Clippard goes into, and out of, a massive jam (Nats win 3-2)

Clippard goes into, and out of, a massive jam (Nats win 3-2)
ATLANTA - The Nationals' bullpen has put itself in a number of tough spots this season. Tyler Clippard might top the list with his effort tonight, but somehow, Clippard managed to right the ship and allow the Nats to keep clinging to a 3-2 lead after seven innings. Called upon to work the seventh and protect a two-run advantage after Craig Stammen had thrown 49 pitches and retired all 12 batters he'd faced, Clippard got into quite a pickle. He allowed an infield single to Ramiro Pena...
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Harper still out, Lombardozzi in left

Harper still out, Lombardozzi in left
ATLANTA - Bryce Harper is out of the Nationals lineup for the fifth straight game because of bursitis in his left knee, leaving manager Davey Johnson to again try and piece together an outfield alignment featuring multiple bench players and a batting order that includes multiple guys with batting averages below the Mendoza Line. Johnson has opted to sit Tyler Moore for tonight's series opener against the Braves, instead going with Steve Lombardozzi in left field and Roger Bernadina in...
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Some of this, some of that

Some of this, some of that
File this in the "things you don't see every day" department: Braves closer Craig Kimbrel allowed back-to-back home runs in the ninth inning last night against the Reds, leading to a 5-4 Atlanta loss. Kimbrel allowed just three home runs all of last season, surrendered just seven total earned runs and blew three saves in 45 chances. This season, the flame-throwing right-hander has already allowed three homers, five earned runs and has blown three saves in 13 chances. After their ridiculous...
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Still waiting on Nats' lineup

Still waiting on Nats' lineup
ATLANTA - We're still waiting to see whether Bryce Harper and Jayson Werth will find their way into the Nationals' lineup for tonight's series finale against the Braves. The lineup has not yet been posted, likely because team trainers are evaluating one or both of the Nats' ailing outfielders. Harper left last night's game following a check swing in a sixth-inning at-bat. He was diagnosed with a bad bruise on his left side. The Nationals' leader in nearly every offensive category had...
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Johnson discusses another loss to Braves

Johnson discusses another loss to Braves
ATLANTA - For the fifth time this season, Davey Johnson met with reporters following a loss to the Braves. "Do we have to talk about this one?" Johnson said with a smirk on his face. Had the Nationals not just finished the month of April with a disappointing 13-14 record, Johnson might've been in full-blown smile mode when making that comment. Knowing how long the season is and how many games remain, he's usually fairly jolly at this point in the year, even after a loss. Instead,...
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An incredibly bizarre outing for Gio Gonzalez (Nats lose 8-1)

An incredibly bizarre outing for Gio Gonzalez (Nats lose 8-1)
ATLANTA - This is one of the more bizarre outings I've seen turned in by a starting pitcher in some time. Gio Gonzalez has struck out nine batters through four innings. His stuff has been good, his velocity is there and his pitches have plenty life. Outside of the strikeout numbers, however, everything else has gone wrong for Gonzalez. The Nationals left-hander has allowed five runs in his four innings of work. He's allowed seven hits. He's walked five Braves batters. He threw a wild...
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A handful of pregame notes and quotes (Werth out of Nats lineup)

A handful of pregame notes and quotes (Werth out of Nats lineup)
ATLANTA - The Nationals are 11-1 when scoring first this season. That's pretty good. When their opponents score first, the Nats have gone just 2-12. That's not as good. In their 13 losses this season, the Nats have scored a measly 1.5 runs per game. In their 13 wins, they've put up a more robust 5.8 runs per contest. The lesson here: If you score more runs, you're more likely to win games. That stat about teams scoring first usually is more relevant in football, where a team taking a...
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LaRoche snaps his skid, both teams make blunders on the bases (Strasburg struggling)

LaRoche snaps his skid, both teams make blunders on the bases (Strasburg struggling)
ATLANTA - Adam LaRoche's hitless streak is over. And you have to wonder how much of that is due to Chipper Jones. LaRoche snapped an 0-for-26 skid with a single to left in the second inning tonight. This comes just hours after LaRoche sat down and studied tape with his good buddy and former Braves star Chipper Jones. The Nationals first baseman's leadoff single started a two-run inning, as the Nats strung together four straight singles off Braves righty Julio Teheran and grabbed a 2-1...
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Ramos activated, Suzuki behind the plate again (with lineups)

Ramos activated, Suzuki behind the plate again (with lineups)
ATLANTA - The Nationals have activated Wilson Ramos from the 15-day disabled list, but Ramos is not in today's lineup against the Braves. Kurt Suzuki will start again behind the plate, marking the 15th time in a 16-game span that Suzuki has gotten the nod. He's played every inning of those 15 games. Ramos was sidelined the last 15 days with a left hamstring strain. Jhonatan Solano was optioned back to Triple-A Syracuse to make room for Ramos on the 25-man roster. Solano appeared in three...
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Nats head to Atlanta in search of some revenge

Nats head to Atlanta in search of some revenge
I'm off to Atlanta, ready for some quality National League East baseball and a city that doesn't have a ridiculous pollen count. I forgot to take my allergy pill yesterday and probably ripped off 150 sneezes in a 12-hour span. My apologies to everyone near me in the press box. When the Nationals last saw the Braves back at Nationals Park a little over two weeks ago, they got their butts handed to them. Not much other way to put it. Atlanta outscored the Nats 18-5 over that three-game...
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Strasburg details Braves' third inning and two-run shot by Gattis

