Pete Kerzel

Which arbitration-eligible National is most deserving of an extension?

January 10, 2012, 6:31am

The offseason is chugging along and we'll soon be talking about guys arriving at Space Coast Stadium in Viera, Fla. The next step for the Nationals is to come to contract terms with their six arbitration-eligible players: right-handers Tyler Clippard and Jordan Zimmermann, left-handers Tom Gorzelanny and John Lannan, outfielder/first baseman Michael Morse and catcher Jesus Flores. Clippard and Zimmermann are first-timers in the arbitration process, while Lannan and Morse are getting their...

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Orioles sign Wei-Yin Chen; Hudson designated for assignment

January 10, 2012, 5:18am

Orioles

The Orioles today announced that they have signedleft-hander Wei-Yin Chen (pronounced Way-Ying) to a three-year contract with a club option for 2015. He will wear number 16. Chen, 26, will be the first Taiwanese-born player in Orioles history. The 6-foot, 195-pound left-hander went 36-30 with a 2.48 ERA (631.1IP, 174ER) and 1.06 WHIP in 117 games (88 starts) over the last four seasons with the Chunichi Dragons in the Central League of Nippon Professional Baseball. "Chen works off of a...

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Barry Larkin gets call to Cooperstown (updated)

January 09, 2012, 6:00am

Nationals

Barry Larkin gets call to Cooperstown (updated)

It will be a while before a Nationals player gets the call to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y. But this afternoon, a former major leaguer who spent three years in the Nationals' front office will likely be welcomed into the hallowed hall of baseball's immortals. Barry Larkin, a 12-time All-Star shortstop and the 1995 Most Valuable Player during a 19-year big league career spent entirely with the Cincinnati Reds, is favored to get the required 75 percent of the vote on...

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What lies ahead for Stephen Strasburg

January 08, 2012, 9:38am

Nationals

We interrupt our regular, seemingly daily, examination of the possibility that free agent first baseman Prince Fielder will eventually hammer out a long-term deal with the Nationals to bring you other news and opinions related to all things curly and W ... One of the most enjoyable parts of working at MASNsports.com is the interaction with our readers and regular viewers of our broadcasts. Whether we're debating something on the MASN Nationals Facebook page, checking comments on this blog or...

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Cubs' trade for first base prospect means market for Fielder is thinning

January 07, 2012, 4:30am

Nationals

Cubs' trade for first base prospect means market for Fielder is thinning

By acquiring promising prospect Anthony Rizzo in a four-player deal with the San Diego Padres on Friday, the Chicago Cubs not only got their first baseman of the future, they also probably took themselves out of the Prince Fielder derby. That's good news for the Nationals, who are working to sign the free agent slugger. Who else remains in on Fielder? Quite frankly, the list of suitors is dwindling, a development that could work in Washington's favor as they negotiate with agent Scott Boras...

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O's set FanFest autograph lineup; vouchers now on sale

January 06, 2012, 3:24pm

Orioles

O's set FanFest autograph lineup; vouchers now on sale

The Orioles have released their autograph schedule for FanFest on Saturday, Jan. 21. You can go over the particulars about the autograph policy and purchasing autograph vouchers here. The procedure is identical to the system introduced at last year's FanFest. Vouchers go on sale at www.orioles.com/fanfest at 10 a.m. on Saturday, Jan. 7. Last year, all vouchers sold out before FanFest, so plan accordingly, using the following schedule of player, manager and alumni appearances: ESSKAY...

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If Fielder doesn't pan out, healthy LaRoche a solid option

January 06, 2012, 5:22am

Nationals

If Fielder doesn't pan out, healthy LaRoche a solid option

For the sake of discussion, let's assume that Prince Fielder doesn't end up in D.C. in 2012. No majestic home runs reaching the second deck in right field. No snide comments about his weight the first time he goes into a slump. No spring training negotiations between Fielder and Jayson Werth - for cash, vintage automobiles, jewelry, etc. - over who gets to don jersey No. 28. If Fielder doesn't sign with the Nationals, could you stand to have a healthy, productive Adam LaRoche at first...

