Local Activities | March 25, 2015
Spring officially started last week, but any baseball fan knows that spring actually starts the day that pitchers and catchers report to spring training at the end of February! The boys of summer will be back starting the beginning of April. For baseball fans, it’s nearly time to hear those two magic words: Play Ball! The Baltimore Orioles and the Washington Nationals are currently finishing up their spring training games in the Grapefruit League in Florida and soon will be setting their final starting line-ups and deciding on their opening day pitchers. What will 2015 look like for both teams that went to the playoffs in 2014? Both teams have made changes in the off-season to make them even bigger contenders for 2015. Both the Orioles and the Nationals start their regular season games on April 6th. Let’s take a look at what the 2015 Baltimore Orioles and Washington Nationals season could bring.
The Baltimore Orioles (link is external) spring training games in the Grapefruit league will soon be ending. The Orioles, as of March 25th, have a record of 9 and 14 in the Grapefruit League. For the 2014 season, The Baltimore Orioles were 1st in the very tough American League Eastern Division. The team had a very impressive 2014 record of 96 and 66 under the management of Buck Showalter. The team won the American League Division Series against the Detroit Tigers, but fell to the Kansas City Royals in the American League Championship series. The Orioles are in the very tough American League East Division against the Yankees, Red Sox, Toronto Blue Jays, and Tampa Bay Devil Rays. The competition is so good, that you really never know what team will come out ahead and there is usually always a battle at the end of September to see who will be the division winner. This year’s off-season was relatively quiet compared to past years, with a few re-signings of key players and a few bigger players leaving due to free agency. The pitching rotation and bullpen should be strong throughout the season. Once catcher, Matt Wieters returns from recovery from Tommy John surgery and Manny Machado returns to the line-up, the batting and defense should be solid. The Baltimore Orioles open their season against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays on Monday, April 6th at 3pm. The home opener at Camden Yards is Friday, April 10th starting at 3:05 pm, against the Toronto Blue Jays. For special fan events and other special Baltimore Orioles scheduling and ticket information (link is external),check out the Orioles website.
The Washington Nationals (link is external) are looking to better their 96 and 66 2014 finish and return to October baseball. In 2014, the team, led by freshman manager Matt Williams, was first place in the National League East Division and made it to the first round of the playoffs, but lost to the World Series winners, San Francisco Giants. The Washington Nationals spring training has been pretty solid with a 9 and 10 record in the Grapefruit league as of March 25th. The 2015 Washington Nationals didn’t make many roster changes during the off-season and continues to have a good portion of returning players from the 2014 team. The starting pitching, including a great starting pitching rotation of Stephen Strasberg, Gio Gonzalez, Jordan Zimmerman, Doug Fister, and recent acquisition, Max Scherzer, will be a force in the league. Young player, Bryce Harper hopes to continue to grow on early career successes with the Nationals. The Washington National’s home opener is Monday, April 6th at 4:05pm against division rivals, New York Mets. Don’t miss a game this season. Find out Washington Nationals scheduling and ticket information on the Nationals website (link is external).
The Baltimore, Northern Virginia and Washington D.C. area is lucky to be able to have both American and National league teams close by to cheer for. Good Luck to both teams for the 2015 season! Here’s hoping that both teams make the return trip to October baseball! If you have sporting equipment that needs to be stored during the winter season, consider ezStorage. ezStorage has storage units throughout the Baltimore, Northern Virginia and Washington D.C. areas that can serve all of your storage needs.
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