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We've obviously focused on the Arizona Fall League quite a bit around here lately, and with good reason - Bryce Harper is the top attraction in the league, and his first taste of pro ball is one of the big on-the-field storylines for the Nationals this winter. But there are a number of other Nationals major and minor leaguers playing across Latin America this winter.
Bryce Harper played his fourth Arizona Fall League game on Saturday night. But for the first time, he stole the show. Harper went 3-for-5, blasting his first professional home run in the second inning off the top of a party deck in right field. He added a double, drove in a pair of runs and helped the Scottsdale Scorpions to a 13-9 win over the
Those of you tuning in for the pregame festivities before tonight's Game 3 of the World Series - the first the Rangers will have ever played in Texas - will notice another first: A current member of the Nationals will be catching a baseball on the field of a World Series game. Don't get too excited; it's for ceremonial purposes only. But Nationals catcher Ivan
The Scottsdale Scorpions recorded a 9-1 win over the Mesa Solar Sox on Friday, but most of the work was done by players other than the three Nationals prospects who played in the game. Infielder Stephen Lombardozzi had the best day of the trio, going 1-for-3 with a pair of walks and two runs. He also turned a couple double plays at shortstop, and recorded
The Houston Astros have released their entire schedule for spring training, and given the fact they play the Nationals about a half-dozen times each Grapefruit League season, that does wonders for those of us trying to piece together the Nationals' schedule before it comes out. In addition to the March 11 game in Viera and the March 26 game in Kissimmee that we already knew
A few of you have been asking about how the Nationals would be compensated if Adam Dunn left in free agency this winter, and after responding to a couple comments, I figured it'd be better to put a post up here, so everyone has easier access to it. Here's how it works: As we learned yesterday, Dunn is a Type A free agent. That means
The Arizona Fall League, to this point, has given the baseball world plenty of glimpses at Derek Norris' batting eye; the Nationals prospect entered Thursday with a .273 average, but a .419 on-base percentage in the league. Thursday's game, though, was a reminder of the other element of Norris' game that has the Nationals so excited: his potent bat. Norris went 2-for-4 for the Scottsdale
Depending on how you look at it, the Nationals caught a bit of a break this afternoon when Elias Sports Bureau's official arbitration rankings came out. In those rankings, Dunn is a Type A free agent, meaning he would net the Nationals two draft picks if they offered him arbitration and he left for another team in free agency. Projections earlier this fall had put
Nationals manager Jim Riggleman appeared on 106.7 The Fan this morning, talking with Holden Kushner on the Mike Wise Show about a number of different topics, the future of first baseman Adam Dunn among them. Riggleman had a couple interesting things to say on the subject, though none of them shed much new light on the status of the free agent-to-be. Riggleman said he thinks
Bryce Harper's third game in the Arizona Fall League was his poorest offensive showing so far; he went 0-for-4 and struck out twice. But Harper showed off a different facet of his game on Wednesday: his pistol of a right arm that has produced 96-mph fastballs and taken the 18-year-old through most of his adolescence as a catcher before the Nationals moved him to right
The Nationals just announced details for the unveiling of their new uniforms, which will come Nov. 10 in an invitation-only event at Nationals Park. Tyler Clippard, Ian Desmond, Ivan Rodriguez, Drew Storen, Ryan Zimmerman and Jordan Zimmermann are all scheduled to be in attendance. DC Sports Bog wrote yesterday that the new uniforms are expected to do away with the block "NATIONALS" font on the
The World Series is finally here, being played in two cities that have hosted it a combined three times. All of those appearances, of course, have been in San Francisco, which has seen the Giants lose it three times since coming west from New York in 1958. The Rangers? To this point, they've done the same thing they did as the Washington Senators - and
The Scottsdale Scorpions lost to the Peoria Javelinas on Tuesday in the Arizona Fall League, but it was a big day for one Nationals prospect. Outfielder Michael Burgess, hitting seventh and playing right field, went 3-for-5 with a double, triple, two runs scored and another two batted in. He pushed his average to .310 in the AFL, and has an .812 OPS so far in
We're back with another edition of the Tuesday Talker List, and with the start of the World Series tomorrow, this seems like an easy one. Every baseball fan has a World Series moment they'll never forget, whether it was your team winning or losing it or whether you watched something so indelible that you can remember exactly what you were doing when you saw it.
