As the MLB Winter Meetings begin a three-day run today in San Diego, the Orioles continue their search for starting pitching. The weekend agreement with right-hander Kyle Gibson is expected to be a starting point but not the end point. They are not done.

Now we await the next rumor and/or dispatch from San Diego that could give us a clue which free agent pitchers the Orioles are truly “in on” and how high they may be aiming in bolstering their starting rotation.

Is it possible that Gibson will not make the Orioles rotation and will pitch out of their bullpen? I would say yes possible, but it seems unlikely. Just as now former Oriole Jordan Lyles was for Baltimore, Gibson is an innings eater and 98 percent of his career MLB appearances have come as a starter. He has thrown 150 or more innings seven times and 180 or more three times. His career-best is 196 2/3 in 2018.

Gibson went 10-8 with a 5.05 ERA last year for the Phillies and actually pitched better at home despite pitching in such a hitter-friendly park. His ERA was 4.57 at home and 5.79 on the road in 2022.

If Gibson is essentially a replacement for Lyles, he could also be, as Lyles was, a clubhouse leader. He was said to be that for the Phillies last season and was the team’s nominee for the prestigious Roberto Clemente Award. Gibson was involved with several charities in the Philly area, raising $108,000 thousand dollars during his time with the club.

Well, tonight’s Nationals lineup is going to look a lot different. After reportedly trading their two best hitters, Juan Soto and Josh Bell, to the Padres for five prospects and possibly more, the Nats will trot out a starting lineup that no one could imagine just a couple of weeks ago.

Soto and Bell no longer man the heart of the order. Those spots are now filled by Yadiel Hernandez and Nelson Cruz as they face Mets ace Jacob deGrom in his season debut.

After suffering a stress reaction in his right scapula during spring training, deGrom brings his 9-4 record and 2.44 career ERA against the Nationals to South Capitol Street tonight.

On the mound for the Nationals is right-hander Cory Abbott, who makes his fourth appearance and first start for Washington. He has given up two hits, one run, one home run, one walk and six strikeouts in four innings over his previous three outings.

NEW YORK METS at WASHINGTON NATIONALS
Where: Nationals Park
Gametime: 7:05 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN, MLB Network (outside of the D.C. and New York markets) MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 The Fan, MLB.com
Weather: Mostly sunny, 87 degrees, wind 9 mph in from left field 

The Nationals know a thing or two about brilliant pitching performances. This is the franchise, after all, that has seen Max Scherzer throw two no-hitters and strike out 20 batters in another game, Stephen Strasburg strike out 14 in his major league debut and Jordan Zimmermann hold the Marlins hitless on the final day of the regular season. It takes a lot to impress these guys, and rightfully so. Tonight, though, might have done the trick. The Nats have never been no-hit since arriving in town...

The Nationals jumped out in front against 2018 National League Cy Young award winner Jacob deGrom in the first inning. Asdrúbal Cabrera doubled with one out. One batter later, Juan Soto drilled a double to deep right-center field to score Cabrera. The Nats led 1-0 after one inning. Nationals starter Max Scherzer has struck out five over three innings without allowing a hit. In the bottom of the third, Trea Turner singled and stole second base. It was his 31st stolen base of the season....

NEW YORK - The Nationals are in salvage mode Sunday after a pair of rough late-inning losses against the Mets at Citi Field. Despite enjoying leads in the eighth and ninth innings Friday and Saturday nights, the Nats fell 7-6 and 4-3 and find themselves only 1/2 game ahead of New York in the National League wild card standings. "We just come back all the way from the West Coast," said Nationals catcher Yan Gomes after Saturday's loss. "We swept the Giants over there who they were a team...

NEW YORK - Last year, a matchup between Max Scherzer and Jacob deGrom was must-see TV for the implications it had on the Cy Young Award race. This year, it's simply a game both the Nationals and Mets desperately need to win as a team, regardless of the men on the mound. Neither Scherzer nor deGrom is pitching at a Cy Young caliber right now, though you could argue Scherzer would be in the thick of the early race if not for the Nationals' defense and bullpen. (Hence the massive disparity...

