Espinosa and LaRoche not in Nats lineup vs. Marlins (updated)

Espinosa and LaRoche not in Nats lineup vs. Marlins (updated)
The Nationals will look to snap their three-game losing streak tonight in Miami with the first of three games against the Marlins. They'll go into tonight's game without both Danny Espinosa and Adam LaRoche in their starting lineup. Espinosa was hit by a Paul Maholm pitch on the right wrist yesterday and needed to leave the Nationals' game against the Braves after four innings. X-rays on Espinosa's wrist were negative, but the second baseman said after the game that the wrist was sore and...

Ted Leavengood: Dark cloud removed, could Zimmermann earn "Smiley" nickname?

Ted Leavengood: Dark cloud removed, could Zimmermann earn "Smiley" nickname?
Baseball has a way of evening out the numbers over time. For the past few seasons, Jordan Zimmermann has been known as a hard-luck pitcher, the kind who cannot buy a run when he needs it, whose run support every time he takes the mound seems to be wanting. Or at least that is the way it used to be. In 2011, he was the best pitcher in the Washington rotation with an ERA of 3.18, but he had a losing record, only eight wins against 11 defeats. His 2012 statistics suggest a pitcher who should...

Injuries send teams scrambling with mixed results

Injuries send teams scrambling with mixed results
Teams are scrambling as a slew of big-name players wind up on the disabled list. The Blue Jays lost shortstop Jose Reyes with an injury to his left ankle, and the Dodgers will be without pitcher Zack Greinke because of a broken collarbone suffered in a fight with the Padres' Carlos Quentin. The Angels are without pitcher Jered Weaver because of a broken left elbow. The Nationals lost catcher Wilson Ramos. Oakland is without outfielder Yeonis Cespedes, and the Reds, after not having an injury...

One way to forget a rough weekend (Nats open series with dominating win)

One way to forget a rough weekend (Nats open series with dominating win)
Six batters into tonight's game, Marlins starter Wade LeBlanc had yet to retire a Nationals hitter. Five hits - four singles and a double - and a walk led to four Nats runs, and just like that, Washington has a nice 4-0 lead after the top of the first inning. Nothing like a three-game set against the Marlins to get the Nats back on track after a rough sweep at the hands of the Braves over the weekend. Denard Span and Jayson Werth led off the ballgame with singles, and after a Bryce Harper...

Gio Gonzalez: "You've got to give us a chance"

Gio Gonzalez: "You've got to give us a chance"
The Nationals entered their weekend series with the Braves trailing Atlanta by a game in the division and feeling pretty good about themselves following a three-game sweep of the White Sox. The Nats leave their weekend series against the Braves suddenly trailing their division rivals by four games in the National League East after they were handed a spanking over the last three days. "I don't think they took us by surprise at all," Denard Span said. "We knew they were a good team coming...

Hearing from Espinosa and Gonzalez after Nats' 9-0 loss

Hearing from Espinosa and Gonzalez after Nats' 9-0 loss
It's never a good thing when the only real positive news coming out of a game from one team's perspective is that a player who got hit by a pitch isn't seriously injured. But that's about all the positive news I have for Nationals fans after this afternoon's 9-0 loss to the Braves, a game that caps off Atlanta's three-game sweep. That, and there's 150 games left to go. Danny Espinosa needed to leave today's game after four innings because of a sore right wrist, the result of getting...

Marty Niland: Three reasons not to hit the panic button

Marty Niland: Three reasons not to hit the panic button
It's hard to blame Nationals fans for feeling down after last weekend's three-game sweep at the hands of the Atlanta Braves. After a big buildup to a supposed early season showdown between the top teams in the National League East - if not the entire NL - the Nats fell flat. Almost every aspect of the game was a disappointment at some point in the series, from Ryan Zimmerman's crucial throwing errors in Friday and Saturday's losses to the bullpen on Friday to the starting pitching and...

Johnson talks Espinosa's wrist, impressions from Braves sweep

Johnson talks Espinosa's wrist, impressions from Braves sweep
The Nationals didn't play great baseball over the last three days. They got outscored by the Braves 18-5, were outhit 29-16 and made four errors, and Atlanta turned those numbers into a three-game sweep in the first battle this season between these two National League East rivals. Not surprisingly, however, the Nats are not concerned just yet. "It's just early," manager Davey Johnson said. "Things happen for the best. We should've won the first one. We were right there on the second...

A disastrous start to the finale of a disastrous series (Nats swept by Braves)

A disastrous start to the finale of a disastrous series (Nats swept by Braves)
This series has gone from bad to worse. After dropping the first two games of this three-game set against the rival Braves, each by two runs, the Nationals find themselves in a monster hole through 2 1/2 innings this afternoon. They trail 7-0 in the third inning. Gio Gonzalez has gotten smacked all over Nats Park by Braves hitters, allowing two homers and four extra-base hits overall. The Braves brought in three runs in the first inning and put up another crooked number in the third, with...

Ramos to DL, Solano recalled from Syracuse (plus lineups)

Ramos to DL, Solano recalled from Syracuse (plus lineups)
The Nationals placed catcher Wilson Ramos on the 15-day disabled list Sunday morning, and recalled catcher Jhonatan Solano from Triple-A Syracuse to take Ramos' spot on the 25-man roster. Ramos strained his left hamstring in Saturday's loss to the Braves. He was hitting .300 with two homers and three RBIs while splitting catching duties with Kurt Suzuki. Solano, who was hitting .150 in five games at Syracuse, batted .314 with two homers and six RBIs in 12 games with the Nationals last...

