Dear Ryan, I can't tell you how excited NatsTown and myself are at recently hearing the news you are on your way back to Viera, Fla., to take your rehab to "high gear with more baseball specific activities." You posted that on your Facebook page. I know. I liked you. Top-notch, old chum, top-notch! Florida is beautiful this time of year and having spent some time in The Sunshine State myself, I'm envious. I recommend the Shamrock & Thistle Irish bar in Titusville for drunken revelry and...

Baseball returns to Camden Yards tonight after yesterday's break. Get used to them. The Orioles have five open dates in June. Did you see that Nationals first baseman Adam LaRoche went on the disabled list yesterday with a torn labrum in his left shoulder? LaRoche is batting .172 with three homers in 43 games. He's always been a slow starter, and playing all season with a torn labrum wasn't going to reverse that tendency. Derrek Lee's also on the disabled list. He's batting .231 with...

Right-handed pitcher Chorye Spoone, the Orioles eighth-round pick from the 2005 draft, and a member of the club's 40-man roster, will move from Triple-A Norfolk back to Double-A and start on the mound tomorrow night for the Bowie Baysox. The 25-year-old Spoone is 2-1 with an ERA of 5.50 in eight Triple-A starts and International League batters hit .293 off him. He struggled with his control with Norfolk and walked 26 over 34 1/3 innings. So, in an attempt to get better results and command,...

There will be an important decision coming soon that could impact the Orioles' minor leagues: whether the Single-A Frederick Keys will continue to play in Frederick and at Harry Grove Stadium beyond this season. The City of Frederick sought and received two requests for proposals that seek to be awarded the lease to play in that stadium in 2012. The Keys filed a request and so did the independent Atlantic League, through owner Peter Kirk. The city will pick one of the two that filed requests...

The Washington Nationals today placed first baseman Adam LaRoche (torn labrum, left shoulder) on the 15-Day Disabled List, retroactive to May 22. Nationals Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations and General Manager Mike Rizzo made the announcement. LaRoche is batting .172 with four doubles, three home runs and 15 RBI in 43 games this season. The 31-year-old leads the Nationals with 25 walks. LaRoche is playing flawless defense (no errors/412 total chances) this season at first base...

Tickets are now on sale for the ziMS Foundation's second annual "A Night at the Park" event hosted by third baseman Ryan Zimmerman. The fundraiser and live auction will take place on Thursday, June 30 at Nationals Park beginning at 6 p.m. It's also official that country star Rodney Atkins will headline the event. Fans of country music know that you can't listen to a country station for more than a few minutes before hearing his recent hit, "Farmer's Daughter." In recent years, Atkins...

Here are some updates from Nationals director of player development Doug Harris on a few of the players you have asked for in the comments section. RHP Russell Moldenhauer, who was named to the 2009 College World Series all-tournament team with the Texas Longhorns: "Moldenhauer has had some physical things that he has dealt with," Harris said. "(Moldy) is kind of a Matt Stairs type. He is a dangerous guy but we really have to grind his defense. He didn't defend in college. He was a...

Second baseman LJ Hoes, the Orioles' third-round pick in 2008 out of St. John's (DC) High School, has been promoted from Single-A Frederick to Double-A Bowie. Hoes is batting .241 with seven doubles, three homers, 17 RBIs and a .638 OPS in 41 games. He's 8-for-39 in his last 10 games, but he has hits in six of them. Hoes is batting .303 against left-handers and .196 against right-handers. He'll need to work on those splits. Baysox manager Gary Kendall can start writing Hoes' name in...

Washington Nationals outfielder Rick Ankiel has joined Double-A Harrisburg Senators on a rehab assignment. Ankiel has been in Viera, Fla., rehabbing a sprained right wrist taking live batting practice. He was placed on the disabled list May 7, retroactive to May 3, and was batting .221 with one homer and seven RBIs in 28 games.

The Potomac Nationals' offense is starting to get on a roll, and evidence of that came down this week with outfielder Destin Hood being honored as Batter of the Week in the Single-A Carolina League for the period of May 16-22. In the last seven games, Hood hit .448 (13-for-29) with nine extra-base hits (seven doubles, triple, home run) and 10 RBI. Hood connected on five straight multi-hit games and in three of the games, he had at least three hits. During the stretch, Hood had an amazing...