On the heels of our discussion about tinkering with the baseball playoff format last week, MLB Players Association chief Michael Weiner broached the topic in an interview with the Associated Press yesterday, before the start of the World Series. And his stance on the topic hinted at some of the things we were discussing - expanding the playoffs and shortening the regular season. Weiner said
The Scottsdale Scorpions were back in action on Monday, losing 5-4 to the Peoria Saguaros. Three Nationals prospects saw action in the game, and for pitcher Adam Carr, Monday's game was a rough one. Carr allowed a pair of runs on three hits in two innings, blowing a lead for the Scorpions in the sixth inning. He had only given up one run in his
After getting 316 plate appearances in 2009, Alberto Gonzalez went into the 2010 season without much chance to be a starting middle infielder for the Nationals. But the 27-year-old turned in a solid season as a utility player, filling in ably for Ryan Zimmerman in 28 games at third base and providing impressive defense in both middle infield spots, despite hitting .247 and driving in
Good morning, NatsTown - All is well here after watching the Packers finally take down the Vikings, once again with the timely help of Brett Favre, who found Packers at all the key moments of last night's game, including linebacker Desmond Bishop for the game-winning touchdown. Some would say Favre's comeback stats are overinflated, that he's a horrendous clutch quarterback who has been lionized by
When Ryan Howard took a called third strike on Saturday night, ending Game 6 of the National League Championship Series and denying the Philadelphia Phillies a chance at their third straight trip to the World Series, it closed the book on a year where the team made no shortage of bold moves to stay atop the National League. Those moves, of course, came at quite
Watching the Texas Rangers win the AL pennant last night brought a number of thoughts to my mind. There's the obvious stuff about the underdogs taking down the Yankees, but there's quite a bit more this team represents, and the more I see of them, the more compelling I think they'll be in the World Series. First, there's little doubt the Rangers wouldn't be here
In our discussion of the Nationals'tendency to swing and miss more often in 2010, reader Swooned By June asked specifically about Adam Dunn, and whether I thought it was a bad idea that coach Rick Eckstein had him swinging earlier in counts this year. I was going to respond to him there, but it got to a point where I wrote enough that I thought
In the Scottsdale Scorpions' 4-2 loss to the Mesa Solar Sox on Thursday, three Nationals prospects saw action, and two of them were unable to do much at the plate to help the Scorpions in the loss. Catcher Derek Norris hit cleanup for Scottsdale and went 0-for-3, his first game of the fall without a hit. Norris is hitting .313 this fall, and as usual,
Now that the season's over and all the season's data has settled into place, I'll take a look at the Nationals' stats every once in a while to see what trends we can find about the 2010 squad. A few of you have asked about a subtle change in the team's hitting approach - which saw a number of the Nationals' hitters being more aggressive
Bryce Harper's first Arizona Fall League game is in the books, and while the 18-year-old phenom didn't change the face of the game, he did show a glimpse of his prodigious talent. Harper went 1-for-4 in the Scottsdale Scorpions' 6-3 win over the Mesa Solar Sox, driving in a pair of runs on an opposite-field ground-rule double in the seventh inning. He also popped up
Bryce Harper will officially make his Arizona Fall League debut tonight; he is in the Scottsdale Scorpions' lineup for their game tonight with the Mesa Solar Sox. The 18-year-old, who was the No. 1 pick in the June Draft, will bat seventh and play right field. The Nationals prospect will likely face Phillies right-hander Josh Zeid in his first at-bat; the 6-foot-5 pitcher started 12
The Nationals still haven't released their spring schedule, but it's getting easier to piece together sections of it, as other teams release their spring slates. The Astros have released a few games, including a March 11 trip to Viera and a March 26 game against the Nationals in Kissimmee. The Braves also have a March 6 game against the Nationals in Viera. So here's what
There's been a lot of talk about Monday's NFL-MLB ratings battle, during which a Monday Night Football game between two mediocre teams (Tennessee and Jacksonville) drew a 7.2 national rating; Game 3 of the ALCS, which featured Cliff Lee putting together a historic pitching performance against the game's marquee team (the Yankees), drew a 6.5 nationwide. I spent a while talking about this yesterday on
The Scottsdale Scorpions got another win on Tuesday, running their Arizona Fall League record to 5-2 with the help of some strong performances from Nationals players. Brad Peacock pitched two scoreless innings, striking out three batters and throwing just 26 pitches. He walked one batter, but didn't give up a hit. Cole Kimball pitched the last two innings of the game, recording a save in
