It seems like only yesterday that I was standing in the home clubhouse at Ed Smith Stadium, scribbling down every move made by future Hall of Famer Vladimir Guerrero on his first day in camp. What he wore, where he sat, what he ate, how many words of English he spoke, how many teammates stared in awe. I was touring the refurbished Sarasota facility, staking out Justin Duchscherer's locker for updates on his hip, misspelling "wart" on Twitter - I blame Brian Matusz - counting pitches in...

It seems like only yesterday that I was standing in the home clubhouse at Ed Smith Stadium, scribbling down every move made by future Hall of Famer Vladimir Guerrero on his first day in camp. I was touring the refurbished facility, staking out Justin Duchscherer's locker for another update on his hip, misspelling "wart" on Twitter, glazing over as the pitchers performed fielding drills, counting how many diet Dr. Peppers that The Sun's Peter Schmuck consumed for breakfast. I firmly...

Jacoby Ellsbury just hit yet another big homer for the Boston Red Sox. His two-run shot off Zach Britton in the top of the third gives the Red Sox a 2-1 lead on the Orioles, who got an RBI double from Vladimir Guerrero in the first inning. Ellsbury's career high in homers was nine before this year and now he has 32. He also now has an amazing 35-game hitting streak against the Orioles dating to April 17, 2009. Ellsbury leads the majors this month in hits, doubles, extra-base hits and total...

Both pitchers tonight have given up runs after recording the first two outs in an inning. Nick Markakis drew a two-out walk off former Orioles left-hander Erik Bedard in the bottom of the first and scored on Vladimir Guerrero's double into left-center field. Boston's No. 9 hitter, Marco Scutaro, doubled to left field against Orioles rookie Zach Britton with two outs in the top of the third and came home on Jacoby Ellsbury's 32nd home run of the season. Red Sox 2, Orioles 1. Ellsbury...

If Zach Britton records a win or a no-decision tonight, he'll become the first Orioles pitcher with 20 or more decisions to post a record above .500 since Erik Bedard went 15-11 in 2006. Coincidentally, Bedard is starting tonight for the Red Sox. I determined that it qualifies as a coincidence, not an irony. Please correct me if I'm wrong. A 12th victory tonight would tie Britton with Daniel Cabrera (2004) for the eighth-most wins by an Orioles rookie in franchise history. Pedro Strop...

Even though he has been one of the better relievers in the American League this year and is 7-for-7 in save chances since Sept. 7, the talk about Jim Johnson moving into a starter's role next year won't go away. No one has committed to it yet for 2012, but Johnson today expressed a preference to be a starter next season. "I'll do what the team asks me to do and needs me to do, but I would still like the idea to start, because I think I can be helpful in that position," Johnson said....

For the Orioles: Robert Andino 2B J.J. Hardy SS Nick Markakis RF Vladimir Guerrero DH Matt Wieters C Adam Jones CF Mark Reynolds 1B Chris Davis 3B Nolan Reimold LF Zach Britton LHP For the Red Sox: Ellsbury CF Pedroia 2B Ortiz DH Lowrie 3B Gonzalez 1B Lavarnway C McDonald RF Crawford LF Scutaro SS Bedard LHP This is the first time that Lowrie has began a game as Boston's cleanup hitter. Jones is 5-for-9 lifetime against Bedard. Guerrero is 6-for-18 with a double and home run.

Nationals right-handed reliever Craig Stammen has quietly put together a nice month of pitching as he gears up for the offseason and 2012 spring training. That is not the way the year started off for Stammen. He was sent to Triple-A Syracuse out of spring training, then struggled in his first call to the majors this season. On June 6 in San Francisco, Stammen gave up two hits and a costly earned run in two-thirds of an inning. But since that night, he has not allowed a run in six straight...

With only two games remaining for the Washington Nationals and the team making one last run at a .500 record, it is hard not to be excited about the 2012 team. The 2011 team will go down in history as a team that never gave up on themselves. On three different occasions this season, the Nats have looked like they were going into a free fall in the standings. On May 18, the team had a record of 18-18 and wasn't playing all that great but they were able stay around .500 level. Over the next 12...

With the season winding down and the last game of the regular season (and the Orioles' season) tomorrow night, it's time to start analyzing and getting excited for next year. Although the Orioles only improved by a few games this year, we've seen some great potential out of young guys and we've learned a few not-so-great things about other guys. In my last guest blog of the season, I want to take a look at who will be the core group in this team, who will make the team, who will not make...