VIERA, Fla. - Bronson Arroyo's potentially career-ending shoulder injury, Blake Treinen's strong performance in place of Arroyo and Ryan Zimmerman's spring debut at first base all drew the most attention yesterday at Nationals camp, but there were some other developments worth mentioning before we move on to today's game against the Braves and an official announcement of Arroyo's status ...
* Michael A. Taylor delivered the biggest hit in the Nats' 4-2 victory over the Marlins: a...
VIERA, Fla. - Bronson Arroyo, one of baseball's most reliable and durable pitchers for more than a decade, may well have seen his career come to an abrupt end due to a shoulder tear suffered during the past week at Nationals camp.
Arroyo, who has been attempting a comeback from 2014 elbow ligament replacement surgery, has a torn labrum in his shoulder, according to MLB Network's Peter Gammons. Nationals officials couldn't immediately confirm the report, but the right-hander was due to be...
JUPITER, Fla. - It really wasn't much to get excited about, certainly not in Ryan Zimmerman's mind. All he did was play five innings at first base this afternoon in the Nationals' 4-2 Grapefruit League victory over the Marlins, albeit for the first time this spring.
Big deal?
"No, it was just kind of the timetable we mapped out," Zimmerman said. "It was just: Get out there and go. I'll be ready to play some more after this."
From a purely literal standpoint, what Zimmerman did today...
NATIONALS QUICK WRAP
Score: Nationals 4, Marlins 2
Recap: With scheduled starter Bronson Arroyo a late scratch due to shoulder soreness, the Nationals had to adjust on the fly this afternoon. Blake Treinen was up to the task, stepping in as emergency starter and cruising through two scoreless innings. Matt Belisle and Felipe Rivero took over from there, combining to retire all nine batters they faced out of the bullpen. The Nationals got a three-run homer from Michael A. Taylor, his second...
JUPITER, Fla. - Bronson Arroyo's attempted comeback from Tommy John surgery hit a snag today when the 39-year-old right-hander was scratched from his scheduled spring training start with shoulder soreness.
Arroyo was supposed to pitch four innings against the Marlins at Roger Dean Stadium, but Nationals manager Dusty Baker said the veteran hurler reported soreness earlier in the week when he tried to throw in between starts. The club waited a couple of days to see if the soreness dissipated,...
JUPITER, Fla. - Hello from Roger Dean Stadium, where the Nationals seem to play every other day in March. They're back today to face the Marlins, with several regulars having made the drive down from Viera.
That includes Ryan Zimmerman, who today makes his spring debut at first base. Zimmerman served as designated hitter twice earlier in the week and showed no ill effects of the plantar fasciitis that plagued him last season, so he's good to play in the field today for the first time.
Bronson...
VIERA, Fla. - Some morning leftovers to chew on as the Nationals make the drive down to Jupiter for today's game against the Marlins ...
* He's been under the radar a bit, but Sean Burnett continues to impress this spring and is making a serious case for himself three years after he last pitched out of the Nationals bullpen.
Burnett tossed a scoreless inning yesterday in Kissimmee, his fourth scoreless appearance of the spring. He has faced 12 total batters, retiring 10 of them. And the only...
KISSIMMEE, Fla. - It has been Danny Espinosa's nemesis for more than three seasons now, occasionally disappearing but almost always resurfacing to raise doubts about the Nationals infielder. And it is rearing its ugly head again this spring.
Espinosa's left-handed swing, the one thing that has kept him from long-term success in the big leagues, remains an issue right now. After an 0-for-3 afternoon in the Nationals' 6-4 win over the Astros - to be fair, two of the outs came on bunts - he now...
NATIONALS QUICK WRAP
Score: Nationals 6, Astros 4
Recap: Gio Gonzalez was efficient for a couple innings but then started having trouble finding the strike zone, leading to four walks. That said, only one Houston batter crossed the plate against the lefty: Marwin Gonzalez, who homered to lead off the fourth. The Nationals already owned a 3-0 lead at that point, thanks to RBI doubles by Daniel Murphy and Michael A. Taylor in the top of the third. There were opportunities for more offense,...
KISSIMMEE, Fla. - Ryan Zimmerman will make his spring debut at first base Wednesday, an important milestone for the Nationals, who also are making sure they're exploring several backup options at the position in case they're needed.
Zimmerman has been taking a slow approach to his preparation this spring, not wanting to aggravate the plantar fasciitis in his left foot that plagued him most of the 2015 season. Though he has taken grounders at first base and participated in most team defensive...