We're going to hold our first Nationals chat of the offseason Wednesday at 2:30 p.m. This is your chance to ask any questions about the team, its offseason plans, the MLB playoffs or anything else that's on your mind. You can start leaving questions now by commenting at the bottom of this blog post. You can also ask them on Twitter by sending them to
Near the end of the 2008 season, Chico Harlan (then the Washington Post's Nationals beat writer) and I were riding in an elevator with a handful of fans and Mike Rizzo, the Nationals' assistant general manager at the time. Jimmy Kloke - better known as the Dancing Kid on the Nationals Park scoreboard and one of the brashest kids you'll ever meet - looked up
Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo, who was given a five-year extension and added executive vice president of baseball operations to his title today, is scheduled to discuss the promotion with the media at 2 p.m. I'll post some highlights of the press conference here, and update this post throughout the afternoon. --Rizzo: "I'm very pleased with the decision the Lerner family made. I'd like to
The Nationals just announced they've signed GM Mike Rizzo to a five-year contract extension, promoting him to executive vice president of baseball operations and general manager. The extension runs through the 2015 season. That's the move I expected in the wake of team president Stan Kasten's departure, and it puts Rizzo solely in charge of the team's baseball department. "Mike Rizzo is unquestionably one of
It looks like the Nationals can cross one possible target off their list of No. 1 pitchers they could add to their rotation before next season. Japanese right-hander Yu Darvish, whom the Nationals had been linked to earlier this fall, posted on his blog that he will be staying in Japan for the 2011 season (a translation of the post appeared on yakyubaka.com this morning).
Well, it's the offseason, which means there's more room for light-hearted fare on this blog than there would be in the regular season, when this space is usually regimented in the day-to-day workings of the baseball beat. So I'm starting something this week that I'm hoping to have a little fun with throughout the winter. It's called the Tuesday Talker List (never mind that the
Dana Brown, the former Nationals scouting director who left before last season to become a special assistant to Toronto GM Alex Anthopolous, will interview for the Mets' vacant general manager opening on Wednesday, the team announced today. He will be the sixth candidate to interview for the job, applying to replace Omar Minaya - his former boss when both were with the Montreal Expos. The
After taking the weekend to celebrate his 18th birthday with family and friends in Las Vegas, Bryce Harper will join the Scottsdale Scorpions today, starting his stint in the Arizona Fall League with seven other Nationals prospects. Harper will likely play his first game on Wednesday night, when the Scorpions take on the Mesa Solar Sox at 6:30 p.m. local time (9:30 p.m. Eastern time).
My colleague Roch Kubatko pointed out earlier today thatRoyals pitcher Zack Greinke has a limited no-trade clause, whereby he can veto a trade to a handful of teams. That could affect the Orioles, who are in the market for a top starting pitcher. It could also affect the Nationals. As Roch pointed out, it's not like Greinke is coming from a place where he's used
In the Year of the Pitcher, it's only fitting that these are the last two teams playing in the National League: the Giants, who have built an NL West champion almost solely through drafting and developing good young starters, and the Phillies, who went out and traded for a pair of aces to complement their formidable lineup. These are two of the three best starting
A trio of Nationals saw action in the Scottsdale Scorpions' 11-4 win over the Phoenix Desert Dogs on Friday, though none had a particularly large role in the win. Michael Burgess, who's played three of Scottsdale's four games so far, DHed again and went 1-for-4 with a walk. Pitcher Brad Peacock, who finished the year at Double-A Harrisburg for the Nationals, allowed a run on
Ever since Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo said last month that the team's top offseason priority was an No. 1 starter, sounding bold tones about the Nationals' ability to acquire an ace, there's been a mix of curiosity and anxiousness among fans about who the team could actually land. There's no doubt Rangers starter Cliff Lee, due to be a free agent at the end
One of the more unique ALCS matchups in years gets underway tonight, made even more unusual by its locale. The defending world champion Yankees do not open at home, as is seemingly their birthright to do in big series, but in the unfamiliar confines of Rangers Ballpark in Arlington, Tex., which has seen precisely six playoff games before tonight - two of those coming in
