J.J. Hardy says he probably could have played tonight if the weather conditions weren't so bad. Hardy is day-to-day with tightness in his left ribcage area that surfaced during yesterday's batting practice session. "We'll give it another day and kind of reevaluate tomorrow," Hardy said. "I've never had anything like it, but being able to throw, being able to run around and not feel pain, I feel like it can't be that big a deal, so I'm hoping - I don't know what their time schedule...

As we continue to learn more about the Orioles with each game this season, maybe we all will get a real education on the club this weekend. Some fans have said the Rays' poor start took some of the luster off the O's three-game sweep there. But in beating Tampa, they did knock off the defending American League East champs. In taking two of three, they won a series against a well-regarded Detroit club. But beating a 6-0 Texas team, the defending AL champs, would be rather impressive.The...

Let me begin by saying I don't have any inside weather information. The Orioles like their chances of playing tonight, but that's all I know. They're not making any guarantees, and they haven't set an exact time when they'd announce a postponement if the rain doesn't cease. The pitching picture is a bit fuzzy. OK, it's really, really fuzzy. Jeremy Guthrie did some long-tossing and threw off an indoor mound. He could make Sunday's start, but it's also possible that he could wait until...

It may not be a good sign when Zach Britton gets more outs through the air than the ground. That happened during his major league debut against Tampa, but he still pitched well and won the game. On Sunday versus the Rays, Britton got five outs on the ground and six in the air. Britton said Sunday was a day he didn't have either good command or good movement on the sinker - the one pitch he is known for and the one pitch that helped get him to the majors. So he had to go another route in...

Cesar Izturis will make his second consecutive start at shortstop tonight in place of J.J. Hardy, who's considered day-to-day with tightness below his left ribcage area. Izturis batted .105 in spring training, but he went 1-for-3 last night with an RBI and a walk. Here's the Rangers lineup: Kinsler 2B Andrus SS Hamilton LF Beltre 3B Young DH Cruz RF Napoli 1B Torrealba C Borbon CF Lewis RHP

The Orioles' lineup is posted, but the shortstop position is blank. It's still being determined whether J.J. Hardy is available. Update: Hardy is considered day-to-day. He's not starting tonight, but he's available if needed. It looks like he could avoid the disabled list. Here's the lineup so far: Brian Roberts 2B Nick Markakis RF Derrek Lee 1B Vladimir Guerrero DH Luke Scott LF Adam Jones CF Mark Reynolds 3B Matt Wieters C Cesar Izturis SS Zach Britton LHP Also, Manny Ramirez has...

Hightopps Backstage Grille in Timonium will host another in MASNsports.com's series of Orioles baseball chats Thursday, April 14 at 6 p.m. in conjunction with that evening's O's-Yankees game in the Bronx. Join Steve Melewski and myself for an hour of dugout chatter before the game, then stick around for O's-Yankees action on the many televisions at Hightopps. Some special unannounced guests may join us, and there will be plenty of time for fans' questions and some trivia...

An Orioles official confirmed that left-hander Troy Patton will be added to the 25-man roster if the Orioles use the disabled list today. However, we might not have a game tonight because of the rain, which could keep Patton from being officially recalled from Triple-A Norfok. The Orioles would lose a bench player if shortstop J.J. Hardy goes on the disabled list with tightness in his left ribcage area. They need the extra arm in the bullpen because Josh Rupe and Jeremy Accardo aren't...

The Double-A Harrisburg Senators could not have asked for a better way to start the campaign than a season-opening 5-0 shutout of rival Bowie before 4,042 at Metro Bank Park on Thursday. Right-hander Brad Meyers tossed five innings of scoreless ball, scattering four hits with no walks and nine strikeouts. He twice struck out the side for his first win of the season. "My fastball was on the first couple of innings," Meyers said. "I was finding my spots pretty good. They started to figure...

It was opening day in minor league baseball on Thursday and three of the O's four full-season affiliates were on the field while Single-A Frederick plays its opener tonight. Charlotte beat Norfolk 4-3 in a game where Nolan Reimold homered and Tyler Henson went 2-for-3 with a pair of doubles in his Triple-A debut. Double-A Bowie lost 5-0 at Harrisburg and struck out 15 times in being shutout. Single-A Delmarva used a big hit by last year's first-round pick, Manny Machado, to win its...