The Orioles' Manny Machado and the Nationals' Bryce Harper are each crushing baseballs during the first month of the season - big stories for each of the local nines. Here are six other American League and National League East stories that could raise havoc for the Orioles and Nationals this season: Nick Pivetta, Philadelphia: The Phillies are playing better than expected - maybe because of a soft schedule that has them a combined 8-1 against the Marlins, Rays and Reds? - and one of the...

The Orioles' Dylan Bundy had not pitched well in three career starts against the Minnesota Twins. But on a picture-perfect 68-degree afternoon at Camden Yards, Bundy changed all that: He pitched seven shutout innings in the Orioles' 3-2 win against the Twins in their season-opening game. It was his first career opening day start. His seven-inning performance was the longest by an Orioles starter since Jake Arrieta went seven shutout innings at Camden Yards in 2012. Bundy, the Orioles' best...

The trendy analysis for the American League East is that the Boston and New York are going to battle for the title, bringing back the usual intensity that goes with a Yankees-Red Sox rivalry. But when does the obvious ever happen in baseball? The Orioles, who had five consecutive .500 or better seasons before their last-place finish in 2017, will contend if they can rebuild a rotation. The Blue Jays have pitching depth and the Rays are the Rays. Predicted finish: Yankees, Orioles, Red Sox, Blue...

The National League West arguably is the toughest division in baseball. Last year, three teams made the postseason with the Dodgers losing to the Astros in the World Series. Now, can the Dodgers win another title by fighting off a World Series hangover after losing Game 7 to Houston in November? Do they have enough pitching to have a second consecutive triple-digit win season? And will Clayton Kershaw stay away from back injuries? The Rockies are trying to prove they're here to stay after 87...

The Cubs have a revamped rotation to go with a lineup that features Kris Bryant and Anthony Rizzo, two hitters that are potential National League MVP candidates. Their biggest competition in the NL Central could be the Brewers, who had 86 victories last season and have a legitimate shot to make the postseason for the first time since 2011. But the Cardinals, who had 100, 86 and 83 wins in each of the last three seasons, are trying to avoid being left out of the postseason for the third...

After losing the 2016 World Series in seven games and the 2017 Division Series to the Yankees in five games, the Cleveland Indians hope to take a run at a third consecutive American League Central championship. But their biggest competition comes from the Twins, a wild card team in 2017 that has added six players, including five pitchers, two of them starters. The White Sox and Tigers are in rebuild, although the White Sox are, unlike the Tigers, beyond the first step. The Royals lost two key...

After losing four Division Series in the last six seasons, the Nationals go into the season a clear favorite to win the National League East. Last season, they won the division by 20 games over the second-place Marlins. No team has ever won consecutive division titles by at least 20 games. Maybe the Nationals will be the first. Miami, though, is the odds-on favorite to finish last. That leaves the Phillies, Mets and Braves to battle for second place. If the Mets get a healthy rotation, they'll...

Who says rebuilding lasts forever? It only seems to be the case. The Astros, who had 100-loss seasons each year from 2011 to 2013, won their first World Series last season. This season, they are the favorite to win the American League West. And they could be the first team since the 1999-2000 New York Yankees to win consecutive World Series. In the rest of the AL West, the stories are the same. The Mariners, Angels, Athletics and Rangers have potent lineups, but rotation questions. The...

The question looms in the National League East: Who has the best chance to challenge the favored Nationals, who won the title in 2017 by 20 games over the second-place Miami Marlins? The Marlins have no chance. The Mets are banking on the health of pitchers Matt Harvey and Noah Syndergaard to help Jacob de Grom in the rotation. The Braves' and the Phillies' hope is development of young pitching. But, the Phillies, who finished last with 66 wins last season, strengthened their case to at least...

As pitchers and catchers open spring training camps this week in Arizona and Florida, here's a look at the pitching storylines: Question: How will the Angels use Shohei Ohtani, the Japanese pitcher that wants to be a hitter and pitcher? Answer: Angels manager Mike Scioscia won't reveal specifics, but Ohtani will pitch and then be in the lineup between starts. Ohtani, 23, who signed for $2.3 million, has a fastball in the upper 90s and an excellent splitter. He's a left-handed batter that...

