nationals

Nationals sign a pair of teenage international players; Suero promoted to Double-A

July 02, 2015, 1:13pm

Several teams are making news with the signings of Dominican baseball teenagers. The Nationals have spent a great deal of time and resources combing the Dominican for the best talent available and have had continued success with the opening of their Dominican baseball academy. Today the team announced they have agreed to terms with outfielder Juan Soto and infielder Luis Aquino. Nationals president of baseball operations and general manager Mike Rizzo and director of Latin American operations...

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David Huzzard: Savoring July as baseball's most enjoyable month

July 01, 2015, 5:22pm

Nationals

David Huzzard: Savoring July as baseball's most enjoyable month

Welcome to July, one of the busiest months on the baseball calendar. First off, today is the opening of the international signing period which means a bunch of 15- and 16-year- olds out of the Caribbean will be signed by major league teams with the hopes of one day making it to the American minor leagues and then possibly the majors. This is only interesting in the fact that one day some of these players will be good but that is so far off it isn't even worth thinking about. Wilmer Difo has...

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Nationals offense stalls in 4-1 loss

July 01, 2015, 9:02pm

Nationals

The Braves did all of their damage in the fourth inning against right-hander Doug Fister to end a nine-game losing streak against the Nationals with a 4-1 win. "I was fighting myself a little bit," Fister said to reporters. "Period. Didn't get my job done. I didn't keep our team in the game and that hurts." Fister faced only 10 batters in the first three innings, yielding just one walk without a hit. But in the crucial fourth, the Braves sent nine to the plate with five delivering hits....

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Max Scherzer aiming for series win in first shot at Braves

July 02, 2015, 4:37am

Nationals

Max Scherzer aiming for series win in first shot at Braves

The Braves get their first look this season at Nationals ace Max Scherzer in tonight's series finale in Atlanta. Scherzer finished June with one of the more remarkable three-game pitching performances the game has seen. He took perfect games into the sixth inning in all three starts while achieving a no-hitter, two complete-game shutouts and three wins. Scherzer surrendered just six hits in 26 innings over the three outings, striking out 33, walking one and hitting one batter. "Dominance,"...

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Nats look to Fister for 10 in a row over Braves (game started)

July 01, 2015, 12:26pm

Nationals

Nats look to Fister for 10 in a row over Braves (game started)

The Nationals begin July in first place in the National League East, holding a 3 1/2 game lead over the Mets and leading tonight's opponent, the Braves, by seven. Nationals manager Matt Williams will send veteran righty Doug Fister to the mound to face Braves highly-ranked right-hander Matt Wisler. It will be a rematch from last Thursday night when Fister outpitched the 22-year-old as the Nationals finished off a sweep against the Braves in a 7-0 win. Fister allowed just four hits with one...

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Homers cost Fister in Nats' 4-1 loss

July 01, 2015, 6:48pm

Nationals

Nationals right-hander Doug Fister cruised through the Braves order the first time around, giving up just a walk to Cameron Maybin in the opening inning. Maybin bothered Fister in the fourth again, this time delivering Atlanta's first hit to trigger a big inning. Two batters later, Braves catcher A.J. Pierzynski battled Fister before ripping a 3-2 cutter over the right field wall for a two-run homer. It was Pierzynski's third longball of his career against Fister. Juan Uribe stepped to the...

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Curveball big key to Jordan Zimmermann's recent surge

July 01, 2015, 8:08am

Nationals

Curveball big key to Jordan Zimmermann's recent surge

Nationals starter Jordan Zimmermann has been able to locate and establish his curveball early in counts, which has helped his fastball and approach in his last two starts. On Tuesday night, he held the Braves scoreless for 7 2/3 innings on six hits with no walks while striking out six for the win, 6-1. "I had a good curveball the last two starts and felt like I could throw it when I wanted to, where I wanted to, any count," Zimmermann told reporters. "Keep them off balance, just pound the...

