nationals

Nats getting contributions from entire bullpen

May 02, 2016, 9:32pm

KANSAS CITY - With his team holding onto a 2-0 lead in the seventh inning last night against a Royals lineup that won last year's World Series thanks in large part to its ability to string together big rallies late in games, Nationals manager Dusty Baker could have gone the paint-by-numbers approach with the back end of his bullpen. Felipe Rivero in the seventh. Blake Treinen in the eighth. Jonathan Papelbon in the ninth. That, on paper, is the way the Nationals have drawn up the final three...

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Calm, poised Gonzalez turning into "a different guy on the mound"

May 02, 2016, 8:52pm

Nationals

Calm, poised Gonzalez turning into "a different guy on the mound"

KANSAS CITY - There were moments during tonight's game that looked all too familiar to Gio Gonzalez, moments when the left-hander could have been on the brink of disaster and too often in the past succumbed to the pressure. A 28-pitch first inning that featured tough at-bat after tough at-bat from the Royals. A two-on, two-out jam in the third with the heart of the lineup at the plate. A two-on, one-out jam in the sixth as his pitch count approached and then topped the century mark. Each time,...

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Gonzalez runs Nats' winning streak to four games

May 02, 2016, 7:26pm

Nationals

Gonzalez runs Nats' winning streak to four games

KANSAS CITY - They marched into St. Louis and won three straight, pulling off their first sweep at Busch Stadium. Now they've marched into Kansas City and taken the opener of their interleague series against the defending World Series champs. Behind another highly effective pitching performance from Gio Gonzalez and another early offensive explosion, the Nationals took a quick 2-0 lead on the Royals and made it hold up the rest of the night. Gonzalez wasn't as sharp as he had been in several...

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Revere goes five innings for Syracuse, still trending toward Thursday return

May 03, 2016, 7:38am

Nationals

Revere goes five innings for Syracuse, still trending toward Thursday return

Center fielder Ben Revere, on a minor league rehabilitation assignment with a strained right oblique, played five innings in Triple-A Syracuse's 1-0 win over Rochester on Monday, going 0-for-3. On defense, he caught a pair of flyouts in the second inning and one in the third. He squeezed a flyout in the fourth and then retrieved a single later in the inning. On offense, he grounded out to the pitcher in the first and grounded out to the first baseman in his second at-bat. He later grounded out...

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Steve Mears: A look at the Nats' developing outfielders

May 03, 2016, 5:01am

Nationals

Steve Mears: A look at the Nats' developing outfielders

The Nationals' minor league affiliates are developing outfielders, and this started years ago with Billy Burns, who was used as trade bait to snag Jerry Blevins. In a subsequent trade of Blevins, Mike Rizzo traded him to snag Matt den Dekker. Let's review the pipeline of prospects: * Hagerstown Low-A, Victor Robles* Potomac High-A, Andrew Stevenson* Harrisburg Double-A, Rafael Bautista* Syracuse Triple-A, Brian Goodwin All of those minor leaguers are currently batting over .300 and each have...

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After shaky debut, Kelley quietly dominant out of Nats bullpen

May 02, 2016, 3:13pm

Nationals

After shaky debut, Kelley quietly dominant out of Nats bullpen

KANSAS CITY - The Nationals gave Shawn Kelley a three-year, $15 million contract over the winter because they believed he was a guy they could trust to pitch in big spots late in ballgames. And they couldn't have found a much bigger spot to throw Kelley into for his first assignment this season: a bases-loaded, two-out jam in the bottom of the eighth inning of a tie game on opening day. So when Kelley proceeded to walk that batter (Atlanta's Adonis Garcia) on four pitches (all of them at...

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First-inning offense continues, even without Harper (Nats win 2-0)

May 02, 2016, 5:30pm

Nationals

First-inning offense continues, even without Harper (Nats win 2-0)

KANSAS CITY - The Nationals continue to do damage in the first inning, even if Bryce Harper isn't contributing to it. With Harper mired in a sudden slump, the Nats have had to turn to others for offense. They delivered all weekend during a three-game sweep in St. Louis, and they delivered again in the top of the first tonight in their interleague series opener in at Kauffman Stadium, scoring two quick runs to take an early lead. Michael A. Taylor and Anthony Rendon set the table with a leadoff...

