PITTSBURGH - This was supposed to be a low-key, low-stress, quick Sunday at the ballpark for the Nationals, who after clinching the National League East title last night rested most of their regulars and essentially acknowledged they would get back to serious work Monday when they return home for the final week of the regular season.
Turns out this was anything but a low-key, low-stress game. And it sure wasn't quick.
The Nationals lost Bryce Harper to a left thumb injury suffered when he slid...
PITTSBURGH - Bryce Harper left today's series finale in the third inning after suffering an apparent left hand injury during an awkward slide into third base prompted by a fake tag from Jung Ho Kang that eventually prompted a benches-clearing scuffle between the Nationals and Pirates.
Harper led off the top of the third with a hit down the right field line, then tried to stretch it into a triple. The throw from right fielder Josh Bell missed the cutoff man and sailed well wide of third base,...
PITTSBURGH - The joy of the Nationals' division-clinching celebration last night came to a screeching halt this morning as players learned the news that stunned the entire baseball world: Jose Fernandez's death from a boating accident in Miami.
The Marlins ace was a well-known figure throughout the Nationals clubhouse, mostly as one of the toughest competitors they had to face on a regular basis, including as recently as Tuesday night.
This morning's news stopped players in their...
PITTSBURGH - After clinching their third National League East title in five seasons last night, the Nationals will rest a fair amount of their regulars for today's finale of a three-game series against the Pirates.
But make no mistake, there is still something to play for: home field advantage in the National League Division Series, which the Nats would prefer to open at home against, in all likelihood, the Dodgers on Oct. 7.
With 90 victories, the Nationals currently have one more victory...
PITTSBURGH - It's easy to forget now, after 90 wins, a division title and all the praise heaped upon him, but Dusty Baker was out of baseball the last two years.
Fired by the Reds after losing the 2013 National League wild card game to the Pirates, the manager of two decades and key baseball figure of more than four decades was suddenly on the outside looking in. And he didn't know if he'd ever get a chance to return.
"Well, they were tough," he said of the last two years. "But they were...
PITTSBURGH - Max Scherzer stood off to one side of the now-trashed visitors clubhouse at PNC Park, soaked in champagne and beer, puffing on a cigar, a man enjoying every moment of this celebration.
The right-hander has been a division champion before, five times in the last six years, to be exact. It's that one exception to the rule, though, that lingered with him. Just as it lingered for everyone associated with a 2015 Nationals club that saw a season of so much promise go up in flames.
And...
PITTSBURGH - The 2016 Nationals won the National League East without drama, without wild pendulum swings, without the kind of indelible memories (both good and bad) that so often define championship seasons.
No, this was a methodical march to a division title by a ballclub that simply was very good throughout and wore down its opponents along the way.
And now, at last, these guys can celebrate their achievement.
The Nationals officially clinched the NL East crown tonight, beating the Pirates...
PITTSBURGH - The Nationals are trying to take care of business early tonight. So are the Phillies. And that could result in a very satisfying conclusion to the evening for everybody dressed in red at PNC Park.
The Nats burst out of the gates, scoring three runs in the top of the first to take a quick lead on the Pirates. Meanwhile in New York, the Phillies scored five runs in the top of the first and then added another in the top of the second, opening up a commanding 6-0 lead on the Mets.
Josh...
PITTSBURGH - The Nationals will hold off naming Sunday's starting pitcher until after tonight's game, a decision that could hinge on whether or not they pop any champagne corks in the clubhouse later this evening.
If the Nationals clinch the NL East title tonight - their magic number remains two entering the game - manager Dusty Baker probably will rest most of his regulars in Sunday's series finale against the Pirates. That would likely leave a rookie taking the mound: A.J. Cole, or perhaps...
PITTSBURGH - It has cooled off considerably here in the last 24 hours. It was actually pretty warm and muggy yesterday, but now it's cool and breezy. It almost feels like, you know, fall. Which, of course, it now is.
It also feels like the kind of weather you associate with postseason baseball. So perhaps tonight is the night the Nationals officially ensure they'll be part of the postseason. The magic number to clinch the National League East remains two - they did technically clinch a tie...
