Beginning tonight against the Tampa Bay Rays, fans at Camden Yards will be able to cast their in-stadium ballots to send players to the July 12 All-Star Game in Phoenix. Each Major League Baseball club will get 23 days of in-stadium voting before the June 24 deadline for punching out the chad next to the names of favorite players. As always, the Orioles are well represented on the ballot. O's fans can vote for first baseman Derrek Lee, second baseman Brian Roberts, shortstop J.J. Hardy, third...

Orioles prospect Manny Machado said he feels "fine" this morning and is hopeful that he can be back in the Single-A Delmarva lineup in a few days. He'll know more later today, in a few hours, when a doctor takes a closer look at his left knee. Machado said he was not sure if he would undergo an MRI. Machado injured the knee in the first inning last night at Asheville. He fell to the ground when tagging up and trying to advance from second to third base. He was helped off the field. "Oh,...

When you consider that, at this time last year, Zach Britton was 2-2 with an ERA of 3.60 for the Double-A Bowie Baysox, his start in 2011 for the Orioles is rather stunning. Living up to the hype and his top prospect status, Britton is now 5-1 with an ERA of 2.63 in his first six major league starts. He is tied for second in the American League with five wins with Max Scherzer of Detroit, Trevor Cahill of Oakland and Cleveland's Justin Masterson. He is 11th in the league in ERA, tied for...

The Orioles squandered their chance to return home a .500 ball club, but more than a month into the season, they are clinging to third place in the American League East, 2 1/2 games behind their weekend opponent, the Tampa Bay Rays. Having played nearly 20 percent of the games on the season, the AL East is tighter than it's been in some time. While it's unlikely the Orioles will be able to hang so close to the division leaders over the entire season, it's certainly a welcome change from...

The Caps were swept in four games by a division rival after another first-place season. Maryland men's basketball coach Gary Williams shockingly retired, while his best player last year declared for the NBA draft. The Wizards recently completed a thoroughly uninteresting season. The lockout and subsequent lawsuits put the NFL season in jeopardy. Even if they do play, the Redskins went 6-10 last season and might start with John Beck as the quarterback. It's enough to make a D.C. sports fan...

The Orioles are back home tonight against the Rays, and Zach Britton is back on the mound. A Friday night, Britton pitching, a division rival. Let's hope for a little atmosphere at Camden Yards. He'll need to stick around longer than Chris Tillman did in Kansas City. Tillman lasted only 3 2/3 innings yesterday and raised more concerns about his long-term future in the rotation and the organization. Tillman's dragged down by a 7.16 ERA and much higher expectations. He's a riddle in some...

Single-A Delmarva shortstop

The Orioles' 2010 Minor League Player of the Year, Double-A Bowie first baseman Joe Mahoney, is expected to miss the next three to four weeks with a quadriceps strain. Mahoney is making his second trip to the disabled list this year for the same injury. Mahoney was out earlier from April 10-25, and returned to game action, but so did the quad injury, and he underwent an MRI yesterday. Mahoney is expected to report soon to the Orioles' spring home in Sarasota to continue his rehab. Mahoney...

It's hard to find anything positive to say about a 9-1 loss to the Kansas City Royals, but I'll focus on reliever Josh Rupe. Rupe replaced starter Chris Tillman in the fourth and tossed 3 2/3 scoreless innings. He allowed only one hit, walked one and struck out two, and lowered his ERA from 7.59 to 5.65. Welcome back to Kansas City, Josh. Rupe had surrendered nine earned runs and 15 hits in his last seven appearances covering 9 2/3 innings. Clay Rapada replaced Rupe and served up Melky...

The Orioles took a 1-0 lead to the last of the first today at Kansas City. The lead lasted just three batters. It only would get worse as the Royals hammered Chris Tillman and the Orioles 9-1 in the series and road trip finale. The O's missed a chance to get back to .500 as Tillman gave up eight runs and 10 hits over just 3 2/3. Tillman allowed six runs in less than two innings April 13 at New York and this was another rough outing for the right-hander. He gave up four runs in the first, one...