Baker still close with Nats: "I left my heart over there when I left"
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - Dusty Baker stood near one of the practice fields outside FITTEAM Ballpark of the Palm Beaches on Thursday morning, wearing an Astros cap and pullover, answering questions about the team he now manages. He looked very much at home, very much in his element. The 70-year-old baseball lifer has done everything there is to do in this sport, and yet he has now found perhaps the ultimate challenge of his career: guiding a Houston roster loaded with talent but stained by proof...
Nationals

Brandon Bailey's to-do list: Get to know teammates, make O's roster
SARASOTA, Fla. - Orioles right-hander Brandon Bailey admits he has spent his first few days of spring training with his new team getting to know all of his teammates' names. That is understandable, with so many players new to him. But he's slowly starting to settle in at O's spring training and looking forward to the best opportunity of his young career. He wasn't drafted by the Houston Astros, but an Astros front office that included Mike Elias and Sig Mejdal traded for him not long after...
Orioles

Union chief addresses players' vitriol toward Astros
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - Tony Clark, head of the Major League Baseball Players' Association, visits every club every spring. Those meetings can run long, sometimes topping two hours, depending on the list of topics that need to be discussed. This morning, Clark and his associates with the players' union, walked into the Astros clubhouse at FITTEAM Ballpark of the Palm Beaches and did not emerge until nearly four hours had passed. Suffice it to say, this was no ordinary spring training meeting,...
Nationals

Handful of Nats regulars will play in exhibition opener
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - After more than a week of bright sunshine and temperatures in the mid-80s, the Nationals walked outside this morning to an unfamiliar sight this spring: rain. For the first time in camp, weather altered the club's plans. What should've been a two-hour full squad workout instead was condensed into a quick session that took care of the day's most pressing needs (a group of pitchers throwing live batting practice, moved to the covered batting cages) and little...
Nationals

Notes on spring rotation, Davis, Cobb, Stewart and more
SARASOTA, Fla. - Orioles manager Brandon Hyde announced today that left-hander Wade LeBlanc will start Sunday afternoon against the Red Sox in Sarasota and Alex Cobb will start Monday versus the Phillies in Clearwater. We've already learned that Chandler Shepherd is starting Saturday's opener against the Braves in North Port. "I think a few days ago I was asked 'Are we ready yet? and I said, 'No.' Now I think we are," Hyde said, smiling. "It's going to be fun to watch a lot of our guys...
Orioles
Max Scherzer's spring training bullpen sessions are legendary
Max Scherzer's spring training bullpen sessions are legendary
Bobby Blanco
Nationals
MASNsports.com's Mark Zuckerman describes a Max Scherzer spring training bullpen session.
Shepherd on making first exhibition start (and other notes)
Shepherd on making first exhibition start (and other notes)
Roch Kubatko
Orioles
SARASOTA, Fla. - Infielder Andrew Velazquez has reported to the Orioles' spring training complex, taking Richard Ureña's 40-man roster spot and his locker. Velazquez, who's wearing No. 88, joins the utility competition. Chandler Shepherd found out yesterday that he'd get the start in Saturday's exhibition opener against the Braves in North Port. Félix Hernández is starting for Atlanta. "I knew coming into camp that I was going to have some opportunities to throw," Shepherd said....
West Palm Beach throws Nationals another parade
West Palm Beach throws Nationals another parade
Mark Zuckerman
Nationals
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - It didn't compare to the parade they threw the Nationals in Washington three days after Game 7 of the World Series. How could it? Maybe there weren't hundreds of thousands of fans lining Clematis Street in downtown West Palm Beach on Thursday evening. But those who did turn out - and there were plenty who did - were treated to a yet another nice celebration of the 2019 champs, this one in their spring home. "I am very impressed with all the players that are here,"...
Santander breaking language barriers
Santander breaking language barriers
Roch Kubatko
Orioles
SARASOTA, Fla. - The player stood at his locker and greeted a visitor who wanted a few minutes of his time. The interpreter, meanwhile, had moved to the other side of the clubhouse while assisting someone else with an interview. Anthony Santander was on his own. The way he's wanted it to be in 2020. Tiny gains in confidence have blossomed to where Santander is ready to speak on his own, without the bridge provided by Ramón Alarcón, the Orioles' Spanish translator and coordinator of...
What to make of the spring training stats
What to make of the spring training stats
Steve Melewski
Orioles
SARASOTA, Fla. - The Orioles play their first 2020 spring training game tomorrow when they meet the Atlanta Braves in North Port, Fla., at the Braves' new spring home. Starting then we begin keeping score and keeping stats. Some players will have strong springs on the stat sheet and some will not. A few things to keep in mind about the spring games: The win-loss record means nothing: This one should be obvious. A great or poor spring record does not foretell what the club will do once the...
For Fedde, more options mean less opportunity
For Fedde, more options mean less opportunity
Mark Zuckerman
Nationals
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - Erick Fedde got a text message from his father in December. The message was brief: "Hey, I was reading an article online saying you have a fourth option." Fedde's reply was direct and didn't mince words: "Dad, don't be dumb. Fourth options are not a thing." Everyone in baseball, certainly younger players who bounce up and down between the minor and major leagues, knows you only have three option years. In other words, you can only be demoted to the minors in three...
Orioles to play Mets in exhibition game at United States Naval Academy
Orioles to play Mets in exhibition game at United States Naval Academy
Pete Kerzel
Orioles
The Orioles today announced that the club will play the New York Mets in an exhibition game on Tuesday, March 24 at Terwilliger Brothers Field at Max Bishop Stadium on the grounds of the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md. Prior to the game, players and staff from both teams will visit with representatives from the Naval Academy and tour the academy facilities. The Naval Academy and the Orioles will distribute complimentary tickets to Midshipmen, as well as select members of the...
Martinez on today's workout and what he expects Saturday
Martinez on today's workout and what he expects Saturday
Mark Zuckerman
Nationals
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - Starlin Castro came to Nationals camp with a revamped swing that results in more balls pulled in the air and fewer balls on the ground, a swing that produced big numbers late last season with the Marlins. But the first live pitcher he had to face here was immune to such tweaks. Castro groaned Wednesday when he found out he was hitting against Max Scherzer, a longtime nemesis when facing him as an opponent. And sure enough, there wasn't much contact to speak of when the...
Orioles to play Mets at Naval Academy
Orioles to play Mets at Naval Academy
Roch Kubatko
Orioles
SARASOTA, Fla. - The Orioles won't be done playing exhibition games after leaving Florida. There's room for one more. The Orioles will face the Mets on March 24 at Terwilliger Brothers Field at Max Bishop Stadium on the grounds of the United States Naval Academy. First pitch in Annapolis is slated for 2:05 p.m. The game will be carried live on 105.7 The Fan and the Orioles Radio Network. Tickets won't be sold to the public, but select Birdland Members can access a limited number. Players and...
Chandler Shepherd named starter for first exhibition game
Chandler Shepherd named starter for first exhibition game
Roch Kubatko
Orioles
SARASOTA, Fla. - Chandler Shepherd is starting Saturday's exhibition opener against the Braves in North Port, marking the end of the workout grind and moving spring training into its next phase. Left-hander Ty Blach will follow Shepherd, who's supposed to work two innings. "He's one of the guys that we're stretching out and it just kind of fell on that day," said manager Brandon Hyde, who shared his decision with the media. "See him go a couple innings." Shepherd started the final game...
       
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