Encouraging signs at the plate from Harper and Rendon

Encouraging signs at the plate from Harper and Rendon
The Nationals have been waiting for Bryce Harper and Anthony Rendon to start hitting like Bryce Harper and Anthony Rendon again. With each passing day, it looks like both stars are finding their way back to their old selves. Harper and Rendon each played a key role in last night's 8-5 win in San Diego, but it was more than the mere production they contributed (Harper homered and drove in three runs, Rendon also homered). It was the manner in which they produced that was particularly striking,...
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Nats slug three homers at spacious Petco Park in 8-5 win

Nats slug three homers at spacious Petco Park in 8-5 win
The home run has become such a big part of the Nationals' offensive attack, they're even managing to hit them in bunches in one of baseball's most spacious ballparks. With three more homers tonight, the Nationals outslugged the Padres 8-5, fazed not one bit by the expanded dimensions at Petco Park. Bryce Harper and Wilson Ramos hit back-to-back opposite-field shots in the top of the third. Anthony Rendon added a solo blast in the sixth, raising the Nats' season total to 91 homers, tops in...
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First trip west in 2016 presents challenges (Nats win 8-5)

First trip west in 2016 presents challenges (Nats win 8-5)
A full 41 percent of the baseball season has now been played, which is more than ample time for teams to face a wide assortment of competition from other divisions within their own league and even outside their own league. So how is it that the Nationals tonight are facing their very first National League West opponent of 2016? In an odd quirk to their schedule, the Nats somehow avoided any NL West opponent through their first 66 games. They are the only team in the majors who hasn't yet...
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Game 67 lineups: Nats at Padres

Game 67 lineups: Nats at Padres
On the heels of their dramatic, 12-inning victory last night against the Cubs, the Nationals open their first West Coast trip of the season with the first of four games in San Diego. Tanner Roark gets the start in tonight's opener, looking to build off his strong start against the Phillies his last time out. Right-hander Erik Johnson, acquired by the Padres from the White Sox in the recent James Shields trade, takes the mound at Petco Park. He'll be facing a Nationals lineup that is without...
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Nationals top draft pick Kieboom gets $2 million to sign

Nationals top draft pick Kieboom gets $2 million to sign
The Nationals and top draft pick Carter Kieboom agreed to terms this week on a deal that will pay the 18-year-old shortstop a $2 million signing bonus, a source familiar with the decision confirmed. That amount, which was first reported by MLB.com's Jim Callis, is roughly the same as Major League Baseball's predetermined slot amount of $2,065,900 for the 28th overall selection in last week's draft. The club has yet to announce Kieboom's signing, but he appeared at Nationals Park on Monday,...
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Cubs-Nats games have proven tense, tight affairs so far

Cubs-Nats games have proven tense, tight affairs so far
There is a long way to go, a whole lot of baseball left to play and no way to know how things will shake out in the end. But there is at least a reasonable chance of the Nationals and Cubs seeing each other again in 2016, even after today's series finale on South Capitol Street. The owners of the NL's two best records after 2 1/2 months of baseball are well positioned to keep up their strong play and reach October. And then, it's quite possible they would square off at some point, once the...
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Nats manufacture runs, but not enough to beat Cubs

Nats manufacture runs, but not enough to beat Cubs
More than two months into the season, the Nationals have established their ability to hit the ball out of the park. They lead the National League with 87 homers in 65 games. They have not yet, however, established their ability to manufacture runs. There have been glimpses, as there were tonight against the Cubs. But they haven't quite been able to get over that hump on a consistent basis. This 4-3 loss before a boisterous crowd of 41,955 - largest of the season to date - underscored the issue...
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Gonzalez laboring vs. Cubs lineup (Nats lose 4-3)

Gonzalez laboring vs. Cubs lineup (Nats lose 4-3)
Last time, it was the first inning that got Gio Gonzalez. This time, the damage has come in the third and fourth innings. Despite a promising start to his night, Gonzalez has run into trouble the second time around the Cubs lineup, giving up two runs in the top of the third and another in the top of the fourth to leave the Nationals in a 3-1 hole. It's a frustrating performance thus far for Gonzalez, who gave up three first-inning runs to the White Sox last week but then bounced back with six...
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After initial reluctance, Papelbon agrees to first career DL stint

After initial reluctance, Papelbon agrees to first career DL stint
Jonathan Papelbon had never spent a day on the disabled list in his 12-year career, and he certainly didn't want to end that streak now after feeling a tug on his right side while throwing a warmup pitch before the top of the ninth of Sunday's game. But after meeting with Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo, manager Dusty Baker and pitching coach Mike Maddux late Monday night, Papelbon came to the realization a DL stint was in both his and the team's best interests. "I've taken a lot of...
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Game 65 lineups: Nats vs. Cubs

Game 65 lineups: Nats vs. Cubs
The Nationals had plenty of reason to feel good about themselves last night after a 4-1 victory over the Cubs, one of their better wins of the season to date. But they arrived at the ballpark today to the news that they need to find a new closer for at least the next 15 days, with Jonathan Papelbon landing on the disabled list for the first time in his career with a right intercostal strain. We'll have to wait and see who Dusty Baker tabs as his ninth-inning guy for now, but it would be hard...
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Papelbon lands on DL with intercostal strain, Belisle activated

