Mark Zuckerman

Nats send message, then topple Braves (updated)

September 08, 2021, 6:58pm

For Sean Nolin and the Nationals, the message (standing up for a star teammate against an opponent that appeared to hit him on purpose the previous night) superseded all else. If it meant the rest of the pitching staff would face an extreme uphill battle from that point on, so be it. The message, even if nobody would publicly admit it after the fact, was more important. And when Nolin intentionally threw at Freddie Freeman on successive pitches in the bottom of the first tonight in Atlanta,...

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Ruiz returns to lineup, Mercer begins rehab assignment

September 08, 2021, 2:22pm

Nationals

Ruiz returns to lineup, Mercer begins rehab assignment

Keibert Ruiz's much-hyped Nationals debut came eight days ago, in the club's homestand opener against the Phillies, with fellow former Dodgers prospect Josiah Gray on the mound. Since then, the rookie catcher has gone a pedestrian 3-for-21 at the plate, started four games, fouled a ball off his right knee and spent three days recovering from the bone bruise that caused. The Nats can only hope Ruiz will find his rhythm now that he's back in the lineup for tonight's game against the Braves....

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Game 139 lineups: Nats at Braves

September 08, 2021, 1:41pm

Nationals

What's the best thing the Nationals could do to give themselves a better chance of winning tonight against the Braves? How about a quality performance from their starter, allowing them to avoid falling into an early hole yet again and asking their lineup to battle back just to make it interesting late? As impressive as the offense has been with all these rallies of late - they've come back to at least tie the game six straight times - the task would be so much simpler if they weren't giving...

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In a pinch, nobody's been better than Stevenson

September 06, 2021, 8:50pm

Nationals

In a pinch, nobody's been better than Stevenson

When Ryan Zimmerman drew a one-out walk in the bottom of the ninth Friday night, Nationals manager Davey Martinez immediately sent Andrew Stevenson out to pinch-run for the veteran. And wouldn't you know it, but minutes later Stevenson was racing around the bases and ultimately colliding with Mets catcher Chance Sisco en route to scoring the game-tying run. So when Zimmerman drew a two-out walk in the bottom of the eighth Monday afternoon, all eyes turned to the home dugout to see if Stevenson...

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Nats finally convert late, rally to beat Mets (updated)

September 06, 2021, 12:35pm

Nationals

Nats finally convert late, rally to beat Mets (updated)

All weekend, over the course of five games in four days, the Nationals battled their way back against the Mets. Three times they trailed, once by a whopping nine runs, and rallied to tie late, only to ultimately lose in the end. But today, in their final matchup of the season, the Nats finally finished the job. Down a run in the bottom of the ninth but owning at least some confidence in their ability to rally against the New York bullpen, the Nationals stormed back to win, 4-3, getting a...

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Ruiz out with bone bruise, Adams gets first drills at first base

September 06, 2021, 9:01am

Nationals

Ruiz out with bone bruise, Adams gets first drills at first base

Keibert Ruiz has a bone bruise in his right knee, the result of a foul ball he hit off himself Saturday, and remains unavailable to catch for today's series finale against the Mets. The Nationals planned to have their rookie start multiple games of this five-game weekend series, but he wound up catching only the first half of Saturday's doubleheader. Fouling a ball off his right knee in the second inning, he writhed in pain for several minutes before returning to the batter's box and...

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Game 137 lineups: Nats vs. Mets

September 06, 2021, 7:29am

Nationals

At long last, the Nationals and Mets wrap up their five-game holiday weekend series, not to mention their 19-game season series, this afternoon. These two teams have been playing each other way too much lately. In fact, 11 of the Nats' last 25 games have come against the Mets. I think I speak for everyone who has had to cover or watch all these games when I say: Thank God. As for today's finale, it's Patrick Corbin on the mound, trying desperately to put together a quality start and perhaps...

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Still way too soon to know what kind of pitcher Gray will be

September 05, 2021, 8:53pm

Nationals

Still way too soon to know what kind of pitcher Gray will be

As you watched Josiah Gray alternate between misfiring pitches well outside of the strike zone to his arm side and leaving them right over the heart of the plate to be hammered by Mets hitters Sunday afternoon, you couldn't help but be alarmed. This was a bad start, and there was no way to try to frame it as anything other than that. It included six runs and seven hits allowed in three innings, two more homers surrendered and 82 pitches thrown. There was nothing for Gray to hang his hat on at...

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Gray battered early, bullpen blasted late in 13-6 loss (updated)

September 05, 2021, 12:42pm

Nationals

Gray battered early, bullpen blasted late in 13-6 loss (updated)

On a day in which they watched their brightest young starting pitcher get beat around for the second time in a week, the Nationals yet again found a way to overcome an early deficit and make the Mets sweat. And they yet again found a way to turn a potentially inspiring comeback into a calamitous, late-inning meltdown that made it all moot. At some point, this young team needs to show it has the ability to finish what it starts. Comebacks are nice, but curly W's are better. So it was that in...

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Rogers stays on roster, Parra placed on IL

September 05, 2021, 8:37am

Nationals

Rogers stays on roster, Parra placed on IL

Josh Rogers is going to get another chance to pitch for the Nationals. Gerardo Parra may not get another chance to play for them. The club decided to keep Rogers on the active roster following his impressive debut Saturday night as a fill-in starter for a doubleheader split with the Mets, and manager Davey Martinez said the left-hander is likely to going to make at least one more start. In order to keep Rogers on the roster, though, the Nationals placed Parra on the 10-day injured list with...

