A lot of talk has centered around John Lannan, Jason Marquis, Livan Hernandez, Tom Gorzelanny and Jordan Zimmermann as the potential five starters for the Nationals when the season gets going past the off-days early in April. Making it interesting, though, is the potential of Ross Detwiler and Yunesky Maya. Detwiler is returning from a nagging hip injury, and Maya is learning on the job after his quick introduction to the big leagues late last season. Nationals pitching coach Steve McCatty...

SARASOTA, Fla. - Rick VandenHurk will follow Jeremy Guthrie to the mound in the second exhibition game. Left-hander Zach Britton will replace Justin Duchscherer in the third game. Manager Buck Showalter doesn't seem overly concerned about second baseman Brian Roberts' neck. "Muscle spasm. Nothing other than that. Trapezius. Is that right? Day-to-day," Showalter said. "They didn't see any disk issues or anything. It is what it is. We've all woke up with a stiff neck." Showalter...

SARASOTA, Fla. - It appears that Brian Roberts is fine and only dealing with some stiffness in his neck after leaving camp this morning and undergoing X-rays. Roberts will continue to receive treatment. He's unsure whether he'll return to the field tomorrow, which makes him day-to-day. "Just a stiff neck," he said, downplaying the situation when approached by reporters. "We've probably all had a stiff neck at some point in our life, right? I'm not overly concerned." True, but we...

In an interview, Baseball America's Jim Callis talked about Zach Britton's readiness to pitch in the major leagues. But Callis believes the Orioles' best move is for Britton to begin this season back in the minor leagues. "I think he is ready for the big leagues. He has no obvious weakness and did get in 12 starts last year at Triple-A and pitched well," Callis said. "That said, the Orioles have no shot at contending this year, so from a team standpoint, I don't think it makes any sense...

SARASOTA, Fla. - First baseman Derrek Lee is hoping to take batting practice on the field Friday after being restricted to hitting soft tosses in the cage during the first days of the full-squad workouts. Lee, three months removed from surgery to repair a torn ligament in his thumb, won't take BP with the team. The veteran will take his swings against one of the minor league coaches. Earlier today, Lee stood in the cage but kept the bat on his shoulder while Brad Bergesen threw live batting...

It was a dream that always seemed far off into the future - an obscure plan to host an urban youth baseball development academy in the nation's capital. That day is arriving, or will be arriving soon, and the Washington Nationals Dream Foundation is busy moving forward at a frenzied pace after overcoming complex bureaucratic obstacles. It's something the Lerner family has poured its hearts into since assuming ownership of the team in 2006. And this past winter, the final piece fell into...

Are you ready for Orioles baseball on television? Your wait is almost over. And you can share the MASN broadcast of the Yankees-O's game on Monday, March 7 with other baseball fans at Hightopps Backstage Grille in Timonium. Join MASNsports.com's Steve Melewski, Jen Royle and yours truly at Hightopps at 6 p.m. for an hour of spirited baseball talk. We'll answer your questions about the 2011 Orioles, give you our thoughts on the upcoming season, ask some trivia questions and give away some...

SARASOTA, Fla. - Left-hander Zach Britton and right-hander Rick VandenHurk also will make appearances during the first week of the exhibition schedule. Jeremy Guthrie will start the March 1 home opener against the Rays, and Justin Duchscherer will start the following day against the Phillies in Clearwater. Britton will pitch in one of those games, with VandenHurk taking the mound in the other. Brad Bergesen and Chris Tillman will pitch in the first game Feb. 28 against the Pirates in...

SARASOTA, Fla. - I just arrived in the workroom to find out that Brian Roberts isn't working out today. He left camp with a sore neck. Roberts might need X-rays. That's all we really know at the moment. But since he exited the facility, it makes sense that he'd be going for X-rays. At least it's not his back, though I only play a doctor on this blog, so there could be a connection that I'm missing. Cesar Izturis was re-signed to back up at second base. Robert Andino, Brendan Harris and...

Even though he has only played nine pro games, Orioles shortstop prospect Manny Machado has been rated as the game's 14th-best prospect by Baseball America. O's lefty pitching prospect Zach Britton was rated 28th by Baseball America, which today is releasing its latest top 100 prospects list. Earlier, Britton was rated 11th by ESPN's Keith Law and 19th by MLB.com. Machado was ranked 24th by MLB.com and 26th by ESPN's Law. No other O's prospects came close to making Baseball America's...