Harper homers again for 6-4 walk-off win

Harper homers again for 6-4 walk-off win
Both teams jump on the board quickly in the Sunday finale. The Phillies' César Hernández slammed a 2-0 Gio Gonzalez offering over the left field wall to give the Phillies a 1-0 lead. He now has homers in his last two at-bats in the series, three for the season. The Nationals' Adam Eaton answered with a double to begin the bottom of the first. Anthony Rendon then bounced a ground-rule double over the left-center field wall to score Eaton and tie the game at 1-1. In the third with one...

Turner ready to return but will defer to Nats' medical decision

Turner ready to return but will defer to Nats' medical decision
Trea Turner went through a full round of pregame drills this morning and suggested he's ready to come off the disabled list Wednesday when he's eligible, but acknowledged the Nationals may want to be more cautious in bringing him back from a mild right hamstring injury. Turner ran sprints in the outfield, took full batting practice and fielded grounders at short before today's series finale against the Phillies. That heavy workout left him optimistic he could return to game action as soon as...

Harper's walk-off homer brings Nats back for thrilling 6-4 win

Harper's walk-off homer brings Nats back for thrilling 6-4 win
Their bullpen and their defense had conspired to leave them in position to suffer yet another demoralizing loss late. Then Bryce Harper decided to take matters into his own hands and completely flip the script for the Nationals. Harper's three-run homer on a full count with two outs in the bottom of the ninth brought the Nats back from the dead and gave them a 6-4 victory that already stands as their most inspired of the young season. Trailing by a run when the final frame began, the Nationals...

Game 12 lineups: Nats vs. Phillies

Game 12 lineups: Nats vs. Phillies
You wouldn't have thought the Nationals' toughest opponent through the season's first two weeks would end up being the Phillies, but here we are nonetheless. The Nats have lost three of their five head-to-head matchups so far with their rebuilding rivals from a couple hours up the road, including yesterday's disheartening 4-2 defeat via another late home run off a reliever. The Nationals will try to reverse the trend today, looking to at least take this weekend series and even up their...

Heisey and Roark demonstrate effectiveness in loss

Heisey and Roark demonstrate effectiveness in loss
One of the better signings the Nationals have made the last few seasons is utility man Chris Heisey. The 32-year-old from Mount Joy, Penn., came over to the Nationals after playing for the Dodgers during the 2015 season. He played only 33 games for Los Angeles following five seasons with the Reds, three of which he hovered around 120 games played. Last season, he got into 83 games for the Nationals and had a penchant for producing runs in a limited role. Heisey hit nine homers with three...

Despite another homer, Blanton feels he can find solution

Despite another homer, Blanton feels he can find solution
The Nationals and Phillies battled to a 2-2 deadlock after seven innings. Philadelphia then got a two-run shot from César Hernández in the eighth inning to go ahead and eventually win 4-2. Right-hander Joe Blanton (0-2) allowed the homer that changed the game. It marked the third straight appearance that Blanton had surrendered a home run. He has now allowed seven hits in six appearances. What does Blanton think is the problem? "Just not executing," Blanton said. "I mean, let's see,...

Pitchers in control early on (Phillies win 4-2)

Pitchers in control early on (Phillies win 4-2)
Right-handers Tanner Roark and Jeremy Hellickson are in a Saturday afternoon pitchers' duel between the Nationals and Phillies. Roark has not allowed a baserunner in the first three innings, retiring nine straight batters. He struck out the last two he faced in Freddy Galvis and Hellickson. Hellickson also did well in the first two frames, although the Nats have reached deep right field on lineouts by Anthony Rendon, Daniel Murphy and a flyout by Ryan Zimmerman. With one out in the third, the...

Baker on lineup, Jackie Robinson Day, Wizards and Capitals

Baker on lineup, Jackie Robinson Day, Wizards and Capitals
Manager Dusty Baker decided to give left fielder Jayson Werth, catcher Matt Wieters and center fielder Adam Eaton a day of rest as the Nationals face the Phillies in a Saturday matinee. Chris Heisey, Michael A. Taylor and Jose Lobaton take their respective spots in the field. Baker confirmed it was justa day of rest and not for injury concerns. He also said the players went happy about sitting. "Wieters, I think, has only rested one day," Baker said. "Eaton hadn't rested any and Werth...

Strasburg goes seven again in latest lengthy start

Strasburg goes seven again in latest lengthy start
His 3.00 ERA, his 1.00 WHIP and his 19-to-5 strikeout-to-walk ratio all suggest Stephen Strasburg has pitched quite well to begin his season. The stat that the Nationals right-hander takes the most pride in after three starts? The 21 innings he has pitched. "Going out there for the seventh inning, every time," he said. "I think that's something that I want to try, and as much as I can, is go deep into the ballgame and keep it close and give the guys a chance to win the game." Strasburg has...

Game 11 lineups: Phillies at Nats

Game 11 lineups: Phillies at Nats
The Nationals look for their first series win over the Phillies this season as they get back to the field a mere 17 1/2 hours after Daniel Murphy's thrilling double scored Bryce Harper from first base in a 3-2 10-inning victory. Murphy is riding a 10-game hitting streak to begin the season. His six doubles are tied with the Dodgers' Justin Turner for most in the National League. Boston's Mitch Moreland leads the major leagues with eight. But Murphy's 20 hits are the best in the majors, with...

