The Orioles today announced that they have acquired right-handed pitchers Jason Hammel and Matt Lindstrom from the Colorado Rockies in exchange for right-handed pitcher Jeremy Guthrie. Hammel, 29, is 34-45 with a 4.99 ERA (732.0IP, 406 ER) in 169 career games (115 starts) over six major league seasons with Tampa Bay (2006-08) and Colorado (2009-11). He has pitched 170 or more innings in each of the last three seasons for the Rockies and has posted strikeout to walk ratios of 3:1 or better in...

The Orioles got Jeremy Guthrie through a waiver claim from Cleveland and today, five years later, he leaves for Colorado. All the trade talk about him actually culminated in a deal, ironically, at a time when there wasn't much talk about his leaving. Guthrie was a pitcher thrust into a No. 1 role in a rotation that couldn't match the rest of the American League East, but he did his best, usually with sketchy run support. He spent a couple of seasons among the top 20 in ERA in the American...

The Orioles had an arbitration hearing scheduled today with pitcher Jeremy Guthrie in St. Petersburg, Fla., but it's been postponed amid rumors that he's about to be traded. And according to a source, a deal is close with the Rockies that would bring pitchers Jason Hammel and Matt Lindstrom to Baltimore. Hammel, 29, was 7-13 with a 4.76 ERA in 32 games - including 27 starts - for the Rockies last season. He's 34-45 with a 4.99 ERA in 169 games, including 115 starts in six seasons spent with...

Harrisburg Senators closer Hassan Pena is another reliever that could easily move up to Triple-A this season and has the stuff to pitch in the majors. After the right-handed Pena was called up to Double-A Harrisburg, he reeled off 10 saves and 55 strikeouts, notching a 2.73 ERA. He struggled, however, in seven appearances with Triple-A Syracuse, going 0-4 with a 19.29 ERA and one save. Former Senators.pitching coach Randy Tomlin said the Cuban-born Pena has shown he can deliver at any level...

When can a pitcher's home park ERA of 5.40 be called respectable? Before you say never, the answer could be when that pitcher makes 13 starts at Triple-A Albuquerque's Isotopes Park, where opposing Pacific Coast League teams averaged 7.2 runs per game last year (the home team averaged 7.5) and where Albuquerque's staff worked to an ERA of 6.52. New Orioles pitcher Dana Eveland made more than half his PCL starts in that park last summer. Before his September callup, when he went 3-2 with a...

Greetings from Southwest Airlines Flight 2039, where we're somewhere east of Salt Lake City - maybe around Oklahoma - and heading to Baltimore. I can't escape the Nationals news, even for a few days. According to multiple reports, the Nationals have agreed to terms on a minor league contract with Rick Ankiel, which includes an invite to spring training, where Ankiel will compete for at least a share of the team's center field job. The 32-year-old Ankiel batted .239 with nine homers and 37...

Let's get this one out of the way first: Giants 27, Patriots 24. Victor Cruz is MVP. And the Ravens are still the best team in the AFC. Judging by the 310 comments I've received on yesterday's Manny Ramirez entry, it appears that the majority of readers here don't want the Orioles to sign him. It's an unscientific poll, but that's telling. According to MLBTradeRumor's free-agent chart, there are four first basemen still on the market: Russell Branyan (36) Ross Gload (36) Derrek Lee...

Setup man Todd Coffey is taking his quality stuff and energizing entrance to the west coast with the announcement that the right-hander will be leaving the Nationals to sign a one-year deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers. This made me think that the engaging personality that is Coffey may hang up his famous entrance each game from the bullpen. Why? Last season, I asked Coffey if anything unusual had ever happened at any stadium when he made his famous sprints in from the bullpen after getting...

I opened yesterday's "Mid-Atlantic Sports Report" with a mini-rant against the Orioles signing Manny Ramirez. I may as well expand on it here. I'm just searching for the logic behind their interest, beyond a few obvious points. First of all, executive vice president Dan Duquette is looking for another bat, and it would fit nicely in the designated hitter and cleanup spots. As it currently stands, Wilson Betemit could be the primary DH, and that's not an ideal scenario. The market is...

First baseman Tyler Moore has been the best longball hitter in the Nationals' system the last two seasons, cranking 62 homers since 2010. But if Moore gets blocked at first base, the Nationals have given him time to learn and pick up left field at instructional camp and will do so again in spring training. Moore has worked very hard to improve his defense during the past two seasons, and Nationals infield coordinator Jeff Garber said the franchise has taken notice. "He has made tremendous...