Three Nationals players saw action for the Scottsdale Scorpions on Thursday in the Arizona Fall League; infielder Stephen Lombardozzi, who was DHing, went 1-for-5 with a RBI. Outfielder Michael Burgess was 1-for-3, also walking and stealing a base, and reliever Adam Carr had a rough eighth inning, allowing a run on two hits and a walk. I'm interested to see how Burgess performs in Arizona,
Think back for a minute to the spring of 2009. The Nationals had just cleaned out their leadership structure in the Dominican Republic, firing a handful of people in the wake of the Esmailyn Gonzalez news, and general manager Jim Bowden had resigned, leaving the baseball operation to assistant GM Mike Rizzo. Then, in the summer, the Nationals fired manager Manny Acta, meaning they had
For a pair of Nationals prospects who are quietly making two of the biggest impressions in the organization, Wednesday was a good day in the Arizona Fall League. Second baseman Stephen Lombardozzi, who ended the year at Double-A Harrisburg and could move to Triple-A Syracuse next year, went 2-for-6 with a pair of doubles and a run. He hit .295 in 27 games at Harrisburg
Nationals GM Mike Rizzo talked to a handful of reporters a few minutes ago via conference call about the decision to send Bryce Harper to the Arizona Fall League. Rizzo said he had been planning to send Harper to the AFL when the 17-year-old went to the team's instructional league team in Florida, but the Nationals needed to see him work in Florida and shake
Just got off the phone with Nationals player development director Doug Harris, who said Bryce Harper's assignment to the Arizona Fall League is about a couple of things: letting the outfielder catch up on some of the baseball he missed by not signing with the Nationals this summer, and exposing him to a higher level of baseball than he's seen anywhere so far. Harper, who
Bryce Harper, the No. 1 pick in the 2010 draft, will play for the Nationals in the Arizona Fall League, a team official confirmed. Harper, who turns 18 on Saturday, will get a chance to test himself against some of the game's top prospects after hitting .319 in the Nationals' instructional league in Viera, Fla. The outfielder flashed both his inexperience and his prodigious power
For seven Nationals players, the most important part of the offseason began yesterday in Arizona, where the Arizona Fall League got underway. The elite prospect league is something of a baseball finishing school, where top players get to test themselves against high-end competition before making the final steps up the minor leagues. The Nationals' prospects playing for the Scottsdale Scorpions team that Double-A Harrisburg manager
Chien-Ming Wang continues to progress on his way back from shoulder surgery, posting another solid outing today for the Nationals' instructional league team. Wang threw two innings against the Braves' instructional league team, hitting 89 mph on the radar gun and getting four groundouts in 17 pitches, according to an email from Alan Chang, who represents Wang with Alan Nero. "He's feeling very good now,"
The Arizona Fall League season begins today, and for seven Nationals prospects, it's a chance to test their skills in what's possibly baseball's best developmental league. Pitchers Brad Peacock, Sammy Solis, Adam Carr and Cole Kimball will all play for the Scottsdale Scorpions, as will catcher Derek Norris, infielder Stephen Lombardozzi and outfielder Michael Burgess. Randy Knorr, the Nationals' manager at Double-A Harrisburg, will manage
Just browsing through MLB Trade Rumors' projections of the Elias rankings for free agents, and there's an interesting item in there, though it's better for conversation than anything else: Josh Willingham would currently be a Type A free agent, while Adam Dunn is still projected to miss the Type A cutoff and be a Type B. Now, Willingham isn't a free agent until next season,
The Nationals' decision to cut Elijah Dukes in spring training was predicated largely on the belief that the team could get more production out of its remaining right fielders than it could from Dukes, who was struggling to hit curveballs and remaining an uncomfortable presence in the Nationals' clubhouse. But at the end of the year, the experiment actually seems to have worked. In 162
We're wrapping up our grades of the 2010 Nationals this morning with a couple final items, for general manager Mike Rizzo and manager Jim Riggleman. Depending on how you judge the season, you could say either man did a fine job or a poor one; they helped the Nationals improve 10 games over 2009's record (though it would have been tough not to improve on
We're continuing our series of grades on the 2010 Nationals, wrapping up the report card for players before turning to manager Jim Riggleman and general manager Mike Rizzo later today. This installment focuses on the Nationals' outfield, which grabbed headlines and was thrust into uncertainty in March when the team cut Elijah Dukes - who had been penciled in as the starter in right field.
