LAKELAND, Fla. – Typically, major league regulars wouldn’t make the six-hour round trip from West Palm Beach to Lakeland. But teams have to bring at least a handful of major leaguers to keep the competition level up. The Nationals only brought three players projected to be in the Opening Day starting lineup: Lane Thomas, Victor Robles and Keibert R

SARASOTA, Fla. – Kyle Gibson didn’t overwork his outfielders today during his three innings on the mound. Two balls made it through the infield for singles. Colton Cowser, playing center, fielded one of them and fired to second base to prevent a double. Greed might be good, but it also can cost you. Gibson is costing the Orioles $10 million after s

LAKELAND, Fla. – Three-hour bus rides are less common in spring training now. But every once in a while, they pop up on the schedule to a collective groan from the clubhouse. The Nationals have grown accustomed to playing a majority of their Grapefruit League games within a 45-minute drive of their West Palm Beach home over the past seven springs.

The Orioles today announced that Oriole Park at Camden Yards will host a NCAA Division I baseball game between the United States Naval Academy and the University of Maryland, Baltimore County baseball teams on Wednesday, March 29 at 6:00 p.m. ET. Tickets are $10 for general admission in the lower level seating bowl. Current Navy and UMBC students w

SARASOTA, Fla. – Orioles manager Brandon Hyde provided some significant health and workout updates this morning, rattling off the morning advancements from a sheet of paper. Got to keep it straight, and there were quite a few. Left-hander DL Hall, who’s recovered from the discomfort in his lower back, completed a bullpen session today. Hyde said it

LAKELAND, Fla. – It’s the last long trip of spring training and the Nationals have to be thrilled to no longer come to this side of Florida. The team bus left the complex in West Palm Beach at 6:45 a.m. to embark on the three-hour drive to Lakeland to face the Tigers this afternoon. Needless to say, not a lot of major leaguers made the trip, with L

SARASOTA, Fla. – Colton Cowser is starting in center field today against the Pirates, and Adam Rutschman is serving as the designated hitter. Cowser is 2-for-11 with one home run, seven walks, six strikeouts and six runs scored. Adam Frazier moves up to the leadoff spot. Ryan Mountcastle is the first baseman, Ramón Urías is playing third base, Jorg

It started out with a tweet I published following Sunday’s Orioles game, which took just two hours and 16 minutes to play, posing a question. What did fans think of the use of the pitch timer thus far? Twitter didn’t disappoint in that I received a large amount of responses and I did not count up how many were positive or negative but there were pl

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Jackson Rutledge looks like he’s ready for a breakout season. And not just because his 6-foot-8, 251-pound frame looks like it already belongs in the major leagues. While he physically can measure up to anyone in the Nationals clubhouse, the former organizational top prospect still has some growing to do on the mound. And he

SARASOTA, Fla. – Do not fall in love with spring training or September stats. Managers have warned us about it for centuries. Or at least since I’ve been a full-time beat reporter in 1997. The same rule or sage advice applies to overreactions on the negative side. Do not fall out of love. Here are a few examples, beginning with a hitter who left ca