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Bryce Harper wins NL Player of the Month Award

May 02, 2016, 11:15am

Nationals

Bryce Harper wins NL Player of the Month Award

KANSAS CITY - Bryce Harper was named National League Player of the Month for April this afternoon, further confirmation of the reigning league MVP's torrid start to the 2016 season. Harper hit .286 with nine homers, 24 RBIs, five stolen bases and a 1.120 OPS in 23 game for the month, which the 23-year-old actually ended in a 1-for-13 slump. He was hitting .328 with a 1.274 OPS as recently as April 26 before falling into his current skid (which included an 0-for-11 weekend in St....

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Game 25 lineups: Nats at Royals

May 02, 2016, 12:43pm

Nationals

KANSAS CITY - Hello from beautiful Kauffman Stadium, maybe baseball's most underrated ballpark. This is only the Nationals' second trip here; they took two of three in 2013, but this is a far different Royals team they're facing now than they did back then. The defending World Series champs are off to a bit of a ragged start, but they remain an imposing foe, making this a marquee matchup for the next three days. The Nationals are flying high after their three-game sweep in St. Louis, their...

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What we learned from the first month of the baseball season

May 02, 2016, 12:34pm

Nationals Orioles

What we learned from the first month of the baseball season

The first month of the baseball season is in the books. The first checkpoint has arrived, and so here's what you need to know about April's developing stories. * The Trevor-ending story: Sorry to start with a bad pun, but who could resist? And who would have thought that Colorado shortstop Trevor Story's home runs would be all the rage after the first month? He has 10 going into the week, including five in Arizona and four at the Rockies' Coors Field. In an unusual scheduling twist, the...

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Harper named NL Player of the Month

May 02, 2016, 11:27am

Nationals

Beginning the encore to his MVP season with a superb opening month of 2016, Washington Nationals outfielder Bryce Harper was named the National League Player of the Month for April on Monday. Major League Baseball made the announcement on MLB Network. Harper, 23, hit .286 with a .406 on-base percentage and a .714 slugging percentage (best in MLB) in 23 April games. In that period, he drove in an MLB-best 24 runs, clubbed nine home runs (3rd in MLB), stole five bases, clobbered 15 extra-base...

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Ramos remembers his grandfather, ready to return to baseball

May 01, 2016, 7:07pm

Nationals

Ramos remembers his grandfather, ready to return to baseball

ST. LOUIS - Wilson Ramos ambled onto the field at Busch Stadium yesterday morning, his Nationals teammates having already been out there for a little while taking batting practice, and began the process of returning to his professional life after a five-day break to take care of his personal life. Ramos, who had gone home to Venezuela following the death of his grandfather, admittedly was still grieving but found solace in putting on his uniform again and preparing for yesterday's game against...

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Nationals rediscover their swagger during St. Louis sweep

May 01, 2016, 3:18pm

Nationals

ST. LOUIS - That the Nationals just swept the Cardinals at Busch Stadium for the first time ever was notable enough. That they did it despite Bryce Harper going hitless in all three games this weekend was downright scary. Scary for future competition. "That tells me that somebody's in trouble," manager Dusty Baker said. "Somebody's in trouble because Bryce ain't going hitless for too long a period of time. Whenever you can do that without your star having a good series ... we picked him...

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Marty Niland: Nationals pitchers showing no need for DH role

May 02, 2016, 4:08am

Nationals

When the Nationals visit the Kansas City Royals tonight, manager Dusty Baker will pencil a designated hitter into his lineup for the first time this season. But even playing in an American League park, Baker might actually think twice before he doing so. Most Nationals fans could sense that Joe Ross was done for the day as he walked off the field after tossing six stellar innings in Saturday's 6-1 victory in St. Louis. With a 4-1 lead at the time, he had rebounded nicely from a finger blister...

