When Orioles president Andy MacPhail and manager Buck Showalter met with season ticket holders at Camden Yards on Saturday afternoon, they were asked a few interesting questions. Among them, one fan asked if the O's brass uses sabermetrics in sizing up player acquisitions and in their daily preparations. A simple definition of sabermetrics calls it simply "the statistical analysis of baseball data." Another defines sabermetrics as the analysis of baseball through objective, empirical...

The Washington Nationals have won 13 of their last 15 games. That's pretty heady stuff. When play ended Sunday, the Nats owned a 40-38 record, a mere 3 1/2 games out of the Wild Card. This run that they're on right now can only be described with one word: ridiculous. On this streak, the Nats have won close games and blowouts. They've pitched over their heads and picked up the bullpen on the few occasions they've faltered. The Nats blew three saves in Friday's game alone and still won. In...

It's another off-day in June for the Orioles. We're up to five, in case you're scoring at home. And if you're scoring at home, you're probably not reading this blog. I didn't realize until checking yesterday's postgame notes that J.J. Hardy has homered in eight consecutive series. He's reached base safely in 29 of 32 games since May 21. Derrek Lee is batting .375 with four doubles, two homers and seven RBIs in his last nine games. Mark Reynolds is batting .450 with two doubles, two...

Nick Markakis came up with three hits in five at bats in Sunday's win over Cincinnati. His average is at its highest point since April 9 and he now has a 16-game hitting streak. Markakis is batting .405 (30-for-74) during the streak, which is one off his career best. The batting streak has raised his average from .236 to .277. "I feel like I'm getting there," he said. "Just gotta take it day-by-day and try to continue what I'm doing. Get on base and get big hits when you need...

Let's hear from winning pitcher Jeremy Guthrie: "We came out swinging the bats real well, as we did all series. Just some big, big swings by D-Lee (Derrek Lee) and Mark (Reynolds), and then those extra runs we tagged on. We put pressure on their pitcher the majority of the afternoon. That was important for us." "I thought I was able to locate the fastball early, the first four innings especially. It had some life on it and I was able to go to both sides of the plate. We mixed in the...

When he came to bat in the fourth inning today, Orioles third baseman Mark Reynolds had already made two errors, giving him 18 on the year. He might have wanted to redeem himself and he did by hitting a solo homer 443-feet to left field. But he said he wasn't thinking about trying to turn around his day as he batted against Homer Bailey. "I can't think that way. I have struggled over there at third base, it's no secret," Reynolds said. "Just gotta stay focused and not carry my at bats...

Livan Hernandez bounced back from a rough outing to go 6 2/3 innings, striking out a season-high nine and throwing a season-high 123 pitches in the Washington Nationals' 2-1 series clinching victory at the Chicago White Sox. Danny Espinosa provided the offense with a two run-homer in the seventh and Drew Storen came on in the ninth to record his 19th save. It was a special win for interim manager John McLaren, who took over as skipper Friday following Jim Riggleman's resignation. McLaren...

Today's attendance: 27,809 Luke Scott homered off Reds reliever Aroldis Chapman in the seventh inning to provide a huge insurance run and end the left-handers strikeout streak at five, and Kevin Gregg recorded his 14th save by retiring three batters after former Oriole Ramon Hernandez greeted him with a home run on the first pitch in the top of the ninth. Orioles 7, Reds 5. Jeremy Guthrie picks up his third victory of the season, and the Orioles take two of three from Cincinnati after going...

He hit a walk-off homer in the 12th inning on Friday night. Today's homer came much earlier but was still pretty important. Derrek Lee's three-run shot gave the Orioles a 4-0 lead in the fourth inning today and they went on to beat Cincinnati 7-5 to win the series, two victories to one. Lee entered this game 6-for-8 in his career versus Reds starter Homer Bailey and is now 7-for-11. It was his sixth homer on the year. One out after Lee's 400-foot blast to left, Mark Reynolds crushed a...

The Orioles gave Jeremy Guthrie a five-run lead today, but he came out of the game after 5 2/3 innings. Guthrie allowed two runs and six hits while he was on the mound, with four walks and five strikeouts. He threw 111 pitches, which forced manager Buck Showalter to call upon relievers Clay Rapada and Jim Johnson in the sixth inning. Rapada walked Joey Votto to load the bases, and Johnson walked Jonny Gomes and Fred Lewis to force in two runs and complete Guthrie's line. Guthrie is charged...