Catcher Matt Wieters was made available to reporters in a conference call earlier this morning. Here are some of his comments regarding his first Rawlings Gold Glove Award: "I take a lot of pride in the award," he said. "It's definitely something I always work at to get better, and to be able to win a Gold Glove, I'm honored to be in the same class as the other great catchers in the game defensively. It's an honor, for sure. I'm very blessed to be able to win the award this early in my...

I opened yesterday's entry by saying that we might have an announcement on a new president of baseball operations, and I came close to being right. An offer was made to Blue Jays assistant general manager Tony LaCava. He turned it down yesterday. Otherwise... LaCava returned home, huddled with his family and broke the news to the Orioles that he wasn't leaving the Blue Jays. I'm sick of this topic, but it won't go away. Dodgers executive De Jon Watson is waiting to find out whether...

Orioles outfield prospect Xavier Avery rode an 11-game hitting tear right onto a roster spot for the East squad in Saturday's Arizona Fall League's Rising Stars Game. The rosters were released Tuesday and Avery earned a spot on the East squad that will take on the West team Saturday night at 8:10 p.m. Eastern time in a game that will be televised live on the MLB Network. "I'm happy about it. It's a compliment. It's great," Avery said by phone last night from Arizona. In 19 AFL games...

Late tonight, Rawlings announced that Orioles catcher Matt Wieters and right fielder Nick Markakis have been named this year's American League Gold Glove Award recipients for defensive excellence at their respective positions. The award for Wieters culminates a season in which the 25-year-old was also named to his first All-Star team and set new career-highs in eight offensive categories, including hits, home runs, runs and RBIs. His .995 fielding percentage tied for the American League lead...

I just got off the phone with Tony LaCava, who earlier today turned down the Orioles' offer to become their president of baseball operations. LaCava insisted that, in the end, he didn't want to leave Toronto. And he understands that most people will think he's crazy. "I really enjoy my job in Toronto, and I have a GM that I work with (Alex Anthopoulos) who's like a brother to me," LaCava said. "We're very, very close. We have a really good dynamic between us. I wasn't looking to...

Tony LaCava has decided to remain with the Toronto Blue Jays as assistant general manager, and the Orioles are discussing the possibility of bringing in more outside candidates. Apparently, LaCava was ready to accept an offer from the Orioles until flying back into Baltimore yesterday for a second meeting. I'm told the issues that cropped up for LaCava didn't involve ownership or manager Buck Showalter. However, a deal couldn't be reached. The Orioles have interviewed four candidates,...

Two of the topNationals prospects, Bryce Harper and catcher Derek Norris, have been named to the East squad for the Arizona Fall League Rising Stars Game set to be played Saturday night in Surprise, Ariz., according to the league's Twitter account. The AFL Rising Stars game is Saturday at 8:10 p.m. Eastern time at Surprise Stadium. The game will be broadcast on the MLB Network. Norris has had a tremendous fall season behind the plate for the Scottsdale Scorpions, batting .356 in 13 games...

Orioles catcher Matt Wieters can add "Gold Glove winner" to his expanding resume. Named to his first All-Star team over the summer, Wieters just learned that he's also won his first Rawlings Gold Glove Award. Wieters beat out American League finalists A.J. Pierzynski and Alex Avila for the award, which was announced on ESPN2. He's the first catcher to win the award in club history. Nick Markakis also won his first Gold Glove in right field, beating out the Angels' Torii Hunter and the...

Scottsdale Scorpions right-hander Patrick Lehman believes the mechanical adjustment recently implemented by pitching coach Paul Menhart is having a positive effect on his delivery. "(Menhart) observed a bad habit coming from where my legs were positioned," Lehman said. "I needed to throw in more of a downhill plane instead of a straight line. My focus was to stay tall and throw down more." He did not see the results instantly, but said sometimes it takes time for an adjustment to...

Because of a death in the family, I reconnected with an old friend this morning. Seeing news that longtime Baltimore newspaperman and author James H. Bready had died at 92 on Saturday made me long for the pre-Internet days when baseball hungry minds had to crack open a book if they wanted to learn a batting average, ERA or the principals in a trade. Bready wrote one of the best tomes to Orioles baseball, "The Home Team," an oversized paperback - thin by today's standards - that holds a...