Mark Zuckerman

Pretty or not, Murphy ready to play in big league games

June 12, 2018, 2:12pm

NEW YORK - Daniel Murphy and the Nationals know there are going to be times when the veteran second baseman appears to be less than 100 percent comfortable running the bases or making plays in the field, even eight months removed from microfracture surgery on his right knee. What both sides also know, though, is this: No matter how many styles points he loses, Murphy's potential contributions now that he's finally making his season debut will far outweigh them. "It may not always look...

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Game 64 lineups: Nats at Yankees

June 12, 2018, 11:36am

Nationals

NEW YORK - Hello from Yankee Stadium, where the Nationals face the best team in baseball the next two nights and will take that team on with their best hitter in the lineup for the first time this season. Yes, Daniel Murphy has been activated off the disabled list and is making his 2018 debut at long last, nearly eight months removed from microfracture surgery on his right knee. Murphy's return - not to mention Adam Eaton, as well - gives the Nationals lineup a whole new look, certainly a more...

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Murphy activated, will make season debut tonight

June 12, 2018, 11:00am

Nationals

Murphy activated, will make season debut tonight

NEW YORK - As they prepare to open a two-game series against the owners of the best record in the majors, the Nationals at long last have their best pure hitter in the lineup for the first time this season. Daniel Murphy, finally recovered from October microfracture surgery on his right knee, has been activated off the disabled list and will play tonight when the Nationals open an interleague series against the Yankees. Having completed a 10-game rehab assignment with Double-A Harrisburg,...

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How many Nats are likely to make the All-Star team?

June 11, 2018, 6:30pm

Nationals

How many Nats are likely to make the All-Star team?

The Nationals have been well represented at the All-Star Game in recent years, sending four players to the 2012 game, two apiece in 2013, 2014 and 2015, then five each of the last two years. And with the 2018 Midsummer Classic taking place right on South Capitol Street, this is a golden opportunity for the franchise to showcase its depth of talent on a national stage. Now, if only a few more players could start making more a more serious case for themselves over the next month. Because right...

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Will returning vets help bring consistency to Nats lineup?

June 10, 2018, 8:45pm

Nationals

Will returning vets help bring consistency to Nats lineup?

The Nationals rank in the middle of the pack in most offensive categories right now. They're sixth in the National League in runs scored per game (4.4), 10th in batting average (.237), eighth in on-base percentage (.316) and eighth in slugging percentage (.403), though tied for third in home runs (78). What's more notable, though, may be the path they've taken to get to this point. The Nationals may have a middle-of-the-pack lineup in the big picture, but they seem to have either a great or...

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Nats are silent at plate, lose 2-0 on homer allowed by Scherzer

June 10, 2018, 2:57pm

Nationals

Nats are silent at plate, lose 2-0 on homer allowed by Scherzer

Brilliant as he is usually is, Max Scherzer isn't perfect. He's allotted one or two mistakes per game. The hope is that the rest of the Nationals can simply do their part to make Scherzer's human moments inconsequential. They were not able to do that today. And as a result, Scherzer's one mistake proved the difference in the game. Brandon Crawford's two-run homer in the top of the fourth gave the Giants a 2-0 lead. That's all they needed to beat Scherzer and send the Nationals to a...

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Murphy making trip with Nats, could be activated Tuesday

June 10, 2018, 10:56am

Nationals

Murphy making trip with Nats, could be activated Tuesday

Daniel Murphy was back at Nationals Park this morning. He'll accompany the Nationals tonight on their train ride to New York. The only remaining question: Will he be on the active roster Tuesday night when they face the Yankees? The Nationals haven't made that decision yet, but they appear to be preparing for the possibility, assuming Murphy's surgically repaired right knee feels fine over the next few days and he decides he's ready to test it out in a major league game for the first time...

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Game 63 lineups: Nats vs. Giants

June 10, 2018, 8:31am

Nationals

The Nationals usually play Sunday home games at 1:35 p.m. Except for the day after their annual Dream Foundation Gala. Wanting to give everyone some extra time to, uh, recover from that evening event, they push back the following day's game until 4:05 p.m. It makes sense. Except on a day like today, when the skies are forecasted to be dry early in the afternoon before turning ominous late in the afternoon. Oh well, nothing they can do about that now but wait and see how the weather turns out...

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The Caps and The Cup get their day at Nationals Park

June 09, 2018, 10:02am

Nationals

The Cup first made its way into the bowels of Nationals Park shortly before 11 a.m., safely stored inside its personalized black trunk. By the time its full tour of the ballpark was complete, it had been unveiled, polished, stood in the Nats' clubhouse, the press conference room, been carried around the infield by Alex Ovechkin and then watched this afternoon's game against the Giants from a suite down the left field line. Everywhere it went, it was followed. And photographed. Selfies....

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Shoulder injury leaves Strasburg, Nats waiting for MRI results

June 08, 2018, 7:21pm

Nationals

Shoulder injury leaves Strasburg, Nats waiting for MRI results

At various points in his career, Stephen Strasburg has missed time with injuries to his elbow, back, neck, lat and oblique. Only once, though, has he missed any time due to a shoulder injury, and that one was as minor as they get. You have to go all the way back to the night of July 28, 2010, the night a rookie Strasburg had trouble getting loose in the bullpen and had to be scratched minutes before scheduled first pitch against the Braves, replaced by journeyman Miguel Batista, who would...

