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...

SARASOTA, Fla. - So did I hear correctly that the Gino Giant is coming back to Baltimore? Best burger around when I was a kid. The clubhouse is closed to the media for the second time in three mornings. On Monday, it was due to physicals and dental and vision exams. Today, our access is limited because of team meetings, including one with umpires. I've been asked many times about the differences between former pitching coach Rick Kranitz and the man who replaced him, Mark Connor. Are...

SARASOTA, Fla. - Want to get under Luke Scott's skin? Are you nuts? It's probably not a good idea, but here's one suggestion if you're in that sort of devious and daring mood: Suggest that he's only suited to be a designated hitter. Then run, do not walk, to the nearest exit. That's been Scott's primary role with the Orioles, but he's projected to be the starting left fielder in 2011. A future Hall of Famer is taking over his former duties. You might have heard of the guy - Vladimir...

SARASOTA, Fla. - You already know that Brad Bergesen and Chris Tillman are pitching in the first exhibition game on Feb. 28 versus the Pirates in Bradenton. Here's what you didn't know until today: Jeremy Guthrie is starting the March 1 home exhibition game against Tampa Bay. Justin Duchscherer will start March 2 against the Phillies in Clearwater. Brian Matusz and Rule 5 pick Adrian Rosario will pitch in the March 3 game against the Twins in Sarasota, and Jake Arrieta and Ryan Drese will...

SARASOTA, Fla. - Minor league catching instructor Don Werner threw batting practice on the Camden Yards back field this morning. He actually turned and watched one of Vladimir Guerrero's fly balls clear the left field fence, and the young boy standing behind it. It was that impressive. Guerrero and Luke Scott drove the ball to the opposite field during their first rounds of BP. Then it was time to unload. Guerrero mashed the last three balls thrown to him. Players around the cage were...

MASN, the television home of the Washington Nationals and Baltimore Orioles, has announced its 2011 spring training schedule. The network will televise 10 spring training games - five for each team - and all will appear on MASN's dedicated high-definition channel, MASN HD. Kicking off the baseball season on MASN HD, the Nationals will face the Atlanta Braves on March 6 in Viera, Florida. MASN's preseason Nationals schedule will include four other games from Space Coast Stadium, the team's...

If we think back to last July, as it appeared that the Orioles were likely to name Buck Showalter as their next manager, there was one great debate ongoing. The debate was about just when Showalter should take over the team. Many fans, it seemed well over 50 percent to me, felt Showalter should not take over the club until the season was over so he could start fresh in the dugout on opening day 2011. We can look back now and say that Andy MacPhail's timing of Showalter's hire could not...