Hot Corner

Mark Reynolds made 26 errors in 114 games at third base last year and played impressively after moving to first, but manager Buck Showalter said Saturday that Reynolds -- who has slimmed down over this offseason -- will be back at the hot corner this spring. “Yeah, Buck called me in the offseason and talked about it a little bit to kind of see where I was at," Reynolds said. “I wanted to see where he was at with it. I told him I preferred third, and he was cool with it. And I've really been working my butt off to come in in good shape and be a better defender than I was last year.” Though he made just five errors the rest of the way at first base and the team played very well during the final two months of the season, Reynolds said he was not tempted to make the permanent switch to first.

The Orioles play their second straight day of split-squad games today, with the Birds going on the road to play the Braves at Champion Stadium at the ESPN Wide World of Sports in the afternoon before a nightcap tonight at home against the Yankees. I'm here at the Braves game, where Orioles LHP Tsuyoshi Wada will make his Grapefruit League debut today. Orioles manager Buck Showalter said Wada will be limited to “30ish” pitches today. Some other items of note: - Orioles LF Nolan Reimold was scheduled to play in this afternoon's game because his wife was scheduled to deliver their baby in Jacksonville, which is closer than Sarasota.

Hot corner Quote: "You can make as big a deal out of run support as you want, but you've got to pitch and win close games." -- Curt Schilling of the Phillies after losing, 6-3, to the Reds.It's a fact: All three Pirates batters in the fifth were retired on foul popups to Giants first baseman J.T. Snow.Who's hot: Jeff Shaw has retired the last 15 batters he's faced and has saves in six of the Reds' nine victories.Who's not: Pirates pitcher Jon Lieber has permitted at least one homer in every start.

Mark Reynolds made 26 errors in 114 games at third base last year and played impressively after moving to first, but manager Buck Showalter said Saturday that Reynolds -- who has slimmed down over this offseason -- will be back at the hot corner this spring. “Yeah, Buck called me in the offseason and talked about it a little bit to kind of see where I was at," Reynolds said. “I wanted to see where he was at with it. I told him I preferred third, and he was cool with it. And I've really been working my butt off to come in in good shape and be a better defender than I was last year.” Though he made just five errors the rest of the way at first base and the team played very well during the final two months of the season, Reynolds said he was not tempted to make the permanent switch to first.

On Saturday, the Dorothy L. and Henry A. Rosenberg Jr. Foundation and the Babe Ruth Birthplace Foundation will donate a nine-foot bronze statue of Hall-of-Fame third baseman Brooks Robinson to the city. The statue, which depicts Robinson throwing to first base, will defend the hot corner across the street from Camden Yards. Robinson, who played 23 seasons for the O's , will join Colts legend Johnny Unitas and baseball demigod Babe Ruth as the only athletes to be immortalized via statue outside of Camden Yards and M&T Bank Stadium.

Baltimore should name its most graceful and durable road for Brooks Robinson . It should be a road that starts out of town but ends up here to stay. It should be a road that inspires those who drive it to be the best they can be, as part of a team, and it should bring people together. It could have a little rock, and a hot corner, and lots of line drives, but be virtually free from error. It should be numbered Maryland Route 5. Ed Goldberg, Reisterstown

Here's the assignment: Construct the perfect ballplayer for the city of Baltimore. Start with attitude. He's got to be a hustling dirt dog willing to play banged up for this blue-collar town. That's a given. Now, put a chip on his broad shoulders. Let him think the power brokers afford him little respect — like Baltimore in Washington's shadow — so he'll work harder. He must be community-minded and courteous to the fans, and have a goofy side, too. Make him good-looking enough for the teenage girls to swoon, but not a pretty boy. How about occasionally shaggy hair and an easy smile connected to a fullback's body?

For 13 big league seasons, Miguel Tejada held steadfast to the belief that he was a shortstop. He shrugged off criticism about his diminishing range and faulty footwork, and ignored the suggestions that a move to third base was long overdue. In agreeing to terms on a one-year, $6 million deal Saturday to return to Baltimore, the immensely proud Tejada finally gave in to the idea Orioles president of baseball operations Andy MacPhail presented him with more than two years earlier.

For 13 big league seasons, Miguel Tejada held steadfast to the belief that he was a shortstop. He shrugged off criticism about his diminishing range and faulty footwork, and ignored the suggestions that a move to third base was long overdue. In agreeing to terms on a one-year, $6 million deal Saturday to return to Baltimore, the immensely proud Tejada finally gave in to the idea Orioles president of baseball operations Andy MacPhail presented him with more than two years earlier.

For 13 big league seasons, Miguel Tejada held steadfast to the belief that he was a shortstop. He shrugged off criticism about his diminishing range and faulty footwork, and ignored the suggestions that a move to third base was long overdue. In agreeing to terms on a one-year, $6 million deal Saturday to return to Baltimore, the immensely proud Tejada finally gave in to the idea Orioles president of baseball operations Andy MacPhail presented him with more than two years earlier.

Yogi Berra had a theory about third base that seemed appropriate for Melvin Mora last month, as he struggled through his adjustment to the hot corner for the Orioles. "Third ain't so bad," Berra once told Sport magazine, "if nothin' is hit to you." Mora made seven errors in the first 11 games, leading some to wonder if the Orioles had erred when they handed him the third base position in the first place. He made the All-Star team last year as a super utility player, a job that required him to play above-average defense all over the field.

The frustration carried Melvin Mora into left field yesterday. He probably wanted to be whisked completely out of Camden Yards. Still adapting to a full-time job at third base, Mora committed two more errors yesterday in the Orioles' 4-1 loss to the Boston Red Sox. Factor in the one he made during Sunday night's opener, on the first ball hit to him, and the season already is bullying him. Mora allowed a sharp grounder from Kevin Millar to skip under...