Entries Listing
By Byron Kerr, March 30, 2013 12:30 PM
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Here are the 2013 opening day rosters for Nationals' affiliates at Single-A Hagerstown, Single-A Potomac and Triple-A Syracuse. Double-A Harrisburg released its roster yesterday. Potomac Nationals PITCHERS A.J. Cole Robbie Ray Taylor Jordan Taylor Hill Kylin Turnbull Tyler Herron Matt Grace Richard Mirowski Gregory Holt Ben Hawkins Christian Meza Colin Bates Derek Self CATCHERS Adrian Nieto Cole Leonida INFIELDERS Kevin Keyes Adrian Sanchez Jason Martinson
By Byron Kerr, March 29, 2013 6:06 PM
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Right-hander Jordan Zimmermann got his work in, a final start against the New York Yankees in an exhibition game before the games count for real on Monday. The Yankees won the game 4-2 with four runs in the fourth inning. The rally ignited with a Kevin Youkilis solo shot to left field. Nationals manager Davey Johnson said Zimmermann was happy to just get this one
By Byron Kerr, March 29, 2013 1:40 PM
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With opening day arriving Monday, the lineup sheet for the Nationals' exhibition against the Yankees lists only two left-handers: Zach Duke and J.C. Romero. Manager Davey Johnson said at spring training in Viera, Fla., he is confident in the right-handers, and their plus stuff, to be able to go after either side of the plate and not have to be so worried about match-ups. Right-hander
By Byron Kerr, March 29, 2013 12:56 PM
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The Double-A Harrisburg Senators released their opening day roster today. The talented roster includes top prospects Anthony Rendon, Matt Skole, Brian Goodwin and Nathan Karns. According to a press release, the roster includes eight players listed in the Baseball America's Top 28 Nationals prospects: Rendon (1), Goodwin (3), Skole (4), Karns (5), Sandy Leon (15), Rick Hague (16), Destin Hood (17) and Paul Demny (28).
By Byron Kerr, March 27, 2013 7:27 AM
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Not on the diamond. Not on the mound. Not during bullpens. You will not see this component of a pitcher's preparation for a game or a season. But it is absolutely crucial to every step and every pitch they make in their career. It is strength training. So with fans not getting a chance to see what a pitcher's work is like in the weight
By Byron Kerr, March 24, 2013 6:20 AM
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The Triple-A Syracuse Chiefs' roster is taking shape as they get closer to their season opener April 4 at Lehigh Valley. They begin with seven games on the road. The roster is not official and could change before opening day, but this list is a good general idea of what the Chiefs will look like next week. The coaching staff has Tony Beasley as manager,
By Byron Kerr, March 22, 2013 8:07 AM
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The Nationals begin the 2013 campaign with a home series against the Miami Marlins. It could also be a spectacular week to view the cherry blossoms in D.C. The National Park Service has announced that the peak viewing time this year has now been pushed back to April 3-6. The Nationals open April 1 at 1:05 p.m. against the Marlins, and are also home April
By Byron Kerr, March 20, 2013 12:28 PM
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The Nationals' group of late-inning specialists, consisting of Tyler Clippard, Drew Storen and Rafael Soriano, could be that 1-2-3 punch at the end of games that manager Davey Johnson envisions. If these three can be like the Atlanta Braves' final three (Eric O'Flaherty, Jonny Venters and Craig Kimbrel), the Nationals, as Johnson hopes, can shorten games to six innings. Here is my blog about those
By Byron Kerr, March 18, 2013 7:58 AM
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The accelerated development program has its obvious goals. It is first and foremost an opportunity to get some of the best prospects in the organization in one place at one time for an extended period of spring training, surrounded by the top coaches to "speed up" the learning process. But one other reason is pretty clear when looking at the talent and youth in the
By Byron Kerr, March 15, 2013 8:00 AM
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Right-hander Paul Demny has come to the accelerated development camp looking good and ready to pick up where he left off following his play in the Arizona Fall League. "He looks like he is in better shape," said Harrisburg Senators pitching coach Paul Menhart. "He took a couple of weeks off after the Arizona Fall League and came in here in really good shape. His
By Byron Kerr, March 13, 2013 7:22 AM
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The Nationals' accelerated development program has two weeks in the books in Florida. This week, I will have some updates of a few of the pitchers in the camp, starting with A.J. Cole, Taylor Jordan and Brad Meyers. Right-hander Cole is making good progress in his first camp since being trading back to the Nationals from the Oakland A's. The 21-year-old Cole had a rough
By Byron Kerr, March 11, 2013 8:03 AM
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With left-hander Ross Detwiler throwing not one, but four scoreless innings this week for Team USA, you have to admire how far the 26-year-old has come in a year and a half, and how crucial his pitching is to the Nationals' rotation. Detwiler allowed just one hit in those four innings. Manager Joe Torre had enough confidence in the southpaw to go out and let
By Byron Kerr, March 8, 2013 11:34 AM
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Right-hander Nathan Karns is getting himself acclimated quickly at spring training. In his first two games, Karns did not allow a run in three innings, scattering two hits, walking two and striking out three. One of those hits was a seeing-eye single given up to Mets All-Star David Wright after quite a battle. "I feel like I started off on the right foot and keep
By Byron Kerr, March 6, 2013 7:00 AM
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Baseball can sometimes be broken down to an individual sport, especially for the closers. If a batter makes an out, he still has eight other guys that can make a play, his team still has two more outs. A closer has defenders behind him, but it's ultimately one pitcher versus one hitter. One pitch can end the game. One pitch can also turn into a
By Byron Kerr, March 3, 2013 9:07 AM
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It was about this time last season everything changed for Zach Duke. Last season, he struggled in Houston Astros camp and was eventually released. Two days later, he was picked up by the Nationals. After battling to regain his consistency and break on his best pitches, he worked his way back to the majors. Oh, he did work all right. Duke went 15-5 with a
By Byron Kerr, March 1, 2013 8:16 AM
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ESPN released its latest "Future Power Rankings" and the Nationals are ranked fourth out of the 30 major league teams. ESPN calls it a "detailed breakdown of the future of every major league franchise" by experts Jim Bowden, Keith Law and Buster Olney. The No. 4 ranking is a jump from 2012 when the Nationals were locked in at No. 11. Here is the link,
