The 2025 season will be Bob Carpenter’s final season as the Nationals’ lead play-by-play television announcer.

Carpenter revealed at the start of today’s broadcast of the Nats’ exhibition finale against the Orioles he plans to step down at the end of the season, his 20th with MASN.

“I've got a new deal working for next year as a full-time husband, dad and grandpa,” he said. “My objective is to, all season long, thank you Nats fans for the way you've been to my wife, Debbie, and I and our family over these 19 years previously. Let's make No. 20 a lot of fun.”

Though Carpenter made the official announcement today, it wasn’t a sudden decision.

“This has been on my mind for quite a while,” he said in an interview last week. “And I’ve got to tell you, it’s the most difficult decision I’ve ever had to make. Because I feel like I still have my fastball. I don’t feel like I’ve lost it yet. But I’ve seen some guys who stayed too long, and I don’t want to be one of those guys.”

Jorge Mateo played a baseball game on Sunday, his first since July 23.  

“He adds so much to our team – versatility, the speed,” Brandon Hyde told reporters down in Sarasota. “I love his energy he brings on a daily basis. We missed that last year.”

Despite the encouraging signs that Mateo is nearing a big league return, the odds that the speedster makes the Opening Day roster feel slim. Appearing in a spring training game is a big step, but many more have to be taken. 

Hyde continuously raves about Mateo’s value, noting his speed, defensive versatility and energy. The skipper’s approval is a big box to check. So while it isn’t guaranteed that Mateo will have a roster spot upon his return from injury, it seems likely. 

When that day comes, how will the Orioles make room for him on the 26-man roster?

JUPITER, Fla. – The Nationals return to Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium after yesterday’s 8-7 win over the Marlins. But this time, they’ll take on the Cardinals and an old friend.

Erick Fedde, the Nats’ first-round pick in 2014, will make this third start of spring for St. Louis. The right-hander was traded from the White Sox to the Cardinals as part of a three-team deal at last year’s trade deadline after signing a two-year, $15 million contract with Chicago following his standout year in Korea.

Opposing him will be Michael Soroka for the Nats. The right-hander is making his second start of spring after debuting here Saturday against the Red Birds. Soroka pitched three shutout innings with three strikeouts and one walk on 39 pitches.

Both pitchers would be wise to keep batters from getting balls in the air. Once again, strong winds are blowing out toward the outfield. As we saw yesterday as the Nationals and Marlins combined hit five home runs, balls can fly here if they get caught in the jet streams.

And this game is back on MASN! You can join Bob Carpenter and Dan Kolko on the broadcast starting at 1 p.m., while I’ll continue having game coverage from here in West Palm! Charlie Slowes and Dave Jageler are also back on the radio broadcast streamed on Nationals.com and MLB.com.

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – The Nationals return to action today after their first true off-day of the spring. No one reported to the complex at CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches on Monday. A well-deserved break.

But now they’re back at it and are seeing one of their frontline starters make his third Grapefruit League appearance. Jake Irvin will look to build upon his last start in which he pitched into the third inning and was capped off at 37 pitches. Facing a split-squad Cardinals lineup may also be a good opportunity for the right-hander to experiment with some things.

Manager Davey Martinez has a lot of regulars in the lineup, although James Wood (right quad tendinitis) and Luis García Jr. (illness) are both absent.

It is very cloudy and windy down here in West Palm Beach, with 20-30 mph gusts coming in from the right field corner. Don’t expect to see too many balls fly out of the yard. Routine popups could be interesting, as well.

For those who want to watch the game back home, you’re in luck! You can join Dan Kolko and Mark Zuckerman on the MASN broadcast starting at 1 p.m., while I’ll have complete game coverage from here in West Palm! Those of you on the go can also listen to Charlie Slowes and Dave Jageler on the radio broadcast streamed on Nationals.com and MLB.com.

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – MASN will televise eight Nationals Grapefruit League games this spring, the team announced today, including one of this year’s two Spring Breakout Games featuring top prospects.

The first televised game will be Sunday, when the Nats host the Mets at 1 p.m. at CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches, one day after their exhibition opener against the Astros.

After that comes a stretch of four televised games in six days: March 4, 6 and 8 against the Cardinals (the first two at 1 p.m., the last at 12 p.m.), then March 9 against the Mets in Port St. Lucie (1 p.m.).

The March 16 game against the Mets at 5 p.m. also will be televised, but this one features top prospects from both clubs as part of Major League Baseball’s Spring Breakout series. Last year’s game saw the likes of Dylan Crews, James Wood, Brady House, Jarlin Susana, Travis Sykora, Trey Lipscomb and Mitchell Parker take the field to face New York’s best young talent.

The Nationals play another Spring Breakout Game on March 14 against the Astros.

