Major League Baseball

Negotiators for the Orioles and Major League Baseball spent all of yesterday trying to finish an agreement that would compensate the team for the losses it expects because of the new competition it faces, but no deal was reached. "We continue to negotiate, and we'll be back at it in the morning," MLB president Bob DuPuy said last night. "I continue to be optimistic." Orioles owner Peter Angelos declined to comment. The talks recently have centered on a resale value guarantee for the Orioles - said to be about $365 million - and around how much the Orioles Television Network would pay to the Washington Nationals for the rights to show their games.

The Orioles are seeking a new public address announcer for games at Camden Yards. David McGowan is leaving the position after 14 seasons to pursue a career change. “I feel so fortunate to have played even a small role in helping Orioles fans enjoy major league baseball in the best ballpark in the country. It has truly been a privilege getting to serve the fans of Baltimore and to work for the Orioles organization.” The new PA announcer will deliver all public address greetings, player introductions and other game-day announcements.

Major League Baseball is expected to announce today that all of its postseason telecasts and the All-Star Game will air exclusively on Fox and its cable channels beginning next season. Officials at NBC, which has had half of the playoff broadcast package for the past four years, announced from Sydney, Australia, that they would not match Fox's offer, which would have cost NBC a reported $175 million per year. "We have notified Major League Baseball that we have passed on their offer and we wish them well going forward," NBC Sports president Ken Schanzer told the Associated Press.

The Orioles and Major League Baseball have reached a tentative agreement on the last major hurdle in the long negotiations that team owner Peter G. Angelos says will guarantee the future of the franchise in Baltimore. Sources said last night that Angelos and Major League Baseball will jointly own a regional sports network that will eventually show the games of the Orioles and the new Washington Nationals. The sources cautioned that a few issues remain. But if the deal is completed, it would mark the end of more than six months of negotiations that started days before Major League Baseball announced that the Montreal Expos would be relocated to Washington.

Eight days after a report alleged that Jay Gibbons received shipments of steroids and human growth hormone from 2003 to 2005, the Orioles outfielder met with baseball officials at their headquarters in New York City. Gibbons, making his first public comments since the story broke Sept. 9, told The Sun, "I met with Major League Baseball representatives [yesterday] and was happy to answer all of their questions." He would not offer further comment on any aspect of the meeting or SI.com's allegations that he was among the clientele of Orlando-based Signature Pharmacy, which was raided earlier this year.

Relocation timeline Key events in the quest to return Major League Baseball to Washington: Sept. 30, 1971: The Senators play their last game in Washington before the team moves to Texas to become the Rangers. December 1973: Giant Food president Joseph Danzanksy announces a deal to buy the San Diego Padres and move them to Washington for the 1974 season. The deal falls through when McDonald's founder Ray Kroc outbids Danzansky and keeps the team in San Diego. July 1991: Baseball expands, but passes over D.C. in favor of Miami and Denver.

Orioles minor league pitcher Brian Parker has been suspended 50 games by Major League Baseball for testing positive for the second time, a violation of the Minor League Drug Prevention and Treatment Program. Major League Baseball and its teams do not announce what specific drug was found in violators' systems. Parker, 24, a right-handed reliever, was 4-3 with a 4.31 ERA in 35 games at Single-A Frederick last year before pitching two games (0-0, 3.60 ERA) at Double-A Bowie.

Orioles minor league pitcher Brian Parker has been suspended 50 games by Major League Baseball for testing positive for the second time, a violation of the Minor League Drug Prevention and Treatment Program. Major League Baseball and its teams do not announce what specific drug was found in violators' systems. Parker, a 24-year-old, right-handed reliever, was 4-3 with a 4.31 ERA in 35 games at Single-A Frederick last year before pitching two games (0-0, 3.60 ERA) at Double-A Bowie.

It's not a new issue, but it will become more of an issue in Baltimore if Andy MacPhail succeeds in building the Orioles into a more formidable competitor in the American League East. Both the current alignment of the American League and the unbalanced schedule that amplifies the economic imbalance in major league baseball have created an unforgiving landscape where - for the also-rans of the division - the horizon never seems to get any closer. The Orioles aren't complaining, mind you, because they know how that would look, and it wouldn't do any good anyway, but they aren't the only ones who have noticed the inequities of a system that requires them to play almost a quarter of their regular-season schedule against the two highest-payroll teams in the American League and nearly half of it in the game's most competitively and economically unbalanced division.

WASHINGTON - A House committee is investigating whether Orioles star Rafael Palmeiro committed perjury in testifying March 17 that he never used steroids. Rep. Tom Davis, a Virginia Republican who chairs the House Government Reform Committee, told Palmeiro privately Tuesday night that the panel is duty-bound to investigate whether the ballplayer lied when he pointed a finger and told committee members: "I have never used steroids. Period." The perjury investigation, just under way, was triggered by Monday's announcement that Palmeiro, 40, has tested positive for a steroid, later determined to be stanozolol.