Alfredo Simon threw 81 pitches in five innings, and a reliever is warming in Double-A Bowie's bullpen. It looks like his first start in an affiliated game is over. Simon is charged with four runs (three earned) and six hits, with no walks and five strikeouts. He also hit a batter and threw two wild pitches. We had trouble getting an accurate read on the speed of his pitches. One fastball was clocked at 122 mph on the ballpark's radar gun. Another ball, which Harrisburg No. 9 hitter Archie...

The Orioles just passed along their lineup from Kansas City, and it includes Jake Fox behind the plate. Brian Roberts 2B Nick Markakis RF Derrek Lee 1B Vladimir Guerrero DH Adam Jones CF Luke Scott LF Mark Reynolds 3B Jake Fox C Robert Andino SS Chris Tillman RHP Alfredo Simon allowed a leadoff double in the second inning, but he retired the next three batters, getting a called third strike on Tim Pahuta. Simon has allowed one run and three hits, and struck out four, over two innings....

Alfredo Simon, pitching for Double-A Bowie in his first affiliated game since being jailed in the Dominican for almost two months, struck out three Harrisburg batters in the top of the first inning. Simon threw 23 pitches, 18 for strikes. His fastball topped out at 95 mph and was mostly in the 92-93 range. Simon also allowed a run on two hits, though the RBI double by Tyler Moore should have been ruled an error. Xavier Avery ran down the ball in right-center field, and it bounced out of his...

President of baseball operations Andy MacPhail, director of baseball operations Matt Klentak and director of player development John Stockstill are in Bowie. So is instructor Mike Bordick. Alfredo Simon is on a pitch count of 75-80 today. Double-A Bowie manager Gary Kendall isn't sure how long Simon will remain on the roster. "It's a stop along the way," Kendall said. "We didn't know if it was going to be one or maybe two starts. I don't have that information. But we're happy to...

Alfredo Simon looks thinner, and we've been told that he dropped around 30 pounds over the winter. He doesn't look that much thinner, but there's a noticeable difference. Here's the Bowie Baysox's lineup: Xavier Avery CF Greg Miclat 2B Robbie Widlansky 1B Brandon Waring 3B Ronnie Welty RF Steve Lerud C Carlos Rojas SS Adam Donachie DH Kyle Hudson LF Alfredo Simon RHP Dan Klein (UCLA) is expected to pitch today. Donachie was added to the Bowie roster from extended spring training....

Washington Nationals starting pitcher Jason Marquis had a rough outing last night against the Philadelphia Phillies, getting knocked around in the fifth and sixth innings, leading to another loss against the bullies of the National League East. The loss drops the Nats' record for the season to 14-16 through 30 games. Two losses to start this 10-day, nine-game road trip, with the prospect of facing Roy Halladay tonight, is probably a bad omen if you believe in those things. But in the bigger...

Having already secured a winning road trip at 4-2, the Orioles play at Kansas City this afternoon at 2:10 p.m. in the final game of this trip. Here are some notes on the Orioles: * The Orioles picked up their 14th win last night. Last year, they didn't win their 14th game until May 21.They improved to 7-7 on the road last night and last year didn't win their seventh road game until June 15. * Nick Markakis entered Wednesday's game with just one extra-base hit and just three RBIs during his...

The Washington Nationals continue to reward their outstanding young pitchers in the farm system. Yesterday, Cameron Selik was promoted to the advanced Single-A Potomac Nationals after an outstanding first month with low Single-A Hagerstown Suns. On Thursday, righthander Brad Meyers got the call to head to Triple-A Syracuse from Double-A Harrisburg. The club really loves Selik's competitiveness on the mound and his overall command of all four pitches. His first start for Potomac will be Friday...

When Orioles pitcher Jake Arrieta threw a staggering total of 35 pitches in the second inning Wednesday night at Kansas City, it sure didn't look like he would be able to pitch seven innings in the game. But from the third through fifth innings, Arrieta needed only 35 more pitches and he was on his way to another solid outing for the Birds. Arrieta pitched a season-high seven innings, allowing just three hits and one run in the Orioles' 3-2 win. He threw 105 pitches and fanned eight, one...

Adam Jones took a huge risk in the bottom of the eighth inning by holding up his arms and calling for time as the ball Mike Aviles hit wedged underneath the padding on the left-center field fence. Jones wanted a ground-rule double, which would have forced Alcides Escobar to stop at third base and Aviles to hold at second with one out and the Orioles clinging to a 3-1 lead. Both runners crossed the plate while Jones waited for the umpires to make the call. Jim and Rick talk with Adam Jones...