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Nats farmhand Zinicola hit with 50-game suspension

January 05, 2012, 11:02am

Nationals

Nats farmhand Zinicola hit with 50-game suspension

Nationals minor league pitcher Zech Zinicola has received a 50-game suspension from Major League Baseball for a second violation of the Minor League Drug Prevention and Treatment Program, according to a press release. The 26-year-old Zinicola's ban stemmed from a "drug of abuse," according to the release, meaning it wasn't for using performance-enhancing drugs. He was on the Triple-A Syracuse roster. The right-hander, a sixth-round pick of the Nationals in 2006, was 3-0 with a 2.01 ERA...

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Autograph vouchers for FanFest to go on sale at 10 a.m. on Saturday, Jan. 7

January 05, 2012, 8:51am

Orioles

Autograph vouchers for FanFest to go on sale at 10 a.m. on Saturday, Jan. 7

Limber up your typing fingers. Make sure your mouse-clicking wrist is at its most flexible. You'll need both come Saturday, Jan. 7, when vouchers for autograph sessions for the 2012 Orioles FanFest go on sale at 10 a.m. at www.orioles.com/fanfest. The list of autograph session times and who will be signing will be available at that same Web address by 9 p.m. Friday, Jan. 6. FanFest will be held Saturday, Jan. 21 at the Baltimore Convention Center from 11 a.m.-6 p.m., though season plan...

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How much is too much for Prince Fielder?

January 05, 2012, 6:30am

Nationals

How much is too much for Prince Fielder?

I'm starting to feel like I know Prince Fielder better than I should. Isn't it bad enough that I owned his slugging father Cecil on my American League Rotisserie team for many years, gambling a pick on the elder when he came back from Japan after rediscovering his home run stroke (and, apparently, a lot more rice than sushi)? But I've resigned myself to the fact that until he signs elsewhere, Prince will be dominating discussion in NatsTown. At least hot stove season isn't boring,...

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Celebrate Babe Ruth's 117th birthday at Sports Legends on Feb. 10

January 04, 2012, 10:07am

Orioles

Celebrate Babe Ruth's 117th birthday at Sports Legends on Feb. 10

You only turn 117 once - well, you would if you'd have lived that long - so that milestone calls for a celebration of Ruthian proportions. If you're a Baltimore baseball history nut, join like-minded fans at Sports Legends Museum on Friday, Feb. 10 for Babe's Birthday Bash, which will mark the 117th anniversary of Babe Ruth's birth in Baltimore (in the interest of history, please note that the Babe's actual arrival came Feb. 6, 1895, but organizers prefer a Friday night over a Tuesday...

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Report: Nationals ink pitcher Dan Cortes

January 04, 2012, 9:42am

Nationals

According to this tweet from Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus, the Nationals have signed right-hander Dan Cortes, who has pitched in the majors during parts of two seasons with the Mariners. The 24-year-old Cortes was originally a seventh-round pick by the White Sox in 2005, and was then traded to the Royals in July 2006 in a deal for reliever Mike MacDougal and dealt to the Mariners in July 2009 in a swap for shortstop Yuniesky Betancourt. Cortes reached the majors in 2010 with...

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Dobbs returns to Marlins, Nats still looking for bench help

January 04, 2012, 6:40am

Nationals

Dobbs returns to Marlins, Nats still looking for bench help

Scratch Greg Dobbs off the Nationals' list of potential bench additions for 2012. The left-handed-hitting corner infielder/outfielder signed a two-year, $3 million deal Tuesday to remain with the Miami Marlins. The 33-year-old Dobbs is a career .259 hitter with nine homers and 60 RBIs as a pinch hitter. Manager Davey Johnson wanted a guy or two on the bench who could run into a fastball late in a game, and Dobbs certainly fit that job description. So the Nationals will continue their search...

