nationals

82 wins are nice, but there's still work to do

September 03, 2012, 1:18pm

The Nationals were certainly pleased to win 2-1 over the Chicago Cubs on Monday. And getting to 82 victories for the first time since arriving in D.C., and guaranteeing a winning season, is a nice milestone. But there are no banners waving or confetti falling from the ceiling. No balloons or noise makers. C'mon, 82 wins! Celebration time, right? Not quite. Veteran first baseman Adam LaRoche, who hit home run No. 25 for the Nationals' first run, said getting to 82 victories is...

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Johnson talks Detwiler's dominance after 2-1 win

September 03, 2012, 1:41pm

Nationals

Johnson talks Detwiler's dominance after 2-1 win

With today's 2-1 win over the Cubs, the Nationals clinched the first winning season for a D.C. baseball team since 1969. Davey Johnson didn't seem to care much. Asked after today's game about the significance of the Nationals reaching 82 wins, Johnson said, "I wasn't really concerned about that," and then quickly switched the topic. The fact that the Nats guaranteed a winning season is nice, especially considering where this franchise has finished many seasons since moving to the...

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Stephen Walker: Why baseball in Washington is beautiful

September 03, 2012, 11:20am

Nationals

Stephen Walker: Why baseball in Washington is beautiful

Last week, against all common sense, I tuned my radio to a sports talk station. The host, supposedly a native of Rockville who claimed he knew the area, added his voice to the ad nauseum discussion of the pending end of Stephen Strasburg's brilliant 2012 season. His point: Nationals fans have been supportive of general manager Mike Rizzo's decision on Strasburg because "D.C. just isn't a baseball town." He claimed "real" baseball fans - like those in New York, St. Louis and Boston...

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LaRoche leaves the yard, Morse leaves early (Nats lock up winning record)

September 03, 2012, 10:20am

Nationals

LaRoche leaves the yard, Morse leaves early (Nats lock up winning record)

Ross Detwiler is through four scoreless innings having thrown just 52 pitches. Talk about being aggressive in the zone. That's the way to attack most lineups, especially this soft-hitting Cubs order. The Nationals lead 1-0 after four thanks to Adam LaRoche, who blasted his 25th home run of the season in the second inning. The ball came down in the second deck in right. It was struck fairly well. LaRoche has been battling a sore back lately, and he was held out of the Nationals' starting...

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Davey Johnson confirms meeting with Strasburg on shutdown date

September 03, 2012, 7:48am

Nationals

Davey Johnson confirms meeting with Strasburg on shutdown date

Manager Davey Johnson confirmed that he, general manager Mike Rizzo and pitching coach Steve McCatty met with Stephen Strasburg about shutting the right-hander down for the season. "We were able to have a nice little conversation,. He hates McCatty more than before the meeting, and me and Rizzo," Johnson said with a laugh. "It is not secret that Stras is an intense competitor. He wants to be here, wants to be contributing, wants to be helping." Johnson said the shutdown is tough and will...

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Garcia confident he can make an impact

September 03, 2012, 9:19am

Nationals

Right-handed power arm Christian Garcia is the ultimate example of resiliency. The 6-foot-5, 215 lb. reliever has endured a pair of Tommy John surgeries and has fought all the way back to have an amazing season in the Nationals' system. Garcia allowed only five earned runs in 45 games between Double-A Harrisburg and Triple-A Syracuse. He allowed just two earned runs with the Chiefs. He was selected by the New York Yankees in the third round in 2004, the 99th pick overall, and stayed with...

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Burnett battling elbow irritation, Johnson outlines plan for call-ups

September 03, 2012, 8:39am

Nationals

Burnett battling elbow irritation, Johnson outlines plan for call-ups

Sean Burnett's recent struggles might be injury related. Davey Johnson said today that his left-handed reliever has been dealing with some irritation in his throwing elbow, the same issue that he went through earlier this season. The plan for now is to rest Burnett for a couple days and hope that the elbow improves. Johnson said Burnett will not undergo an MRI. "He's had a little bit of irritation in there," Johnson told reporters. "So we're staying off of him." Burnett, who had...

