With the calendar flipping to June, it's not too early to start thinking about who might represent the Washington Nationals at the mid-summer classic, the 2011 All-Star Game on July 12 in Phoenix. It's an honor for players to be voted in by the fans, but the first early results posted by Major League Baseball show no Nationals player in the top five in voting for position players or top 15 outfielders. Unfortunately, $126 million isn't enough to buy Jayson Werth a few All-Star votes. But...

For the Orioles, this was one of the most frustrating losses of the year. On a night when Jeremy Guthrie outpitched former Orioles lefty Erik Bedard for most of the game, one key error and one bad pitch cost him the game as the Mariners beat the Orioles 3-2 to take the first two games of the series in Seattle. The O's took a 2-0 lead to the last of the eighth and Guthrie got the first two outs. But Ichiro Suzuki reached when Guthrie was charged with an error in taking a throw from first...

Jeremy Guthrie took a three-hit shutout into the eighth inning, retired the first two batters, committed an error, gave up a single and hung a changeup. This is how losing streaks continue and why fans curse their decision to stay awake. Justin Smoak hit a towering three-run homer off Guthrie to give Seattle a 3-2 lead. Koji Uehara grabbed his glove after Brendan Ryan's single into right field, but he barely had time to step on the bullpen mound before Smoak destroyed the Orioles, 2-0...

In case you're having trouble keeping track of all the starting times on this road trip, today's game in Seattle begins at 3:40 p.m. on the East Coast. Welcome back, Brian Matusz. I've written this before, but I can't believe it's been two months since Matusz was supposed to make his 2011 debut at Tropicana Field. It was April 2, to be exact, and Matusz was inconsolable after being scratched from his start, sent for an MRI and placed on the disabled list. A wart, a line drive off his...

Nationals second baseman Danny Espinosa feels like he might have something going here. With a pair of homers Tuesday night in a 10-2 win over the Philadelphia Phillies, Espinosa now has the team lead and a career-high 10 home runs on the season. Espinosa has hit the three total round trippers in the series against pitchers named Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee. And with four homers in the past five games, Espinosa senses he is in a groove at the plate. It is no fluke. Last season, Espinosa...

Former Oriole Erik Bedard has struck out five batters over three scoreless innings tonight. He's thrown 32 strikes among his 44 pitches, and the only hit off him is Nick Markakis' single with two outs in the first. Bedard was 3-0 with a 1.09 ERA in his last five starts before tonight. He's thrown 18 consecutive scoreless innings, including the three tonight. I guess he's healthy again. If Jeremy Guthrie thought this would be the night that he'd get a generous amount of run support,...

Nationals senior advisor to the general manager Davey Johnson has been working diligently on next week's First-Year Player Draft and watching a lot of baseball at low Single-A Hagerstown this season. Johnson will attend this year's draft and put in his two cents' worth in on players the Nationals might consider. Washington holds picks No. 6, 23 and 34 to start the June 6 draft. Meanwhile, Johnson said the Suns have a very talented squad up and down the roster and the pitching has been...

Adam Jones has returned to the lineup tonight after being restricted to pinch-running duty yesterday because of a sore right shoulder. He'll face former Orioles left-hander Erik Bedard. They crossed paths in a certain trade back in February 2008. For the Orioles: Robert Andino 2B Adam Jones CF Nick Markakis RF Vladimir Guerrero DH Matt Wieters C Mark Reynolds 3B Luke Scott 1B Nolan Reimold LF J.J. Hardy SS Jeremy Guthrie RHP

The May 17 Nationals-Pirates game at Nationals Park has been rescheduled as part of a traditional, single-admission doubleheader on Saturday, July 2, with the first game beginning at 3:35 p.m. The second game will follow at 7:05 p.m. or later, depending on when the first game is completed. Season tickets and individual game tickets for the postponed May 17 game can be exchanged at the Nationals Park Box Office for seats of equal or lesser value for the July 2 doubleheader or any remaining...

The Nationals have confirmed that third baseman Ryan Zimmerman will be playing in his first game at extended spring training in Viera, Fla., on Wednesday. Zimmerman continues rehabilitation from abdominal surgery in early May. The original timetable had Zimmerman, who has been sidelined since April 9, returning in mid to late June. Nationals manager Jim Riggleman said today that Zimmerman is progressing. "The one thing that was not coming along as quickly as some other stuff about his...