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...

SARASOTA, Fla. - Right fielder Nick Markakis took batting practice earlier today, though he's not using maximum effort and continues to be brought along slowly as he recovers from abdominal surgery last month. He remains optimistic that he'll play on opening day. "I feel great," he said. "I know I'm not there, but I'm on schedule or maybe a little ahead of schedule, depending on how you look at it. Everything feels good. It's just a matter of getting my strength back down there now. At...

VIERA, Fla. - One of the inherent flaws in the bullpen that Davey Johnson inherited last season was the inability of Nationals relievers to work more than an inning at a time on a regular basis. The manager was saddled with a group that wasn't capable of longer outings - or, in some cases, pitching on successive days. At the end of last season, and through the offseason, Johnson preached to anyone who would listen about the need for durable arms that could be stretched out and used...

SARASOTA, Fla. - Orioles second baseman Brian Roberts seemed cautiously optimistic today about the way he's progressing, but it remains a mystery whether he'll be ready for the April 6 opener against the Minnesota Twins at Camden Yards. Roberts can't say for sure when or if he'll play in an exhibition game. He's truly day-to-day as he works toward a return. Here are some quotes from Roberts. "I'm feeling pretty good in general. I took part in some beginning baseball activities -...

VIERA, Fla. - The Nationals will hold their first full-squad workout Saturday morning, and manager Davey Johnson will hold a team meeting beforehand to make sure everyone's on the same page. With high expectations for the Nats, the skipper is eager to get the next phase of camp under way. "We become a team, we become whole," Johnson said. "I have not seen half of them swing the bat, take a ground ball, throw." After spending the bulk of his time the past week focusing on the pitching...