The Orioles sent backup catcher Craig Tatum for an MRI on his sore right knee, and they're waiting for the results. The knee started bothering Tatum during Sunday's start against Tampa Bay at Tropicana Field. Manager Buck Showalter doesn't believe that Tatum will need to go on the disabled list, "but that could change depending on what the MRI shows," he said. Showalter was going to use Jake Fox as his designated hitter tonight, but Tatum isn't available. Fox is needed as a potential...

Brian Roberts 2B Nick Markakis RF Ty Wigginton 1B Luke Scott DH Adam Jones CF Felix Pie LF Matt Wieters C Cesar Izturis SS Josh Bell 3B Kevin Millwood RHP

It's already been debated as to whether a 17-year old baseball player is worth $10 million dollars. The Nationals, with the signing of Bryce Harper last night, certainly think so. Jim Callis, the executive editor of Baseball America, said he knew the Nats would be able to get the job done. "I never doubted the Nationals would sign Harper. I figured he would break Mark Teixeira's record for the largest guarantee given to a drafted position player, but Washington only had to raise the bar...

How close did the Orioles come to losing the rights to high school shortstop Manny Machado? Scouting director Joe Jordan estimated last night that the Orioles were down to the last three minutes before the midnight deadline. "I think it was about one minute," said president of baseball operations Andy MacPhail. Three of Scott Boras' clients hadn't agreed to contract terms as we entered the final 15 minutes - Machado, first overall pick Bryce Harper and seventh overall pick Matt Harvey....

On Sunday, August 22, the 5th annual Brian's Baseball Bash, presented by Bank of America and Bloom & Associates, will be held at Dave and Buster's in Arundel Mills Mall from 6:00 until 9:00 p.m. The evening is hosted by Orioles 2B Brian Roberts. Fans will have the chance to interact with Brian, other Orioles players and local sports stars while enjoying a night of games and great food. Once again this year, proceeds from Brian's Baseball Bash will support the University of Maryland Hospital...

A walk-off win and a contract agreement with their first-round draft pick. What will the Orioles do for an encore? A 2 hour, 20 minute game would be a nice gesture - ending with another victory, of course. They've posted seven at home under manager Buck Showalter, and four have been of the walk-off variety. Adam Jones accounted for two of them with a single into left field and last night's bunt to third. For the sake of accuracy, it wasn't a suicide squeeze. Nick Markakis didn't break...

When the dust settled and the day was over, there were no real surprises. The Orioles got Manny Machado and they said from the beginning they were confident they would. Jim Callis, in this space last week, said it was 99.9 percent certain. He said that for a few reasons I'm sure but one of the biggest was that most of these kids do sign every year. In the end, all the worry about how many O's unsigned top ten picks there were as the deadline neared was wasted worry. The O's total...

With the Nationals signing their No. 1 overall selection Bryce Harper, his college coach, Tim Chambers, said the Nats are getting the "greatest amateur baseball player of all time". Jim Callis of Baseball America called him the best hitting prospect he had ever seen at the amateur level. A source with knowledge of the situation says Harper is expected to first play in the instructional league and then go to the prestigious Arizona Fall League, the same league Stephen Strasburg played in...

In the end, the O's added three draft picks today getting top pick Manny Machado, seventh-round pick Matt Bywater and 19th-round pick, pitcher Kenneth Wise. Scouting director Joe Jordan told me tonight that Manny Machado did not get a Major League contract. It wasn't expected that he would. I asked Jordan what had to happen to officially finalize this deal that the sides agreed to about three minutes before the midnight deadline. Was it just a matter of hitting a few computer key...

The Orioles tonight announced that they have agreed to terms with SS Manny Machado, their first selection (third pick overall) in this year's First Year Player Draft. Machado, 17, is a 6-foot-2, 180-pound shortstop from Brito Private High School in Miami, FL. In his senior season he batted .639 (55-86) with 12 home runs and 56 RBI, adding 43 runs scored, 27 doubles and 17 stolen bases. In the summer of 2009, Machado helped lead USA Baseball's 18 & Under team to a gold medal in Venezuela in...