Mark Zuckerman
Mark Zuckerman

Taylor homers, Cards strike back vs. Strasburg (Nats win 5-4)

Taylor homers, Cards strike back vs. Strasburg (Nats win 5-4)
ST. LOUIS - What better way for a Nationals lineup struggling to score runs to open a 10-game road trip than with a home run from the very first batter to step to the plate on this daunting swing through the Midwest? If only the rest of the lineup was able to follow Michael A. Taylor's lead with some more production. Taylor's opposite-field homer on the third pitch of tonight's game set a positive tone for a Nationals club that sorely needed one. His solo shot into the right field bullpen...
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Mark Zuckerman

Harper disappointed in Gordon but doesn't want batting title

Harper disappointed in Gordon but doesn't want batting title
ST. LOUIS - Bryce Harper said Dee Gordon's 80-game suspension after testing positive for performance enhancing drugs is "definitely a disappointment," but the Nationals star insisted he shouldn't now be considered the reining NL batting champ because of Gordon's actions. Harper lost the batting title to Gordon on the final day of the 2015 season, ultimately falling short by three percentage points. He blames his own struggles down the stretch - he hit .162 over his final 11 games, causing...
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Mark Zuckerman

Game 22 lineups: Nats at Cardinals

Game 22 lineups: Nats at Cardinals
ST. LOUIS - Hello from the Gateway City, where the biggest event in town this weekend isn't the Nationals-Cardinals series but the FIRST Championship, a national robotics competition that has left the downtown area overrun with thousands of teenagers who are infinitely smarter than you or I will ever be. While these kids are creating artificially intelligent robots, we're sitting in a ballpark obsessing over the Nats' inability to score a run. Talk about a blow to the ego... But anyway,...
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Mark Zuckerman

Thursday morning Q&A from D.C.

Thursday morning Q&A from D.C.
Since I'll be in the air on the way to St. Louis tomorrow morning, and since I won't be at today's game at Nationals Park (Byron Kerr is your man on the scene for the series finale against the Phillies), I figure we'd bump up this week's Q&A by a day. The week started off with one of the craziest victories in Nationals history: their dramatic, 16-inning win over the Twins to sweep that series. Since then, they've dropped two straight to Philadelphia and now have to win this afternoon...
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Mark Zuckerman

Despite struggles, Baker insists lineup "is gonna hit"

Despite struggles, Baker insists lineup "is gonna hit"
It's easy to start worrying about a lineup's overall deficiencies on a night like this, when a journeyman pitcher holds it to two hits (one of them a bunt single) and doesn't let a man so much as reach scoring position after the second inning. But the Nationals' 3-0 loss to the Phillies wasn't entirely an aberration. There have been issues with this lineup almost since opening day, some of them becoming more pronounced in recent days. Aside from Bryce Harper, Daniel Murphy and Wilson Ramos...
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Mark Zuckerman

Gonzalez, Hellickson locked in pitchers' duel (Nats lose 3-0)

Gonzalez, Hellickson locked in pitchers' duel (Nats lose 3-0)
The good news: Gio Gonzalez continues to pitch like a new man. The bad news: His Nationals teammates are making Jeremy Hellickson look just as good so far tonight. Both Gonzalez and Hellickson have posted dueling zeroes for four innings, turning a chilly Wednesday night at Nationals Park into a bit of a surprising pitchers' duel between the Nats and Phillies. Gonzalez set the tone right from the outset, getting through a scoreless top of the first on 14 pitches. He then retired nine...
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Mark Zuckerman

Why Solis made most sense for Nats bullpen right now

Why Solis made most sense for Nats bullpen right now
When Matt Belisle strained his right calf in the eighth inning last night, the Nationals knew they needed to summon a reinforcement for their bullpen, and they immediately placed a call to Triple-A Syracuse to give that new pitcher as much opportunity as possible to get on a plane to Washington in time for tonight's game against the Phillies. The name of that reinforcement, though, may have surprised some. Rather than call up another right-hander to fill Belisle's role, the Nationals instead...
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Mark Zuckerman

Belisle lands on DL with strained calf, Solis recalled

Belisle lands on DL with strained calf, Solis recalled
Unable to wait and see how severe Matt Belisle's calf injury is, with more fresh arms needed for their bullpen tonight, the Nationals have placed the veteran right-hander on the 15-day disabled list and recalled lefty Sammy Solis from Triple-A Syracuse. Solis will be in uniform and available out of the Nationals bullpen for tonight's game against the Phillies, giving manager Dusty Baker a much-needed arm that can throw multiple innings in case something happens to starter Gio Gonzalez early...
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Mark Zuckerman

Game 20 lineups: Nats vs. Phillies

Game 20 lineups: Nats vs. Phillies
Perhaps the most pleasant surprise of the early season has been Gio Gonzalez, who has been absolutely dominant through his first three starts. There's the obvious (1.42 ERA) but more impressive is his 20-to-4 strikeout-to-walk rate. Is this a sign of what we can expect all year, or has the left-hander simply taken advantage of some weak lineups? It's still too early to say for sure, but you can't not be impressed with the results so far. At the plate, the Nationals are still trying to get...
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Mark Zuckerman

Harper stays patient as teams intentionally walk him

Harper stays patient as teams intentionally walk him
Every time Bryce Harper does something that seems straight out of a video game, we wonder the same question: Will there ever come a point where opposing teams simply don't give the young slugger any opportunity to swing the bat in any situation of consequence? We got a bit of a taste last night what that would be like, when the Phillies walked Harper three times (twice intentionally). Even then, though, manager Pete Mackanin couldn't follow through all the way with his game plan and wound up...
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Mark Zuckerman

