Twins

CAMPBELLTOWN, Pa. - On the day after James Machinga pulled one of his 3-year-old twins out from under the collapsed ceiling of his dream house here, he gazed into the remains of his home through the blown-off back wall and got a bit of good news. His wife, Nicole, had found the small stuffed dog that the Machingas' still-rattled son was crying for. "That's the only thing she was really worried about, his favorite dog," James Machinga, 40, said. Machinga and other residents of this town of about 2,500 people 16 miles east of Harrisburg struggled yesterday to salvage possessions and regain their calm after a tornado smashed their subdivision Wednesday afternoon and left gutted houses, stripped roofs, uprooted trees, downed electric lines and scattered debris in its wake.

The Orioles have agreed to terms with well-traveled left-handed reliever J.C. Romero on a minor league deal, the club announced Thursday afternoon. Romero, 35, will be with his fourth organization since the beginning of the 2011 season. He was released by the Cardinals on May 14 after compiling a 10.13 ERA in eight relief innings. He had allowed nine runs in 3 1/3 innings in his past three outings before his release. He will report to the Orioles' Triple-A team in Norfolk.

Before him lay Siamese twins, their brains joined by an elaborate network of blood vessels. The myriad folds and planes came into view.He saw where the brains divided. He studied the features from every conceivable angle. He memorized the terrain. He planned his moves.This was Dr. Benjamin Carson's rehearsal -- done in the eerie space of virtual reality.Today, the Johns Hopkins neurosurgeon is celebrating that two 11-month-old boys are recovering splendidly -- and separately -- in the South African hospital where he and more than 20 doctors and nurses performed an exhausting operation that lasted more than a day."

Editor's note: Each week, InsideMdSports.com provides this blog with a Maryland recruiting feature that previously appeared as premium content on its site. Everywhere they go these days, Aaron Harrison and Andrew Harrison are a featured attraction. The twin brothers from Travis High in Richmond, Texas, ranked as the No. 1 shooting guard and No. 1 point guard in the Class of 2013, respectively, tend to draw big crowds of spectators and college coaches.

Brooks and Nolan Bauer, a rare set of "momo" twins, are finally home with their parents in White Marsh. "They were really premature, eight weeks early," Katie Bauer said Saturday, recounting the first time she saw her sons. "They told us they might be on respirators and things like that … but they only had these little tubes in their noses and were getting room air. " Bauer, 27, gave birth Feb. 13 to the extraordinary boys, who, like other momo twins, grew in the same fetal sac. Tests to check their development are the only reminder of the threats the boys faced for seven months in the womb.

The Orioles are going for a 3-0 start and a season sweep of the Twins today at Camden Yards. Third baseman Mark Reynolds won't be in the lineup today. He took a batted ball of his left calf last night, but both Reynolds and manager Buck Showalter said he was able to play. Showalter said the reason is because he wants to get Wilson Betemit, today's third baseman, his first start in the field. Leftfielder Endy Chavez will also make his first start of the season. With the DH being able to move around, we've got some interchangable parts," Showalter said. "It's more about getting everybody on the field the first three days.

The Canucks cleared room for the return of high-scoring forward Daniel Sedin by sending forward Matt Pettinger to their AHL affiliate on Saturday. Sedin has missed 18 games since his foot was broken by a teammate's shot in the fourth game of the season on Oct. 7. Sedin has led the Canucks in goals in each of the last three seasons. Sedin would be reunited on the Canucks' top line with identical twin Henrik , likely Sunday night at home against the Blackhawks.

MILWAUKEE — A hirsute man in Miller Park turned his shirtless back to the TV cameras this weekend. Someone had shaved the word "Mauer" and the number "7" into his back hair. Maybe it was Joe. He seems to have time on his hands. That Mauer didn't start at catcher on Sunday wasn't a crime. His manager, Ron Gardenhire, is determined to protect Mauer's legs and back by keeping him from catching in day games following night games. Mauer didn't beg out of the game; Gardenhire never gave him the chance.

Only once in franchise history have the Twins had as much trouble scoring runs starting the season as they have this year. That was in 1909, and that group of Washington Senators lumbered through a 42-110 season, averaging 2.5 runs per game. That team opened the season with 18 games in which it scored five or fewer runs before busting out with a 6-2 victory in the 19th game. The 2011 Twins entered Saturday at 7-12, still looking to score more than five runs for the first time. "I'd be lying to you if I said the dugout has been as peppy as it's always been.

FINKSBURG - The Carroll County Sheriff's Office reported Sept. 21 that twin brothers from Howard County had been arrested and charged with a pair of burglaries last month in the county. Timothy Brian Feick and Matthew Dean Feick, 26, of Clarksville, were charged in the August burglaries of pharmacies in Finksburg and Woodbine. On Aug. 4, sheriff's deputies responded a burglar alarm at the King's Pharmacy in the Woodbine Shopping Center just after 2 a.m. Investigators found the pharmacy's front window shattered and more than $13,000 in medications missing.

