Dan Kolko

The losing streak seems oh, so long ago

September 01, 2012, 6:18am

When reporters entered the Nationals' clubhouse after last night's 10-0 shellacking of the Cardinals, the Braves-Phillies game was showing on every TV in sight. As we huddled around Ryan Zimmerman, asking the third baseman about a third straight Nats win, Phillies outfielder John Mayberry crushed a fly ball to deep left in the 10th inning of a tie game. Shouts came out from different parts of the clubhouse. "Get him! Get him!" one player yelled, as the ball traveled towards the left field...

Tags:

G. Gonzalez leads Nats to another spanking of World Series champs

August 31, 2012, 8:02pm

Nationals

G. Gonzalez leads Nats to another spanking of World Series champs

Over the last two nights, the Nationals have outscored the defending World Series champion Cardinals 18-1. A dormant offense has come alive. The top-notch starting pitching has returned, as have the smiles. Tonight, it was Gio Gonzalez wearing the smile for the Nats. To be truthful, Gonzalez always wears the smile, but tonight it was well-earned. The lefty threw the first shutout of his career, allowing just five hits and three walks over his nine sterling innings, striking out...

Tags:

adam laroche dan kolko davey johnson gio gonzalez nationals featured_sidebar

A tale of two pitchers (G. Gonzalez tosses a complete game in 10-0 win)

August 31, 2012, 4:28pm

Nationals

A tale of two pitchers (G. Gonzalez tosses a complete game in 10-0 win)

Adam Wainwright, who as I mentioned earlier had pitched to a 1.74 ERA and gone 6-1 over his last eight starts, didn't make it out of the third inning tonight. Gio Gonzalez, on the other hand, didn't allow a baserunner through his first three innings of work. The Nationals lead 6-0 after three, and frankly, the Cardinals are lucky that margin isn't even more lopsided. Two Nats runs came around in the first on Adam LaRoche's single to left, giving the Nationals first baseman 81 RBIs on the...

Tags:

dan kolko gio gonzalez nationals frontstory_nationals2

Johnson, Rizzo discuss Rodriguez surgery (plus notes on Lannan, DeRosa, Wang)

August 31, 2012, 2:36pm

Nationals

Johnson, Rizzo discuss Rodriguez surgery (plus notes on Lannan, DeRosa, Wang)

Nationals reliever Henry Rodriguez and 2012 first-round pick Lucas Giolito both underwent elbow surgeries today. Can the team get some kind of buy one, get one free deal here? Giolito underwent Tommy John surgery out in L.A., with the procedure performed by Dr. Lewis Youcm. Rodriguez, meanwhile, went to New York to have Nationals orthopedist Dr. Wiemi Douoguih remove a bone spur from his right elbow. Rodriguez's surgery was a surprise to reporters, given the reliever is currently on the...

Tags:

dan kolko davey johnson henry rodriguez mike rizzo nationals frontstory_nationals1

Rodriguez undergoes elbow surgery, Johnson announces three call-ups

August 31, 2012, 12:43pm

Nationals

Rodriguez undergoes elbow surgery, Johnson announces three call-ups

Davey Johnson made a bit of a surprise announcement during this afternoon's pregame session: Henry Rodriguez underwent elbow surgery today to remove a loose body. Rodriguez, who has been on the disabled list since Aug. 2 with a lower back strain, was found to have spurring and a fairly large bone chip in his elbow, Johnson said. "The elbow was in a lot worse shape than anticipated," Johnson said. The hard-throwing reliever will not be able to throw for the next three months. He has spent...

Tags:

christian garcia corey brown dan kolko davey johnson eury perez henry rodriguez john lannan mark derosa nationals sandy leon featured_sidebar frontstory_nationals3

Nationals lineup against red-hot Wainwright

August 31, 2012, 11:36am

Nationals

The 1-7 spots in the Nationals' lineup remain the same as the Nats prepare to take on Cardinals right-hander Adam Wainwright. Kurt Suzuki returns to the lineup behind the plate with his buddy, Gio Gonzalez, taking the mound tonight. Gonzalez is 4-0 with a 3.22 ERA in seven starts against the National League Central this season. Wainwright is 13-10 with a 3.63 ERA this season, but he hasn't allowed more than two earned runs in any of his last eight starts. In that span, he's 6-1 with a...

