Mark Zuckerman
Mark Zuckerman

Nick Johnson rejoins Nationals as spring training instructor

Nick Johnson rejoins Nationals as spring training instructor
VIERA, Fla. - It's been seven years since Nick Johnson last donned a Nationals uniform, but there was something comforting about the site of the former first baseman standing at the batting cage this morning, a curly W on his cap, watching current members of the team take swings off live pitchers. What, exactly, is Johnson doing here? "Whatever they need me to do," he said succinctly, to this day still a man of few words. Officially, Johnson is in camp for 10 days as a special instructor....
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Mark Zuckerman

Robinson not taking anything for granted after breakthrough 2015

Robinson not taking anything for granted after breakthrough 2015
VIERA, Fla. - When he arrived back home in Fayetteville, Ark., in October, Clint Robinson could well have been viewed a wholly different man than he was when he left eight months prior. After nearly a decade in professional baseball and 921 minor league games, he had finally broken through as a big leaguer for a full season, a successful one at that. Anybody who knows Robinson, of course, knows that would never be the case. Because he would never allow it to be the case. "Everybody knows how...
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Mark Zuckerman

What's the story behind Dusty Baker's toothpick?

What's the story behind Dusty Baker's toothpick?
VIERA, Fla. - Close your eyes and conjure up an image of Dusty Baker, watching his team from the top step of the dugout - cap on, sunglasses perched on his nose, hand to his chin as he ponders his next move. Now what does Baker have in his mouth? A toothpick, right? It has become synonymous with the Nationals' new manager. For decades, he's rarely been seen at work without a toothpick twirling between his lips. But why? How and when did this all start? Baker shared the story Tuesday from his...
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Mark Zuckerman

Baker realizes tough pitching decisions loom this spring

Baker realizes tough pitching decisions loom this spring
VIERA, Fla. - With only four days of official pitchers and catchers workouts in the books, Dusty Baker is still trying to get a full sense of what exactly he has to work with at Nationals camp. Some players' names still elude him, and his scouting reports are far from complete, but the new manager does have a strong overall impression on the state of his pitching staff. "I've had some good teams, but these are the toughest pitching decisions I've ever had to make," said Baker, who has two...
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Mark Zuckerman

Ryan Zimmerman denies PED use, explains defamation suit

Ryan Zimmerman denies PED use, explains defamation suit
VIERA, Fla. - Ryan Zimmerman today vehemently denied ever using performance enhancing drugs or knowing the trainer who accused him of using them, and offered a detailed explanation why he was willing to file a defamation suit against the television network that aired the allegation that jolted the Nationals first baseman's offseason. In his first public comments since Al Jazeera America aired a documentary in December accusing him and several other high-profile athletes of receiving shipments...
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Mark Zuckerman

All position players in Nats camp on time

All position players in Nats camp on time
VIERA, Fla. - It's finally the official reporting date for all Nationals position players, though that deadline didn't mean much to most this spring. Every single player had already arrived by Monday, with only Wilmer Difo remaining among the unseen. Well, rest easy folks, because Difo is now here. He reported on time, giving the Nats a completely full clubhouse. We sometimes make too big a deal out of early arrivals, but I do have to say I think it's notable how many regulars arrived not...
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Mark Zuckerman

Oliver Perez wants to reward Nats for initiating career revival

Oliver Perez wants to reward Nats for initiating career revival
VIERA, Fla. - Oliver Perez's career was on the brink of collapse. He had sported a 5.09 ERA over his past six seasons with the Pirates and Mets, and now he was left to accept a minor league contract offer from the Nationals. Perez took the offer, mostly because of his past relationship with Nationals minor league pitching coordinator Spin Williams, who had been his first big league pitching coach in Pittsburgh. He reported to Double-A Harrisburg, a once-promising left-hander now reduced to...
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Mark Zuckerman

Nats concede Mets are "team to beat" right now in NL East

Nats concede Mets are "team to beat" right now in NL East
VIERA, Fla. - The Nationals know very much what it's like to be labeled as National League East favorites and know very much how little that actually means in the end. So as they gather in late February for the start of the long grind, they're perfectly fine ceding that designation to the division's reigning champs: the Mets. "The team to beat are the Mets," right fielder Bryce Harper said Monday in his first media session of 2016. "That's what it is right now. They kicked the crap out...
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Mark Zuckerman

Bryce Harper talks leadership and his status with the Nats

Bryce Harper talks leadership and his status with the Nats
VIERA, Fla. - When he sat in the first base dugout at Space Coast Stadium one year ago for a 12-minute, first-day-of-spring session with reporters, Bryce Harper was a whirlwind of emotion, confidence and quips that was defined by a line that haunted him for months: "Where's my ring?" When he sat in the same dugout Monday morning for a 17-minute, first-day-of-spring session with reporters, Harper offered no such headline for the masses. Slowly but surely, he's learning how to avoid the kind...
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Mark Zuckerman

Dusty Baker offers glimpse into lineup construction

Dusty Baker offers glimpse into lineup construction
VIERA, Fla. - Dusty Baker readily admits he's been scribbling out potential lineups since he was named Nationals manager in November, but he genuinely doesn't know yet what that lineup will actually look like once opening day arrives. "Not until I see them," he said. "I got an idea. But I can't tell you, because you're going to make up my lineup." Well, yeah, we all do tend to try to predict lineups before the manager does. It's human nature. Baker did offer some insight, though, into...
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Mark Zuckerman

