Mark Zuckerman

Is the real Scherzer ready for showdown with deGrom?

September 02, 2019, 7:02pm

The Nationals have made no secret about it all along. They know if they are ultimately going to achieve what they want to achieve this season, Max Scherzer is going to have to help lead the way. Not the diminished version of Scherzer we've seen so far in his two starts since returning from the injured list. The full version of Scherzer. The three-time Cy Young Award winning version. The obsessed competitor version. The "I'm much better than you are" version. But they also acknowledge they...

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In rare clunker, Nationals trail big early in loss to Mets

September 02, 2019, 12:14pm

Nationals

The Nationals hadn't been in this position in a while, trailing by a significant margin and unable to mount any kind of effective counterattack. They hadn't trailed any game by three or more runs since Aug. 17 (in which they actually rallied from five runs down to take the lead against the Brewers before losing in extra innings). They hadn't trailed by three or more runs and not come back to at least tie things up since Aug. 3, when the Diamondbacks torched Stephen Strasburg (and Gerardo...

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Doolittle better in return, but still has room to grow

September 02, 2019, 7:57am

Nationals

Doolittle better in return, but still has room to grow

Davey Martinez didn't want to throw Sean Doolittle to the wolves in his return from the injured list, but neither did the Nationals manager want to throw his rehabbing closer to the kittens. In the end, Martinez found a suitable middle ground for Doolittle to make his return Sunday afternoon: in the ninth inning, but with a six-run lead. Doolittle responded with a 1-2-3 frame, inducing three flyouts from the Marlins to wrap up the Nats' 9-3 victory and complete a series sweep. It was an...

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Game 136 lineups: Nats vs. Mets

September 02, 2019, 5:58am

Nationals

The soft portion of the Nationals' schedule is now finished. They just went 4-1 against the Orioles and Marlins. Now, they've got 27 remaining games on the regular season schedule, 24 of which come against teams with winning records. It begins today with the opener of a three-game series against the Mets, who are kind of hanging on for dear life at this point, only two games over .500. Of course, we saw only a few weeks ago what they're capable of doing against the Nats, especially late in...

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Nationals in rare company with 200-strikeout pitchers

September 01, 2019, 7:59pm

Nationals

In this age of record-breaking strikeout totals, this should be a more common occurrence. But when Patrick Corbin notched his seventh strikeout of Sunday's game, he lifted the Nationals rotation into some awfully elite territory. Corbin joined Max Scherzer and Stephen Strasburg in surpassing the 200-strikeout mark for the season. That's three pitchers on the same staff with at least 200 strikeouts this year. And that hasn't happened very often in major league history. In fact, this is only...

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Celebrations aplenty as Nationals sweep Marlins (updated)

September 01, 2019, 12:22pm

Nationals

Ryan Zimmerman danced in the dugout for the first time, only a short while after Anthony Rendon broke his longstanding club record for RBIs in a single season. Rendon's record-breaking hit - his third homer in less than 24 hours - drew more chants of "MVP! MVP!" from the crowd at Nationals Park. And during a pitching change, as "Circle of Life" played over the speakers and adult fans held their children up in the air a la Simba in "The Lion King," the camera cut to the dugout, where...

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Eaton still sitting, could be ready Monday (Nats up 7-3)

September 01, 2019, 10:18am

Nationals

Eaton still sitting, could be ready Monday (Nats up 7-3)

The Nationals remain cautious with Adam Eaton, who hurt his right knee Wednesday night and hasn't started a game since. But they remain optimistic the right fielder will be back in the lineup for Monday's series opener against the Mets. Eaton took a pitch off the area just below his right knee in the first inning of Wednesday's game against the Orioles. He briefly remained in the game, but after struggling to advance from first to third base on Anthony Rendon's subsequent double, he was...

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Doolittle and Zimmerman return, but in lesser roles for now

September 01, 2019, 8:53am

Nationals

Doolittle and Zimmerman return, but in lesser roles for now

The first wave of September call-ups for the Nationals includes four players returning from injury, three position players to provide some bench depth and zero traditional relievers. The Nats added seven players to the active roster before today's series finale against Marlins, activating Sean Doolittle, Ryan Zimmerman, Jeremy Hellickson and Austin Voth off the injured list and recalling infielder AdriÃ¡n Sanchez and outfielder Andrew Stevenson from Double-A Harrisburg, plus catcher Raudy...

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Game 135 lineups: Nats vs. Marlins

September 01, 2019, 6:26am

Nationals

It's Sept. 1, and what a long strange trip it's been for the Nationals to get to this point. Who would've thought on May 1, or even July 1, that they would enter September with not only a 3 1/2-game lead for home field advantage in the wild card game but a seven-game lead for appearing in that wild card game at all? The Nats will look to continue their meteoric rise this afternoon with a series sweep of a Marlins team they've already beaten in 12 of 15 matchups this season. They'll have...

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Is Rendon building a legitimate MVP case?

August 30, 2019, 8:54pm

Nationals

Is Rendon building a legitimate MVP case?

Davey Martinez first mentioned it last weekend in Chicago, and only when straight-up asked by a reporter if he wanted to make a case for Anthony Rendon as National League MVP. "I'll make a case for him right now, yeah," the Nationals manager said. "MVP. Gold Glove. My man, Anthony!" Everyone laughed. Then Martinez brought it up again late Friday night, unprompted this time after Rendon delivered the walk-off single the Nats needed to beat the Marlins. "He's been phenomenal," Martinez...