Nats don't feel Ramos' injury is serious

Nats don't feel Ramos' injury is serious
While it's certainly tough to see Wilson Ramos land on the disabled list with a strained left hamstring after all he's been through in the last couple of years, the Nationals don't believe Ramos will be on the DL for more than the required 15 days. General manager Mike Rizzo said today that the Nats got positive news from an MRI taken on Ramos' hamstring and that doctors believe Ramos won't be out long term. "We don't think it's too serious," Rizzo said, "but it's not something we...

Nationals place Ramos on DL, recall Solano from Triple-A

Nationals place Ramos on DL, recall Solano from Triple-A
The Washington Nationals today recalled catcher Jhonatan Solano from Syracuse of the Triple-A International League and placed catcher Wilson Ramos on the 15-Day Disabled List with a left hamstring strain. Nationals Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations and General Manager Mike Rizzo made the announcement. Solano batted .314 with three doubles, two home runs, six RBI, two walks and six runs scored in his 12-game debut last season with the Nationals. He posted .351 on-base and .571...

Espinosa: "They're good. I don't think they're better than us"

Espinosa: "They're good. I don't think they're better than us"
The Braves have taken the first two games of their series here in D.C., out-hitting the Nationals, playing superior defense and getting better overall pitching. This afternoon, Tim Hudson held the Nats to just one run and four hits over seven innings, the Braves capitalized on Ryan Zimmerman's third-inning throwing error, getting two unearned runs on Evan Gattis' two-run homer, and Eric O'Flaherty and Craig Kimbrel locked down the 3-1 Atlanta win. It's been two tightly played games over...

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...

Ramos likely heading to DL with pulled hamstring (updated)

Ramos likely heading to DL with pulled hamstring (updated)
Not only did the Nationals lose their second straight ballgame to the Braves this afternoon, they also lost catcher Wilson Ramos for what looks like at least a couple of weeks with a pulled left hamstring. Ramos suffered the injury when hustling down the first base line on a groundout in the bottom of the eighth inning in the Nats' 3-1 loss to Atlanta. This comes after the Nats' 25-year-old catcher worked his way back from a devastating knee injury suffered last May, when he tore the ACL...

Zimmerman's wild throw proves costly (Nats drop second in a row to Braves)

Zimmerman's wild throw proves costly (Nats drop second in a row to Braves)
For the third time in the last two days, Ryan Zimmerman has delivered an off-target throw. Two of those three throws have cost the Nationals. I'm of the mind that not too much blame should be heaped on Zimmerman for his throw to second base in the ninth inning last night. Zimmerman was off-balance and needed to get the throw off in a hurry in order to beat Jason Heyward to the second base bag, and he missed his target by a few feet. The ball rolled into right field and two runs...

Davey on starters' workloads, what's plaguing the 'pen

Davey on starters' workloads, what's plaguing the 'pen
This morning, I wrote that it might be time for Nationals manager Davey Johnson to start giving his starters a little bit of a longer leash, letting them work deeper into games when their low pitch counts and level of effectiveness dictate that another inning or two is a possibility. Doing so would, in turn, take some pressure off a struggling Nats bullpen. But Johnson said this morning that he isn't planning on loosening that leash on his starters just yet, instead sticking with his...

Time to begin letting starters go deeper?

Time to begin letting starters go deeper?
Here's a strange note: Last night's blown 4-0 lead and eventual 6-4 loss to the Braves came six months to the day after the Nationals blew a 6-0 lead and lost 9-7 to the Cardinals in Game 5 of the National League Division Series. Ironically enough, Drew Storen's first save opportunity since that crushing postseason loss came last night. This one also ended in a blown save and a Nats loss, although Storen wasn't on the mound when it ended this time. I thought Ryan Zimmerman's point last...

Braves-Nats lineups

Braves-Nats lineups
One night after a disappointing extra-inning loss to the Braves, the Nationals are sticking with their regular lineup. Stephen Strasburg gets the start with Wilson Ramos behind the plate. The Braves have Ramiro Pena at shortstop after he hit the go-ahead homer in the 10th on Friday. For the Nationals: CF Denard Span RF Jayson Werth LF Bryce Harper 3B Ryan Zimmerman 1B Adam LaRoche SS Ian Desmond 2B Danny Espinosa C Wilson Ramos RHP Stephen Strasburg For the Braves: CF B.J. Upton RF Jason...

Johnson on bullpen issues, Zimmerman's throw after 6-4 loss to Braves

Johnson on bullpen issues, Zimmerman's throw after 6-4 loss to Braves
Thanks to Ross Detwiler's seven strong innings and a few big swings of the bat from Bryce Harper, Denard Span and Jayson Werth, the Nationals held a 4-1 lead over the Braves after seven innings. Then, things fell apart. Tyler Clippard failed to get through the eighth, allowing a run on a hit and three walks. Drew Storen got out of a jam he inherited from Clippard in the eighth, but then allowed two runs (one earned) on three hits with a walk in the ninth. And in the 10th, Craig Stammen...