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Opposite dugout: Braves look to get Nats monkey off their backs

June 29, 2015, 11:12am

Nationals

Opposite dugout: Braves look to get Nats monkey off their backs

Manager: Fredi Gonzalez (5th season) Record: 36-40 Last 10 games: 4-6 Who to watch: RF Nick Markakis (.300/.387/.355 with 23 RBIs), CF Cameron Maybin (.286 with 6 HR, 36 RBIs), C A.J. Pierzynski (.268/.308/.404 with 4 HR, 24 RBIs), SS Andrelton Simmons (.271 with 28 RBIs), RHP Shelby Miller (5-3, 1.94 ERA), RHP Jason Grilli (21 saves, 3.14 ERA) Season series vs. Nationals: 1-8 Pitching probables: June 30: RHP Jordan Zimmermann vs. RHP Shelby Miller, 7:10 p.m., MASN July 1: RHP Doug Fister vs....

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Zimmermann shuts down Braves (Nats win 6-1)

June 30, 2015, 3:36pm

Nationals

Zimmermann shuts down Braves (Nats win 6-1)

The Nationals managed only one run off Braves starter Shelby Miller over seven innings last Wednesday night. Tonight, they exploded for four runs in the opening frame off the right-hander. Denard Span started it off with a single to left. Danny Espinosa then pounded a double to the gap in left-center field, scoring Span all the way from first. Some aggressive base running landed Espinosa on third on a ground out from Yunel Escobar. After Miller struck out Bryce Harper, Wilson Ramos delivered a...

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Robles shining in GCL; Turner and Cole updates from Syracuse

June 29, 2015, 6:35pm

Nationals

Robles shining in GCL; Turner and Cole updates from Syracuse

Nationals outfielder Victor Robles is only 18 years old, but he is playing with the confidence and ability of a veteran in his first few weeks of Gulf Coast League competition. The outfielder from the Dominican Republic is batting .524 (11-for-21) with one double, one triple, two homers, three stolen bases and six RBIs in his first seven games. His on-base percentage is .600 and his OPS is an insane 1.552. Monday was his first hitless game of the season, and he went 0-for-1. He was walked three...

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Zimmermann dominates Braves again in Nats' 6-1 win

June 30, 2015, 7:22pm

Nationals

Zimmermann dominates Braves again in Nats' 6-1 win

The Nationals' bats jumped on Shelby Miller quickly, giving Jordan Zimmermann more than enough offense to beat the Braves 6-1 tonight. Zimmermann dominated Atlanta for the second time in the last six days. He scattered six hits with six strikeouts and no walks over 7 2/3 scoreless innings. Zimmermann's control and command was superb as the right-hander only threw 24 balls out of his 109 pitches, meaning 78 percent of his pitches were strikes, the highest strike percentage of his career in 7...

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A look at one National League All-Star team ballot

July 01, 2015, 7:03am

Nationals

A look at one National League All-Star team ballot

Here's one ballot for the National League All-Star team, which will be announced Sunday by Major League Baseball: First base: Paul Goldschmidt, ArizonaThe Diamondbacks are one of the best run-producing teams in the NL, and Goldschmidt might be the best player in team history. He's an excellent defensive player who hits with power and gets on base more than 47 percent of the time. And, he might end up with 25 stolen bases. Backup: Anthony Rizzo, Chicago Cubs Second base: Dee Gordon,...

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Dan Uggla leading in supporting role

June 30, 2015, 2:12am

Nationals

Dan Uggla has just one home run this year, but it's arguably the biggest homer blasted for the Nationals all season. Staring at a puzzling 7-13 start and mired in a six-game losing streak, the Nats found themselves trailing by eight runs in Atlanta on April 28. But resilience took over, and so did some heavy bats as the Nationals chipped away at the Braves' seemingly insurmountable lead before Uggla finished off the historic comeback with a game-winning three-run homer in the ninth for the...