Bryce Harper went 3-for-4 today for the Nationals' instructional league team, hitting a homer and driving in five runs against the Braves. Harper has been inconsistent in his first taste of professional baseball, and his early inconsistencies, while to be expected, are probably an indicator the 17-year-old isn't ready for the Arizona Fall League yet. But his riveting talent has been on display several times
We're continuing our grades of the 2010 Nationals this morning with the team's catchers and infielders. Of any group on the field, this one underwent more changes in 2010 than any other. Cristian Guzman, who had been the Nationals' fixture at shortstop since 2005, began the year on the bench. By the end of the year, the team had installed its possible middle infield of
Outgoing Nationals president Stan Kasten talked with reporters for about a half-hour on Wednesday afternoon, sitting in a leather chair in the Presidents' Club at Nationals Park and reflecting on his 4 1/2-season tenure with the team. He revealed little about his future, batting away questions about the possibility of him succeeding Bud Selig as MLB commissioner. But he did express some regret that the
Outgoing Nationals president Stan Kasten met with reporters earlier this afternoon to debrief his tenure with the team. I'll have more from that session shortly, but here are the highlights: Kasten said the Nationals are looking at all sorts of options for their spring training home; the team has a lease at Space Coast Stadium that runs through 2017, but is exploring the possibility of
Chien-Ming Wang, the Nationals right-hander who missed the entire 2010 season while rehabbing from shoulder surgery, made his return to the mound today, throwing a shutout inning against the Detroit Tigers in the Nationals' instructional league. Wang's interpreter, Alan Chang, said he faced four batters, walking one, and was clocked between 85-87 mph. The Nationals are hoping Wang makes a full recovery from shoulder surgery;
The 2010 playoffs are officially underway, with the Rangers taking on the Rays at Tropicana Field down in Tampa. And a quick look at the rosters shows plenty of Nationals connections in the postseason. Here's a quick rundown: Yankees: Outfielder Austin Kearns, who was traded to New York in August after signing with Manny Acta's Indians before this year, could start in left field for
The MLB playoffs get started in about an hour and a half, when the Rangers and Rays face off in Game 1 of the ALDS. I thought I'd chime in with some playoff predictions for the first round. American League Division Series Yankees over Twins in 4: My heart says otherwise, and I have serious reservations about the Yankees' pitching. But I think the Yankees
Nearly eight months after they signed him to a one-year, $2 million contract, the Nationals will finally see right-hander Chien-Ming Wang pitching in a game today. The pitcher, who missed the entire 2010 season while rehabbing after shoulder surgery, will only throw an inning today, but the simple act of facing hitters in a game again is a major step forward. Wang had shoulder surgery
We're continuing our "Grading the 2010 Nationals" series today with a look at the team's starting rotation. As a whole, this group got better this season, lowering its ERA by more than one-third of a run over last year (4.97 in 2009, 4.61 in 2010). But that mark was still third-worst in the National League, and the group endured a host of inconsistent performances and
MLB Trade Rumors has posted an updated version of the Elias Sports Bureau's free agent rankings, and there's an important development there for the Nationals: Adam Dunn could be a Type B, not a Type A, free agent. Essentially, that would mean the Nationals would only get one compensatory pick if they offered Dunn arbitration and he left in free agency, as opposed to two
Of all the grades I issued to the Nationals' 2010 bullpen, a surprising number of you took issue with the B grade I gave Drew Storen. Several of you said you expected more in the right-hander's rookie year, and reader Wally made an interesting point, suggesting Storen needs to develop a dominant out pitch along the lines of Mariano Rivera's cutter, Trevor Hoffman's changeup or
The Nationals won't release their 2011 spring training schedule for a while yet, but thanks to a few teams that have already put theirs out, we can piece together a few games of it. Here's what we know so far: March 3: at St. Louis (Jupiter) March 17: at Atlanta (Disney) March 18: vs. St. Louis (Viera) March 21: at. St. Louis (Jupiter) March 25:
Well, we've completed 162 games, and for the Nationals, the 2010 season is over. They finished 69-93, 10 games better than last year but three games short of their Pythagorean win expectation, which said they should have won 72 based on the fact they were outscored by only 87 runs all season. They were also well short of where manager Jim Riggleman expected they would
NEW YORK | As the members of the Nationals' bullpen sat behind the fence in right center at Citi Field on Sunday, working overtime on the final day of the season for the second year in a row, they started telling stories about last year's 15-inning win over the Braves on the season's last day. "The guys started telling me it's becoming kind of a
NEW YORK | Just like last year, the Nationals are dragging things out in the final game of their season. They're tied with the Mets 1-1 heading into the 12th inning, trading zeros with New York after the Mets tied the game on a double play back in the fifth inning. Drew Storen just struck out Lucas Duda to finish 2 1/3 shutout relief innings.