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Game 136 lineups: Nats vs. Mets

September 05, 2021, 7:37am

Nationals

The Nationals and Mets have already played three games in this holiday weekend series, and they're not even close to wrapping it up just yet. They face off this afternoon, then will return Monday afternoon for the Labor Day finale of a rare, five-game set. After the craziness of Saturday's doubleheader, everyone would appreciate a simpler affair today. And the Nats would love to get another quality start from Josiah Gray, who failed to turn in a quality performance last time out for the first...

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Soto hitting at high level again without sacrificing walks

September 02, 2021, 8:54pm

Nationals

Soto hitting at high level again without sacrificing walks

Juan Soto has known for some time now opponents aren't going to pitch to him. At least not with any regularity. He's drawn 48 walks in 42 games since the All-Star break, far and away most in the majors. And that has produced a whopping .516 on-base percentage during that time, also far and away the highest in the majors. If you've been paying even scant attention, you already know this. We're not treading into new territory with this subject. But here's what has changed in more recent...

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Inexperienced Nats once again hand game to Phillies (updated)

September 02, 2021, 12:58pm

Nationals

Inexperienced Nats once again hand game to Phillies (updated)

The Nationals understand there are going to be growing pains as they play out the string of a season that has now long since morphed from one with legitimate visions of success into one that is solely about starting a difficult organizational rebuild. But it's one thing when those growing pains come in the form of rallies made possible by a superior opponent's performance. It's quite another when they come in the form they did this afternoon during a nightmare of a 7-6 loss to the...

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Martinez has minor foot procedure, Bogar may manage

September 02, 2021, 8:50am

Nationals

Martinez has minor foot procedure, Bogar may manage

Davey Martinez underwent a planned, minor foot procedure earlier this morning, and though he's expected to be at Nationals Park in time for today's series finale against the Phillies, bench coach Tim Bogar may take over his duties for the game. Martinez had previously scheduled the procedure, expecting today to be an off-day for the Nationals as originally planned. Wednesday's rainout, though, pushed the game to this afternoon at 1:05 p.m. Martinez went ahead and had the procedure this...

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Game 132 lineups: Nats vs. Phillies

September 02, 2021, 7:45am

Nationals

As bad as the rain was Wednesday, and as awful as the weather has been for weeks now, boy is today a nice pay-off. Fall has arrived in full force, and it's going to be a glorious afternoon for baseball as the Nationals and Phillies wrap up their delayed series finale. The postponement was probably good for the Nats bullpen, which was beginning to run on fumes given a heavy workload of late. Everyone should be available to pitch today in relief of Paolo Espino, who should be good for his...

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Boone to leave Nationals due to vaccine mandate

September 01, 2021, 8:03pm

Nationals

The Nationals' recent decision to require all full-time, non-playing employees to be vaccinated for COVID-19 will result in the departures of some staff members, including one of general manager Mike Rizzo's top lieutenants: Bob Boone. Boone, who has worked in the front office since the club arrived in Washington in 2005, has informed the organization he will step down instead of getting the vaccine, sources familiar with the decision confirmed. A handful of other employees are expected to...

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Nats add Avila, lefty Baldonado as September call-ups

September 01, 2021, 11:04am

Nationals

Nats add Avila, lefty Baldonado as September call-ups

With an opportunity to expand their rosters by two players now that the calendar has shifted to September, the Nationals chose to add a veteran catcher who had been injured for two months and a journeyman left-hander who will be making his major league debut. The Nats activated Alex Avila off the injured list and selected the contract of reliever Alberto Baldonado from Triple-A Rochester, a couple of non-traditional September call-ups but ones who will supplement what already has become a...

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Finale vs. Phillies postponed to Thursday at 1:05 p.m.

September 01, 2021, 7:06am

Nationals

Finale vs. Phillies postponed to Thursday at 1:05 p.m.

With heavy rain and wind expected all day and evening as the remnants of Hurricane Ida sweep through the mid-Atlantic, the Nationals wasted no time and announced the postponement of tonight's series finale against the Phillies more than eight hours before scheduled first pitch. The game will now be made up Thursday at 1:05 p.m., the full nine innings scheduled. Tickets and parking passes for tonight's postponed game will be honored Thursday. The chances of playing the game as originally...

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What's Robles' future with the Nationals now?

August 31, 2021, 11:06pm

Nationals

Davey Martinez was adamant. This was not the end of the road for Victor Robles with the Nationals. "I've said this before, and I mean this with all my heart: We want Victor to be successful up here," an emotional manager said Tuesday night on Zoom when asked about Robles' demotion to Triple-A. "He's still young, he's (24) years old, he's got a bright future here with us. ... I mean, I know this is not the last we're going to see of Victor." That's of course what any manager, but...

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Another ragged start closes out Corbin's rough August (updated)

August 31, 2021, 6:54pm

Nationals

Another ragged start closes out Corbin's rough August (updated)

On a day in which the Nationals all but admitted their once highly touted center fielder has become a bust, they proceeded to watch their $140 million No. 3 starter take another step toward locking up the worst pitching season in club history. The Nats were able to option Victor Robles to Triple-A. They have no such luxury with Patrick Corbin. With yet another dreadful performance during a 12-6 loss to the Phillies, Corbin added another disappointing chapter to his regrettable season and made...