The Baseball Writers' Association of America did a pretty good job with their latest Hall of Fame ballot. They elected Jim Thome, Vladimir Guerrero, Trevor Hoffman and Chipper Jones, and held off Roger Clemens and Barry Bonds. They could have done better by electing Edgar Martinez, Mike Mussina, Omar Vizquel - and even long shot Fred McGriff - but maybe those guys will make it on another ballot. Mussina is on the ballot another five years. Before we get too far into the Hall of Fame analysis,...

Shortstop Alan Trammell and pitcher Jack Morris have been voted into the Hall of Fame by the Modern Era Committee. So now that the approximately 430 ballots from the Baseball Writers' Association are in, here are answers to the most-frequently asked questions about who will be inducted into Cooperstown on a steamy day in July. The BBWAA will announce vote totals Jan. 24. Question: Should Barry Bonds, the all-time home run champion, and Roger Clemens, the best right-handed pitcher of all...

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. - The Angels, Cardinals, Yankees and Cubs were the most aggressive teams at baseball's Winter Meetings. We can assume Giancarlo Stanton's arrival in New York means the Yankees will be out of the running for Bryce Harper when he becomes eligible for free agency after the 2018 season. The Nationals re-signed reliever Brandon Kintzler, so if the Koda Glover and Shawn Kelley are healthy, the bullpen will be set. The Nationals have to put together their bench and look for...

The Cardinals didn't get Giancarlo Stanton from the Marlins, but they have landed another Miami outfielder, Marcell Ozuna, a 27-year old All-Star with a Gold Glove. Now the question is: Does this mean the Cardinals would be pulling out of the market for Orioles third baseman Manny Machado? Apparently they would still like to swing a deal for the Baltimore slugger, who also has a Gold Glove and Platinum Glove on his resume. According to media reports, the Cardinals gave up their fifth-best...

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. - The second day of baseball's Winter Meetings were light on moves, but, as usual, heavy on speculation. The biggest move on Tuesday involved the Yankees, who traded third baseman Chase Headley to the Padres, leaving them without a proven third baseman, as well as an established second baseman. The Yankees traded second baseman Starlin Castro to the Marlins in the deal that brought Giancarlo Stanton to the Bronx. So what will the Yankees do? For now, the Yankees have...

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. - The Yankees, who a year ago were thought of as a rebuilding club, officially introduced Giancarlo Stanton, the National League MVP in 2017, as a member of their team. "This is a great new chapter in my life,'' Stanton said at a press conference Monday as baseball's Winter Meetings opened in the Magic Kingdom. Stanton, who led the majors with 59 home runs for the Marlins, also led with 132 RBIs and a .631 slugging percentage. His 1.007 OPS ranked fourth by the...

We are not breaking any news here when we say the Orioles need starting pitching - at least three starters and certainly more - if they are going to be contenders in the 2018 American League East. The Orioles have Kevin Gausman, who pitched well in the second half after a lousy first half in 2017, and Dylan Bundy at the top of the rotation, but after that, it's all question marks. Baltimore is in catch-up mode. The New York Yankees, who unexpectedly came one win away from making the World...

Baseball's Winter Meetings start Monday in Orlando, and while a slow-moving market has defined the offseason so far, that doesn't mean that deals - and endless speculation about deals that aren't going to happen - won't start making headlines in the Magic Kingdom. The Nationals are the defending National League East champions with 97 victories and it would be difficult to see why they wouldn't be the favorites to win the division in 2018, thanks to a rotation that has 2017 NL Cy Young...

Hall of Fame second baseman Joe Morgan has written a letter to baseball writers, urging them not to vote for players that have been tied to performance-enhancing drugs. Morgan didn't mention players by name, but pitcher Roger Clemens (54.1 percent of the vote last year) and outfielder Barry Bonds (53.8 percent) have been moving up in vote percentage each year, getting closer to the 75 percent needed to be enshrined. When Clemens and Bonds were first on the ballot in 2013, they were at 37...

The holiday season has arrived, so that means turkey, wine and cheese, shopping, bright lights and a month of Hall of Fame voting discussions. Members of the Baseball Writers' Association of America started receiving their ballots in the mail to consider the 2018 class for induction into Cooperstown. There are 19 newcomers among the 33 players on the ballot, including Chipper Jones, Jim Thome, Johnny Damon and Omar Vizquel. There are seven candidates that have at least 50 percent of the vote...