Carolina League Player of the Year Tyler Moore is likely to begin the season in Double-A Harrisburg after smashing several records for the Mills Cup champion Potomac Nationals last year, according to Washington Nationals director of player development Doug Harris. "He had a phenomenal year, I have never seen anything like it in 22 years. He was hitting .199 at the halfway mark and ended up hitting .260 with 30-plus (homers) and 100-plus (RBIs)," Harris said. " It is really a credit to...

They are former Orioles and they are still around to help the orange and black. Over the last month, as some of the organization's minor league players took part in drills under the stands at Camden Yards, B.J. Surhoff and Mike Bordick have been among those lending a hand. Players like Tyler Townsend, L.J. Hoes and Tyler Henson have taken part in the three-day-a-week voluntary workouts. The group was led by O's strength and conditioning coach Joe Hogarty and Gary Kendall, who will manage...

Pitcher Justin Duchscherer will take his physical today. I'm still trying to find out whether his school was delayed two hours. I promised some FanFest leftovers a few days ago and got sidetracked by Duchscherer. And if I had a nickel for every time I wrote the phrase "sidetracked by Duchscherer," I could retire today. New bench coach Willie Randolph was asked whether he reached out to any players over the winter. "Guys nowadays don't call you back too often," he said, laughing....

According to Baseball America's Matt Eddy, the Orioles have signed three more pitchers to minor league deals. It's not believed that anyone in the group has been invited to spring training, though the complete camp roster hasn't been released. The Orioles reached agreement with right-handers Chris Jakubauskas and Mark Worrell, and left-hander James Houser. This is what you call minor league pitching depth. Houser, a former second-round pick of the Rays, posted a 3.67 ERA for the Marlins'...

"Love is the most important thing in the world, but baseball is pretty good, too," a child once said. Does your boyfriend, girlfriend, husband, wife or partner love baseball? If so, surprise your beloved this Valentine's Day with a special visit from Nationals mascot Screech or the Single-A Potomac Nationals' Uncle Slam. Screech is available for a five minute surprise appearance in which he'll deliver a Valentine's Day card along with a balloon and a box of chocolates. The cost is...

According to an Associated Press report in the Dominican Republic, Orioles pitcher Alfredo Simon has been denied bail and will remain in prison following the shooting death of his cousin. Here's the story. Defense attorney Dinosa Dilone plans to appeal Tuesday's ruling, according to the report. Simon is accused of firing a shot on New Year's Eve that killed 25-year-old Michel Castillo and injured his brother, 17-year-old Starlling Castillo, in the city of Luperon in Puerto Plata. Simon...

With spring training just two weeks away, future prospects in the Nationals' system are getting ready to showcase their talents for the team's top brass in Florida. Nationals director of player development Doug Harris attended the Potomac Nationals Hot Stove Banquet on Sunday night in Springfield, Va., and shared some insight as to who might be with the big club as the team heads back to D.C. in late March. Harris believes the franchise has built depth that will help the Nationals get...

It has been an eventful offseason for Brandon Snyder. He bought a house, added a puppy to the family and got engaged. A fall wedding is planned. Now he wants to have an eventful season and get back to spraying line drives like he did at Single-A Frederick and Double-A Bowie; he's been unable to do that consistently yet at Triple-A Norfolk. In the summer of 2009, Snyder's star was on the rise. The year before, he had hit .315 with 13 homers and 80 RBIs at Frederick and then he started...

Now that the Orioles have reached agreement on a one-year deal with pitcher Justin Duchscherer and a minor league deal with left-hander Mark Hendrickson, the 25-man roster comes a little more into focus. However, there are still some fuzzy patches. It's sort of like looking at the flash on a camera. I'm still seeing spots. The 12-man pitching staff is much clearer. Though it isn't a certainly, it's likely that the rotation will consist of Duchscherer, Jeremy Guthrie, Brian Matusz, Brad...

The Orioles have reached agreement with free-agent left-hander Mark Hendrickson on a minor league deal with a spring training invitation, according to a team official. Just when Hendrickson thinks he's out, they pull him back in. Actually, the York, Pa. resident never wanted to leave. Hendrickson will try to join Michael Gonzalez as the second left-hander in the bullpen. He'll get competition from Clay Rapada, also signed to a minor league deal over the winter. The Orioles re-signed...