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Strasburg leaves with early injury, Nats fall to Giants in opener

June 08, 2018, 6:10pm

Nationals

Strasburg leaves with early injury, Nats fall to Giants in opener

A sellout crowd of 41,591, the vast majority wearing red and more boisterous than usual thanks to the good vibes still permeating through the city after Thursday night's Stanley Cup celebration, filed into Nationals Park this evening ready to celebrate the local baseball team. Two innings in, that crowd was murmuring and lamenting an all-too-familiar sight from this town's pre-championship days: the early departure of a star player due to injury. Stephen Strasburg lasted only two innings,...

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Eaton on verge of returning to Nationals lineup

June 08, 2018, 1:51pm

Nationals

Adam Eaton was back at Nationals Park this afternoon. And all signs point to the outfielder being in the Nationals lineup Saturday afternoon. Eligible to come off the 60-day disabled list today, Eaton remained inactive as he went through a full pregame workout with his teammates before tonight's series opener against the Giants. But manager Davey Martinez strongly suggested the transaction will happen within the next 18 hours, provided Eaton emerged from the workout in good shape. "He is...

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Game 61 lineups: Nats vs. Giants

June 08, 2018, 11:30am

Nationals

So, there's a sporting event taking place tonight in Washington. It's not as big as some other sporting events that have been going on in town of late. But it's not bad, either, with the first-place Nationals hosting the Giants in the opener of a three-game weekend series, one that could feature a cameo appearance by Lord Stanley himself at some point. Stephen Strasburg gets the ball for tonight's game, and surprisingly it's his first start against the Giants in two years. He'll have the...

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As Caps finally proved, D.C. can be a championship town

June 07, 2018, 9:16pm

Nationals

As Caps finally proved, D.C. can be a championship town

I really didn't have much of an opinion of Washington as a sports town before I moved here in 2001. I knew the Redskins had won three Super Bowls and were the biggest deal in this city. I knew the Capitals made the playoffs most years and had been swept by the Red Wings in the 1998 Stanley Cup Final. To be honest, I didn't know much about the Bullets/Wizards. And I knew that with no baseball team in the District, a lot of people were fans of the Orioles, a model franchise for decades that was...

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With Eaton nearing return, how will Nats configure outfield?

June 06, 2018, 2:12pm

Nationals

With Eaton nearing return, how will Nats configure outfield?

When the Nationals promoted Juan Soto from Double-A Harrisburg 18 days ago, which came only 10 days after he had been promoted from high-Single-A Potomac, which came only 17 days after he had been promoted from low-Single-A Hagerstown, they did so out of desperation. Injuries to Adam Eaton, Howie Kendrick, Brian Goodwin, Victor Robles and Rafael Bautista had ravaged the Nationals outfield, so much so that a 19-year-old with remarkably limited professional experience represented their best...

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With better approach, Nats enjoy best offensive day in weeks

June 06, 2018, 1:23pm

Nationals

With better approach, Nats enjoy best offensive day in weeks

It wasn't simply that the Nationals scored 11 runs today, five of those in the first inning. It was the fact that they scored those 11 runs without a single ball reaching the bleachers. And that 10 of those runs were scored via hits that landed either in center or the opposite field. Davey Martinez couldn't have drawn up a better game plan for success from a lineup that too often this season has relied on pulling the ball and driving it over the fence instead of going the other way and...

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Nationals score early and often in 11-2 rout of Rays

June 06, 2018, 11:56am

Nationals

Davey Martinez wanted early offense via more walks and more quality at-bats. He got that and then some this afternoon as the Nationals cruised to a two-game sweep of the Rays. Behind a five-run first inning that included everything their manager asked for and more, the Nationals took a quick lead on Tampa Bay and then kept the pressure on all afternoon to earn an 11-2 victory. In discussing his club's recent offensive struggles prior to the game, Martinez noted the need for stars like Bryce...

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Martinez seeks more walks from Harper (Nats win 11-2)

June 06, 2018, 8:46am

Nationals

Martinez seeks more walks from Harper (Nats win 11-2)

Bryce Harper leads all National League hitters with 18 home runs. That's a good thing. He's tied for 50th in hits. That's not such a good thing. Harper leads the NL in walks for the season, with 47. That's a good thing. Since May 1, he's tied for 60th with only nine walks. That's definitely not a good thing. Such is the odd nature of Harper's season to date. He continues to hit the ball out of the park as well as anybody. But he's not hitting singles or drawing walks the way he used to...

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Game 60 lineups: Nats vs. Rays

June 06, 2018, 6:28am

Nationals

The Nationals are going to face something different today in their series finale against Tampa Bay. The Rays aren't sending a starter to the mound for the bottom of the first. They're sending an "opener." That would be Jonny Venters, a reliever who actually will start the game and pitch one or two innings before manager Kevin Cash then summons Ryan Yarbrough (a starter who will pitch five-plus innings of relief). This isn't exactly sweeping the nation, but the rest of the baseball world...

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Ramos enjoys emotional return to Nationals Park

June 05, 2018, 7:19pm

Nationals

The first cheer came when his name was announced as part of the Rays' starting lineup. The next one came after a video tribute on the scoreboard at Nationals Park, with the crowd ultimately serenading him with the familiar "Wil-son!" chant as he squatted in the visitors' bullpen warming up Nathan Eovaldi. By the time Wilson Ramos came up to bat in the top of the second Tuesday night, the crowd of 32,165 rose to give the former Nationals catcher a prolonged ovation, which he acknowledged...