nationals

Johnson discusses a thrilling Game 4 walk-off win

October 11, 2012, 4:53pm

I don't know where to begin. I'll get to quotes from the walk-off hero, the starting pitcher who threw the game of his life with the pressure of an entire organization on his shoulders and all the other guys who contributed in between. First, here's Davey Johnson. The Nationals skipper said both after last night's blowout loss and before today's must-win Game 4 that he had no reason to doubt that his team would come through in a big spot. They entered today's game confident despite the...

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A reason to cheer and a tie ballgame (a heck of an effort from Detwiler)

October 11, 2012, 1:08pm

Nationals

A reason to cheer and a tie ballgame (a heck of an effort from Detwiler)

Finally, this crowd had something to cheer about. More than 45,000 fans waited for a reason to explode all game yesterday. The Cardinals took a lead in the top of the first, piled on in the second and then never looked back. The largest crowd in Nationals Park history never got a chance to let loose. They sure did in the second inning today, when Adam LaRoche ripped a solo homer to center to give the Nationals a 1-0 lead. LaRoche fouled off three straight 3-2 pitches and then roped a 92 mph...

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Johnson on Nats' must-win mindset, Espinosa's approach

October 11, 2012, 11:23am

Nationals

Johnson on Nats' must-win mindset, Espinosa's approach

This is it. As Jayson Werth said yesterday, the Nationals have one game to play and one game to win. The Nats' backs are against the wall today, but they're ready to go out and fight. Mark DeRosa said he planned to give his teammates a bit of a pep talk today, telling them to enjoy the moment and play with a sense of urgency. Manager Davey Johnson won't do the same, but he spoke to some guys individually and spent time during batting practice going around and having one-on-one chats, as he...

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Gonzalez ready if he gets Game 5 opportunity

October 11, 2012, 12:16pm

Nationals

Gonzalez ready if he gets Game 5 opportunity

The Nationals hope they get a chance to have Gio Gonzalez pitch here Friday. That would mean they won Game 4 of the best-of-five National League Division Series. And that would be just fine with the cool, calm and confident Gonzalez. He has been that way since he arrived in D.C., and he is certainly not going to change now. Always smiling, always giving credit to his catcher and his defense, never taking credit for anything he did. And he won 21 games in a Cy Young-esque first season for the...

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Lineup remains the same, Zimmermann available in relief

October 11, 2012, 9:06am

Nationals

Lineup remains the same, Zimmermann available in relief

The Nationals' lineup will remain the same for today's must-win Game 4 of the best-of-five National League Division Series. Davey Johnson will not make tweaks to his batting order today, despite Danny Espinosa's struggles and the offense's recent issues driving in runs. "Going right with what we had yesterday," Johnson said. "Going to have a little better outcome." Jordan Zimmermann will be available in relief today if Ross Detwiler falters or is unable to work deep into the game....

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Strasburg or no Strasburg, Nats not playing well enough to win

October 11, 2012, 6:06am

Nationals

Strasburg or no Strasburg, Nats not playing well enough to win

I hated myself for being so tired last night that I passed out before the end of the Tigers-A's game. When did I get so old that regardless of how tired I was (and man, was I tired), I couldn't fight through it and watch late-night postseason baseball? C'mon, Kolko, get it together. This is what I get, I guess. I miss a thrilling ninth-inning comeback in which the A's scored three runs to earn a walk-off win and force Game 5. That game actually ended up affecting the Nationals-Cardinals...

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Detwiler ready to forget last start on must-win Thursday

October 10, 2012, 9:16pm

Nationals

Detwiler ready to forget last start on must-win Thursday

Ross Detwiler chooses to forget his last outing. He lasted only 2 1/3 innings and gave up three earned runs on four hits with five walks. It was a loss. Who was it against? The St. Louis Cardinals. "I try not to remember that one," Detwiler said of his Sept. 30 start. "I am really going out there trying to throw strikes, trying to get ahead in the count. Make the hitters hit my pitch instead having to come after them 2-1 and 3-1 like I was the whole time." Which team does Detwiler need...

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David Huzzard: The Nats have been here before

October 11, 2012, 5:19am

Nationals

David Huzzard: The Nats have been here before

On the afternoon of July 21, Nats fans gathered and sulked in mass. The night before, the Nationals had blown a nine-run lead with their best pitcher on the mound. Nats fans watched helplessly as pitcher after pitcher was terrorized by Braves hitters and what felt like a safe and comfy cushion disappeared. It all went away when Michael Bourn tripled to bring in the go-ahead run in the top of the ninth. Danny Espinosa would tie it with a homer in the bottom of the ninth, but in the end, the...

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Hearing from the hitters after another rough day at the plate

October 10, 2012, 3:20pm

Nationals

Hearing from the hitters after another rough day at the plate

It was a very quiet Nationals clubhouse following today's 8-0 loss to the Cardinals. It might take a few hours to get past this one, given the way the Nats were dominated in their home park in the much-anticipated first playoff game in D.C. in 79 years. Not only did the Nationals' pitchers fail to do much to contain a dangerous St. Louis offense, the Nats did nothing with the bats to help pick up the slack and overcome some rocky innings put up by Edwin Jackson, Craig Stammen, Christian...

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Readying for a must-win

October 10, 2012, 3:54pm

Nationals

It's clear at this point what has to be done. "Kind of got our backs up against the wall now," Adam LaRoche said calmly after today's game. "It's a must-win tomorrow." The Nationals played great baseball for much of the regular season. They finished with the best record in the majors, earned the top seed in the National League and set themselves up for a long postseason run. Now, all of a sudden, that run is one game from being over. "It's the consistent storyline of the whole...

