The Orioles introduced their first-round draft pick, pitcher Dylan Bundy, to the small gathering here at Camden Yards before the bottom of the second inning. Bundy acknowledge the ovation with a wave of his right hand before disappearing through the home plate tunnel. Earlier today, Bundy talked about how rapidly he wants to reach the majors. He's 18 and fresh out of high school, but he doesn't expect the process to drag out. Orioles' first-round pick Dylan Bundy gets introduced to the...

Now that he is leaving the Orioles, Mike Gonzalez is pitching like the player the Orioles thought they were acquiring in December of 2009. No, this is not the new Oriole way. That player was coming off a season with Atlanta where he pitched to a 2.42 ERA and gave up just 56 hits with 80 strikeouts over 74 1/3 innings. Now that he is heading out of Baltimore, Gonzalez looks like that pitcher again. Before we go any further I can make a prediction and feel good about it coming true. Gonzalez...

According to an Orioles official, the club will receive pitcher Pedro Strop, 26, from the Rangers as the player to be named later in the Michael Gonzalez deal. Strop was 0-1 with a 3.72 ERA in 11 relief appearances with the Rangers this season. He's 0-1 with a 7.24 ERA in 33 major league games spread over parts of three seasons. Strop is 4-4 with 11 saves and a 3.59 ERA in 39 games with Triple-A Round Rock, with 53 hits, 24 walks, 55 strikeouts and two home runs in 47 2/3 innings. A native...

The Orioles have purchased pitcher Rick VandenHurk's contract from Triple-A Norfolk. He's heading to Baltimore and will take one of the openings on the 40-man roster. VandenHurk, acquired from the Marlins at last summer's non-waiver trade deadline for reliever Will Ohman, is 9-13 with a 4.43 ERA, 40 walks and 108 strikeouts in 154 1/3 innings. He's allowed one earned run or fewer in each of his last three starts. Manager Buck Showalter offered his thoughts on reliever Michael...

The Yankees also were involved in trade talks with the Orioles for left-hander Michael Gonzalez, but president of baseball operations Andy MacPhail preferred the pitcher coming back from the Rangers. It's a player to be named later, which means I don't have a name right now. The Orioles knew last night that Gonzalez was going to Texas, which made him unavailable for their 10-inning game against the Blue Jays. The Orioles have two openings on their 40-man roster after trading Gonzalez and...

The Orioles today announced that they have traded left-handed pitcher Michael Gonzalez to the Texas Rangers in exchange for a player to be named later. The club has also recalled left-handed pitcher Zach Phillips from Triple-A Norfolk. Gonzalez, 33, went 2-2 with one save and a 4.27 ERA (46.1 IP, 22 ER) in 49 appearances for the Orioles this season. He has not allowed a run in his last 13 appearances, surrendering five hits and one walk with 15 strikeouts over 12.1 innings. Gonzalez went 1-3...

The Orioles traded left-hander Michael Gonzalez to the Texas Rangers today for a player to be named later. They just sent out a press release. The Orioles recalled left-hander Zach Phillips from Triple-A Norfolk to take Gonzalez's place on the 25-man roster. Gonzalez, 33, went 2-2 with one save and a 4.27 ERA in 49 appearances this season. He hasn't allowed a run in 13 straight outings, surrendering five hits, walking one and striking out 15 over 12 1/3 innings. Gonzalez went 1-3 with one...

It is almost September. Must be time for another P-Nats postseason push. The Single-A Potomac Nationals are putting together the finishing touches on another second half surge as they attempt to return to the Carolina League postseason and defend their Mills Cup championship. Following Tuesday's thrilling 5-4 win in 10 innings at Lynchburg, the P-Nats are now one win away from clinching a berth in the postseason. The Frederick Keys already secured the first-half division crown. If the...

These days, there appears to be a solid distinction in the way baseball fans - in Washington, D.C., especially - view the game. They watch the game and pick its intricacies apart with either a conservative, progressive or moderate lens. Nation's capital puns aside, it's a dichotomy that gets the Nationals' fan base riled up inside the ballpark, via Twitter or in the blogosphere. The baseball conservatives are traditionalists who tend to abide by the unwritten rule book. They say that fans...

J.J. Hardy is having a very good offensive season. He is, in fact, having the best offensive season of his career. And that's coming entirely from one factor. Not more walks (he's doing worse than his career numbers) or fewer strike-outs (he's doing worse than his career numbers) or more hits when he puts the ball into play (he's doing worse than his career numbers). It's the longball. Hardy's 26 home runs already tie a career high (in only 102 games, no less), and there's a good...