Strasburg details Braves' third inning and two-run shot by Gattis
The Nationals' 3-1 loss to the Atlanta Braves was another quality battle between starting pitchers Tim Hudson and Stephen Strasburg. In the end, the Nationals right-hander gave up the more costly home run in a critical third inning. Evan Gattis' two-run shot was the big offensive play for the Braves, but it was set up by a Ryan Zimmerman throwing error that allowed Justin Upton to reach base. Upton then stole second base when Strasburg was just a moment late in his pickoff attempt to first...
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It all falls apart for Nats (Nats lose in 10 innings)

It all falls apart for Nats (Nats lose in 10 innings)
Well this didn't go as planned. After Tyler Clippard and Drew Storen each struggled in relief and contributed to the Nationals blowing a 4-1 lead, Craig Stammen surrendered a two-run homer to Ramiro Pena in the top of the 10th, giving the Braves a 6-4 lead. In 327 career at-bats, this was just Pena's third home run. And boy, was it a big one. The ball landed towards the back of the Nationals' bullpen, and a handful of Braves fans sprinkled throughout the stands exploded in cheers. The...
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Pitching probables for Nats-Braves weekend series (plus tonight's lineup)

Pitching probables for Nats-Braves weekend series (plus tonight's lineup)
The Nationals and Braves will square off tonight for the first of 19 times this season, with Ross Detwiler and Braves right-hander Julio Teheran taking the mound this evening at Nats Park. The 22-year-old Teheran has made just five career big league starts and has a 5.81 ERA in his brief major league career. Detwiler is coming off six strong innings in his 2013 debut. He allowed just an unearned run in a no-decision against the Reds last Saturday. Tomorrow, we'll get the Nats and Braves...
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Some of this, some of that (including a great Haren video)

Some of this, some of that (including a great Haren video)
While it's still incredibly early in the 2013 season, the battle for National League playoff spots just got a bit more interesting. Right-hander Zack Greinke, the Dodgers' $147 million man, fractured his left collarbone during a brawl last night, and might miss somewhere around the next two months. The injury happened after Greinke plunked Padres left fielder Carlos Quentin and Quentin charged the mound. Greinke defended himself from Quentin by ramming his left shoulder into the 240-lb....
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If Nats starters can go long, bullpen is set up to close deal

If Nats starters can go long, bullpen is set up to close deal
The Nationals' group of late-inning specialists, consisting of Tyler Clippard, Drew Storen and Rafael Soriano, could be that 1-2-3 punch at the end of games that manager Davey Johnson envisions. If these three can be like the Atlanta Braves' final three (Eric O'Flaherty, Jonny Venters and Craig Kimbrel), the Nationals, as Johnson hopes, can shorten games to six innings. Here is my blog about those three from February. And with a starting five of Stephen Strasburg, Gio Gonzalez, Jordan...
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Karns to get X-ray on leg, Garcia getting closer to throwing (plus lineups)

Karns to get X-ray on leg, Garcia getting closer to throwing (plus lineups)
VIERA, Fla. - When Davey Johnson sat down for his pregame session with reporters late this morning, the Netherlands was tied with Cuba in the bottom of the ninth inning of its elimination game in the World Baseball Classic. By the time Johnson's session had ended, the Netherlands had won on a walk-off sacrifice fly. Johnson, who managed the Netherlands in the 2004 Summer Olympics, was told of the win as he headed out to get ready for batting practice to start. "All right!" Johnson yelled,...
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Detwiler's Team USA performance forecasts well for Nationals' rotation

Detwiler's Team USA performance forecasts well for Nationals' rotation
With left-hander Ross Detwiler throwing not one, but four scoreless innings this week for Team USA, you have to admire how far the 26-year-old has come in a year and a half, and how crucial his pitching is to the Nationals' rotation. Detwiler allowed just one hit in those four innings. Manager Joe Torre had enough confidence in the southpaw to go out and let him finish the ninth frame for the save. Detwiler has shown with international experience in the Taiwan series last year and now the...
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Nats hoping to play through the drops, plus lineups

Nats hoping to play through the drops, plus lineups
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. - The tarp is on the field here at Champion Stadium at ESPN's Wide World of Sports, and the skies have opened up. They're calling for some pretty heavy showers here this afternoon and I've even heard rumblings of a tornado watch, but the Nationals are really hoping to get today's contest in, largely because they want to get Ross Detwiler into a game. Detwiler is scheduled to leave the Nats on March 4 to join Team USA for the World Baseball Classic. He'll get a...
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Nationals relievers' acceptance of new roles key to matching Braves bullpen

Nationals relievers' acceptance of new roles key to matching Braves bullpen
In 2012, the Nationals watched from their own division as the Atlanta Braves put together a final inning formula for shutting down opponents. With Eric O'Flaherty, Jonny Venters and Craig Kimbrel, the Braves had the seventh, eighth and ninth innings effectively extinguished for opposing hitters. And with the Braves' starting staff needing only to get through the sixth frame, the game was shortened to those 18 outs to start the game. Venters, with his sinkerball, pitched 45 of his 53 1/3...
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Nats starting times released, April begins with matinee against Marlins

Nats starting times released, April begins with matinee against Marlins
Major League Baseball released the Nationals' 2013 start times this week. The home opener is April 1 at 1:05 p.m. against the Miami Marlins. That series includes a 7:05 p.m. start on April 3 and a getaway day start at 4:05 p.m. on April 4. The White Sox arrive the next week from April 9-11 for three 7:05 p.m. starts. Then the homestand continues with the first big test, against the Atlanta Braves from April 12-14. The three games in the Braves weekend series begin at 7:05 p.m., 1:05 p.m. and...
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