Murphy's hittin' and Harper's haulin' give Nationals a big win

Murphy's hittin' and Harper's haulin' give Nationals a big win
Once he had reached out and poked Jeanmar Gómez's sinker to left field, and once he saw the ball safely hit grass and start rolling toward the corner, Daniel Murphy's eyes shifted to the man running the bases in front of him. "I'm watching Bryce," Murphy said. As were 38,664 fans, and everybody else inside a crowded Nationals Park on this rare Friday late-afternoon ballgame. Bryce Harper, who was standing off first at the time of the pitch in the bottom of the 10th, didn't hesitate...

Glover, Treinen and Kelley get bullpen back on track

Glover, Treinen and Kelley get bullpen back on track
One important reason the Nationals were able to sustain long enough to earn an opportunity to win in the 10th inning Friday against the Phillies was the quality pitching from their bullpen, something they had not enjoyed for the past few games. In the Phillies' final three innings, they were held to no runs on one hit. Koda Glover, Blake Treinen and Shawn Kelley kept the Phillies off the board. The Nationals' Daniel Murphy lined a double down the left field line that scored Bryce Harper all...

Latest updates on Turner and Drew

Latest updates on Turner and Drew
Manager Dusty Baker updated the progress and timetable for return of shortstop Trea Turner, who is on the 10-day disabled list with a right hamstring strain. "We don't know yet," Baker said. "He hit the other day, said he felt pretty good. He's been getting a lot of treatment, riding the bike. Running as tolerated. My experience with hamstrings is whenever they tell you they are ready, then I believe in giving them another couple days. I haven't really pressed him on how he's feeling...

Murphy's double in 10th delivers 3-2 walk-off win for Nats

Murphy's double in 10th delivers 3-2 walk-off win for Nats
The first two weeks of the Nationals' season have seen multiple games lost late when the bullpen couldn't post zeros and the lineup couldn't deliver a key hit. Perhaps this evening's 3-2 victory over the Phillies will reverse that trend. Daniel Murphy's double into the left field corner in the bottom of the 10th brought Bryce Harper all the way home from first base and provided the Nationals with their first walk-off victory of the season. The clutch hit came after the Nationals got...

Baker on Ross' return, Strasburg's stretch and Wieters' progress

Baker on Ross' return, Strasburg's stretch and Wieters' progress
Dusty Baker sees the same minor league box scores available to everyone else online, so he knows Joe Ross pitched seven innings of one-run ball Thursday afternoon for Triple-A Syracuse. The Nationals manager, however, isn't so quick to evaluate Ross' performance strictly off his pitching line. Because the setting didn't exactly match what the right-hander would be seeing in the big leagues. "It's a little different pitching down there," Baker said. "You've got to create your own...

After strong Triple-A start, Ross on track to join Nats next week

After strong Triple-A start, Ross on track to join Nats next week
The Nationals should finally have their regular No. 5 starter pitching for them next week. And, barring some unforeseen complication, for many weeks to come. After a strong start for Triple-A Syracuse on Thursday, Joe Ross is now lined up to join the Nationals rotation next week and make his major league season debut Wednesday in Atlanta. Ross tossed seven innings of one-run ball Thursday afternoon at Pawtucket, scattering six hits and striking out six without walking a batter. He threw 85...

Game 10 lineups: Nats vs. Phillies

Game 10 lineups: Nats vs. Phillies
Fresh from a day off, the Nationals return to action today for a rare Friday matinee against the Phillies. For those asking: No, I don't know exactly why this game is starting at 4:05 p.m. It's Good Friday, which has something to do with it. But nobody with the Nats I've asked over the last week was able to provide an explanation, or was even able to say whether this was something they requested or was unilaterally done by MLB. The Nationals are facing the same Phillies club that took two of...

Nationals host Jackie Robinson Day and Black Heritage Day on Saturday

Nationals host Jackie Robinson Day and Black Heritage Day on Saturday
WHAT: On Saturday, April 15, 70 years to the day that Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier in Major League Baseball, the Washington Nationals will host Black Heritage Day. This year's Black Heritage Day event falls on the same day as the league-wide Jackie Robinson Day celebration. During the pregame ceremony and the game itself, the Nationals will honor the contributions of African-Americans to the game of baseball and the community. For this special occasion, all players and on-field...

David Huzzard: Getting used to offense-first Nationals

David Huzzard: Getting used to offense-first Nationals
It's a strange new world for Nationals fans. For the last five seasons, the Nationals have been a good team and sometimes one of the best teams in baseball, and they've done so on the back of their starting rotation. This current iteration of the Nationals is very different. Pitching is not a strength, and after Tanner Roark, the starting rotation is a weakness. When July 31 rolls around, the Nationals are going to be looking for a starting pitcher and bullpen help. The latter has been the...

Thursday morning Nats Q&A

Thursday morning Nats Q&A
The first week and a half of the Nationals' season has not lacked for compelling storylines. There have been positives (eight-ninths of the lineup, four-fifths of the rotation) and there have been negatives (injuries to everybody who plays shortstop, struggles by everybody who pitches out of the bullpen). The end result of all of that? A 5-4 record, with series wins at home over the Marlins and Cardinals and a series loss on the road at Philadelphia. The Nationals are off today before...