Craig Tatum is taking throws at first base. Should I read anything into that? Kidding. Miguel Tejada said he's become a lot more comfortable at third base since the start of spring training. "That first game, the intrasquad game that we played, I felt a little bit different," he said. "Now I feel like I'm ready to go." Tejada heated up at the plate over the final weeks of camp, as we expected him to do, and raised his average to .274. All of a sudden, the ball's exploding off his...

Brooks Robinson and Boog Powell will throw out the ceremonial first pitches before Friday's home opener against the Toronto Blue Jays. The Orioles are celebrating the 40th anniversary of the 1970 World Series championship. Having Brooks and Boog together on Friday is a wonderful and appropriate gesture. Boog was the American League's MVP. Brooks was the Series MVP. Perfect. Gates open at noon. The Orioles will take batting practice from 12:25 p.m. to 1:25 p.m. The Blue Jays will take BP...

Jason Bartlett SS Carl Crawford LF Ben Zobrist RF Evan Longoria 3B Carlos Pena 1B B.J. Upton CF Pat Burrell DH Sean Rodriguez 2B Dioner Navarro C James Shields RHP It must seem strange for Orioles manager Dave Trembley to be overseeing a workout on the day that most teams are starting their seasons. "You play the schedule as it's given to you," Trembley said. "Just like I tell people, I wish I was 29 again, 6-3 and had a full head of hair. Not going to happen. No sense crying over...

Brian Roberts 2B Adam Jones CF Nick Markakis RF Miguel Tejada 3B Luke Scott DH Matt Wieters C Felix Pie LF Garrett Atkins 1B Cesar Izturis SS Kevin Millwood RHP Manager Dave Trembley was asked earlier today whether he's confident that Mike Gonzalez will turn it up once the lights come on and the games count. "Well, he's the closer," Trembley replied. "He's going to get the opportunity to save the games. If it's a save situation, he's going to pitch and I'm confident that he's going...

It's become the most interesting battle in the AL East. Forget the Yankees and Red Sox (and I keep trying). Orioles fans seem more worked up about Felix Pie unseating Nolan Reimold as the starting left fielder. Has he really done it? Reimold was brought along slowly this spring because of the Achilles surgery. He told me that he wouldn't be 100 percent until mid-summer, though he ran the bases much better as the Orioles were preparing to break camp. Reimold also started to look more...

As expected, Luke Scott is batting fifth tonight against Tampa Bay right-hander James Shields. The lowest that he figured to drop was sixth behind catcher Matt Wieters, but fifth seemed to be his most likely destination. I had an interesting conversation with Scott earlier this spring - and most of them are interesting because the talk often shifts away from baseball - about his placement in the lineup. He actually suggested that he would make an ideal No. 2 hitter. Scott has accumulated...

Major League Baseball commissioner Bud Selig stopped by the press box during Monday's opener versus the Phillies and talked about a myriad of subjects and a few on the Nats and D.C. baseball. Here is a couple of his answers on the subject: Is Washington, D.C. coming into its own as a major league baseball town?: "I have no doubts and I mean this sincerely. It's a really beautiful day in this really beautiful ballpark. I have talked to Stan (Kasten), Mike Rizzo and to the Lerners a lot...

Starting pitcher Jason Marquis makes his Nats Park and season debut in a Nationals uniform Wednesday night against lefthander Cole Hamels and the Phillies. Last year, Jason was 15-13 with a 4.04 ERA for the Colorado Rockies. He had an especially brilliant start to the season that garnered him an All-Star selection. Jason was 10-5 through June 30th last season with two complete games to help Colorado climb back in the race with the Dodgers. Marquis has had six straight seasons with at least...

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Ian Desmond wanted more from his first game as the starting shortstop with the Nationals. His teammates felt the same way as the Phillies arrived and rolled past the Nats 11-1 on opening day. The beginning was pretty much all the Nats could have wanted from their first game of 2010 at Nats Park: A sold out crowd, a visit from the Commander in Chief and an early lead. That positive feeling was dampened when the Phillies took control. As Manager Jim Riggleman said after being asked about...