The O's have finally made a splash of sorts on the international signings front. Here is an article from Baseball America on the possible signing of Hector Veloz. It is very unlikely that any O's club official will comment for the record on Veloz. His signing will need to be cleared through Major League Baseball's Dominican office and that could take weeks or months. The reporter mentions in the story that a club official did not return calls when he was seeking comment. Let's just say...

As I sat there watching Jordan Zimmermann dominate Frederick with his fastball hitting 94, 95 and 96 miles per hour Thursday, I wondered how strong the Nationals pitching staff will be with today's starter Stephen Strasburg and Jordan Zimmermann as the one-two punch for 2011 and beyond? It's similar to the core that Ryan Zimmerman wants to keep intact at 3-4-5 in the hitting order. You have the middle of your batting lineup set, now get the pieces around it to make a championship...

Think snow! We're now just 168 days away from Christmas -- the most wonderful time of the year (besides baseball season). And so, for the fifth year in a row, the Nationals will host a Christmas in July Toy Drive during this weekend's series against the San Francisco Giants. As always, the program benefits the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve Toys for Tots program. The toys collected will be distributed to non-profit organizations and hospital pediatric wards throughout the region. Fans can...

Norfolk Tides first baseman Brandon Snyder, who has been out since June 17th, will likely begin a minor league injury rehab assignment sometime next week. Snyder is on Norfolk's disabled list and his injury was listed as a right shoulder strain, but he has also been dealing with an upper back injury. As a player with a full-season minor league team, he must play his rehab games with a short-season club, meaning he will play with Aberdeen, Bluefield, the Gulf Coast League O's or some...

Well, it took almost an hour, but I'm finally able to write this blog entry. I knew that my wireless card and laptop would eventually allow me to get some work done. Thanks to both. I'm heading to Ocean Pines later this morning - and much later than I anticipated because of my internet issues - and I plan on pulling over my car and hurling this Verizon card and ThinkPad into the bay. I'll pay the fine. I also woke up with an inexplicable hatred of the Miami Heat. Go figure. If you feel a...

In a season where they are on a pace to lose over 100 games, tonight, for one night at least, the Orioles posted an impressive victory. They spotted the first-place Texas Rangers a 4-0 lead in the third inning, yet rallied to win 6-4 in the opener of a four-game series. Texas began the night with a 50-34 record and leading the AL West by six games. They were 31-15 at home and 17-6 since June 12th. Scott Moore hit a solo homer in the 5th and the O's scored two in the 7th, one on a Felix Pie...

Starting in left field again tonight, Felix Pie launched a ball into the second deck in the seventh inning to reduce Texas' lead to 4-2. Pie had two hits and an RBI on Tuesday. He tripled last night and homered tonight. I'm not putting him in the Hall of Fame, but he's hard to miss. Pie has collected hits in eight of his 11 starts this season. He's totaled 11 hits in his last eight games. That's an interesting symmetry. Too bad there was such a large gap after his eighth game. I...

Once again, I give you three moments from tonight's game that jumped out at me and almost knocked me over. 1. Jeremy Guthrie has been high and tight to Vladimir Guerrero in three at-bats, and Guerrero looks like he's contemplating a trip to the mound. As I noted earlier today, Guerrero was 1-for-17 lifetime against Guthrie before tonight, so I'm not sure exactly what's going on, but it's getting a little tense. My guess would be that Guthrie is wild, because he's buzzed a few other...

The O's began their four-game series at Texas tonight and it isn't going well so far. They trail 4-0 after three innings. Like last night, the opposing starter is picking up a lot of early strikeouts. Righty Tommy Hunter, who pitched to an ERA of 4.05 at Triple-A, but is 5-0, 1.98 in six Major League starts, has fanned six in three shutout innings. He has allowed a Tejada double and Lugo infield single. Meanwhile, Jeremy Guthrie, who enters tonight with a mark of 0-6, 6.17 over his last...

I just spoke with Mark Viviano, who's handling the sideline duties for MASN in this series. Interim manager Juan Samuel confirmed that Saturday's starter will come from the minors. The Orioles considered left-hander Mark Hendrickson before deciding on a call-up. Samuel didn't mention Chris Tillman by name, but he's expected to take the ball for the Orioles. It's also assumed that third baseman Josh Bell will be optioned to make room for Tillman, though that move hasn't been confirmed,...