An appointment with a pediatrician Thursday was a "big relief" to Katie Bauer, whose seven-month pregnancy with rare "momo" twins was at first confusing and then exhausting. "It's all behind them, these guys are doing just fine," Dr. Joseph A. Garcia said after he finished immunizing Nolan and Brooks Bauer, identical boys who developed in the same fetal sac, exposing them to dangers not encountered during most pregnancies. The boys were born Feb. 13. Babies like Nolan and Brooks have at least one chance in 10 of dying during the last weeks of pregnancy or the first month after birth — so Garcia's upbeat assessment at two months was an important milestone for the Perry Hall family.

The father of twins acquitted of animal cruelty charges Wednesday criticized the investigation that left the young men behind bars for nearly three years, but the state's attorney's office said there were no regrets in retrying the dog-burning case. "The police are supposed to be protecting," Charles Johnson said Thursday. He reiterated arguments from defense lawyers that the brothers were wrongfully identified as suspects. But a spokesman for State's Attorney Gregg L. Bernstein said the decision was made to retry the case in part because all but one juror agreed to convict the brothers in the first trial.

It took jurors only about an hour Wednesday to find brothers Travers and Tremayne Johnson not guilty of setting a pit bull on fire — a fraction of the 20 hours jurors spent in the twins' first trial, unable to agree on a verdict. Family members were overjoyed. But the not guilty verdicts on the four charges against each brother were bittersweet for the Johnsons and their relatives, who have maintained throughout the trials that the twins are innocent. "That they defamed someone's character at such a young age is very troubling," said Camille Mills, a cousin of the defendants who joined their mother and siblings in court.

There will be no early proclamations, no wild “Curse of the Andino” celebrations on the field after two impressive wins to kick off the 2012 season. These Orioles have been through this before - plenty of times - a quick start only to have it followed by a humbling collapse and another disastrous season. So Saturday night's 8-2 beating of the Minnesota Twins that featured another superb starting pitching performance as well as three solo homers from the meat of the order and a four-hit night from backup catcher-turned-designated hitter Ronny Paulino - yes, Ronny Paulino - will be accepted for what is was: a second fine game in a marathon of a season.

The Orioles are going for a 3-0 start and a season sweep of the Twins today at Camden Yards. Third baseman Mark Reynolds won't be in the lineup today. He took a batted ball of his left calf last night, but both Reynolds and manager Buck Showalter said he was able to play. Showalter said the reason is because he wants to get Wilson Betemit, today's third baseman, his first start in the field. Leftfielder Endy Chavez will also make his first start of the season. With the DH being able to move around, we've got some interchangable parts," Showalter said. "It's more about getting everybody on the field the first three days.

Jason Hammel didn't begin the scoreboard watching until the end of the sixth inning Sunday afternoon. The right-hander took his seat in the Orioles dugout and thought to himself how quickly his first start of the season was going. He had thrown just 65 pitches through those six innings. He was making quick work of the Minnesota Twins with a bevy of ground-ball outs. His teammates started inching away from him on the bench. "After a while you kind of realize, 'Man, we're moving along here pretty quick.

After blowing two saves during a four-game weekend series against Tampa Bay, Joe Nathan realized he was hurting the Twins and agreed to step away from the closer's job for now. "I feel like my consistency right now just isn't where I need it to be," he said. "Until I start getting that back -- and I know I will at some time -- I don't want to put this team at any risk and cost them ballgames right now. "We're all scuffling right now. The games that we do have, I'd like to get those taken care of and finished up. " Nathan approached manager Ron Gardenhire and pitching coach Rick Anderson after Saturday's 4-3 loss in which he gave up a tying homer to Ben Zobrist and then walked two batters.

The Orioles couldn't have asked more from Jake Arrieta in his first Opening Day start. The 26-year-old right-hander allowed just two hits and two walks while striking out four batters in seven scoreless innings. Only two runners reached second base against Arrieta - and both were with two outs. He threw 97 pitches, 60 of them for strikes. He consistently hit in the mid-90s with his fastball and his slider was particularly sharp. Matt Lindstrom is in to pitch the eighth, making his Orioles' debut.

The first lunatic trespasser of the season jumped on the field in the fourth inning and led the cops on the usual merry chase until one of them turned into Ray Lewis and took him down hard. What a charmer this rail-hopper was. He was shirtless and wore short shorts right out of the Richard Simmons Collection. Oh, and he wore a cape, too. Really. At first I swore it was Kegasus, so beered up he thought it was the Preakness, except I couldn't tell if the guy had a mullet or not. Other than that, the Orioles' season-opening 4-2 win over the Minnesota Twins on Friday went off without too many problems, if you don't count that little heart attack Troy Patton gave them in the ninth inning.