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What they're saying about NLDS game 3

October 10, 2012, 4:05pm

Nationals

The National League Division Series shifted back to Washington D.C. for the first playoff baseball game in the District since 1933. Unfortunately for the Nationals, the Cardinals pummeled Edwin Jackson and the rest of the Washington staff for an 8-0 victory. While Nats Park was abuzz for the game, many of the writers chose to focus on someone who wasn't on the roster. That's right, you didn't think the Stephen Strasburg controversy was going to go away that easily, did you? Believe it or...

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Jackson, starters struggling to keep runs off the board

October 10, 2012, 3:22pm

Nationals

Jackson, starters struggling to keep runs off the board

The Nationals' starting pitching has had trouble getting off to quick starts in this series. Following Wednesday's 8-0 Game 3 win, the Cardinals have now scored nine runs in the second inning in three games and a total of 13 runs in the first four innings during the series. In that same span, the Nationals have tallied a total of two runs. Nationals starters have allowed 11 runs in 13 innings. The Cardinals' starters, by contrast, have gone 13 1/3 innings and surrendered a total of two...

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Davey Johnson: "We're not out of this by a long shot"

October 10, 2012, 2:10pm

Nationals

Davey Johnson: "We're not out of this by a long shot"

Over the last two games, the Nationals have been outscored 20-4. They've gone from being in control of the series after a Game 1 win at St. Louis to being on the ropes and one loss from booking tee times. Things have turned for the worse in a hurry. But Davey Johnson's been here before. He knows he's got a talented group and he's not ready to panic. "We're not out of this by a long shot. ... Shoot, I've had my back to worse walls than this," Johnson said. "I like my ballclub, and I...

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A common theme is emerging (Nats routed in Game 3)

October 10, 2012, 11:22am

Nationals

A common theme is emerging (Nats routed in Game 3)

For the series, the Nationals have left 27 runners on base and gone 3-for-23 with runners in scoring position. They've left at least one runner on in every inning so far today, and have stranded runners in scoring position in four of the five frames. In the fifth, they left the bases loaded when Michael Morse flied out to end the inning. Edwin Jackson won't be thrilled with his effort this afternoon, but he's far from the main problem. Chris Carpenter has allowed five hits, walked two...

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Carpenter, Cards' barrage quickly turned record crowd into a non-factor

October 10, 2012, 2:23pm

Nationals

Carpenter, Cards' barrage quickly turned record crowd into a non-factor

Nationals Park was packed, fans were five deep in some standing room sections and frenzied towel-waving rooters were announcing their presence with authority. Then, in the span of a couple of innings, the fervent enthusiasm was sucked right out of South Capitol Street, leaving a Nationals Park-record crowd of 45,017 mostly disappointed, dazed and silent in what became an 8-0 defeat in the pivotal third game of a best-of-five National League Divison Series. Before they could even get into the...

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Nats will be tested by Carpenter

October 10, 2012, 8:08am

Nationals

Chris Carpenter missed nearly the entire regular season after having a bizarre surgery to remove a rib, and he threw just 17 innings over his three starts prior to the playoffs. But the Cardinals won't put any limit on their veteran right-hander today as he pitches in Game 3 of the best-of-five National League Division Series. "We plan on going in and just watch him as he goes," Cardinals manager Mike Matheny said today. "And he's a pretty fair evaluator of himself as well. But we...

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After ceremonial first pitch, Robinson reflects on baseball's return to D.C.

October 10, 2012, 11:02am

Nationals

After ceremonial first pitch, Robinson reflects on baseball's return to D.C.

Hall of Famer Frank Robinson threw out the ceremonial first pitch of Game 3 of the National League Division Series. Donning his trademark No. 20 jersey, Robinson threw a strike to Ian Desmond, much to delight of the soldout crowd at Nationals Park. "It was very delightful and quite an honor," Robinson said. "I enjoyed doing it. I thank the Lerner family for asking me to do it." Robinson was able to wear his No. 20 jersey, the same number that Desmond switched to this season in honor of...

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Jackson in trouble early (Nationals missing offensive opportunities)

October 10, 2012, 9:56am

Nationals

For the second straight game, a Nationals starter has fallen behind big before the end of the second inning. On Monday, it was Jordan Zimmermann putting the Nats in a 4-1 hole after two innings. Today, it's Edwin Jackson who has allowed four runs in the first two frames, leaving the Nats trailing 4-0. Jackson retired the first two hitters he faced to start the game, but allowed a two-out single to Matt Holliday and an RBI double down the left field line to Allen Craig, getting the Cardinals...

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The wait is over

October 09, 2012, 9:30pm

Nationals

Anything going on today? Anyone got any afternoon plans? Myself, I'm thinking about just going back to sleep and hitting the links a little later on. Maybe I'll stop by Bed Bath & Beyond. I don't know; I don't know if I'm going to have enough time. What's that? Today will mark the first big league postseason game in D.C. in 79 years, a sellout crowd will be on hand to watch and the Nationals have a chance to move within one win of the National League Championship Series? OK, I guess...

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Nats, Cards lineups for NLDS Game 3

October 10, 2012, 5:56am

Nationals

Today's Nationals and Cardinals lineups look exactly the same as the ones we saw in the first two games of the National League Division Series - with the exception, of course, of new pitchers. The Nationals will send Edwin Jackson to the mound for Game 3. He'll oppose Cardinals righty Chris Carpenter, who made only three regular season starts this season but is the franchise's all-time leader in postseason wins. For the Nats: RF Jayson Werth CF Bryce Harper 3B Ryan Zimmerman 1B Adam...