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After Hudson blows lead, Rendon saves the day (updated)

August 30, 2019, 6:48pm

Nationals

After Hudson blows lead, Rendon saves the day (updated)

They danced with the devil all night, failing to capitalize against the National League's worst team despite countless opportunities. They were sloppy in the field. They got only five innings out of their starter, then watched their bullpen blow a late lead. Even when they retook the lead late, they still couldn't hold onto it. Until their best player - perhaps even a legitimate NL MVP candidate - saved the day just in time to avoid total disaster. After watching Daniel Hudson blow a save in...

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Bullpen gets two key arms back, drops Grace from roster

August 30, 2019, 2:22pm

Nationals

Bullpen gets two key arms back, drops Grace from roster

The Nationals made more changes to their ever-changing bullpen today, and there's still one more big change to come in a few days that could finally solidify that group for the season's final month. The Nats activated Roenis ElÃas off the injured list and Hunter Strickland off the paternity leave list this afternoon, bringing all three relievers acquired on July 31 together again after a long wait. Needing to clear roster spots, they designated struggling Matt Grace for assignment and...

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Game 133 lineups: Nats vs. Marlins

August 30, 2019, 11:19am

Nationals

Slowly but surely, the Nationals are getting their bullpen back. That is, the bullpen they acquired on July 31 but only had together for one game. Roenis ElÃas, who made just the one appearance before straining his hamstring, has been activated off the injured list and is available to pitch in tonight's series opener against the Marlins. And Hunter Strickland, who has been around for most of the last month, has returned from paternity leave. Needing to clear two roster spots, the Nationals...

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Thursday morning Nats Q&A

August 28, 2019, 7:42pm

Nationals

It's been an eventful week for the Nationals. Actually, it's been an eventful month for the Nationals. Actually, it's been an eventful season for the Nationals. And we've almost reached the home stretch. Sunday is Sept. 1. The National League wild card game is Oct. 1. (But let's not get too far ahead of ourselves.) There's still plenty of work to be done. The Nats lineup has been on fire (aside from the occasional shutout loss to a random Orioles starter). The rotation continues to lead...

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Lineup returns to form, Scherzer builds up arm in win (updated)

August 28, 2019, 6:17pm

Nationals Orioles

Lineup returns to form, Scherzer builds up arm in win (updated)

If you were wondering how long it would take the Nationals to brush aside Tuesday night's surprising shutout loss to the Orioles and get themselves back on track, the answer was: six batters into the bottom of the first inning tonight. That's all it took - six batters - for the Nationals to recapture the form they lost 24 hours earlier and storm out to a quick five-run lead. They still had plenty of work to do before they wrapped up an 8-4 victory over Baltimore, but the tone was set early...

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Doolittle and ElÃas on verge of return after simulated game

August 28, 2019, 1:48pm

Nationals Orioles

Doolittle and ElÃas on verge of return after simulated game

Sean Doolittle and Roenis ElÃas each threw an inning in a simulated game this afternoon, potentially the final step for each reliever before returning to the Nationals' active roster this weekend. Doolittle, on the 10-day injured list since Aug. 18 with right knee tendinitis, and Elias, on the 10-day IL since Aug. 4 with a right hamstring strain, each faced live hitters today for the first time and each was encouraged by the results. "I'd like to have them both back as soon as possible,"...

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Game 132 lineups: Nats vs. Orioles

August 28, 2019, 11:17am

Nationals Orioles

You wouldn't have expected the Nationals to find themselves in this position, but here they are, needing to win tonight to salvage a four-game season split with the Orioles in their annual interleague rivalry. For a team that's been red-hot against so many other opponents, the Nats haven't been able to take care of business against Baltimore the way you would have thought they would. The good news is that the Nationals have Max Scherzer on the mound. Even if he's still not 100 percent Max...

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Why a division title should still be the Nationals' goal

August 27, 2019, 7:48pm

Nationals Orioles

Why a division title should still be the Nationals' goal

The most telling quote to come out of the Nationals' clubhouse after Tuesday night's 2-0 loss from the Orioles wasn't about the surprising lack of offense from a lineup that had been unstoppable all last week. It wasn't about Patrick Corbin's rough first inning but strong bounce back after that. It wasn't about the squandered eighth inning rally. And it certainly wasn't the same line that was uttered by four different people to describe this strange loss: "That's baseball." No, the...

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Red-hot Nationals shut out by Orioles in 2-0 loss (updated)

August 27, 2019, 6:00pm

Nationals Orioles

Red-hot Nationals shut out by Orioles in 2-0 loss (updated)

For nine innings the crowd at Nationals Park waited anxiously for the rally that was sure to come at some point. This was the Nationals lineup, after all, and this was the Orioles pitching staff, after all. It was going to happen at some point, right? The seventh inning? The eighth inning? How about the ninth inning? Nope. Nope. And nope. The Nationals, both the hottest team and owners of the hottest lineup in the majors at the moment, were shut out tonight by the Orioles, who most certainly...

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ElÃas, Zimmerman close to wrapping up rehab stints

August 27, 2019, 2:10pm

Nationals

ElÃas, Zimmerman close to wrapping up rehab stints

Sean Doolittle's pending return to the Nationals bullpen is significant, no doubt. But the other left-hander on the verge of rejoining that unit could prove to be quite significant himself. Roenis ElÃas, who faced only two batters after his July 31 acquisition from the Mariners before straining his right hamstring running the bases, appears to be entering the final days of his rehab and could join Doolittle on the active roster by the end of the week. ElÃas threw off a mound today, the...