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Werth, LaRoche both in Nats lineup (plus minor league honors)

September 03, 2012, 7:52am

Nationals

Werth, LaRoche both in Nats lineup (plus minor league honors)

Both Jayson Werth (hamstring cramp) and Adam LaRoche (sore back) are in the Nationals' lineup for this afternoon's game against the Cubs. Werth was pulled in the ninth inning of Saturday's game after feeling his hamstring cramp up, and he was a late scratch from the lineup yesterday. LaRoche has been battling a sore back the last three or four days and was held out of the lineup yesterday, although he did pinch-hit in the sixth inning. The Nationals will face Cubs righty Jeff Samardzija,...

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Nats name Matthew Skole Minor League Player of the Year, Nathan Karns Minor League Pitcher of the Year

September 03, 2012, 7:43am

Nationals

Nats name Matthew Skole Minor League Player of the Year, Nathan Karns Minor League Pitcher of the Year

The Washington Nationals today named third baseman Matthew Skole Minor League Player of the Year and right-hander Nathan Karns Minor League Pitcher of the Year for the 2012 season. Nationals Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations and General Manager Mike Rizzo, Assistant General Manager and Vice President of Player Development Bob Boone, Director of Player Development Doug Harris and Director of Minor League Operations Mark Scialabba made the joint announcement. Skole hit .292 with...

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Nats add pitchers Garcia, Duke from Triple-A Syracuse

September 03, 2012, 6:59am

Nationals

Nats add pitchers Garcia, Duke from Triple-A Syracuse

When the Nationals showed up in their clubhouse today before the start of a four-game series against the Cubs, there were two new arrivals to pitch in during the stretch run. The Nats selected the contracts of right-hander Christian Garcia an left-hander Zach Duke from Triple-A Syracuse. To accommodate them on the 40-man roster - which stood at 39 before the additions - right-hander Henry Rodriguez was transferred to the 60-day disabled list. Garcia, a longtime Yankees farmhand who joined the...

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Strasburg won't get shut down without a "fight ... to the end"

September 02, 2012, 2:38pm

Nationals

Strasburg won't get shut down without a "fight ... to the end"

It is not what Stephen Strasburg wanted to hear, but it appears the decision has been made. Fresh off an outstanding bounceback performance, where Strasburg subdued the world champion St. Louis Cardinals for six innings, manager Davey Johnson announced postgame how many games Strasburg would pitch the rest of the season. "I think two starts, unless I let him pitch 10 (innings) in the next one out, which I am not going to," Johnson confirmed. "So I think his last start will be on (Sept.)...

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Nationals select contracts of pitchers Garcia, Duke from Triple-A Syracuse

September 03, 2012, 6:27am

Nationals

The Washington Nationals today selected right-handed pitcher Christian Garcia and left-handed pitcher Zach Duke from Syracuse of the Triple-A International League. Additionally, the Nationals transferred right-handed pitcher Henry Rodriguez to the 60-Day Disabled List. Nationals Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations and General Manager Mike Rizzo made the announcements. Garcia converted all 21 save opportunities with a 2-1 mark and 0.86 ERA in 45 relief appearances this season with...

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Ted Leavengood: Shooting for the moon

September 03, 2012, 5:21am

Nationals

The St. Louis Cardinals are not only the reigning world champions, but they are in a tight race with the Braves and Dodgers for the National League wild card. They probably still hold out hope that they can catch the Reds, which is why taking three of four from a team like St. Louis at this point in the season is as impressive as it is crucial. And there is no better test of the Nationals' starting rotation - the best in baseball - than the Cards. They are the most potent offensive team in...

