UPDATE: The Angels announced that they've hired Matt Klentak as assistant general manager. Klentak signed a multi-year deal and will focus on all aspects of baseball operations, as he did with the Orioles. He'll work with general manager Jerry Dipoto, who interviewed for the Orioles' job. Orioles executive vice president Dan Duquette confirmed this morning that Matt Klentak, director of baseball operations, interviewed for a front office position with the Los Angeles Angels. ESPN's...

The latest agreement between the owners and players, announced Tuesday, means baseball will have 21 consecutive seasons of labor peace, and that makes baseball look good compared to the NBA and, to a certain extent, the NFL. The key to this year's agreement was the workable personalities of Rob Manfred, the owners' top negotiator, and Michael Weiner, who heads the players' union. The two worked together much better than the Bud Selig-Donald Fehr battles that were part eight work stoppages...

Former Texas Christian pitcher Matt Purke was one of the bigger headlines coming out of the 2011 First-Year Player Draft and with good reason. The tall southpaw could bring the heat and had an impeccable college career with the Horned Frogs, leading them to their first College World Series. After looking very good in instructional league camp with the Nationals, Purke was sent to the Arizona Fall League to pitch for the Scottsdale Scorpions under the watchful eye of pitching coach Paul...

Things are looking up for the Orioles. They got closer to the playoffs yesterday without adding a single player. They did, really, but so did every other club in the game, too. When baseball adds a second wild card playoff team in each league for a total of five clubs, teams will obviously need fewer wins to make the playoffs. I went through the last 10 years of the American League standings. The wild card winner in the 10 seasons from 2002 through 2011 averaged 95.2 wins per year. The club...

As further proof that you can find odds and place bets on just about anything, I bring you the following from Bodog: What position will the first player who tests positive for HGH play? Pitcher 1/1 Outfielder 7/4 Infielder 7/2 Will a MLB player test positive for HGH before June1, 2012? Yes 1/1 No 5/7 Where will the first MLB player to test positive for HGH come from? American League 1/1 National...

Fans and reporters around baseball are still learning about the changes coming in the draft through baseball's new five-year collective bargaining agreement that was announced today. Check out this story from Baseball America to read about many of the changes. It appears some front office staffers in baseball are expressing some unhappiness with the effort to put a cap on total spending on draft picks in this arrangement. Here is an excerpt from the Baseball America story: "Under the new...

If you're anticipating a press conference Wednesday to announce the signing of Korean pitcher Chong Tae-Hyon, you can stop waiting for it. The holiday week is complicating the process. Though the Orioles are finalizing a deal with Chong, they still need to schedule every examination that's part of the physical and wait for the results. Good luck getting that done by Wednesday, which had been the club's original target date. It's possible that the Orioles could send out a release...

The Orioles had no interest in re-signing Jake Fox and breaking camp for a second time with him making the 25-man roster as the backup catcher to Matt Wieters, but we'll still cross his name off the list of available free agents after he signed a minor league deal with the Pirates. As you've probably noticed, Wieters is the only catcher listed on the Orioles' 40-man roster. They need a backup on their bench. The Astros claimed Craig Tatum off waivers. Triple-A catcher John Hester will be...

Right-hander A.J. Cole made a nice splash in the Nationals' system in his debut season with the Single-A Hagerstown Suns. The fourth-round selection from the 2010 draft posted a 4-7 record with a 4.04 ERA in 20 games, 18 of those as a starter. He struck out 108 batters in 89 innings, allowing only 24 walks. His best month was in June, where he went 2-0 with a 2.30 ERA with 23 punchouts in 20 innings. The lanky, 6-foot-4, 180-pounder from Winter Springs, Fla., has always been noticed by...

The Orioles aren't exactly coasting into the Thanksgiving holiday. It's already been a busy week. No, they haven't reached agreement with a big-name free agent. They haven't swung a major trade. But they haven't been idle. They signed infielder Matt Antonelli, who has a legitimate shot at making the club. They reached agreement on two more six-year minor league free agents. And the most intriguing piece of news is the pending arrival of Korean reliever Chong Tae-Hyon, who is expected to...