Chris Davis

Slugger Chris Davis can't help the Baltimore Orioles on the field right now, but he is doing things that are more important than hitting home runs.

Last week, Davis was suspended 25 games after testing positive for amphetamines. That means that his 2014 regular season is over, and the Orioles will have to advance past the American League Division Series for him to have a chance to play again this season.

While the follow-up to his breakout season has largely been disappointing, Baltimore Orioles first baseman Chris Davis gave O's fans plenty to cheer for Monday night, hitting the franchise's first walk-off, pinch-hit home run since 1988, per the team's official Twitter account.

Baltimore Orioles slugger Chris Davis entered Monday's action in need of a big hit in the worst way but in a lousy position to get one. It's not so easy to hit from the bench, you know.

Fortunately for Davis, baseball has that one rule that allows managers to use pinch hitters.

Manny Machado is back.

The Baltimore Orioles are expected to activate the 21-year-old third baseman before the series opener against the Pittsburgh Pirates, according to Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports. With Tuesday's game being postponed because of rain, it's expected that Machado will make his season debut on Wednesday.

Updates from Saturday, April 26

MASN's Roch Kubatko has some bad news for Orioles fans:

Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun noted  Davis was hopeful he could avoid the disabled list:

Original Text

Major League Baseball is infatuated with round numbers. Chris Davis of the Baltimore Orioles reached a special one on Friday night with his 50th home run of the year.

Watch him flaunt his opposite-field power with this eighth-inning blast to break a 3-3 tie in an eventual O's victory:

Chris Davis pulled a Houdini against the New York Yankees on Monday, making a ball disappear.

The Baltimore Orioles first baseman, who has earned a reputation for sending balls out of the park, took one into his jersey on a bad swing.

Hello, boys and girls. It's fairy tale time.

Today, we're going to be learning about the story of how a great hitter came to be.

Once upon a time...

There was a promising young slugger.

This slugger hit with a big stick from the left side, and he was once a top prospect in the minors who showed flashes of his ability and power at the major league level. Alas, he never could seem to stick in the big leagues.

Baltimore Orioles fans have a lot to be excited about. Their team is just 2.5 games out of first place in the American League East, it just won its second consecutive game against the division-rival New York Yankees in dominating fashion and Chris Davis is doing some ridiculous things at the dish.

We've reached the midway point in the 2013 MLB season, and the Baltimore Orioles have provided plenty of intrigue during the first few months.

There have been plenty of surprises (Manny Machado's doubles, Chris Davis' home runs) and just as many disappointments (pitching struggles, injuries) throughout the season so far, as baseball often provides.

Heading into the second half, one interesting thing to keep an eye on will be whether or not players having strong years can keep that going as well as struggling players turning their years around.