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Nats announce Strasburg will make two more starts

September 02, 2012, 2:36pm

Nationals

Nats announce Strasburg will make two more starts

Stephen Strasburg threw six scoreless innings against the Cardinals this afternoon, striking out nine and upping his season innings total to 156 1/3. It was another dominant performance from the Nationals' ace, and his season ERA now sits at 2.94. Immediately after the game, we learned that Strasburg will only get the ball twice more this season. Manager Davey Johnson announced that Strasburg will have two more starts before he's shut down, barring some change of plans. That means...

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Johnson on Burnett's struggles, late-inning drama (plus Werth, LaRoche updates)

September 02, 2012, 3:25pm

Nationals

Johnson on Burnett's struggles, late-inning drama (plus Werth, LaRoche updates)

Today's actual game might get lost in the shuffle amidst the news that Stephen Strasburg will make two more starts this season before getting shut down. Let's just say I don't anticipate too much talk about Kurt Suzuki's offensive performance on ESPN or MLB Network tonight or tomorrow when the Nationals are mentioned. But the game itself was a thrilling battle between two playoff-caliber teams, one which the Nationals won 4-3 despite some hiccups in the late innings. Thanks to six...

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Bryce Harper leans on Werth to improve his outfield defense

September 02, 2012, 10:07am

Nationals

Bryce Harper leans on Werth to improve his outfield defense

A lot has been made of rookie center fielder Bryce Harper's offense since the All-Star break, and how he had been struggling with off-speed pitches down in the zone. But recently, Harper has had four consecutive multi-hit games. In his last five games, he has nine hits, three homers and eight RBIs. His average has been raised to .256, after hitting .222 in July and .243 in August. And what about his defense in the outfield? He has made strides on defense with every chance and learned from...

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Burnett gives up lead for second straight day (Nats win 4-3)

September 02, 2012, 12:15pm

Nationals

Burnett gives up lead for second straight day (Nats win 4-3)

Sean Burnett is still in the midst of a career season. He'd just prefer to forget the last 2 1/2 weeks. After an appearance on August 10, Burnett had a 1.81 ERA. He hadn't given up a single run and had allowed just three total baserunners over his previous 10 appearances, spanning nine innings. Since then, things have turned for the worse. Burnett has a 7.50 ERA over his last eight appearances, but even more concerning are the number of baserunners he's allowed. Of the last 35 hitters...

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Nats defense hurts Strasburg, then bails him out (Strasburg leaves with lead)

September 02, 2012, 11:13am

Nationals

Nats defense hurts Strasburg, then bails him out (Strasburg leaves with lead)

The Nationals have made two errors behind Stephen Strasburg today, both of which left him in jams with runners at the corners and two outs. Both times, Strasburg worked out of trouble to keep the game scoreless. The Nationals' ace can thank Bryce Harper for helping bail him out of the second such situation. Three batters after Ryan Zimmerman airmailed a throw into the stands to allow Allen Craig to reach on a two-base error in the fourth inning, Bryan Anderson lifted a fly ball to medium...

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Waiting on the Nats' lineup (Werth a late scratch)

September 02, 2012, 7:56am

Nationals

Waiting on the Nats' lineup (Werth a late scratch)

We're less than two hours away from first pitch and are still waiting for the Nationals to send out their lineup for today's game against the Cardinals. The holdup is almost certainly related to Jayson Werth, who was pulled from last night's game in the ninth inning due to a hamstring cramp. Werth didn't sound concerned about the hamstring after the game and said that he hoped to be able to play today. But with it being a day game after a night game and the Nats not wanting the hamstring...

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Nats' inability to hold runners frustrating the coaching staff

September 02, 2012, 9:23am

Nationals

Nats' inability to hold runners frustrating the coaching staff

Sitting down with Randy Knorr in the dugout late this morning, I told the Nationals' bench coach I'd like to talk about his team's issues with holding and throwing out runners. "Favorite topic," Knorr said sarcastically, a smile creeping across his face. This is a bit of a tired subject for Knorr, who has been preaching the importance of holding runners to Nationals pitchers and catchers this entire season with little success. Knorr, a former catcher who played parts of 11 seasons in the...