Right-hander Max Scherzer did everything in his power to give the Nationals every opportunity to win their season opener Thursday against the New York Mets before a sellout crowd at Nats Park. But fellow Cy Young winner Jacob deGrom was just a bit better. Scherzer allowed a solo homer to Robinson Canó in the first and later an insurance run in the eighth in the Mets' 2-0 win over the Nats on Thursday. Canó's blast over the left-center field wall on a 1-1 changeup came with two outs in...

Even the most pessimistic of observers out there, those who insisted all along the Nationals would not win the National League East this season, could not have reasonably believed this team would be facing elimination on Sept. 21, with more than a week left on the regular-season schedule. If the Nats were going to fall short in their quest to win a third straight division title, it wouldn't happen until the final weekend, after a soul-crushing loss that allowed a surprise rival to celebrate...

The Nationals' series with the Mets, which begins Thursday in D.C., doesn't have any meaning for the division race, but the two National League Cy Young candidates are pitching and there's an interesting question in that debate: Does New York's Jacob deGrom need at least 10 wins to take the award from the favorite, Washington's Max Scherzer? Scherzer, eyeing his third consecutive Cy Young, pitches Thursday night with deGrom going Friday night. The Phillies' Aaron Nola is also a candidate,...

Right-hander Max Scherzer gets the start in tonight's 89th All-Star Game. National League outfielder Christian Yelich, who now plays for the Brewers, is making his initial All-Star appearance. Yelich played five seasons for the Marlins, an NL East team that faced the Nationals 19 times a season. Yelich is very familiar with Scherzer and is excited he gets to play on the same team with the Cy Young winner. "It's nice to have him on the same team for a night, I guess you could say," Yelich...

With a makeshift lineup, a fill-in starter and an ace on the mound opposite them, the Nationals entered tonight's series opener against the Mets in a less-than-advantageous position. Sometimes, those seemingly lopsided matchups flip the opposite way and produce memorable and unlikely outcomes. Not this time. This one went according to script. Despite a few dramatic moments late when a last-ditch comeback nearly happened. Despite an effective pitching performance from A.J. Cole, filling in for...

NEW YORK - We're seeing some outstanding pitching to begin the series finale at Citi Field. The Nationals scored in the first inning versus Mets starter Jacob deGrom. With one out, second baseman Wilmer Flores made a fielding error that allowed Brian Goodwin to reach base safely. Bryce Harper singled to the opposite field. A passed ball by Travis d'Arnaud allowed the runners to move up. Ryan Zimmerman's sacrifice fly to right field scored Goodwin. The Nats led 1-0. Right-hander Joe Ross did...

The Nationals will attempt to avoid a costly sweep and keep their season afloat without first baseman Ryan Zimmerman, third baseman Yunel Escobar and center fielder Michael A. Taylor in tonight's starting lineup. Zimmerman tweaked his left oblique during a swing on Monday and also continues to be bothered by soreness in his left foot. Clint Robinson, who was 2-for-3 with an RBI and run scored last night, will again start for Zimmerman at first base. Taylor has been bothered by a sore right...

Mets ace Jacob deGrom takes the mound tonight in his first appearance since stealing the show in the All-Star Game a week ago. deGrom, the 2014 National League Rookie of the Year, blazed through the sixth inning last Tuesday, whiffing Oakland's Stephen Vogt and Cleveland's Jason Kipnis on 97 mph heaters before fooling Detroit's Jose Iglesias on a filthy curveball. The long-haired 27-year-old brings a 9-6 record and 2.14 ERA into tonight's start, but two of his losses have come to the...

FLUSHING, N.Y. - Right-hander Stephen Strasburg didn't have much of a chance to pick up a win in his last outings as the Nationals were shut out last Saturday in Miami. He's yet to find consistency this season as he brings a 4.88 ERA into his fifth start this evening. Strasburg is 3-1 with a 1.97 ERA and 44 strikeouts in five career starts at Citi Field. Yunel Escobar returns to the second spot in the lineup and will play third base after missing the past two games with a cut-up hand he...