SARASOTA, Fla. - Eight of the Orioles’ spring training games will air on MASN, exceeding last year’s total by one.

The eight games are an even split between the Ed Smith Stadium complex in Sarasota and road trips. Two of the eight will be played at night. The broadcasts will be done remotely from Baltimore.

The first televised game is the opener against the Pirates on Feb. 22 at 1 p.m. at Ed Smith Stadium. The last broadcast in Florida is March 22 against the Pirates in Bradenton, the team’s shortest drive of the spring.

Here’s the complete list:

Feb 22 (1 p.m.) - Pirates at Orioles
March 1 (1 p.m.) - Pirates at Orioles
March 3 (1 p.m.) - Red Sox at Orioles
March 10 (6 p.m.) - Orioles at Pirates
March 11 (1 p.m.) - Orioles at Yankees
March 17 (1 p.m.) - Orioles at Red Sox
March 20 (6 p.m.) - Yankees at Orioles
March 22 (1 p.m.) - Orioles at Pirates

Baltimore’s plans for the 2024 season drastically changed in August of 2023. 

After 56 games as the best reliever in baseball, Félix Bautista walked off the mound after missing with 102 up and away. The then 28-year-old had just one strike to go to finish out his appearance against the Rockies. Instead, The Mountain’s season was over. As was his 2024. 

Bautista’s 6 '8 void was never going to be filled by just one pitcher. 

Baltimore added a 2023 All-Star in Craig Kimbrel to be their primary closer. Kimbrel, after posting a 2.80 ERA in the first half, struggled mightily once the calendar hit mid-July. And at the deadline, the O’s acquired Seranthony Domínguez and Gregory Soto from the Phillies. The duo combined to appear in 48 games with Domínguez saving 10. Despite performing well, it would have been a stretch to hope that they could replicate Bautista’s 1.48 ERA from the season prior. 

Ultimately, the only pitcher that can replicate the dominance of Bautista is the man himself, and the O’s weren’t able to replicate his dominance in 2024. Coming off Tommy John surgery, it may take a little while longer to truly see Bautista back to pitching like only The Mountain can. 

The Orioles outfield is crowded. 

Three everyday starters occupy patches of grass in left, center, and right field. As the 4th outfielder, how can one of the best prospects in the game prove himself without consistent at-bats? 

If this conversation about Heston Kjerstad sounds familiar, it’s because I wasn’t talking about Heston Kjerstad. It’s the conversation that many of us were having at this time last year surrounding Colton Cowser.  

Austin Hays was fresh off an All-Star campaign in 2023. Cedric Mullins hadn’t relinquished his grasp on his center field role since his breakout season in 2021. Anthony Santander had played over 300 games in 2022 and 2023, combining for 61 home runs and a .785 OPS. The starting outfield was set in proverbial stone.  

If Colton Cowser was going to prove himself at the big league level, he was going to have to earn his playing time.  

I was the first writer hired to work at MASNsports.com. It was, I think, late in 2007 or maybe early in 2008. It all runs together now. But there I was writing articles called blogs about the Orioles at a place that most people didn’t know even existed back then.

But I put in the time and effort then and now, too, and here I am about 17 years later still writing for MASN.

Well, at least for a few more days.

Over the years, I have gained experience and knowledge on how to write game stories and also how to re-write game stories in the last of the ninth. To write about the minors and the majors. To write about the draft, trades, waiver claims, injuries and anything and everything about the Orioles.

Even about those we lost along the way like Brooks Robinson and Mike Flanagan.

Orioles baseball No. 1 in prime time across the Baltimore DMA 

Viewership up over 35 percent 

Amplifying their first-place spot in the American League East, the Baltimore Orioles on MASN are dominating prime time, outpacing every other local broadcast station and cable network by a wide margin, according to the latest Neilsen ratings. Orioles viewership is up by double digits compared with the 2023 season as the team posted a 58-38 record in the first half of the 2024 campaign. 

The Orioles on MASN are averaging 100,000 viewers, per quarter hour, each night across the Baltimore DMA. This is an increase of more than 35 percent over the same period last season. The groundswell of interest is widespread, as the Orioles on MASN are by far the No. 1 viewed program in prime time across the entire demographic spectrum.   

“Marylanders love Orioles baseball, and they are coming to MASN every night to be a part of something special," said MASN senior executive John McGuinness. "This young team is talented, exciting and they play the game with the same grit and enthusiasm fans can appreciate and can identify with. Five Orioles just played in the MLB All-Star Game, the farm system is loaded – the future is indeed bright in Birdland. We expect viewership to only grow as the pennant races heat up.”

The Washington Nationals are looking to improve upon last season and gain ground in the National League East.