KISSIMMEE, Fla. - Hello everybody, and a pleasant good morning to you from central Florida. Glad to be back down here - after a short break - for the duration of the spring. Thanks to Pete Kerzel for holding down the fort in my absence.
When last we spoke, the Nationals were only 2 1/2 weeks into camp, having played only four Grapefruit League games. Since then, they have begun to trim their roster, stretch out their starting pitchers and worked everyone into the lineup (including guys like...
NATIONALS QUICK WRAP
Score: Nationals 8, Tigers 4
Recap: Stephen Strasburg struck out five over two innings in his first spring training start, but did give up a two-run homer to Bryan Holaday. Reliever A.J. Cole also was victimized by a blast from Holaday, who is making a bid for early Grapefruit League MVP honors (he's hitting .750 with three homers and eight RBIs so far). Ben Revere hit a two-run homer to right field for the Nationals, showing that he can occasionally flash some pop to go...
VIERA, Fla. - Major League Baseball Players Association chief Tony Clark said it was "disheartening" to watch Ian Desmond's unemployment saga play out this winter and into the start of spring training and suggested the sport's qualifying offer system that contributed to it would be a point of emphasis during his coming bargaining negotiations with the league.
In town this morning for the union's annual spring meeting with Nationals players, Clark spoke glowingly about Desmond and was...
VIERA, Fla. - The sight of Jordan Zimmermann taking the mound at Space Coast Stadium isn't particularly jarring. The sight of Jordan Zimmermann taking the mound at Space Coast Stadium wearing an old English D on his cap, however, is going to be quite jarring.
In a surprising twist of fate, Zimmermann will be making his Tigers debut this afternoon against the organization he departed after nine seasons (the last six in the major leagues). Former Nationals teammates say they'll be happy to see...
VIERA, Fla. - Last week's Saturday Q&A was such a hit, it seems like this might just have to turn into a recurring thing around here. Not sure I can promise this will happen every single Saturday all season long, but let's definitely go for Round 2 this morning.
It's been quite an interesting spring so far here in Viera. Dusty Baker is making his imprint on the Nationals. Several young players are making early statements about their value to the franchise, not only in the long-term but...
JUPITER, Fla. - Lucas Giolito had plenty of time to think about this, his first appearance against a major league club in a spring training game. Way more time than usual.
A starter throughout his amateur and now brief professional career, the 21-year-old found himself sitting nervously in the right field bullpen at Roger Dean Stadium this afternoon for 4 1/2 long innings before it was his turn to take the mound. Such is life for a young prospect in his first big league camp, with veterans Gio...
NATIONALS QUICK WRAP
Score: Marlins 5, Nationals 4
Recap: Gio Gonzalez was effective in his spring debut, tossing two scoreless innings while allowing two singles. Bronson Arroyo, on the other hand, looked quite rusty in his first game appearance since June 2014, after which he needed Tommy John surgery. The 39-year-old right-hander gave up two runs on four hits and two walks during his two innings of relief, with a fastball that registered in the low-to-mid 80s. Contrast that with Lucas...
JUPITER, Fla. - Some pregame notes to whet your appetite before the Nationals and Marlins get going here at Roger Dean Stadium ...
* Trea Turner is in the lineup today, starting at second base. We've already seen him at shortstop early this spring. I asked Dusty Baker if he wants to see him play both positions.
"I talked to him about it. I talked to other people about it. I just want to see him play," Baker said. "The fact he can play short and second, which a lot of people can't,...
JUPITER, Fla. - Early spring training games typically are more about pitching than hitting, and that may apply even more this afternoon than usual when the Nationals face the Marlins at Roger Dean Stadium. They'll be sending three prominent starting pitchers to the mound in this game, each of them for two innings: Gio Gonzalez, Bronson Arroyo and Lucas Giolito.
Gonzalez has nothing really to prove this spring; he simply needs to get himself prepared for the regular season. But this is a very...
VIERA, Fla. - Daniel Murphy knew he'd be the center of attention today in the Nationals' spring home opener. Not because this was his first game appearance with his new team, but because it just happened to come against his old team.
Murphy seemed a bit uncomfortable with all the attention he received, especially from the more than dozen Mets reporters who crowded around him outside the Nats clubhouse after he departed the game. Ultimately, Murphy felt most at ease on the field, especially...