Catcher

Orioles switch-hitting  catcher Matt Wieters was the hero of Sunday's 2-1 win over the Nationals with his two-run homer in the eighth inning. And while it continued Wieters' domination of left-handed pitching this season, it was just his second homer from the right side of the plate. Wieters' split stats are incredibly intriguing. He's hitting .413 against left-handed pitching -- 215 points higher than his average against right-handed pitchers, even though eight of his 10 homers came from the left side.

Steve Tolleson was glad to have the opportunity to feel the thrill of one more Orioles extra-inning win - to participate in one more frenetic home-plate pile-on. From his first day in an Orioles uniform, the utility infielder knew his next wasn't guaranteed. A rash of injuries over the past five weeks offered him opportunity, but no promises. And while Matt Wieters provided the late-inning heroics, giving the Orioles their second walk-off victory in as many days with a 10th-inning game-winning double for a 5-4 win, it was Tolleson that truly provided the middle-inning spark that Baltimore needed to take two of three from the Phillies in front of a sellout crowd at Camden Yards on Sunday afternoon.

It's not often that Orioles catcher Matt Wieters loses his cool. But after the Orioles fell behind 8-1 in the fifth inning of their 8-6 loss to the Blue Jays Tuesday night at the Rogers Centre, he felt he had to speak his mind to home plate umpire Doug Eddings. He expressed his displeasure with the way Eddings was calling balls and strikes, obviously an easy way to get rung up. And that's what happened to Wieters, who was quickly ejected for the first time in his career.  Manager Buck Showalter had to rush out to put himself between Eddings and Wieters.

Every now and then - even in a lopsided loss - there's a feel good moment. On Monday, there were two. The first one had to make Orioles fans cringe a little. The second is easy to applaud, no matter which team you follow. First, let's start with Brandon Snyder. The Orioles drafted him in 2005 out of Westfield High School in Virginia and proclaimed him as the catcher of the future. By 2007, that title had been claimed by some guy named Matt Wieters. Meanwhile, Snyder bounced from position to position - corner infield, catcher, a game in left field.

The Orioles' 16-9 start has obviously been caused by tremendous pitching - and specifically starting pitching. Orioles starters have thrown nine quality starts in their past 10 outings - and have a 1.65 ERA in that time. In the three-game series against the Yankees in New York - in which the Orioles won two of three for the first time since 2010 - the bullpen threw 5 2/3 scoreless innings. But what might be getting a little bit lost so far this year is just how good catcher Matt Wieters has been.

The Orioles have claimed catcher Luis Exposito off waivers from the Red Sox, the team announced Tuesday afternoon. To make room for Exposito on the club's 40-man roster, the Orioles have designated third baseman Josh Bell for assignment. The 25-year-old Exposito, who was in major league spring training camp with the Red Sox this season, put up a career .268/.324/.420 line in seven minor league seasons with Boston. He was hitting .200/.273/.400 in 10 at bats this season with Triple-A Pawtucket.

A second Orioles minor-league catcher has been suspended for violating the Minor League Drug Prevention and Treatment Progam. Michael Ohlman received a 50-game suspension for his second violation of the drug policy, the office of the commissioner of baseball announced Tuesday. The suspension was for a drug of abuse, which means it was not for use of a performance-enhancing drug. This spring, catcher Brian Ward also received a 50-game suspension. Ohlman's suspension will begin immediately, but he is currently recovering from a shoulder injury sustained during an automobile accident during spring training.

- In need of organizational catching depth, the Orioles claimed catcher Luis Exposito off waivers from the Red Sox, the club announced Tuesday. To make room for Exposito on the club's 40-man roster, the Orioles have designated third baseman Josh Bell for assignment. The Orioles signed Taylor Teagarden in the offseason to be Matt Wieters' backup but he is on the disabled list with back problems. That allowed non-roster invitee Ronny Paulino , who was likely to begin the season at Triple-A, to make the Orioles' 25-man roster out of camp.

Ryan Wagner is living proof that your dream job is out there, and it can be yours with hard work and perseverance. The 26-year-old Baltimore native and lifelong Orioles fan was recently hired as Camden Yard's new public address announcer, and cannot be more thrilled about kicking off the new season this Friday. "Baseball has been a love of mine for as long as I can remember. " He said. "My family are all Orioles fans, and my fandom was instilled in me at a very young age. I grew up a short distance from Memorial Stadium and spent every summer of my life either playing, watching, or following the game.

Ryan Wagner is living proof that your dream job is out there. The 26-year-old Baltimore native and lifelong Orioles fan was recently hired as Camden Yard's public address announcer, and cannot be more thrilled about kicking off the new season Friday. "Baseball has been a love of mine for as long as I can remember," he said. "My family are all Orioles fans, and my fandom was instilled in me at a very young age. " This isn't the first dream job he's landed, either, having been one of two lucky guys to actually get paid by MLB to watch every game of the 2011 season, interact with the players, and blog, tweet and post videos about them, in the Fan Cave in New York City.