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Zimmermann and Miller set to duel again (with lineups)

June 30, 2015, 12:18pm

Nationals

Zimmermann and Miller set to duel again (with lineups)

Right-handers Jordan Zimmermann and Shelby Miller are set to tangle for the second time in less than a week when the Nationals and Braves face off tonight in Atlanta. Both came away without a decision in the Nationals 2-1, 11-inning win last Wednesday in D.C. Zimmermann threw eight scoreless frames in that game, scattering six hits and striking out three without a walk. He left with a 1-0 lead before the Braves tied it up against Drew Storen in the ninth. Miller, who owns the National League's...

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Rachel Levitin: Nats' depth has come in handy

July 01, 2015, 5:22am

Nationals

Rachel Levitin: Nats' depth has come in handy

The Nationals are 3 1/2 games up over the New York Mets in the National League East after their 6-1 victory over the Braves in Atlanta on Tuesday night. They've won nine of their last 10 games, have battled through injuries to realign their starting rotation and have witnessed several hitting hot streaks for various players up and down the lineup. Despite a little bit of struggle to get back to first place within their division and stay atop the baseball standings as one of the teams with the...

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Strasburg, Desmond are experiencing resurgences

June 28, 2015, 7:47pm

Nationals

Strasburg, Desmond are experiencing resurgences

The Nationals' season-high eight-game winning streak came to an end with Sunday night's 8-5 loss to the Phillies in the series finale. Despite the setback, the Nationals head to Atlanta experiencing the potential resurgence of two key players: right-hander Stephen Strasburg and shortstop Ian Desmond. Strasburg pitched brilliantly in yesterday's 3-2 win over Philadelphia in the first game of the doubleheader. The 26-year-old gave up just two runs on only four hits while striking out a...

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Turner searching for first Triple-A hit; Harrisburg and Potomac Sunday winners

June 29, 2015, 2:45am

Nationals

Turner searching for first Triple-A hit; Harrisburg and Potomac Sunday winners

Shortstop Trea Turner is still looking for his first Triple-A base hit. On Sunday, Turner pinch-hit in the eighth inning and popped out for pitcher Rafael Martin. He is now 0-for-9 with Syracuse, with a run scored and a strikeout. After 68 Double-A games, Turner had accumulated an amazing 25 multi-hit games and a .327 average. In that span, he had a 16-game hitting streak and a 10-game hitting streak while with the San Antonio Missions, a Padres affiliate. He spent 10 games with Double-A...

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Will rotation problems around major leagues lead to early trades?

June 29, 2015, 6:09pm

Nationals Orioles

Will rotation problems around major leagues lead to early trades?

With a month to go before the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline, the Orioles and Nationals are surging, but each could use help. In addition to health, the Nationals' biggest need is bullpen help that bridges the rotation to closer Drew Storen. The Orioles' bullpen is fine, but will they trade for a bat or pick up a starter that they can control for a couple years, given Wei-Yin Chen and Bud Norris are eligible for free agency after the season? Should Norris be traded so Kevin Gausman can...

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Marty Niland: Nationals bench has stepped up

June 29, 2015, 6:33am

Nationals

Many Nationals fans might have predicted at the start of the season that by the end of June, the team would have settled into first place in the National League East and reeled off a season-high eight straight wins. Even their most ardent supporters, however, might not have predicted that they'd have done it largely without the players projected to be their top offensive weapons. Jayson Werth and Ryan Zimmerman have been on the disabled list and were not a part of the Nats' recent run of...

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Tough outing for Roark as Nationals split doubleheader

June 28, 2015, 5:44pm

Nationals

PHILADELPHIA - The Phillies pounded out 16 hits as the Nationals fell 8-5, ending a season-best eight-game winning streak. Having burned Gio Gonzalez in yesterday's delayed postponement, Nationals manager Matt Williams made the call to start Tanner Roark in the second game of today's doubleheader. "He knew yesterday he was going to get the second game today," Williams said of Roark. "He was prepared." The Phillies pelted Roark with a barrage of ground balls that the Nationals were never...