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David Huzzard: A closer look at the Nats skipper Matt Williams

August 13, 2015, 5:43am

Since the trade deadline, the Washington Nationals are 4-11 and sinking fast in their National League East race against the Mets. An August/September division race is something new for the Washington Nationals. In 2012 and 2014, they were in the lead for most of the season and began to pull away at this time of year, and in 2013 the Nationals were so far out of it, a late surge made no difference. Now the Washington Nationals find themselves in a fight and they are currently behind on the...

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Zach Wilt: Some good news for the Orioles

August 12, 2015, 7:17pm

Orioles

Throughout the summer, there are days when I can't wait to sit down at the keyboard to share my thoughts on the Orioles and days in which I wish I had a bit more time to wait until the story turned positive. There's nothing more fun than blogging about your favorite baseball team when they're hitting extra-inning game-winning grand slams on the road, like I did this time last week. It's a bit more difficult after they've been no-hit and have just concluded an important road trip with just...

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Rachel Levitin: Rough run puts Nationals 2 1/2 games back in division

August 12, 2015, 6:47am

Nationals

It's been a rough run for the Washington Nationals as of late. They dropped last night's contest in a 5-0 shutout versus the Los Angeles Dodgers, and are trying to scrape their way back to the top of the National League East as baseball's regular season days die down. The Nats currently sit 2 1/2 games back in their division. Now - with the wild card - sitting a couple games back in the standings isn't necessarily the end all to a season with playoff hopes. However, the issue now lies in...

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Domenic Valada: Wild card teams can channel momentum for postseason run

August 12, 2015, 6:34am

Orioles

Domenic Valada: Wild card teams can channel momentum for postseason run

First off, while I recognize that it departs from my self-proclaimed status as a "baseball purist," let me preface this by saying that I really love how MLB approaches the postseason now. Some people still clamor for the old system of having two divisions and thus the two division champions going to the LCS series. If you feel that way, I can respect that. However, the fact is that over the years, some really good and deserving teams missed going to the postseason due to that system. So, the...

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Matt Kremnitzer: O's likely forced to hold steady during Miguel Gonzalez's rough stretch

August 11, 2015, 5:33am

Orioles

Matt Kremnitzer: O's likely forced to hold steady during Miguel Gonzalez's rough stretch

How bad does a starting pitcher have to perform before he gets removed from the rotation? For the last couple of months, Miguel Gonzalez seems to be pushing those boundaries. He was up to his usual tricks the first couple months of the season, but he's been off his game since late June. In the middle of that month, Gonzalez was placed on the disabled list with a right groin injury. Since his return outing on June 25, things have not gone well. In nine starts (46 1/3 innings), he has posted an...

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Matt of Matt's Bats: A closer look at Anthony Rendon's collision at home plate

August 11, 2015, 5:59am

Nationals

Matt of Matt's Bats: A closer look at Anthony Rendon's collision at home plate

During Sunday's Rockies-Nationals game, a lot of people questioned the ruling on the field in the 7th inning when the umpires called Anthony Rendon out at home plate. With Rendon on second and the score tied at 4-4, Ryan Zimmerman hit a single to right field. Rendon tried to score, testing the arm of Carlos Gonzalez. CarGo nailed a perfect throw to catcher Michael McKenry, who applied the tag to Rendon. Home plate umpire Alan Porter called Rendon out. Almost immediately, Nationals manager Matt...

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Marty Niland: Ryan Zimmerman's big weekend and memories of Frank Howard

August 10, 2015, 9:13am

Nationals

Marty Niland: Ryan Zimmerman's big weekend and memories of Frank Howard

If there was a silver lining in last weekend's series loss to the Colorado Rockies, it's that Ryan Zimmerman appears to have fully recovered from the plantar fasciitis that has sidelined him for much of this season. The Nationals first baseman has hit safely in four straight games and seven of his last nine, and driven in runs in seven consecutive games. But in the past week, he's shown that his power is back, crushing three homers, including blasts to center field in back-to-back innings on...

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Andrew Stetka: Recent DFAs tell strange story for Orioles

August 10, 2015, 8:49am

Orioles

The Orioles have gone about constructing and molding their roster in quite a different way this season. For a team that's chasing the Blue Jays and Yankees for the American League East crown, it has looked especially strange. There are a total of eight players from the opening day roster no longer with the team. That number jumps to nine if you include Ryan Webb, who was designated for assignment just before the team's first game. That's over 35 percent of the roster cast off before...

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David Huzzard: Explaining the Nats' struggles

August 06, 2015, 6:46am

Nationals

David Huzzard: Explaining the Nats' struggles

It is no secret that the Washington Nationals aren't playing well right now. They are 7-12 since the All-Star break, having allowed an average of 4.2 runs a game and scoring 3.4 runs a game. Both these numbers are well bellow league average and even further bellow what the Nationals are capable of. The Nationals have come out of the break pretty much the same way as they started the season. They were able to rally from that first sluggish start and will have to do so again if they wish to...

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Zach Wilt: How has Chris Davis rebounded?

August 05, 2015, 5:50pm

Orioles

Zach Wilt: How has Chris Davis rebounded?

As the Orioles entered the 2015 season, one of the major questions they faced centered around Chris Davis. Following his MVP-caliber 2013 season, in which he led baseball with 53 homers and 138 RBIs, Davis hit just 26 homers and drove in 72 in 2014. He played in 127 games while dealing with an oblique injury and finished the season with a 25-game suspension for a positive Adderall test. The offseason brought a number of questions as free agency loomed. Who is the real Chris Davis? Was he the...

