Mark Zuckerman

Culberson cleared to fly home, Martinez explains request

September 15, 2019, 9:12am

Charlie Culberson suffered multiple facial fractures when he was hit in the right cheek trying to bunt a fastball from Nationals reliever Fernando Rodney during Saturday's game, but the Braves utilityman was released from the hospital later in the evening, spent the night at the team's hotel and has been cleared to fly home to Atlanta today. All things considered, that was positive news from everyone's perspective today at Nationals Park, where the two clubs are preparing to play their...

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Voth shines again vs. Braves, could earn bullpen role in October

September 14, 2019, 9:19pm

Nationals

Voth shines again vs. Braves, could earn bullpen role in October

Before the bullpen implosion, before the scary sight of Charlie Culberson getting hit in the face by a fastball, before the Nationals saw their lead in the wild card race shrink again, there was far and away the most encouraging element of Saturday's loss: Austin Voth. The game can cleanly been broken into two parts: Voth's start, and everything that came after it. When the young right-hander departed, the Nats led the Braves 1-0. From that point on, Atlanta scored 10 unanswered runs. "He's...

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Meltdown vs. Braves shrinks Nats' wild card lead (updated)

September 14, 2019, 3:34pm

Nationals

Meltdown vs. Braves shrinks Nats' wild card lead (updated)

Forget about a division title. That's been out of reach for more than a week now. Forget even for a moment about home field advantage in the wild card game, which is still in their possession but feels less important right now than the Nationals' first and foremost goal over the regular season's final two weeks. No, at this point in time the Nationals need to be worried most about reaching the wild card game at all, because while they remain in an advantageous position to achieve that...

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Suzuki starts swinging, but still slow to progress

September 14, 2019, 11:13am

Nationals

Suzuki starts swinging, but still slow to progress

Kurt Suzuki took a small step forward in his return from a right elbow injury, but the veteran catcher still has a significant way to go before he's back in the Nationals lineup. Suzuki took some swings in the batting cage Friday, his first baseball activities since he had to depart a game Sept. 7 in Atlanta with what the club so far has only referred to as elbow inflammation. The 35-year-old catcher has not been cleared to hit live pitching or throw a baseball yet, and it could still be a...

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Game 147 lineups: Nats vs. Braves

September 14, 2019, 8:25am

Nationals

Though their hopes of a fifth division title in eight years have all but been quashed, the Nationals still need to win as many games as they can as they attempt to lock up at least a wild card berth and preferably home field advantage for that winner-take-all game. Which means they need to win some games against the Braves. That's not something they've done much during the second half of this season. They're 4-8 versus Atlanta since the All-Star break, 7-10 overall for the season, with two...

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Cabrera keeps hitting, keeps getting starts

September 12, 2019, 9:37pm

Nationals

Cabrera keeps hitting, keeps getting starts

MINNEAPOLIS - The Nationals signed AsdrÃºbal Cabrera to a league minimum deal on Aug. 6 because they needed some short-term help on the right side of the infield. Ryan Zimmerman and Howie Kendrick were both hurt, so the presence of a veteran switch-hitter who could come off the bench and make a start or two at second base and first base was needed. One month later, Cabrera has turned into a vital part of the Nationals' daily lineup, one of the hottest hitters in the league and suddenly their...

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Bats come up big as Nats maintain wild card lead (updated)

September 12, 2019, 8:15pm

Nationals

Bats come up big as Nats maintain wild card lead (updated)

MINNEAPOLIS - A night getaway game combined with a rain delay might have left the Nationals tired and dreading an overnight flight home in advance of tomorrow's series opener with the Braves. But if nothing else, it gave the Nats a rare opportunity to know exactly what was needed of them on this night, because every other contender for a berth in the National League wild card game had already finished playing. And because the Cubs, Brewers, Mets and Phillies all won, the Nationals knew they...

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Rendon is nominee for Clemente Award (Nats lead 10-3)

September 12, 2019, 3:44pm

Nationals

Rendon is nominee for Clemente Award (Nats lead 10-3)

MINNEAPOLIS - Anthony Rendon is in the running for some major end-of-season awards for his on-field performance. Now he's also in the running for a major award for his off-the-field performance. Rendon was named today as the Nationals' nominee for the 2019 Roberto Clemente Award, which annually honors one major leaguer who "best represents the game of baseball through extraordinary character, community involvement, philanthropy and positive contributions, both on and off the field." It's...

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Gomes starts six in a row, but Read likely to catch Saturday

September 12, 2019, 2:33pm

Nationals

Gomes starts six in a row, but Read likely to catch Saturday

MINNEAPOLIS - Yan Gomes starts his sixth consecutive game behind the plate tonight. That's not something the Nationals ever planned to do this season, not with Kurt Suzuki sharing time as part of a potent one-two catching punch. But with Suzuki now nursing a right elbow injury, the Nats have had little choice but to keep putting Gomes out there and hope for the best. It's been a hit-or-miss proposition. Literally. Gomes clubbed two homers during Sunday's win in Atlanta, but has otherwise...

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Game 145 lineups: Nats at Twins

September 12, 2019, 12:08pm

Nationals

MINNEAPOLIS - It's another gloomy, gray day here in the Twin Cities, and the rain is supposed to continue into the evening hours. It is, however, supposed to stop at some point. Which means the Nationals and Twins may have no choice but to sit around and wait so they can get tonight's series finale in as scheduled. Each team only has one remaining off-day, and they're not the same. So if they somehow can't play tonight, the only option for a makeup game would be Sept. 30, the day in between...