NEW YORK | We're in the fifth inning here, and the Nationals have a 1-0 lead over the Mets on a rare RBI from Alberto Gonzalez. With men on first and third, the infielder punched a single to right in the top of the fifth, bringing Roger Bernadina home and collecting just his fifth RBI of the season. It came after some nice baserunning from
NEW YORK | When Nationals manager Jim Riggleman looks at his players' individual numbers, he sees an offense that, put simply, should have been better than it was this year. For the first half of the season, the Nationals had possibly the National League's best heart of the order, with Ryan Zimmerman, Adam Dunn and Josh Willingham all among the league's top players in terms
NEW YORK | Adam Dunn is back in the Nationals' lineup today, playing his 158th and final game of the season for the Nationals. It could also be the last game Dunn plays for the Nationals at all; the first baseman, of course, is scheduled to become a free agent after the season. But unlike his final home game in Washington last week, for which
NEW YORK | For the last time this year, hello from Citi Field, where the Nationals and Mets play their final game of the season at 1:10 p.m. Here are the lineups for both teams: Nationals Espinosa, 2b Morgan, cf Desmond, ss Dunn, 1b Bernadina, lf Rodriguez, c Harris, rf Gonzalez, 3b Hernandez, p Mets Reyes, ss Feliciano, rf Wright, 3b Davis, 1b Pagan, cf
NEW YORK | The injury to Michael Morse's left hamstring happened several weeks before Saturday, and Morse had gamely fought through it, supplying one of the last sources of forward motion the Nationals' offense had this year. But when Morse hit his 15th, and probably final, home run of the season on Saturday, his hamstring grabbed, almost like the hind leg of a horse that
Michael Morse, in his 291st at-bat of the season, hit his 15th homer of the year. And like yesterday's homer, the blast today packed plenty of force. Morse banged a shot off the facing of the left field upper deck at Citi Field, pulling the Nationals within a run of the Mets. Morse is now out of the game for a defensive replacement (Willie Harris)
The Nationals trail the Mets 1-0 after three innings, more as a result of their own inability to cash in on opportunities than anything Yunesky Maya's doing wrong. They have stranded four runners in the first three innings, leaving the bases loaded in the second after putting runners on second and third to start the inning. Alberto Gonzalez and Adam Kennedy hit flyouts, but neither
At this time last year, when Ian Desmond was finishing up his impressive September audition for next year's roster and the Nationals were trying to decide whether to move Cristian Guzman to second base, their middle infield was as in flux as any spot on their roster. It doesn't appear that will be the case headed into 2011. Manager Jim Riggleman said today he would
NEW YORK | Good morning from Citi Field, where it's finally sunny and the Nationals and Mets resume their three-game series at 1:10 today. The Nationals will sit Adam Dunn, who's getting a chance to rest his sore hamstring, and also giving Nyjer Morgan a day off. Here are the lineups for both teams: Nationals Espinosa, 2b Bernadina, lf Desmond, ss Morse, rf Ramos, c
NEW YORK | Is there any rhyme or reason to this Nationals offense, which can score 27 runs in a four-game win streak and then scrounge for eight in its next six games? What is there to make of an attack that's often been at its best against the game's top pitchers, only to fall flat against pitching's lesser lights? Consider the register of pitchers
NEW YORK | In the opportunities he's been given, there's little else Michael Morse could have done to prove he deserves to play every day next year. And on the season's final weekend, Morse is making his case even stronger. He just flattened a changeup from Pat Misch, launching it well over 425 feet to the deepest part of the park in center field. The
As we discussed this morning, Jordan Zimmermann's big bugaboo this yearhas been home runs. The right-hander came into the night having allowed seven in six starts. That's continued early tonight. Ike Davis just launched a solo shot to right center off Zimmermann, putting the Mets up 1-0 in the fourth inning. Zimmermann threw a fastball at 89 mph, high in the zone and on the
NEW YORK | We're at that time of the year where Nationals manager Jim Riggleman is getting asked as much about the composition of the 2011 squad as the fate of the 2010 team, which has three games left in the season. On Friday, Riggleman gave a couple interesting tidbits about possible directions for the 2011 team: --He said the five outfielders who received most
NEW YORK | Greetings (finally) from Citi Field, where the Nationals and Mets begin their season-ending series tonight at 7:10 p.m. It's soggy in New York right now, but the forecast calls for clearing by game time. Here are the lineups for both teams: Nationals Espinosa - 2B Morgan - CF Desmond - SS Dunn - 1B Morse - RF Rodriguez - C Maxwell -
During my last few years covering the Nationals, I never had any major travel problems. Not once. This year, I've had a connecting flight to San Francisco delayed by two hours because President Obama was at the airport, causing me to miss most of the pregame access during the first day of the Nationals-Giants series, and now I've spent the morning in a mad scramble
