Mark Zuckerman

Rough night for Gray-Ruiz battery in loss to Phillies (updated)

August 30, 2021, 6:44pm

The Nationals wanted so much for this to be a memorable night, the first of many featuring Josiah Gray on the mound and Keibert Ruiz behind the plate. And there will be many more nights featuring the young battery and centerpieces of last month's blockbuster trade that sent Max Scherzer and Trea Turner to the Dodgers. No matter how their story turns out, whether in glory or failure, Gray and Ruiz won't have reason to look back on tonight's proceedings with much fondness. Gray slogged his way...

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Barrera heading to Triple-A, Adams starts learning first base

August 30, 2021, 2:30pm

Nationals

Barrera heading to Triple-A, Adams starts learning first base

Keibert Ruiz's arrival in Washington has a domino effect on the Nationals catching corps, which has suddenly grown in size and promise in the last month. The 23-year-old top prospect is going to start most days the rest of the season, manager Davey Martinez revealed today, which means far less playing time for anyone else behind the plate. The plan, then, for now: Tres Barrera is headed back to Triple-A Rochester, where he will continue to catch on a daily basis, while Riley Adams becomes the...

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Game 130 lineups: Nats vs. Phillies

August 30, 2021, 11:25am

Nationals

If you were going to rank the games of most significance for the Nationals over the remainder of this season, tonight's series opener against the Phillies might rank at the top. That's what you get when you pair Keibert Ruiz's club debut with a Josiah Gray start. It's a nice coincidence - or is it? - that Ruiz's debut coincides with Gray's start. The two biggest names acquired at the trade deadline, both from the Dodgers in the Max Scherzer-Trea Turner blockbuster, have worked together...

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Cavalli gives up five runs in brief Triple-A debut

August 28, 2021, 8:38pm

Nationals

Cavalli gives up five runs in brief Triple-A debut

The Nationals promoted Cade Cavalli to Triple-A this week because they wanted to see how their top pitching prospect would handle more experienced hitters with a better sense of the strike zone. And in his debut Saturday night for Rochester, the young right-hander got a taste of what's still in store for him before he's ready to pitch in the big leagues. Cavalli was pulled after giving up five runs, all with two outs, in the bottom of the third during what ended up a 5-3 loss to the Syracuse...

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Bullpen can't finish the job this time, Nats lose 5-3 (updated)

August 28, 2021, 6:36pm

Nationals

Bullpen can't finish the job this time, Nats lose 5-3 (updated)

Having already used up four young relievers to win Friday's game by the slimmest of margins, Nationals manager Davey Martinez had little choice but to turn to another group tonight after getting a solid start from Sean Nolin, hoping these bullpen arms could likewise protect a one-run lead against the Mets. That proved too tall a task for Ryne Harper and Mason Thompson, who combined to allow three runs during the decisive bottom of the seventh that sealed the Nats' fate in a 5-3 loss at Citi...

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Avila finally begins rehab assignment in Florida

August 28, 2021, 1:40pm

Nationals

Avila finally begins rehab assignment in Florida

It had been nearly two months since Alex Avila last appeared in a ballgame, nearly two months since the 34-year-old catcher was thrust into emergency second base duties and wound up straining both of his calves in the process. Add a mandatory quarantine period after testing positive for COVID-19, and Avila had been stuck on the sidelines far longer than anyone could've imagined at the time. Today, though, Avila finally was back in uniform in an organized game. Beginning a minor league rehab...

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Game 128 lineups: Nats at Mets

August 28, 2021, 12:25pm

Nationals

Friday night proved to be a fun, and arguably important, win for the Nationals, who got to see four inexperienced relievers thrive in a pressure situation and hang on to beat the Mets, 2-1. Tonight? Well, it might require a bit more offense to emerge victorious again. That's because Sean Nolin takes the mound for his third start for the Nats, his second against the Mets. The journeyman left-hander hasn't exactly dazzled since his promotion from Triple-A. He gave up four runs on eight hits in...

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Could surprisingly productive Escobar figure into '22 plans?

August 27, 2021, 9:02pm

Nationals

Could surprisingly productive Escobar figure into '22 plans?

Alcides Escobar enters the day with a .277 batting average, .335 on-base percentage and .699 OPS. That may not knock anyone's socks off, but it's still the most productive the veteran infielder has been at the plate in a long time. Escobar, who didn't play in the big leagues in 2019 or 2020 and only joined the Nationals in July after the club suffered a sudden rash of injuries to its infielders, hasn't owned a batting average this high since 2014, when he was a mainstay in a Royals lineup...

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Nats bullpen comes through in 2-1 win over Mets (updated)

August 27, 2021, 6:35pm

Nationals

Nats bullpen comes through in 2-1 win over Mets (updated)

Earlier this summer, as the Mets were holding onto their lead in the National League East and the Nationals were starting to make their move up the standings, these late-season matchups between the two rivals loomed large. Perhaps they'd be played in front of packed houses in D.C. and New York, everyone hanging on every pitch with a division title potentially at stake. When the Nats walked into Citi Field this evening, though, the stakes bore no resemblance to what anybody on either side...

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Nationals requiring full-time staffers to be vaccinated

August 27, 2021, 2:16pm

Nationals

The Nationals have become one of baseball's first teams to require COVID-19 vaccinations for employees, a club official confirmed this afternoon. The Nats informed all full-time staff members earlier this month they would be required to provide proof of vaccination or valid reason to be exempted. The deadline for employees to do so was Thursday. "Like many organizations, the Washington Nationals decided to make COVID-19 vaccines mandatory for all full-time staff," the club said in a...