Scherzer again trying to figure out how to fix what ails him

Scherzer again trying to figure out how to fix what ails him
Max Scherzer is annoyed, but he's not upset. He's not pitching the way he has and knows he can, but he doesn't believe he needs to completely overhaul everything to get himself back in form. "Everything is not broke," the Nationals right-hander said following tonight's 4-3 loss to the Phillies. "This isn't a time where you just beat everything around and throw your glove around. The pitches are there. It's just a little fine-tuning. That's the difference between dominance and being...
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Mark Zuckerman

Scherzer's early troubles crop up again (Nats lose 4-3)

Scherzer's early troubles crop up again (Nats lose 4-3)
The first inning continues not to sit well with Max Scherzer, who once again tonight dug the Nationals into an early hole. On the heels of a shaky start in Miami five days ago, Scherzer took the mound tonight at Nationals Park and two batters later found himself trailing by two runs. He walked Phillies leadoff man Odubel Herrera on four pitches, then served up a home run to Andres Blanco on an 0-1 fastball over the plate. That's now eight first-inning runs surrendered by Scherzer in five...
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Mark Zuckerman

Ramos placed on bereavement list, Severino called up

Ramos placed on bereavement list, Severino called up
The Nationals have placed Wilson Ramos on the bereavement list following the death of his grandfather, Jesus Campos, leaving the club without its No. 1 catcher for at least the next three games. Ramos informed manager Dusty Baker of the news this morning and made plans to leave town. He is expected to rejoin the team early in its upcoming road trip. "I talked to him this morning; he was pretty shook up," Baker said. "He'll join us sometime over the weekend in St. Louis." Major League...
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Mark Zuckerman

Game 19 lineups: Nats vs. Phillies

Game 19 lineups: Nats vs. Phillies
This should be Joe Ross' turn in the Nationals rotation, but the club decided to be cautious with the young right-hander's blister and skip his turn (made possible by yesterday's off-day). So it'll be Max Scherzer, still on normal rest, taking the mound for tonight's series opener against the Phillies. Scherzer is coming off a ragged start in Miami in which he was tagged for five runs and eight hits in only five innings. Afterward, he described his problem as "not finishing my pitches,"...
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Mark Zuckerman

Does the Nats' red-hot start this season foreshadow anything?

Does the Nats' red-hot start this season foreshadow anything?
As much as we've focused recently on some of the Nationals' most impressive individual performances so far this season, let's not forget about the bigger picture. This is a team sport, after all, so really nothing matters more than the team's record, no matter who is contributing to that and in what manner. The Nationals, as a team, have been fantastic to date in 2016. They enter tonight's series opener against the Phillies with a 14-4 record, matching the 2012 Nats for the best 18-game...
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Mark Zuckerman

Expect greatness from Harper, but don't forget to appreciate it

Expect greatness from Harper, but don't forget to appreciate it
Bryce Harper has done some remarkable things so far this season, but here's perhaps the most remarkable thing he's done: He's been so good that we probably aren't fully appreciating just how good he's been. Think of it this way: Were you surprised at all when Harper stepped to the plate in the bottom of the ninth yesterday at Nationals Park as a pinch-hitter, his team trailing by a run, and proceeded to launch the game-tying homer to center field off a 3-2 fastball from Twins closer Kevin...
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Mark Zuckerman

How Harper helped Heisey hit his first career walk-off homer

How Harper helped Heisey hit his first career walk-off homer
He had done it at Triple-A late last summer. And he had done it in Viera, Fla., earlier this spring. So maybe it was only a matter of time before Chris Heisey hit his first career walk-off homer in a major league game. "I'm kind of knocking them all out here in a short period of time," he said with a laugh. "It was definitely nice to finally hit one in the big leagues." Even nicer to do it in the bottom of the 16th inning of the craziest game just about everyone in a Nationals uniform...
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Mark Zuckerman

How the Nats won "the craziest" game they'd ever seen

How the Nats won "the craziest" game they'd ever seen
Dusty Baker had played, coached or managed in precisely 4,405 major league games before what figured to be a run-of-the-mill series finale between the Nationals and Twins. Chris Speier has been involved in some capacity since 1971, with a few breaks scattered in there. Davey Lopes is 70 and hasn't missed a season since he was a rookie with the Dodgers during the Nixon administration. Ask any of them where today's 16-inning marathon, with all of its twists and turns and drama that ultimately...
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Mark Zuckerman

First-inning success continues even without Harper (Nats win in 16)

First-inning success continues even without Harper (Nats win in 16)
No Bryce Harper? No problem for the Nationals, who continue to produce in the first inning even without their MVP slugger. Matt den Dekker, subbing in right field to give Harper his first day off this season, opened the bottom of the first this afternoon with a homer into the right field bullpen, giving the Nationals a quick lead on the Twins. den Dekker, who hammered a 3-1 fastball from rookie right-hander Tyler Duffey, became merely the latest member of the Nationals lineup to make a dent...
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Mark Zuckerman

Why Harper sits today and why Scherzer starts Tuesday (updated)

Why Harper sits today and why Scherzer starts Tuesday (updated)
Bryce Harper is out of the Nationals lineup today for the first time this season, but don't start worrying about the MVP's health or any other ulterior motive for his absence. Manager Dusty Baker planned all along to sit Harper for his team's series finale against the Twins. Harper did appear to slightly tweak his ankle Saturday chasing down a foul ball in right field, but he played the rest of the game and showed no ill effects. Regardless, Baker had previously offered hints he planned to...
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