Tags:

cardinals dan kolko nationals gio gonzalez kurt suzuki lineups frontstory_nationals1

Werth, Harper an atypical but effective top two in the order

August 31, 2012, 7:08am

Nationals

Werth, Harper an atypical but effective top two in the order

Edwin Jackson wasn't the only veteran Nationals starter to pitch a gem last night. John Lannan got in on that action, as well, and the lefty, who is still down at Triple-A Syracuse for now, is showing that he's more than ready to join the Nats once they're ready to call on him. For the second straight start, Lannan delivered a complete-game shutout, holding Charlotte scoreless last night, striking out 10 and walking none. This gives Lannan a 20-inning shutout streak. Once Stephen...

Tags:

bryce harper dan kolko davey johnson jayson werth john lannan nationals featured_sidebar frontstory_nationals3

Clubhouse quotes from a host of Nats

August 30, 2012, 8:37pm

Nationals

Edwin Jackson's overall season statistics won't blow you away. He's 8-9 with a 3.53 ERA over 158 innings of work. That's pretty solid, especially for a team's fourth starter, but not spectacular. Jackson has had a few outings this season, however, in which he shows how special a pitcher he can be. Tonight was one of those outings, one of the times when Jackson reminds the baseball world that the Nationals' starting staff as a whole is pretty darn good, and it will remain that way, even...

Tags:

bryce harper dan kolko edwin jackson jayson werth jesus flores nationals frontstory_nationals1

Johnson discusses Jackson's sterling performance in 8-1 win

August 30, 2012, 7:50pm

Nationals

Johnson discusses Jackson's sterling performance in 8-1 win

It didn't matter that Edwin Jackson was facing a Cardinals team which came into tonight leading the National League in batting average and runs scored. It made no difference that he was taking on a St. Louis lineup which had six batters hitting at least .300 and three guys in the top 10 in the NL in batting. Jackson couldn't be stopped. He spun eight sterling innings tonight, allowing just one unearned run and striking out 10. If not for his high pitch count - Jackson's night ended with...

Tags:

dan kolko davey johnson edwin jackson featured_sidebar frontstory_nationals3

Harper stays hot, Jackson dominating (Nats roll to 8-1 win)

August 30, 2012, 4:15pm

Nationals

Harper stays hot, Jackson dominating (Nats roll to 8-1 win)

Bryce Harper is starting to look like the Bryce Harper we saw in May and June. The 19-year-old is turning on pitches inside, staying short and quick to the ball and squaring it up on the barrel. Harper crushed a two-run homer into the Nationals' bullpen in right in the first inning tonight, giving the Nats a 2-0 lead and giving the rookie outfielder his third homer in the last two days. Harper nearly had his second straight two-homer game when he sent a ball to the wall in center in his...

Tags:

bryce harper dan kolko edwin jackson nationals frontfeatured_nationals

Johnson: Strasburg likely has two to three starts left

August 30, 2012, 2:54pm

Nationals

Johnson: Strasburg likely has two to three starts left

As the Nationals were flying back from Miami last night, Davey Johnson had a brief chat with Stephen Strasburg. "You've got a few more to go," Johnson told his ace, in an effort to reassure Strasburg that his next start won't be his last. Johnson said today that Strasburg will make two to three more starts this season, meaning his final outing of 2012 will likely come either on Sept. 7 at home against the Marlins or Sept. 12 at the Mets. General manager Mike Rizzo has said all along that...

Tags:

bryce harper dan kolko davey johnson nationals stephen strasburg featured_sidebar frontstory_nationals3

Storen progressing and coming up big, even if it's not in the ninth

August 30, 2012, 2:13pm

Nationals

Storen progressing and coming up big, even if it's not in the ninth

As could be expected, Drew Storen has had a few hiccups since coming back from elbow surgery, which wiped out his entire first half of the season. A little over two weeks ago, Storen gave up four runs and registered just a single out in an outing against the Giants, turning a 2-1 Nationals deficit into a 6-1 ballgame. Since then, however, Storen has really started rounding into form. He's had six straight scoreless outings, spanning 5 2/3 innings, and hasn't allowed a single baserunner over...

Tags:

dan kolko davey johnson drew storen nationals tyler clippard frontstory_nationals3

Nats, Cardinals lineups for series opener

August 30, 2012, 11:41am

Nationals

Nats, Cardinals lineups for series opener

Jesus Flores is behind the plate for the Nationals tonight as they kick off a four-game set with the Cardinals, while St. Louis catcher Yadier Molina has returned to the lineup after missing one game with upper-body strains resulting from a violent home plate collision. A night after Kurt Suzuki hit his first homer as a National, he'll back Flores up. Neither catcher has faced Cardinals starter Jaime Garcia in their career. It'll be Garcia and Edwin Jackson on the mound tonight in the...

