Twins

SARASOTA, Fla. - The Orioles will play their first home afternoon Grapefruit League game today against the Twins at Ed Smith Stadium. New Orioles pitcher Wei-Yin Chen, a Taiwanese left-hander who played the past four years in Japan, will make his debut today. Chen struggled in his intrasquad game last week, so it will be interesting to see how he rebounds today. In other pre-game news: -- LHP Tsuyoshi Wada (left elbow) and RHP Willie Eyre (groin) will both pitch bullpen sessions off a full mound before the game on the back fields.

DETROIT - Orioles bench coach John Russell is expected to be interviewed for the Minnesota Twins' managerial position. Russell, who has been the Orioles' bench coach since 2011, has previous managing experience. He managed the Pittsburgh Pirates from 2008 to 2010, compiling a 186-299 record over those three seasons. All of manager Buck Showalter's coaches, including Russell, are currently under contract for next season, so the Orioles would need to give permission to interview Russell.

SARASOTA, Fla. -- Second baseman Brian Roberts will leadoff today's Orioles' Grapefruit League opener against the Twins at Ed Smith Stadium. Nick Markakis will DH and hit in the No. 3 spot, while non-roster invitee Chris Dickerson will fill in for him in right field. Roberts is expected to get one or two at bats today before leaving to be in a friend's wedding. Here's the complete lineups for both teams: Orioles Brian Roberts 2B Nate McLouth LF Nick Markakis DH Adam Jones CF Matt Wieters C Chris Davis 1B JJ Hardy SS Manny Machado 3B Chris Dickerson RF Zach Britton LHP Twins Darin Mastroianni CF Eduardo Escobar 3B Josh Willingham LF Ryan Doumit DH Chris Parmelee RF Chris Colabello 1B Brian Dozier 2B Drew Butera C Pedro Florimon SS Kevin Correia RHP

It's been almost two weeks since the elevator footage of former Ravens running back Ray Rice blew up the Internet. And I can't stop thinking about it. There are many reasons why the Rices' domestic-abuse video troubles me, but selfishly, I'll admit that the entire thing makes me think most about my own children. My husband and I have two boys, twins. We also have a daughter. So I've taken note of the reactions both to Rice's stunning brutality, to his then-fiancee's you-and-me-against-the-world response and to the legions of people on Twitter explaining why they stayed with their abusers (#WhyIStayed)

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.

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.

Glenwood residents Steve and Natasha Kavakos welcomed the arrival of twins on June 29, 2012. Kendall Ann Kavakos at 8:56 a.m., weighed 7 pounds, 3 ounces. Brixton Louis Kavakos at 8:58 a.m., weighed 6 pounds, 12 ounces. Colton, 19 months, waited at home for his new siblings. The children's grandparents, Louis and Diane Kavakos and Terry and Joyce Losonsky, all live in Columbia.

Maybe we've all gotten spoiled by the terrific relief that has been provided by the Orioles bullpen this year, but the past few days have been - to say the least - unsettling. The Orioles won two of the past three games, but the bullpen has faltered in all three, and two of the top relievers in the league struggled in the last two games. It's probably fair to throw out Sunday's game, since it took a three-run meltdown in a tuneup appearance by Ubaldo Jimenez to make things interesting, but Brad Brach had a rare rocky outing that day, too. Monday's loss to the Twins featured an exciting three-run comeback by the O's, which was immediately followed by a defensive breakdown behind starter Kevin Gausman and two quick run-scoring hits off highly reliable left-hander Andrew Miller.

The Orioles would like to have started their final month of the regular season with a better showing instead of missing a chance at a sweep and losing, 6-4, to the inferior Minnesota Twins on Monday afternoon. This club, though, has been about the big picture all season, and that's not going to stop now that September has arrived. The first-place Orioles (79-57) went 3-1 in consecutive four-game series against the Tampa Bay Rays and the Twins this past week and hold an 8 1/2-game lead over the New York Yankees in the American League East.

As the Orioles enter the final month of the regular season, their accomplishments are starting to mount along with their win total. They currently have the second-best record in baseball and a nine-game lead in the American League East division. And as the calendar turns to September, they even can claim a magic number of 19 to clinch their first division title in 17 years. Meanwhile, the Orioles continue to let their bats lead the way, hitting three homers - including a grand slam from shortstop J.J. Hardy that capped a seven-run sixth inning - in a 12-8 win over the Minnesota Twins on Sunday afternoon in front of an announced 40,905 at Camden Yards.

The Orioles will make a number of moves when rosters expand Monday, including recalling at least two pitchers from Triple-A Norfolk. The club is expected to add right-hander Ryan Webb and left-hander Joe Saunders from the Tides to give the team additional bullpen depth. Despite being a key part of the Orioles bullpen all season, Webb was optioned to Norfolk on Aug. 1. He was 0-2 with a 4.76 ERA in 11 games (11 1/3 innings) at Norfolk. In 42 2/3 innings with the Orioles this year, Webb has a 3-2 record and a 3.80 ERA. Saunders, a former Orioles starter who was signed to a minor league deal Aug. 5, had a 1.50 ERA in 12 innings for Norfolk while working as a multiple-inning reliever.

While Chris Davis' season has been a struggle at the plate, there's no question the Orioles first baseman still can change a game with one swing of his bat.   Davis is hitting just .189 this season, but regardless of his place in the club's lineup, he still gets respect at the plate - so much so that opponents recently have chosen to make his teammates beat them rather than keep the bat in Davis' hands.   The Minnesota Twins, however, had no choice but to pitch to Davis with the bases loaded in the fourth inning Friday night, and Davis made them pay by crushing a grand slam off Twins right-hander Trevor May, the pivotal blast in a 9-1 drubbing before an announced 27,464 at Camden Yards.

The MLB All-Star Game has typically featured players in normal game uniforms, but this year's game will feature special-edition hats that are, sadly, anything but special for the Orioles. MLB has never been ashamed of charging extra for a traditional hat with a patch on it. This year's players will be given special-edition lids that honor the legacy of the host Twins for the July 15 game and, presumably, give fans a bit more bang for their $36.99. For The Win first reported about the hats and has images of several of them, including the Orioles'.

MINNEAPOLIS - The Orioles will face the Minnesota Twins this afternoon at Target Field with an opportunity to claim back-to-back road series wins for the first time since last September. If they win today to take two of three games here - they won two of three in their previous road series in Toronto - it would mark the first time they've won consecutive road series since Sept. 13-19 of last season, when they won in Toronto and Boston before dropping four straight in Tampa Bay, ultimately squashing their playoff hopes in 2013.

MINNEAPOLIS - Orioles first baseman Chris Davis is pleased with the progress he has made since going on the 15-day disabled list with a strained left oblique muscle, and he said Sunday that he believes he's slightly ahead of schedule in his recovery. “It's something that I've never dealt with, something I've never gone through before, so I don't have anything to compare it to,” Davis said Sunday before the Orioles' 5-2 loss to the Minnesota Twins at Target Field. “I've been pretty happy with the way I've been feeling lately.