospect Bryce Harper arrived at the clubhouse Saturday morning to find he'd been a victim of a well-played prank. Instead of the nameplate above his locker stall reading, "Bryce Harper 34," as it did when he left after Friday's workouts, it read, "Joe Namath 12," with the appropriate Nationals curly W logo to the left and the Major League...

VIERA, Fla. - It's less than an hour before Ryan Zimmerman's self-imposed deadline to have a contract extension in place, and the Nationals third baseman sounds as if he's prepared to wait right until the team's first full-squad workout to see if a deal will be done. Asked after he arrived in the clubhouse at Space Coast Stadium at 8:10 a.m. Saturday if he had an update, Zimmerman shrugged and said, "Right down to the last minute, I guess." Otherwise, it was a pretty normal morning for...

Baseball America had Nationals Bryce Harper and Anthony Rendon ranked in the top 20 of their best 100 prospects list for 2012. Harper at No. 1 is pretty obvious, but executive editor Jim Callis believes Rendon probably deserves a top 10 ranking. "We have him No. 19 on our top 100, I think that is 10 spots too low," Callis said. "I am probably the biggest Rendon fan outside of the Nationals (front office)." Callis said Rendon may not hit as many home runs as Harper, but he still has the...

It sure sounds like Ryan Braun is losing in the court of public opinion. The Brewers' slugger and current National League MVP had his 50-game suspension for testing positive for elevated testosterone overturned and he spoke very passionately in presenting his defense publicly on Friday. Yet this is an era where we have come to expect anyone in the public eye that gets disgraced in some way to spin the matter to put themselves in the best possible light. It's a time where sports fans are...

SARASOTA, Fla. - Welcome to the spring training edition of "This, that and the other." It's pretty much the same as the Maryland edition, only with tan lines. Executive vice president Dan Duquette wouldn't comment yesterday on the club's level of interest in Cuban outfielder Jorge Soler. Fred Ferreira, the organization's executive director of international recruiting, flew to the Dominican Republic over the weekend to scout Soler and five other Cuban players. I guess that counts as...