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Opposite dugout: Royals enter interleague series after rough road trip

May 01, 2016, 1:18pm

Nationals

Opposite dugout: Royals enter interleague series after rough road trip

Manager: Ned Yost (7th year) Record: 13-11 Last 10 games: 4-6 Who to watch: 1B Eric Hosmer (.333/.374/.538 with 4 HR, 9 RBIs), 3B Mike Moustakas (7 HR,11 RBIs), C Salvador Perez (14 RBIs), RHP Edinson Volquez (3-1, 3.34 ERA), RHP Wade Davis (8 saves, 0.00 ERA), RHP Kelvin Herrera (0.00 ERA, 17 Ks in 12 1/3 IP) Season series vs. Nationals: First meeting (1-2 in 2013) Pitching probables: May 2: LHP Gio Gonzalez vs. RHP Edinson Volquez, 8:15 p.m., MASN May 3: RHP Tanner Roark vs. RHP Chris Young,...

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Revere plays seven innings for Syracuse, steals a base

May 01, 2016, 3:22pm

Nationals

Revere plays seven innings for Syracuse, steals a base

Ben Revere returned to the Syracuse lineup Sunday, playing seven innings in center field, as the Chiefs dropped Pawtucket 5-4 in 10 innings. Revere grounded out to shortstop, reached on a fielder's choice and grounded out to the pitcher in three at-bats. In the third inning, he reached on a fielder's choice. With Trea Turner batting, he stole second base. The Chiefs begin a three-game set Monday night at home against Rochester. After playing five innings in back-to-back games, Revere had the...

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Nats cap off historic sweep of Cardinals with 6-1 win

May 01, 2016, 1:03pm

Nationals

Nats cap off historic sweep of Cardinals with 6-1 win

ST. LOUIS - With a big-time bounceback performance from Max Scherzer and back-to-back homers from a couple of previously slumping hitters, the Nationals beat the Cardinals yet again this afternoon, pulling off their first-ever series sweep in St. Louis. The Nationals' 6-1 victory at Busch Stadium, on the heels of 5-4 and 6-1 triumphs, capped off an impressive weekend and kicked off a daunting road trip in a manner few could have reasonably foreseen only three days ago. Scherzer set the tone,...

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Scherzer, Martinez dealing and dueling (Nats win 6-1)

May 01, 2016, 11:16am

Nationals

Scherzer, Martinez dealing and dueling (Nats win 6-1)

ST. LOUIS - Max Scherzer looks like his old self so far today. And that must be bringing some semblance of relief to any Nationals fan who might have started worrying about their previously struggling ace. Scherzer mowed through the Cardinals lineup in his first crack this afternoon, striking out four and displaying much better command than he did in his last two troublesome starts. Pitching in his hometown, Scherzer took the mound sporting an uncharacteristic 4.35 ERA that was far and away the...

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Ramos returns from bereavement leave, Severino optioned

May 01, 2016, 9:47am

Nationals

Ramos returns from bereavement leave, Severino optioned

ST. LOUIS - Wilson Ramos rejoined the Nationals this morning and was activated off the bereavement list, making the veteran catcher eligible to play in today's series finale against the Cardinals. Ramos had been away from the team five days following the death of his grandfather, Jesus Campos, missing the Nats' entire series against the Phillies and then this weekend's first two games in St. Louis. It wasn't immediately clear whether Ramos would be activated today or not, but he emerged...

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Game 24 lineups: Nats at Cardinals

May 01, 2016, 7:01am

Nationals

ST. LOUIS - In their 11-plus seasons of existence, the Nationals have never found themselves in this particular situation: a chance to sweep a series in St. Louis. Shoot, they had only taken two of three once before at either version of Busch Stadium, back in 2007 when Manny Acta's club pulled it off. Today, though, the Nats are in position to do it. They won Friday night's game 5-4. They won yesterday's game 6-1. Now they'll send St. Louis native Max Scherzer to the mound in an attempt to...