How Dusty Baker plans to keep his regulars fresh

How Dusty Baker plans to keep his regulars fresh
VIERA, Fla. - One of the trickiest tasks for any manager is the fine balancing act of playing his everyday regulars as much as possible while still keeping his bench players fresh. Dusty Baker knows how much that plays a role into a team's success over a full season. And he feels like his five decades in baseball give him the kind of perspective that helps make those tough decisions a little bit easier. "Being a former position player, I know how to run this race," Baker said Sunday. "And...
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Mark Zuckerman

On first day in Nats camp, Murphy feels right at home

On first day in Nats camp, Murphy feels right at home
VIERA, Fla. - For many ballplayers, the drive to spring training is a long and arduous one, with plenty of opportunities for reflection and goal-setting. For Daniel Murphy, the drive has never been much to think about. Just hop on Interstate 95 from his home in Jacksonville, Fla., head south and exit three hours later in Port St. Lucie, longtime spring home of the Mets. Now? "Just stop an hour short," Murphy said with a laugh Sunday afternoon, his car needing go no farther than Viera, where...
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Mark Zuckerman

Observations and quotes from Sunday's workout

Observations and quotes from Sunday's workout
VIERA, Fla. - Official workout No. 2 of the spring is in the books, and there was plenty going on at the complex down the street from Space Coast Stadium. Here are some observations and quotes from various parties: * Lucas Giolito threw his first-ever mound session in front of the full major league coaching staff and team execs, many of whom specifically made their way over to the far left end of the bullpen to check out the club's top pitching prospect in person. They didn't leave...
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Mark Zuckerman

With shortstop open at last, Espinosa wants to seize job

With shortstop open at last, Espinosa wants to seize job
VIERA, Fla. - There was a time, about five years ago, when a good number of people who followed the Nationals on a daily basis believed their starting shortstop should not be Ian Desmond, but rather Danny Espinosa. Espinosa, many thought, was a far superior defensive shortstop than Desmond. And at that time, he was thought of as a better offensive threat, a switch-hitter who could both drive the ball over the fence while also showing impressive patience at the plate. That, of course, isn't how...
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Mark Zuckerman

Big names slated to throw off mound during Sunday's workout

Big names slated to throw off mound during Sunday's workout
VIERA, Fla. - Saturday's workout, the first official one of the Dusty Baker era in D.C., didn't look all that different from previous workouts run by former Nationals managers in Viera. Pitchers threw for 10 minutes off the bullpen mounds, while others took fielding practice. Fundamentals were stressed. Everybody was in a good mood, combining serious preparation with plenty of lighthearted moments. "It was a very good first day," Baker said afterward. As a newcomer to the organization,...
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Mark Zuckerman

Late-signing Belisle, Badenhop expect real chance to make bullpen

Late-signing Belisle, Badenhop expect real chance to make bullpen
VIERA, Fla. - Though the Nationals bullpen underwent a near-complete makeover this winter, there really aren't many spots up for grabs this spring. Jonathan Papelbon, Shawn Kelley, Oliver Perez and Yusmiero Petit all have guaranteed contracts and track records to suggest each is a lock to make the club. And Felipe Rivero and recently acquired Trevor Gott both are coming off promising rookie seasons that leave each young reliever in a strong position to head north. Which leaves, in all...
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Mark Zuckerman

Top prospect Giolito's 2016 goal: "Definitely reaching the big leagues"

Top prospect Giolito's 2016 goal: "Definitely reaching the big leagues"
VIERA, Fla. - There are 21-year-olds who look totally out of place in their first big league camp. And then there's Lucas Giolito, who stands out in the Nationals' spring clubhouse like a sore thumb, not because he looks young and timid, but because he looks and acts the part of an established major leaguer. At 6-foot-6, 255 lbs., Giolito towers over most of the other pitchers in this camp. And with a soft-spoken, yet confident demeanor, he already displays the poise of a ballplayer far more...
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Mark Zuckerman

Nats' first workout of the spring underway in Viera

Nats' first workout of the spring underway in Viera
VIERA, Fla. - The Nationals clubhouse at Space Coast Stadium was buzzing this morning, packed with pitchers and catchers in advance of their first official workout of the spring. Jonathan Papelbon took control of the stereo and blasted country music throughout the room, which came alive with players, coaches and others laughing and introducing themselves to newcomers. There are plenty of position players here already, as well, including Bryce Harper, who strolled in this morning. (No, he...
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Mark Zuckerman

Baker will view shortstop competition "with eyes wide open"

Baker will view shortstop competition "with eyes wide open"
VIERA, Fla. - There aren't many significant jobs up for grabs this spring, but there is one high-profile position that figures to be decided via an open competition over the next six weeks: shortstop. That's not a position that has featured much, if any, uncertainty in some time, not with Ian Desmond entrenching himself as the Nationals' everyday shortstop over the last five seasons. But with Desmond now gone, new manager Dusty Baker has an array of choices that includes longtime second...
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Mark Zuckerman

Dusty Baker tracks down Joe Gibbs for advice after hiatus

Dusty Baker tracks down Joe Gibbs for advice after hiatus
VIERA, Fla. - Dusty Baker knows his return to a big league dugout after a two-year hiatus is rare, not only to baseball but to professional sports in general. So when it came time to seek advice from somebody who might be able to offer some insight into the situation, Baker turned to a man who returned to his sport after a far longer break. And that man just happened to be a Washington sports icon: Joe Gibbs. Baker called the Hall of Fame coach earlier this week and wound up having a lengthy...
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