Papelbon lands on DL with intercostal strain, Belisle activated
The Nationals have placed closer Jonathan Papelbon on the 15-day disabled list with a right intercostal strain and activated fellow right-hander Matt Belisle off the DL to take his roster spot. It's not yet known how Papelbon, who had never before been on the DL during his 12-year career, suffered the injury. But the 35-year-old wasn't available to pitch during last night's 4-1 win over the Cubs, watching from the dugout as Shawn Kelley instead recorded the save. Manager Dusty Baker offered...
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With Papelbon "sore," Kelley steps in to close out win

With Papelbon "sore," Kelley steps in to close out win
When he returned to the dugout after striking out both batters he faced in the top of the eighth last night, Shawn Kelley had no idea he'd be returning to the mound for the top of the ninth. Until Dusty Baker approached him with a simple question. "He asked me how I felt, and I said I felt good," Kelley recalled. "He said: 'You're going back out.' That was pretty much the gist of it." So it was that one of the Nationals' most impressive wins of the season - 4-1 over the Cubs - was...
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No history for Scherzer, but domination is more than enough

No history for Scherzer, but domination is more than enough
It is mostly ludicrous to conjure up images of no-hitters or record-breaking strikeout performances after exactly one half-inning of baseball, but when Max Scherzer takes the mound, the conventional line of thinking doesn't apply. "If he's done it once, he can do it again," manager Dusty Baker said. "You allow yourself to think it. You don't talk about it, but you think it." "I'd like to say he surprises me," catcher Wilson Ramos, via interpreter Octavio Martinez, said. "But he...
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Nats ride Scherzer's dominance, clutch hits to 4-1 win over Cubs

Nats ride Scherzer's dominance, clutch hits to 4-1 win over Cubs
This time, the Nationals put together a bunch of quality at-bats against the Cubs. And Max Scherzer was able to carve up Chicago's lineup, aside from the one ball that left the yard against him on an otherwise spectacular night on South Capitol Street. Behind Scherzer's pitching brilliance, Wilson Ramos' homer and clutch hits from Danny Espinosa and Ben Revere, the Nationals won the opener of their highly anticipated rematch series with the Cubs 4-1 before a fired-up crowd of...
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Scherzer racking up strikeouts vs. Cubs (Nats win 4-1)

Scherzer racking up strikeouts vs. Cubs (Nats win 4-1)
Think Max Scherzer might be a little fired up to face the Cubs for the first time since getting blasted out of Wrigley Field last month? Scherzer took the ball for tonight's series opener at Nationals Park and immediately started overwhelming Chicago's vaunted lineup with dominating stuff. Through three perfect innings, the right-hander already has eight strikeouts, conjuring up memories both of his 20-strikeout game against the Tigers earlier this season and his pair of no-hitters against...
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Baker offers up defense of Papelbon as Nats closer

Baker offers up defense of Papelbon as Nats closer
If asked what the biggest area of concern facing the Nationals is at this stage of the season, the most common answer likely would involve the bullpen, more specifically the closer's role. It's not that Jonathan Papelbon's performance to date has been egregiously poor. He is 16-for-18 in save opportunities. He has a 3.28 ERA. But there have been more than a couple of shaky outings along the way, some of which still ended in a successful save conversion (loading the bases in Philadelphia with...
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Game 64 lineups: Nats vs. Cubs

Game 64 lineups: Nats vs. Cubs
So you may have heard there's a pretty big series taking place here in town this week. The Cubs and Nationals are as big as it gets in baseball at this moment, owners of the two best records in the sport and loaded with star power. So it's no surprise the sport is going to be focused on South Capitol Street over the next three nights. Let's be honest, though: The Nationals need these games more than the Cubs do. Not that any series in mid-June is that important, certainly one that's not...
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Live Nationals video Q&A

Live Nationals video Q&A
We've been having plenty of fun doing the weekly Q&A's right here, but now it's time to expand it into something new and exciting: A live video Q&A. Yes, at 2 p.m., I'll be hosting a live video Q&A on our Facebook page (facebook.com/masnNationals) straight from Nationals Park in advance of the series opener against the Cubs. You can submit your questions in advance here in the comments section, on Twitter or directly on the Facebook page. You can also submit your questions live...
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Werth's clutch hit caps dramatic ninth-inning rally by Nats

Werth's clutch hit caps dramatic ninth-inning rally by Nats
As Maikel Franco rounded the bases, Jonathan Papelbon watched from the mound and a crowd of 34,294 at Nationals Park booed, Dusty Baker had just one thought from the dugout. "OK, Pap," the manager said in his mind to his closer. "We gave up one. Let's not give up any more. Because we can come back. It's a lot easier to get one than it is to get two to tie." A big league manager has to have positive thoughts, has to see every situation as glass half-full, lest his players pick up on his...
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Espinosa's home run barrage continues (Werth walk-off wins it)

Espinosa's home run barrage continues (Werth walk-off wins it)
Danny Espinosa is on some kind of home run barrage right now. The oft-maligned, light-hitting shortstop has been making a case for himself over the last two weeks with an impressive power display, and he is up to it again this afternoon. Espinosa's leadoff homer in the bottom of the second gave the Nationals a 3-0 lead over the Phillies and kept his run alive. He has now homered eight times in his last 14 games. This latest blast, on Adam Morgan's first pitch of the bottom of the second,...
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