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Game 127 lineups: Nats at Mets

August 27, 2021, 11:51am

Nationals

If you go back about six weeks, back when the Nationals were still wondering if they'd be buyers or sellers at the trade deadline, one of the arguments supporting them to go for it was the Mets' schedule. New York, despite leading the National League East most of the season, was going to face an absolute gauntlet in mid-August, with 13 consecutive games against the Dodgers and Giants. If the Nats could just stay close until then, the thought went, they would have a chance to surpass them...

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Injured again, Rainey running out of time to return in 2021

August 25, 2021, 9:23pm

Nationals

Injured again, Rainey running out of time to return in 2021

Tanner Rainey should be a part of the Nationals bullpen during these final two months of a season that began with October hopes but is ending in full-scale evaluation mode. As Mike Rizzo and Davey Martinez gauge what they now have in a relief corps filled with inexperienced arms, Rainey's absence is all too noticeable. Though Kyle Finnegan has done a nice job serving as the team's de facto closer since Daniel Hudson and Brad Hand were traded, Rainey was the guy all along who most profiled as...

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Gray impresses again, but Nats fall in extras (updated)

August 25, 2021, 6:35pm

Nationals

Gray impresses again, but Nats fall in extras (updated)

When they remember this game years from now, they might remember that the Nationals lost to the Marlins 4-3 in 10 innings. They will for sure remember what happened prior to that, when two 23-year-old right-handers dueled for the first time and showed why their respective clubs have such high hopes for both of them. Josiah Gray and Edward Cabrera went head-to-head and perhaps appropriately emerged with a draw. Gray struck out seven but departed after six innings of two-run ball with the...

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As Thomas gets another start, Martinez supports Robles

August 25, 2021, 1:44pm

Nationals

As Thomas gets another start, Martinez supports Robles

Lane Thomas hasn't supplanted Victor Robles as the Nationals' starting center fielder and leadoff hitter. But he has performed at such a high level since his acquisition from the Cardinals that manager Davey Martinez feels compelled to keep playing him for now, even as Robles returns to full health after falling ill last weekend. "Victor's feeling better," Martinez said during his Zoom session with reporters before tonight's game in Miami. "Lane's playing well and I want to continue to...

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Game 125 lineups: Nats at Marlins

August 25, 2021, 11:21am

Nationals

Every Josiah Gray start has been an event since the young right-hander arrived in Washington earlier this month. Tonight's game in Miami, though, becomes an even bigger event because of the fellow young right-hander who will be facing Gray: Edward Cabrera. Cabrera, the Marlins' top pitching prospect, makes his major league debut. Which makes this a rare matchup between two pitchers who rank among the top 100 prospects in baseball. Cabrera has an electric arm, with a power sinker that reaches...

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Nats take the good and the bad from inexperienced relievers

August 24, 2021, 9:24pm

Nationals

Nats take the good and the bad from inexperienced relievers

The Nationals' 5-1 victory Tuesday night in Miami was never seriously in doubt, but there was perhaps one moment late when it appeared things might tighten up. With two outs and two on in the seventh, rookie reliever Andres Machado had to face Marlins leadoff hitter Miguel Rojas. As any Nats fan who has paid scant attention over the years knows, Rojas is as tough an out as this team ever seems to face. He works long at-bats, gets the bat on the ball, and usually finds empty space to deposit...

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Fedde cruises in Miami while Nats blast Luzardo (updated)

August 24, 2021, 6:27pm

Nationals

Fedde cruises in Miami while Nats blast Luzardo (updated)

There was a point, four or five years ago, when the Nationals could look into the future and imagine a rotation that included both Erick Fedde and JesÃºs Luzardo. And there probably was a point in more recent years when Luzardo (a third-round pick in 2016 who has since been traded to the Athletics and then the Marlins) looked to have a brighter future than Fedde (a first-round pick in 2014). These things don't always work out as everyone thinks they will, of course. Neither Fedde nor Luzardo...

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Clay, Murphy added to bullpen; Klobosits, Rodriguez dropped

August 24, 2021, 1:51pm

Nationals

Clay, Murphy added to bullpen; Klobosits, Rodriguez dropped

Two days after adding two fresh arms to their bullpen, the Nationals added two more, continuing an ongoing attempt to find the right combination of youthful relievers to get them through the remainder of the season. Today's additions: Sam Clay and Patrick Murphy, each promoted from Triple-A Rochester. They replace Gabe Klobosits, who was optioned to Rochester, and Jefry Rodriguez, who was designated for assignment. Clay is no stranger to the Nationals bullpen, having spent the first four...

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Game 124 lineups: Nats at Marlins

August 24, 2021, 11:51am

Nationals

After a run of games against contending clubs, the Nationals tonight open a three-game series against the club that currently occupies the basement of the National League East, right below them. The Marlins, like the Nats, are rebuilding, though in their case it feels more like a perpetual rebuild. But like the Nationals, the Marlins have some intriguing young players, especially on their pitching staff. And tonight we'll see one of them in JesÃºs Luzardo, the former Nats prospect who went...

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Top pitching prospect Cavalli getting promoted to Triple-A

August 24, 2021, 7:59am

Nationals

Top pitching prospect Cavalli getting promoted to Triple-A

The Nationals are promoting Cade Cavalli to Triple-A Rochester, bringing their top pitching prospect one step closer to the big leagues, a source familiar with the decision confirmed. Cavalli, the organization's 2020 first-round pick, made 11 starts at Double-A Harrisburg, producing a 2.79 ERA, 1.276 WHIP and 80 strikeouts in only 58 innings. At times, the right-hander dominated the competition, though he continues to have some command issues, which led to 35 walks and five wild pitches in his...