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Matt of Matt's Bats: Looking at Michael A. Taylor's contributions to the Nats

August 04, 2015, 5:30am

Nationals

Matt of Matt's Bats: Looking at Michael A. Taylor's contributions to the Nats

The Washington Nationals are in a tough position right now, having just been swept by the New York Mets to give up sole possession of first place in the National League East and they got blasted to smithereens by the Diamondbacks. The Mets blasted the Marlins too, and now the Mets are up one game. Aside from making the next two months of baseball really competitive and fun to watch, there is some good news for Nats fans. The injuries that haunted the team have mostly healed, and now the Nats...

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Matt Kremnitzer: What's gone wrong for Travis Snider?

August 04, 2015, 4:43am

Orioles

Matt Kremnitzer: What's gone wrong for Travis Snider?

When the Orioles traded for Travis Snider before the season, I was optimistic about the move. Some options on the free agent market, like Nori Aoki and Colby Rasmus, made sense. The O's showed more interest in Rasmus than Aoki for some reason, but they opted to go in a different direction altogether. In Snider, the O's thought they were picking up a corner outfield bat with decent power, who was also under team control through 2016. Unfortunately, things have not worked out as planned this...

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Andrew Stetka: Gausman's importance never higher to O's

August 02, 2015, 4:26pm

Orioles

Andrew Stetka: Gausman's importance never higher to O's

It'd be insane for anyone to claim that the fate of a contending team relies on one player over the next two months, and that's especially the case if that player only takes the field every five days, but I can't help but shake the feeling that Kevin Gausman is of the utmost importance to the Orioles down the stretch. That may be a lot of pressure to put on a 24-year-old, who only has 31 career starts under his belt, but being inserted into the rotation on a full-time basis right now carries...

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Marty Niland: Crazy deadline day for ex-Nat Michael Morse

August 02, 2015, 5:52pm

Nationals

Marty Niland: Crazy deadline day for ex-Nat Michael Morse

Baseball fans love the thrill of the trade deadline as players move from one team to another, sometimes in head-spinning fashion. One guy whose head may still be spinning from the flurry of deadline deals is former National Michael Morse, who was a member of three different teams, and went from East Coast to West Coast and then back east again, in a span of 48 hours. Here's how it all went down: Morse, who played for the Nationals from 2009-2012, started this season with the Miami Marlins....

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Matthew Taylor: Orioles' homers, young and old

July 31, 2015, 5:40am

Orioles

Alex Rodriguez made headlines this week by becoming only the fourth player in baseball history to have homered both as a teenager and after turning 40. The others to have done it are Ty Cobb, Rusty Staub and Gary Sheffield. Surely you know that if I mention Alex Rodriguez in an Orioles blog post, there has to be a favorable connection to the hometown team. And there is. Brooks Robinson was roughly a month shy of joining the group of players listed above in the pre-20/40+ home run club....

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Zach Wilt: Comparing 2015 Orioles' position to the Royals' in 2014

July 30, 2015, 7:01am

Orioles

In the National Football League, the idea of parity is constantly preached. "Any given Sunday" is the mantra of the league that claims to be the most fair of any of the professional sports. A last place team a season ago can make the postseason 12 months later, and all it takes to win the Super Bowl is a hot stretch over a few games at the right time. That mentality is part of the reason that the game has become the most popular sport in our country. Maybe baseball should promote itself in...

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David Huzzard: Examining the final two months

July 30, 2015, 6:40am

Nationals

David Huzzard: Examining the final two months

Now that the Washington Nationals are almost fully healthy and have added Jonathan Paplebon, it is as good a time as any to discuss what to expect for the last couple of months of the season. The Nats may not be done adding players before the non-waiver trade deadline tomorrow or via the waiver trade market in August, but those moves are expected to be much smaller and no trade will make the Nats better than having Anthony Rendon back in the lineup. Whether it was from magic, voodoo or a...

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Rachel Levitin: How will Jonathan Papelbon mix in with Nationals bullpen?

July 29, 2015, 5:56am

Nationals

It looks like there's a new closing pitcher on Washington's roster. All-Star pitcher Jonathan Papelbon was traded from the Philadelphia Phillies to the Washington Nationals on Tuesday in exchange for minor league pitcher Nick Pivetta, and now it'll be interesting to see how the team's newest player integrates into the clubhouse. Outside of the business of baseball, many fans have expressed displeasure with the selection. That aside, I think the effect Papelbon has on the clubhouse and on...

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Domenic Vadala: Nick Markakis' return to Camden Yards a "Baltimore moment"

July 28, 2015, 5:19pm

Orioles

Domenic Vadala: Nick Markakis' return to Camden Yards a "Baltimore moment"

I, along with much of Birdland, had been anticipating July 27 for some time. Like most cities, Baltimore celebrates and appreciates its sports heroes. Over time we've seen many athletes play here only to leave and return in other uniforms, such as Eddie Murray, Bill Ripken, and even Rafael Palmeiro - albeit in a different manner given that he wasn't drafted here and brought into the big leagues with the Orioles. And we saw the same thing with Nick Markakis the other night when he came in as a...

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Matt Kremnitzer: Looking at Chris Davis in right field

July 21, 2015, 5:27am

Orioles

Matt Kremnitzer: Looking at Chris Davis in right field

Nothing gets by Buck Showalter, but that doesn't mean you have to believe everything he says. You probably shouldn't believe everything anyone says. In February, when discussing Chris Davis' chances of playing right field during the season, Showalter said, "Chris might be as good a right fielder as we have here." That comment surely made numerous fans roll their eyes. Perhaps that was less of a compliment than an unintentional (or intentional) dig at the defensive skills of some of the...