PITTSBURGH - The primary focus of last night's game was on the bottom of the ninth, when Mark Melancon blew his first save with the Nationals on Sean Rodriguez's two-out double past a possibly mis-positioned Trea Turner in center field. But there was a lot more to the Nats' 6-5 11-inning loss than that, so let's recap some other important (or mildly interesting) developments ...
* We'll start with the end of the game, which saw Yusmeiro Petit give up the winning run on a bases-loaded...
PITTSBURGH - The plastic curtains were taped up high above the lockers inside the visitors' clubhouse at PNC Park, even after the Nationals suffered a gut punch of a 6-5 11-inning loss to the Pirates tonight, even after the Mets had earlier beaten the Phillies in convincing fashion to prevent any possibility of a celebration here.
The clubhouse crew, however, went through the trouble to get the room ready. Might as well keep the plastic up in case it's needed Saturday night. Or maybe even...
PITTSBURGH - The National League East lead has come surprisingly easily to the Nationals, who after a brief, four-day stint in early May have held a firm grasp on first place in the division every single moment since.
The actual clinching of that title? That is requiring a bit more work and patience than hoped.
Two things needed to happen tonight for the Nationals to pop the champagne corks. Neither happened.
The Nats were in position to do their part, up a run with two outs in the bottom of...
PITTSBURGH - They weren't obvious to the naked eye, but they were there this afternoon, tucked away on the fringes of the visitors' clubhouse at PNC Park: boxes of champagne.
The Nationals know they'll be popping those things open at some point, perhaps as soon as tonight if they can beat the Pirates and the Phillies can beat the Mets at Citi Field.
Yet there weren't many other outward signs of the situation inside the clubhouse before tonight's series opener against Pittsburgh. Guys went...
PITTSBURGH - The Nationals are shutting down Daniel Murphy for at least the weekend after an MRI on the MVP candidate's left leg revealed a buttocks strain, manager Dusty Baker said.
Murphy hasn't been in the Nationals lineup since Saturday in Atlanta, when he appeared to hurt himself running the bases. He did take two pinch-hit at-bats during this week's series in Miami, but would have been replaced for a pinch-runner had he reached.
The Nationals hoped a couple days off would suffice for...
PITTSBURGH - Hello from PNC Park, splendid as ever, and the possible site tonight of something special. Not for the home club, which has held a couple of celebrations here the last few years, but for the Nationals, who tonight have a chance to clinch a division title.
The Nationals' magic number, as surely you know by now, is two. In order to clinch the National League East crown tonight, they'll need to beat the Pirates and the Mets will need to lose to the Phillies at Citi Field. So, yeah,...
From the moment they were eliminated from playoff contention 363 days ago, this was the Nationals' primary focus.
They reshaped their roster over the winter. They fired one manager, almost hired another, then wound up with yet another in the end. They watched key free agents depart. They made a couple of calculated moves to address those vacancies.
They reported to spring training in Viera with a clear goal in mind. They opened the season with an extra-inning win and never really looked back,...
No, the Nationals haven't clinched the National League East title. Yet. The champagne celebration has been pushed back just a bit. But it will happen, probably sometime this weekend in Pittsburgh. Maybe not until early next week when the team comes home to face the Diamondbacks.
And so while one eye obviously should be kept on the immediate task at hand, it's OK to start focusing the other eye on the Nationals' likely opponent in the National League Division Series: the Dodgers. (Just be...
ATLANTA - A few more thoughts after Sunday's rain-shortened, 6-2 loss to the Braves ...
* The Nationals wanted to try to get the entire game in. They weren't pushing for the umps to call it in the seventh inning. But conditions got to the point where Dusty Baker didn't feel comfortable letting his players re-take the field.
As the second rain delay dragged on during in the bottom of the seventh, Baker came out from the clubhouse to examine the infield, which the Turner Field grounds crew had...
ATLANTA - The Nationals had to be pleased with Joe Ross' return to the mound after a long stint on the disabled list. The rest of the club's performance today against the Braves? Not so much.
Ross looked sharp during a planned three-inning start, his first appearance in a big league game since right shoulder inflammation sidelined him in early July. But the bullpen gave up five runs after replacing Ross, and the lineup couldn't manage much at the plate during a 6-2 loss that was called in...