Last season was a growing process for the Nationals, who who continue to take positive steps forward in their rebuilding process. Fans will get a look at some of the best young players in the league during what many consider another improving season.

Watch the Nationals online with fuboTV: Start with a 7-day free trial!

The Nationals are hoping for more positive signs of development on the pitching side from Josiah Gray and MacKenzie Gore. Both are expected to be at the front of Washington’s rotation.

The biggest pieces on offense to keep tabs on are at the top of the lineup in CJ Abrams and Lane Thomas. Abrams has plenty of speed at the top of the lineup, stealing 47 bases last season. Lane Thomas also has plenty of power, leading the team with 28 home runs in 2023.

The 2024 Baltimore Orioles have a lot of young talent ready to push for their second consecutive American League East division crown.

Last season, the Orioles were able to capture their first AL East division title since 2014.

Now you can watch the Orioles online with fuboTV: Start with a 7-day free trial!

This season will be full of expectations, especially with teams like the Yankees, Red Sox, Blue Jays and Rays in the division.

The Orioles made significant moves this offseason to help them get back into the postseason in 2024. One of the biggest moves was trading for ace Corbin Burnes.

SARASOTA, Fla. – The Orioles announced this afternoon that Ben Wagner has joined their broadcast team for the 2024 season.

Wagner spent the last six seasons as a play-by-play announcer with Sportsnet television and the Toronto Blue Jays Radio Network. Before that, he spent 11 seasons with the Triple-A Buffalo Bisons in the Jays’ system.

According to the news release, Wagner will appear on radio and select MASN broadcasts throughout the year.

Former Orioles Mike Devereaux, Brian Roberts, Brad Brach and Dave Johnson will be used as guest analysts.

* Geoff Arnold returns for his fifth season with the Orioles broadcast team, serving as the primary radio play-by-play announcer.

Nationals pitchers and catchers report to West Palm Beach in five days for the start of spring training. Two weeks later, as the Grapefruit League gets rolling, MASN will be in town for the first of seven exhibition broadcasts.

MASN’s spring broadcast schedule, revealed this morning, includes six games in Florida, plus the new-look exhibition finale in D.C. featuring the club’s Opening Day roster against the organization’s top prospects.

The spring training slate commences Feb. 28 when the Nats host the Red Sox at the newly renamed CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches. The crew will be back four days later for a March 3 tilt with the Marlins.

Three of MASN’s spring broadcasts are for road games, though two of those (March 9 and 22) still take place in West Palm Beach, with the Astros the designated home team in the shared facility. But on March 15, the broadcast will originate from Port St. Lucie, where the Nats face the Mets at 6:05 p.m. in the nightcap of an exhibition doubleheader that opens with a 3:05 p.m. game between both club’s top prospects.

The Nationals’ March 17 home game against the Mets also will be broadcast live on MASN from West Palm Beach.

Johnny DiPuglia, who led the Nationals’ international scouting department for a decade-plus before his departure late in the 2023 season, has joined the Royals’ front office.

Kansas City announced this week it has hired DiPuglia as special assistant of international scouting, adding one of baseball’s most respected Latin American evaluators to its staff.

DiPuglia’s new position is not as high-ranking as his previous one with the Nats was. He’ll report to Royals senior vice president of major league and international operations Rene Francisco. But it’s nonetheless a prominent landing spot for the 60-year-old, who surprisingly found himself looking for work this offseason.

Initially hired by the Nationals in 2009, DiPuglia was one of the organization’s longest-tenured employees and one of general manager Mike Rizzo’s most-trusted confidants. Tasked with overseeing a Latin American program that was in disarray following a scandal involving the falsifying of supposed top prospect Esmailyn Gonzalez’s name, age and playing ability, he helped turn the operation around during his 15 years in charge.

DiPuglia’s most notable achievement with the Nats was the discovery and signing of teenage outfielder Juan Soto, but he signed a number of other young Latin American prospects who reached the big leagues, including Victor Robles, Luis García, Joan Adon, Jose A. Ferrer, Wander Suero, Reynaldo López, Wilmer Difo, Jefry Rodriguez and Israel Pineda. Among the homegrown Latin American prospects still in the Nationals’ farm system are Jeremy De La Rosa, Cristhian Vaquero and Andry Lara.

Postseason baseball is an exciting time for any baseball fan. And if you’re an Orioles fan, it’s especially thrilling this season. But with high-stakes baseball also comes national broadcasts and the absence of familiarity from the broadcast crew you’ve spent the last seven months with.

Fear not, Birdland. Your favorite MASN broadcasters aren’t going anywhere in October. They’ll be right alongside the team, bringing you hour-long “O’s Xtra Postseason” shows before first pitch and immediately following every playoff game on MASN.

