Okay, so he is human. The Marlins scored six runs on Stephen Strasburg in Tuesday's 8-2 win at Nats Park, doubling the most earned runs Strasburg had allowed in nine previous major league starts. Second baseman Dan Uggla got on Strasburg early with a two-run blast in the first inning and then a two-run double in the third. Uggla said Strasburg wasn't in the same groove as the first time he faced him on July 16. "It is his first start back. He was out there, kind of feeling for it a...

I remember when that title conjured up nothing but negative images. But not anymore. Did Buck Showalter spike the Gatorade? I'm running out of ideas. The Orioles are winning games every way imaginable. Low-scoring, high-scoring, tie-breaking, come-from-behind. Tonight, they simply bashed the Indians into submission, erupting for 14 runs in their gaudiest display of the season. Are you sold yet? I don't know how long it's going to last, and I don't care. I'm just going to enjoy...

Nationals left-hander Scott Olsen does not want to talk about the loss to Arizona last week in which he allowed a three-run homer to Mark Reynolds. Olsen says that is in the past and it is time to focus on Florida. After he called the outing "terrible (and) awful", you can understand why he wants to just move on. He has had seven days to prepare for another matchup against his former team and needs the win to get the Nats back in the series. Game Two has Olsen (3-3, 4.12) facing off...

This time, no quality start was necessary. The Orioles hit four homers and scored a season high in runs in a 14-8 romp over Cleveland Tuesday night in game one of a six-game road trip. The Orioles improve to 7-1 under new manager Buck Showalter and are 8-4 over the last 12 games. Jim Hunter talks with Buck Showalter following the O's 14-8 win over the Indians The Birds scored four in the fourth to lead 4-1 only to see Cleveland storm back for a 6-4 lead in the last of the fourth. But the...

Nats pitcher Yunesky Maya is scheduled to pitch two to three innings Friday for the GCL Nationals, according to pitching coordinator Spin Williams. Maya, who pitched for Cuba in the 2006 and 2009 World Baseball Classics, threw 30 pitches in two innings earlier and Williams says Maya "has done everything pretty good. His velocity is 88 to 90 MPH and he has two breaking balls and a straight change." If everything goes well on Friday, Maya will have one more game before getting a shot in...

I keep waiting for the Orioles to revert to their previous form, and they keep surprising me. I'm beginning to like this arrangement. Jake Arrieta issues a two-out walk in the third inning, commits a throwing error and surrenders a run-scoring single to Asdrubal Cabrera - the Indians first hit - to fall behind, 1-0. No big deal. The Orioles jumped all over Cleveland starter Justin Masterson in the top of the fourth, scoring four times to take the lead. Three of the runs are unearned...

Nationals pitcher Chien Ming-Wang is making slow progress in his rehabilitation from major shoulder surgery, but there are encouraging signs. Nationals pitching coordinator Spin Williams told me Wang will throw a sideline session in Viera, FL on Friday. "It was major shoulder surgery, similar to the Drew Brees injury, and we are still a long way away. But I am encouraged with the progression I am seeing from him compared to the last time I worked with him. I used to see tension on his face...

For the Orioles: 2B Brian Roberts RF Nick Markakis 3B Ty Wigginton 1B Luke Scott CF Adam Jones LF Felix Pie CA Matt Wieters DH Corey Patterson SS Cesar Izturis RHP Jake Arrieta For the Indians: CF Michael Brantley SS Asdrubal Cabrera RF Shin-Soo Choo 1B Matt Laporta DH Jordan Brown LF Trevor Crowe 3B Luis Valbuena 2B Jason Donald CA Lou Marson RHP Justin Masterson

If Baseball America draft expert Jim Callis is right, and he usually is, the Orioles will sign their top draft pick, number three overall selection Manny Machado. But, as has been expected since the day they selected the Miami prep shortstop, the negotiations are expected to go down to the deadline, next Monday at midnight. "I'd be shocked if they didn't sign him. If you take a guy like that at number three and you know how good he is and you know who his agent is, you know you are going...

The Washington Nationals will honor Hall of Famers with ties to Washington's baseball heritage by installing a Hall of Fame Ring of Honor at Nationals Park above the PNC Diamond Club directly behind home plate. The display, which features Hall of Famers from the Washington Nationals, Washington Senators, Homestead Grays and Montreal Expos, will be formally presented tonight during a special presentation recognizing Andre Dawson's induction into the National Baseball Hall of Fame before the...