Tags:

cardinals dan kolko lineups nationals frontstory_nationals3

Right back on track

August 29, 2012, 9:52pm

Nationals

It wasn't easy. It also wasn't easy on the blood pressure. Regardless, the Nationals found a way to end their five-game losing streak last night. Let's tuck the panic meter back into the garage for a while. Toss away the stress balls. Pick up the shredded box scores from the last few games that were flung all over the living room floor. The Nationals' 8-4 win over the Marlins (the score makes it seem a whole lot more lopsided than it actually was, doesn't it?) coupled with Atlanta's...

Tags:

bryce harper dan kolko drew storen nationals ross detwiler featured_sidebar frontstory_nationals2

Harper ejected, even though he shouldn't have been

August 29, 2012, 6:56pm

Nationals

Harper ejected, even though he shouldn't have been

Bryce Harper crushed two home runs tonight and the Nationals pulled out a big 8-4 win over the Marlins to snap a losing skid. Unfortunately, I fear that the one play tonight which will generate much of the national attention was Harper getting ejected in the top of the ninth inning. Harper grounded into a double play with no outs in the ninth, and the play at first was a close one. Harper was ruled out by first base umpire C.B. Bucknor, and as soon as he saw the call, Harper spiked his helmet...

Tags:

bryce harper c.b. bucknor dan kolko nationals featured_sidebar frontstory_nationals2

A much-needed offensive outburst (Nats win a big one)

August 29, 2012, 4:29pm

Nationals

A much-needed offensive outburst (Nats win a big one)

The Nationals didn't have a hit off Jacob Turner their first time through the order. The second time through, the Nats did some damage. Finally. The Nats put up a four-spot in the fourth inning, giving Ross Detwiler a 4-0 buffer and finally giving them a lead. Bryce Harper's two-run home run to right (his 13th homer of the season) got the party started, but he wasn't the only guy to hit the ball hard in the fourth. Michael Morse destroyed a ball to center which went for a triple but...

Tags:

bryce harper dan kolko marlins michael morse nationals frontfeatured_nationals ian desmond ross detwiler

Wednesday's Nats, Marlins lineups

August 29, 2012, 12:22pm

Nationals

Davey Johnson has his regulars back and healthy, so he'll run them out there. The Nationals were held scoreless yesterday and managed just five hits, but Johnson will keep his lineup the same for tonight's game against the Marlins. The Nats will take their hacks against 21-year-old right-hander Jacob Turner, making his second start for the Marlins since coming over from the Tigers in the Anibal Sanchez trade. For the Nats: RF Jayson Werth CF Bryce Harper 3B Ryan Zimmerman 1B Adam...

Tags:

dan kolko lineups marlins nationals frontfeatured_nationals

Detwiler looks to snap the skid

August 29, 2012, 9:06am

Nationals

One more game, then it's home sweet home. Who knew a little five-game road trip could seem so long? The plane ride back to D.C. after tonight's game will seem a heck of a lot shorter if the Nationals can pick up a win tonight. The 25 guys in the clubhouse would like nothing more than to snap this skid and walk into Nats Park tomorrow with a clean slate, of sorts. A win tonight would give them that. The Nats have an 11-game homestand to look forward to after this road trip to forget. Four...

Tags:

dan kolko marlins nationals ross detwiler featured_sidebar frontstory_nationals2

The slide reaches five

August 28, 2012, 10:44pm

Nationals

For the first time in a while, the Nationals wake up this morning no longer possessing the best record in baseball. That mark now belongs to the Reds. More importantly, however, Washington's lead in the National League East has been cut to four games thanks to yesterday's 9-0 shellacking at the hands of the Marlins and Atlanta's win over the Padres. No, it wasn't a banner day for the Nats yesterday. They made it through the game without Michael Morse or Ian Desmond aggravating their...

Tags:

dan kolko davey johnson nationals stephen strasburg featured_sidebar frontstory_nationals2

A couple of streaks snapped for Strasburg (Nats drop fifth straight)

August 28, 2012, 3:47pm

Nationals

A couple of streaks snapped for Strasburg (Nats drop fifth straight)

Stephen Strasburg entered tonight's game having not allowed a run to the Marlins in 18 innings this season. He also entered tonight having not allowed a first-inning run in 16 straight starts, which was the longest active streak in the majors, according to Elias. Both of those streaks quickly were rendered moot this evening, as the Marlins jumped on Strasburg for two runs in the first, taking an early 2-0 lead. Justin Ruggiano jumped on the first pitch he saw from Strasburg, the righty's...