Each show throughout the O’s October run will provide expert analysis, exclusive player interviews, behind-the-scenes looks and so much more! You won’t find this kind of local, dedicated coverage anywhere else but on “O’s Xtra Postseason” on MASN.

We’ll be updating our coverage here as details are confirmed, but here’s when you can expect to watch “O’s Xtra Postseason” on MASN in October:

Saturday, Oct. 7
ALDS Game 1: Orioles vs. Rangers at 1:03 p.m. on FS1
“O’s Xtra” pregame: Noon on MASN
“O’s Xtra” postgame: Immediately following game on MASN

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – For the first time in four years, Carter Kieboom didn’t report to spring training as the Nationals’ leading candidate to start at third base on Opening Day. This time, Kieboom is just trying to show he’s healthy again after missing the entire 2022 season following Tommy John surgery.

That process continues, with Kieboom not yet fully recovered from the elbow ligament replacement procedure most commonly associated with pitchers, not infielders.

He has been making throws from his position at third base to first and second bases, but they’ve all been routine, overhand throws. He has yet to advance to sidearm throws while charging in on a ball, or the tougher overhand throw required after fielding a ball backhanded down the line.

Because of all that, it doesn’t appear Kieboom will be ready to play in games at the start of the Grapefruit League season, which begins Feb. 25. When he does debut, he’ll likely serve as designated hitter at the outset, delaying his debut in the field until later in camp.

“We’re going to see how his progression goes,” manager Davey Martinez said. “There may be some days when we get him into a game when we can, probably as DH just to get his at-bats. But in time we’ll get him back out there to third base. It’s going to take a little bit of time, but he’s definitely well on his way to getting back on the field really soon.”

With the Nationals retooling for next year, there’s a flurry of off-season activity. Fans can catch up on the latest news and analysis in a special new series: “The Hot Stove Show.”  

It airs Fridays at 9:30 p.m. on MASN. Special segments will also be available on masnsports.com and the MASN app. The series will focus on analyzing the roster, trades and free agent signings.

MASN’s Brendan Mortensen and MASN Insider Mark Zuckerman will host the weekly 30-minute program. The MASN Hot Stove Show features interviews with Nationals front office executives, big league players and top prospects, and exclusive insights provided by MASN broadcasters and analysts as the Nats and the rest of Major League Baseball prepare their rosters for the 2023 season.

Contact:  Adam Martiyan amartiyan@masnsports.com

With the Orioles a contender in the American League East, there’s a flurry of off-season activity. Fans can catch up on the latest Orioles news in a special new series: “The Hot Stove Show.”  

It airs Fridays at 9 p.m. on MASN. Special segments will also be available on masnsports.com and the MASN app. The series will focus on analyzing the roster, trades, and free agent signings.

MASN’s Paul Mancano and MASN Insiders Roch Kubatko and Steve Melewski will host the weekly 30-minute program. The MASN Hot Stove Show features interviews with Orioles front office executives, big league players and top prospects, and exclusive insights provided by MASN broadcasters and analysts as the Orioles and Major League Baseball prepare their rosters for the 2023 season.

Contact:  Adam Martiyan amartiyan@masnsports.com

“How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard.” — A.A. Milne, "Winnie The Pooh"

In December 2010, I walked through the doors of the MASN web studio on the fifth floor of the Camden Yards warehouse and into the best job I’ve ever had. And I’ve had a few jobs, from cleaning the bathrooms at a Dunkin’ Donuts to years in newspapers as a reporter and editor to a gig as a public relations executive and a soul-crushing stint in a publishing house, from which I was laid off as the economic downturn of 2008 was just beginning.

That exit from the publishing world, where I edited everything from travel guides to a compendium of lawyers and law firms in Philadelphia, was especially painful. It came out of the blue; I had misjudged the landscape, thinking that our three-person editorial staff that handled about 80 projects a year was safe. But with profits cratering and no one advertising, something had to go – and that something was me.

To make ends meet for most of the next three years, I retreated into baseball, my part-time vocation since 1993, working for anyone who would offer a job and a few bucks – The Associated Press, MLB.com, out-of-town daily newspapers. I worked all of spring training on my own dime and 13 of every 14 days during the regular season, praying that the paychecks arrived in time to cover the mortgage, car payment and health insurance bills. Most times they did, but I had to be creative.

Creativity has never been a challenge for me. Nor has following the national pastime, which was always my intended path, even if I took a roundabout route to get there. But the 14-year-old kid who went to junior high school an hour early to pore over the box scores in the morning paper, the youngster who played APBA Baseball and then in Rotisserie leagues, the guy who made his major league press box debut at 33 and marveled at the opportunity to step onto the field of a big league ballpark and talk to managers and players wasn’t deterred.