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...

The Orioles reached agreement with shortstop Manny Machado about three minutes before the midnight deadline. Scouting director Joe Jordan said the bonus doesn't exceed the $6 million given to catcher Matt Wieters. "It played the way we thought it was going to play," Jordan said. "We had a really good read on the financial side, what it was going to take, and again, they played it until the end. We're very happy. It's a good deal for the club and the player. "It's one of those...

NATIONALS SECURE CONTRACTS WITH 25 OF TOP 26 SELECTIONS IN '10 DRAFT The Washington Nationals tonight agreed to terms on a Major League contract with College of Southern Nevada outfielder Bryce Harper, the first-overall selection in the 2010 First-Year Player Draft. Nationals Senior Vice President and General Manager Mike Rizzo, Nationals Assistant General Manager and Vice President of Player Personnel Roy Clark and Nationals Director of Scouting Kris Kline made the joint...

Adam Jones got the idea to bunt just before he squared up. No regrets. "I can bunt. I've been bunting this year. Good idea to do it," he said. "I looked at him (Jose Lopez) and I saw where he was playing me all night, all my at-bats, and when I was on third I was talking to him and said, 'I'm not going to bunt on you. I'm not going to bunt this series.' Hey, he moved back. "It was hot. I wish it ended in nine. As long as we came out victorious, it was worth it." The O's Xtra...

Did manager Buck Showalter call for the bunt with Adam Jones at the plate, Nick Markakis at third base and two outs in the bottom of the 11th? "Yeah, we've been working on that," he said, grinning. "No. You've got good players making good decisions. A lot of opportunities there to throw in the towel and we kept grinding. I'm proud of them. We refused to give in there and it was fun to watch. It wasn't always fun to watch, but it was fun to watch. "I love it. I think it's a great...