Early notes on Day 7 of Orioles spring training

SARASOTA, Fla. – Gary Sánchez’s experience catching Japanese pitchers won’t necessarily give him regular starts on days that Tomoyuki Sugano is on the mound. Maybe it evolves that way. Sánchez was behind the plate yesterday for Sugano’s bullpen session, and he’s caught Masahiro Tanaka with the Yankees and Yu Darvish with the Padres. “Post-bullpen,

Orioles

Nationals agree to terms with Lucas Sims

The Washington Nationals agreed to terms with right-handed pitcher Lucas Sims on a one-year contract and transferred right-handed pitcher Mason Thompson to the 60-day Injured List on Wednesday. Nationals President of Baseball Operations and General Manager Mike Rizzo made the announcement. Sims, 30, joins the Nationals after he pitched to a 4.38 ER
Nationals

Nats add veteran righty Sims to bullpen short on experience

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – The Nationals have added a much-needed experienced arm to their bullpen, albeit one trying to bounce back from a rough year. Veteran Lucas Sims formally signed a one-year deal with the Nats this morning, the 30-year-old right-hander getting a major league contract and thus a near-guaranteed spot on the Opening Day staff. Nee
Nationals

How Bradfield's game is evolving

SARASOTA, Fla. – There aren’t many prospects in baseball with an 80 grade tool.  The grading scale, ranging from 20 to 80, evaluates five different tools for position players: Hit (evaluating contact), power, run (evaluating overall speed offensively and defensively), arm and field.  MLB Pipeline’s highest graded position player, Roman Anthony, doe
Masn Orioles

Rehabbing Gray tries to make most of spring training opportunities

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Josiah Gray knows exactly where he currently stands in his rehab from Tommy John surgery. “I’m about six months and three weeks in,” he said. “It’ll be seven months on the 24th.” Forgive the Nationals right-hander for being able to recite such specific mileposts off the top of his head. It’s just the way it is for any rehabb
Masn Nationals
Some extras on Tomoyuki Sugano's bullpen session
Roch Kubatko
Orioles
SARASOTA, Fla. – Orioles pitching coach Drew French was eager to begin working with Tomoyuki Sugano even before the Japanese right-hander agreed to a $13 million contract. The deal became official and French approached interpreter Yuto Sakurai with a favor. Simple in nature but hugely meaningful. “I said I need to start learning his language a litt
Thoughts and quotes on first full workout, plus guest instructor schedule
Mark Zuckerman
Masn
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Before his team took the field for the first official full-squad workout of the spring, Davey Martinez gathered everyone together this morning for his first “Circle of Trust” meeting of the spring. No, there weren’t any camels. Nor any other live animals. Yet. (There’s still five weeks of camp to go, of course.) There was, h
Sugano in total control of today's first bullpen session
Roch Kubatko
Orioles
SARASOTA, Fla. – Tomoyuki Sugano can work through a lineup and jet lag with similar ease. The first bullpen session for Sugano this morning lived up to the tremendous hype. He threw 35 pitches and exhibited his usual pinpoint control. Only the slider was omitted from a repertoire that consisted of a four-seam fastball, cutter, splitter, sinker and
Wood sitting out defensive drills with quad tendinitis
Mark Zuckerman
Masn
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – James Wood sat out defensive drills on the first day of full-squad workouts, the Nationals left fielder hampered by left quadriceps tendinitis. Wood insisted it’s nothing serious, and he was able to take batting practice today with no apparent issues. The ailment has been bothering him since the offseason, though, enough to
Rodolfo Martinez got noticed in camp during live batting practice
Roch Kubatko
Orioles
SARASOTA, Fla. – The Orioles are hoping to catch Albert Suárez in a bottle. They signed pitcher Rodolfo Martinez to a minor league contract on Nov. 1, the magnitude of it pretty much lost on the baseball world. He hadn’t been with an affiliated team since 2019 in the Giants system, with his travels taking him to the Dominican Republic, Mexico and J
Jordan Westburg: a soft-spoken, intense leader
Brendan Mortensen
Masn
SARASOTA, Fla. – Jordan Westburg is intense. Fans like intense.  Would his friends and family describe him that way? “Probably,” Westburg laughed. “I can be intense, you know? I’m not gonna dodge those allegations. But I do think there’s a lighter side, there’s a less serious side to me off the field especially. But here, I’m kind of very busi
Bell returns to Nats looking to supply power and leadership
Mark Zuckerman
Masn
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – There’s no ill will. Josh Bell wished he could’ve been a National this entire time, but he has always understood why Mike Rizzo included him in the Juan Soto trade package that brought five prospects to D.C. in August 2022 and remade the franchise for the long term. “That’s just baseball,” he said. “I would have made the sam
Orioles morning spring training notes on McGregor, Webb and Suárez
Roch Kubatko
Orioles
SARASOTA, Fla. – Scott McGregor won big games for the Orioles, including his shutout against the Phillies to clinch the 1983 World Series. He served in a variety of roles upon his retirement, including rehab pitching coordinator for eight seasons before his dismissal in 2019. He had worked as a pitching coach in the minors and fill-in bullpen coach
Rubenstein: "We don’t have debt problems, we don’t have financial challenges or anything like that"
Roch Kubatko
Orioles
SARASOTA, Fla. – The most popular figure this morning on the back fields at the Ed Smith Stadium complex wasn’t one of the players. It was the man who signs their checks. Owner and control person David Rubenstein reported to camp, toured the complex and signed autographs for fans behind the fences. The scene usually plays out at Camden Yards during
Hitters impressed with Ogasawara's repertoire; Gore to start Grapefruit League opener
Mark Zuckerman
Masn
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Day two of live batting practice at Nationals camp saw several returning pitchers on the mound facing teammates. It also saw one especially notable newcomer who drew tons of extra attention. Shinnosuke Ogasawara had a large crowd assembled on Field 3 behind the plate, in the dugouts and behind the fences, with everyone from
       
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