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Nationals' interest in Fielder is real, but could affect other players, too

January 03, 2012, 12:13pm

Nationals

Turns out there was some meat to those rumors after all. The Nationals are, indeed, in the running to sign free agent slugger Prince Fielder, and met with Fielder's agent, Scott Boras, recently in Washington, D.C., according to a baseball source. The news was first reported by MLB.com. Confirmation that the Nationals are talking to Fielder should come as no surprise, considering general manager Mike Rizzo has said he felt the team was one big bat and one solid arm away from contending for a...

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O's acquire Miller from A's, deal Snyder to Rangers

January 03, 2012, 9:20am

Orioles

O's acquire Miller from A's, deal Snyder to Rangers

The Orioles today announced that they have acquired outfielder Jai Miller from the Oakland Athletics in exchange for cash considerations and have also traded infielder Brandon Snyder to the Texas Rangers in exchange for cash considerations. Miller, 26, batted .276/.368/.588 with 32 home runs, 88 RBI and 16 stolen bases without being caught in 110 games for Triple-A Sacramento in 2011. He also appeared in seven games for the A's, going 3-for-12 with a home run. Miller has batted...

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What if ... the Expos (and Twins) had been contracted before 2002?

January 03, 2012, 8:06am

Nationals

What if ... the Expos (and Twins) had been contracted before 2002?

It may be a new year, and we may still be knee-deep in Prince Fielder rumors, but it's also "What If?" Wednesday, and we'll take this opportunity to tinker with baseball's space-time continuum to see what might have happened in Nationals history had something, somewhere occurred just a bit differently. This week, we set the way-back machine - that's a gratuitous "Peabody's Improbable History" reference, for the cartoon-challenged among you - for 2002, when commissioner Bud Selig was...

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Fielder chatter is becoming more difficult to ignore (updated with Nats in running)

January 02, 2012, 2:53pm

Nationals

Fielder chatter is becoming more difficult to ignore (updated with Nats in running)

The Nationals are expected this week to hold a press conference to introduce their newest acquisition, left-hander Gio Gonzalez. At the rate the Prince Fielder rumors are swirling around D.C., however, this might be the more likely line of questioning, and little has to do with the southpaw late of the Oakland A's: General manager Mike Rizzo, handing Gonzalez his new Nats jersey and cap: "We're thrilled and happy to welcome Gio Gonzalez to the Nationals family." Gonzalez, fumbling with...

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Is Steve Lombardozzi ready for the majors?

January 01, 2012, 8:40am

Nationals

Is Steve Lombardozzi ready for the majors?

In all the discussions about how the Nationals are trying to improve their bench for 2012, Steve Lombardozzi's name comes up - but only at the end of the conversation. Most agree that the 23-year-old infielder has a promising career ahead of him; the question remains whether he's ready to contribute at the major league level or whether he needs some more at-bats at Triple-A Syracuse. And then there's the pesky question about where the Nats can use him. Lombardozzi is a favorite among Nats...

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Despite Rizzo's continued denials, Fielder-to-Nationals rumors just won't die

December 30, 2011, 6:36pm

Nationals

No matter how many times he denies it, no matter how strongly general manager Mike Rizzo says Adam LaRoche is healthy and his team's first baseman for 2012, the Nationals continue to be linked to free agent slugger Prince Fielder. Maybe it's the fact that NatsTown isn't convinced LaRoche's surgically repaired shoulder is fit enough to withstand the rigors of a full season. Maybe it's the fact that Fielder remains unsigned as 2011 becomes 2012 and that his agent is Scott Boras, who has a...

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Palmer's tearful memories of teammate named top 2011 sportscasting moment

December 29, 2011, 9:29am

Orioles

Palmer's tearful memories of teammate named top 2011 sportscasting moment

We live in an era of television where today's great moment is tomorrow's distant memory. There's just too frequent a cycling of information and pictures for most broadcasts to burn a place in our consciousness. But according to SBNation, the most compelling television moment in sports during 2011 appeared on MASN's airwaves, where Orioles color commentator Jim Palmer didn't hide his emotions while discussing the shocking suicide death of former teammate Mike Flanagan, a fellow MASN...