The Orioles selected two players in the minor league phase of today's Rule 5 Draft; left-handed pitcher Andrew Loomis of the Phillies organization in the Triple-A portion of the draft and infielder Matt Sweeney of the Rays organization in the Double-A portion of the draft. Loomis, 26, is 10-10 with a 3.34 ERA (197.0 IP, 73 ER) in 133 career games in four minor league seasons. A 16th round selection by the Florida Marlins in the 2008 First Year Player Draft out of Purdue, Loomis went 1-2 with...

The Orioles today announced that they have acquired left-handed pitcher Dana Eveland from the Los Angeles Dodgers in exchange for minor leaguers left-handed pitcher Jarret Martin and outfielder Tyler Henson. To make room for Eveland on the 40-man roster, right-handed pitcher Willie Eyre has been designated for assignment. Eveland, 28, is 19-24 with a 5.52 ERA (360.1IP, 221 ER) in seven big league seasons with Milwaukee, Arizona, Oakland, Toronto, Pittsburgh and the Dodgers after being selected...

DALLAS - News that the Nippon-Ham Fighters have decided to post prize pitcher Yu Darvish created a frenzy of activity at the Hilton Anatole on the final day of baseball's Winter Meetings. Japanese media members swarmed team executives who have expressed an interest in Darvish, trying to establish an early field of teams who will enter the process to bid for the right to try an negotiate a contract with the 25-year-old, a two-time Pacific League Most Valuable Player. The Nationals have...

DALLAS - The Orioles completed their first trade of the Winter Meetings today, acquiring left-hander Dana Eveland from the Los Angeles Dodgers for minor league pitcher Jarret Martin and outfielder Tyler Henson. The Orioles designated reliever Willie Eyre for assignment to make room for Eveland on the 40-man roster. Eyre was a non-tender candidate. Eveland was 12-8 with a 4.38 ERA in 25 games at Triple-A Albuquerque this year. He made five starts with the Dodgers, going 3-2 with a 3.03...

The Orioles today announced that they have selected infielder Ryan Flaherty of the Chicago Cubs organization in the Rule 5 Draft. Flaherty, 25, is a career .278/.346/.462 hitter in four seasons in the Cubs' organization after being selected out of Vanderbilt by Chicago with the 41st overall pick in the 2008 First Year Player Draft. He batted .280/.347/.478 with 53 extra-base hits and 88 RBI in 132 games for Double-A Tennessee (83) and Triple-A Iowa (49) in 2011. "Ryan is a high draft pick...

DALLAS - The Rule 5 draft is over, but the Orioles remain open for business. The club is expected to announce details of a trade within the next hour. And that's all the information I've got at the moment. Otherwise, I'd be more expansive. Also, we're still waiting to learn the identity of the player to be named later in the Taylor Teagarden trade. I've mentioned twice that infielder Greg Miclat's name came up before the deal was completed, and it wouldn't be a big surprise if he...

DALLAS - Here is what Orioles executive vice president Dan Duquette said about infielder Ryan Flaherty, the player the Orioles selected from the Cubs organization today with the fourth pick in the Rule 5 draft: "He's got a good bat. He can play third base and second base. He's a left-handed hitter and he has some power. He was a high draft pick (41st overall in 2008) which identifies his value and skills. He comes from a really top quality program, Vanderbilt," Duquette said. "We like...

DALLAS - The Winter Meetings at the Hilton Anatole will be remembered for the free-spending Miami Marlins and the Albert Pujols contract, but there was plenty of other baseball talk: * After coming within a strike twice of winning the World Series, Texas manager Ron Washington likely will never hear the end of the second-guessing. It came up again in Dallas, when Washington was asked whether right fielder Nelson Cruz was playing too shallow when St. Louis' David Freese's two-out, two-strike...

DALLAS - The Nationals didn't make a pick in the major league portion of the Rule 5 draft Thursday morning, but they lost two players from their Triple-A Syracuse roster. With the 22nd pick, the Cardinals selected outfielder Erik Komatsu, who was acquired from the Brewers in the trade for Jerry Hairston Jr. Komatsu hit .277 with seven homers and 48 RBIs between Double-A Huntsville and Harrisburg in 2011. "We were prepared for the possibility that he would be (picked)," Nationals general...

DALLAS - As expected, the Orioles made a selection today in the Rule 5 draft. But it wasn't a pitcher. Picking fourth, the Orioles took infielder Ryan Flaherty, 25, from the Chicago Cubs' Triple-A roster. He was a sandwich pick in 2008 out of Vanderbilt. Flaherty batted .305 with 20 doubles, two triples, 14 homers, 66 RBIs and a .907 OPS in 83 games at Double-A Tennessee, and .237 with 11 doubles, one triple, five homers and 22 RBIs in 49 games at Triple-A Iowa. He's a utility infielder,...