Ross Detwiler, making a rehab start tonight for Triple-A Syracuse against Rochester, allowed three runs, but only one earned, in five innings. The left-hander is returning from a strained right hip flexor, and will likely join the Nationals as a September call-up in the next week, if not sooner. Once he does return to the majors, though, the Nationals' rotation will get even more crowded. ... read more
I'm up in Baltimore tonight, taking in the Orioles and Red Sox, and I had a chance to talk with a few baseball people about the Nationals and the events of last night: --The consensus among a few scouts was that Nyjer Morgan's biggest offense was the way he came off the field after the brawl at Sun Life Stadium, raising his arms and taunting ... read more
Rob Dibble, who was let go by the Nationals as MASN's color commentator after he criticized Stephen Strasburg on his Sirius XM Radio show, apologized for those comments on his radio show Thursday morning. Dibble said last Monday that Strasburg should "suck it up" and pitch through the pain in his right arm, which turned out to be a torn ulnar collateral ligament. Strasburg will ... read more
There's plenty more to talk about after the brawl between the Nationals and Marlins, but I'm curious to hear what all of you think about it. So here you go: --After Nyjer Morgan got plunked in the fourth inning, he took off and stole second and third, despite the fact the Nationals were down 14-3. There's an unwritten rule in baseball that you don't steal ... read more
Twenty-six runs, 31 hits, four hit-by-pitches, six ejections and one nasty brawl. Is there any doubt the Nationals have played their craziest game of the year? There will be plenty of fallout from this one - Nyjer Morgan, who already had a seven-game suspension looming, will undoubtedly see that grow, and it's possible the Nationals will cut ties with him. And Scott Olsen, after giving ... read more
Forget football jokes. If I didn't know better, I'd say a beer-league softball game has broken out between the Nationals and Marlins - beverages included. Nyjer Morgan charged the mound after Chris Volstad threw behind him in the sixth inning, enacting payback for Morgan's home-plate collision last night. Morgan got one punch in on Volstad before he was clotheslined by Gaby Sanchez. Benches emptied, and ... read more
Scott Olsen's position in the Nationals' rotation, tenuous as it is, just became more uncertain. The left-hander gave up nine runs in 1 2/3 innings, and after Craig Stammen followed him by giving up a two-run single to Gaby Sanchez, the Nationals trail 14-3 in the third. Wes Helms and Donnie Murphy scored touchdowns for the Marlins - and that's the last joke I'll make ... read more
Here are the Nationals' and Marlins' lineups for tonight's game at Sun Life Stadium in Miami. You'll notice a couple things with the Nationals' lineup: --Nyjer Morgan is back in the leadoff spot. If the Marlins have designs on hitting him for last night's collision at the plate, they can get it done quickly this way. --Ryan Zimmerman gets the night off. Zimmerman has played ... read more
The Nationals will recall catcher Wilson Ramos and reliever Collin Balester from Triple-A Syracuse today, and select the contract of shortstop Danny Espinosa, starting the September call-up process with those three players, according to a team spokesman. Ramos, seen as the team's catcher of the future, was expected to be in the majors in September when the Nationals acquired him from the Twins at the ... read more
Last year, the Nationals brought Ian Desmond to the majors for a September call-up, and he played so well that he got a shot to win the shortstop job in spring training, which he did. This year, it looks like the Nationals will try to catch lightning in a bottle again. Danny Espinosa, a shortstop at Triple-A Syracuse and one of the Nationals' top middle ... read more
About Ben Goessling
Ben Goessling covers the Washington Nationals for MASNsports.com on his blog "The Goessling Game".