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Zimmerman producing - and playing - more than expected

September 11, 2019, 8:59pm

Nationals

Zimmerman producing - and playing - more than expected

MINNEAPOLIS - The Nationals had modest expectations for Ryan Zimmerman when he returned from the injured list 11 days ago. The veteran first baseman had played in only 33 games through the season's first five months, unable to keep himself active for any length of time due to plantar fasciitis in his right foot. Davey Martinez didn't sugarcoat his intentions for Zimmerman at that point. He'd start a few games, especially against left-handers, and be available off the bench to pinch-hit or...

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Nationals score early, avoid drama late in victory (updated)

September 11, 2019, 6:57pm

Nationals

MINNEAPOLIS - They got the early offense they've been seeking for most of the last week-plus. They got another quality, if a bit briefer than hoped, start from Stephen Strasburg. Now the Nationals needed three clean innings from their bullpen in order to beat a very good Twins club. That should be a nice, simple formula for success. But as anyone who has followed this team all season, it's never that nice or simple. Though they certainly came close to making it simple tonight. Getting nine...

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Piazza's post-9/11 moment still haunts Martinez (Nats up 5-2)

September 11, 2019, 3:07pm

Nationals

Piazza's post-9/11 moment still haunts Martinez (Nats up 5-2)

MINNEAPOLIS - Everyone has a 9/11 memory. Where they were. What they thought. How they felt afterward. And many post-9/11 memories involve baseball, which in many ways helped the United States heal through one of its darkest times and bring back some semblance of normalcy in the days and weeks after the terrorist attacks. Davey Martinez remembers all of it, because he lived through all of it. And he had a front row seat to one of that fall's defining baseball moments: Mike Piazza's dramatic...

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Game 144 lineups: Nats at Twins

September 11, 2019, 12:09pm

Nationals

MINNEAPOLIS - The Nationals really need a win tonight. Which means they need to score runs. Preferably early in the game. For what it's worth, this appears to be a favorable matchup against Twins left-hander MartÃn PÃ©rez. The Nats tend to hit lefties well (aside from last weekend's struggles against Max Fried and Dallas Keuchel). PÃ©rez has a 4.75 ERA and 1.463 WHIP. And a few Nats who have faced him before have good numbers, including Brian Dozier (5-for-12, two homers) and Adam...

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Is it time to use top relievers even when trailing late?

September 10, 2019, 8:25pm

Nationals

Is it time to use top relievers even when trailing late?

MINNEAPOLIS - It may not have mattered in the end, because the Nationals still needed to score if they were going to win Tuesday night's game, and they never did. Nonetheless, Davey Martinez's bullpen usage in the bottom of the eighth of what wound up a 5-0 loss to the Twins merits a closer look, and a thorough explanation from the manager, because it left more than a few people asking questions. The situation: The Nationals trailed the Twins 2-0, with both runs having scored on Mitch...

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SÃ¡nchez loses pitchers' duel, Nats lose again on road (updated)

September 10, 2019, 6:12pm

Nationals

SÃ¡nchez loses pitchers' duel, Nats lose again on road (updated)

MINNEAPOLIS - It doesn't matter how well the Nationals' starters pitch right now. If their teammates can't score any runs off opposing starters, it'll all be wasted. Which, alas, is exactly what's happening these days. The Nationals got another gem from AnÃbal SÃ¡nchez tonight. The veteran right-hander had the Twins' potent lineup eating out of the palm of his hand. But with his teammates unable to touch JosÃ© BerrÃos, SÃ¡nchez had zero margin for error. And so the one big...

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Gomes prepped for heavy workload til Suzuki returns (Nats down 2-0)

September 10, 2019, 2:45pm

Nationals

Gomes prepped for heavy workload til Suzuki returns (Nats down 2-0)

MINNEAPOLIS - Though Kurt Suzuki doesn't appear to have suffered a serious elbow injury, the Nationals do appear to believe the veteran catcher is going to need some time to make it back into the lineup and have told Yan Gomes to be prepared to start the majority of games for the foreseeable future. Suzuki, who had to depart Saturday night's game with what he described as "some tinglings, zings" in his right elbow, had an MRI which showed no structural damage. He was given anti-inflammatory...

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Game 143 lineups: Nats at Twins

September 10, 2019, 12:06pm

Nationals

MINNEAPOLIS - For the first time since 2008, the Nationals are playing a game in Minnesota. And for the first time ever, they're playing a game at Target Field. This is the only currently active ballpark in the majors that has never hosted the Nats before, so they're about to be 30-for-30. (By the way, can you name the only two Nationals pitchers ever to win games in the state of Minnesota? Why, it's Jason Simontacchi and Levale Speigner, of course!) This is a big series for both clubs. The...

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Daunting September stretch continues in Minnesota

September 09, 2019, 7:37pm

Nationals

Daunting September stretch continues in Minnesota

The Nationals had a rough weekend in Atlanta. Their next stop on this road trip could be just as rough. Though there was plenty of attention - and rightfully so, given the division race - on the Nats' four-game series against the Braves, this next series against the Twins deserves just as much of the spotlight. The Twins are one of the best teams in baseball, and have been throughout the season. They took over first place in the American League Central on April 20, and they haven't given it...

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Bad weekend for Nationals at least ends on positive notes

September 08, 2019, 2:14pm

Nationals

Let's not try to sugarcoat this: The Nationals had a bad weekend in Atlanta. They lost three winnable games, fell at one point a full 10 games back in a division race that's all but over now and saw their once comfortable cushion in the wild card race shrink. They lost Kurt Suzuki and Roenis ElÃas to injuries. They couldn't do squat against the Braves rotation for three nights. All of that makes for a bad weekend. That doesn't mean it was a lost weekend. Sunday's events at SunTrust Park...