Alex Meyer and Aaron Barrett promoted to Potomac, report Thursday

Alex Meyer and Aaron Barrett promoted to Potomac, report Thursday
Pitchers Alex Meyer and Aaron Barrett have been pitching lights out all season for the Single-A Hagerstown Suns, and just a few days into the second half, they are getting rewarded. According to a club source, the right-handers have been promoted to high Single-A Potomac and will report Thursday. Barrett is 3-2 with a 2.60 ERA in 31 games, and has recorded 31 saves. He has established himself as one of the top up-and-coming, late-inning performers in the Nationals' chain. Barrett hasn't...

Johnson recaps a wild 5-4 extra-inning win

Johnson recaps a wild 5-4 extra-inning win
Davey Johnson walked into the interview room next door to the Nationals' clubhouse, sat down at the table in front of reporters and broke into a big smile. "Wow! That's my kind of ballgame," Johnson said. This was certainly another crazy one, one which saw the Nats jump out to a 2-0 lead, lose it in the ninth when Tyler Clippard blew his first save since taking over the closer duties, tie it up in the bottom of the ninth on a dramatic two-out, two-strike RBI single by Danny Espinosa, fall...

Detwiler, Niese dueling in D.C. (Nats win an insane ballgame)

Detwiler, Niese dueling in D.C. (Nats win an insane ballgame)
We've cruised through 5 1/2 innings at Nats Park, and Ross Detwiler and Jon Niese are locked in quite a pitcher's duel. The Nationals have a 1-0 lead after Tyler Moore went yard in the bottom of the fifth, a blast which got the Nats their first baserunner since Bryce Harper singled with one out in the first. It was Moore's fifth homer of the season and his first since June 27. Prior to the Moore longball, Niese had set down 12 straight Nats. Detwiler has been pretty darn effective...

Lucas Giolito ready to start his Nationals adventure

Lucas Giolito ready to start his Nationals adventure
He has a signed Mace Windu purple lightsaber from Samuel L. Jackson hanging in his room. He played water polo and occasionally snowboarded in California. He had never visited Washington, D.C., before July. He now pitches for the Washington Nationals. Who is he? Meet new right-hander Lucas Giolito. The Nationals' top selection (No. 16 overall) in the 2012 first-year draft met with the media Tuesday in the Nationals' dugout, sporting jersey No. 30. The agreement with the Nationals came...

Desmond again not in Nats lineup, expects oblique injury to linger

Desmond again not in Nats lineup, expects oblique injury to linger
Yet again, Ian Desmond will watch from the bench as his Nationals teammates take on a division rival. Desmond will remain sidelined tonight because of a sore left oblique, an injury which has now knocked him out of the lineup three straight days. Unfortunately for Desmond, it appears that the time off so far - both the four days of rest over the All-Star break and the last two days in which he's been held out of the Nationals lineup - hasn't allowed the oblique to make major strides in the...

Putting the Marlins in the past, looking ahead to Lannan

Putting the Marlins in the past, looking ahead to Lannan
Think the Nationals will be happy to be done with the Marlins for a while? They've averaged just 2.8 runs per game against the Marlins this season and 4.3 runs per game against everyone else. They're 4-5 against Miami and 47-30 against everyone else. They're 2-5 at Marlins Park and 25-18 at every other road ballpark. Yeah, it'll be nice not to see Ozzie Guillen and his boys for a couple of weeks. The Marlins, on the other hand, have a .555 winning percentage against the Nats, and a...

Potomac Nationals announce plans for new stadium by 2014

Potomac Nationals announce plans for new stadium by 2014
For years, the Potomac Nationals and their fans have yearned for a stadium that matched the product on the field. That dream appears to finally be moving closer to reality. Prince William County, the Potomac Nationals, the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) and PTC Roadside Development LLC announced at a news conference today, that a public and private financial marriage has been put in place that would bring a 6,000-seat state-of-the-art minor league baseball stadium to Prince...

After tough outing in Syracuse, will Lannan get shot Saturday in doubleheader for Nationals?

After tough outing in Syracuse, will Lannan get shot Saturday in doubleheader for Nationals?
Left-hander John Lannan started off slowly at Triple-A Syracuse but then got into a nice rhythm, compiling six wins. Before the season started, Lannan sent out an email requesting a trade, following his demotion to Triple-A. He has been waiting for his shot back with the Nationals or to pitch well enough to get another team's attention, or both. The Nationals have a couple of doubleheaders coming up on the schedule where Lannan could get the opportunity to showcase his talents again with the...

Zimmerman, Espinosa nearly cycling in Miami (Nats lose 5-3)

Zimmerman, Espinosa nearly cycling in Miami (Nats lose 5-3)
Ryan Zimmerman is 3-for-3 with a single, a home run and a double. Danny Espinosa is 3-for-3 with a triple, a single and a double. The two guys are each a knock away from recording the cycle, and they've combined to drive in two of the Nationals' three runs so far tonight. The only problem is the Nats still trail 4-3 entering the seventh. Edwin Jackson wasn't his sharpest tonight, and a four-run Marlins third inning has then up entering the late-innings. Miami got on the board on Carlos...

Can't stop talking about Potomac's Karns, who wins fifth straight

Can't stop talking about Potomac's Karns, who wins fifth straight
High Single-A Potomac's Nathan Karns continues to put together a season that is grabbing the attention of the parent franchise. Karns fired six scoreless innings as the P-Nats dropped Lynchburg 14-0 at Pfitzner Stadium. The Hillcats managed just one hit against Potomac pitching and it was the Nationals' fourth shutout of the season. Karns improved to 5-2 by allowing just that one hit with two walks and six strikeouts. He has won five consecutive starts. His ERA is 2.12 and he has struck...

Stephen Walker: Nationals may miss Wilson Ramos more than anyone thinks

Stephen Walker: Nationals may miss Wilson Ramos more than anyone thinks
As the Nationals continue to own the best record in the National League and maintain a 2 1/2-game lead in the NL East, injured catcher Wilson Ramos seems like a forgotten man. Unnoticed though he may be, Washington's baseball club misses Ramos more than most fans think. Jesus Flores, himself healthy for the first time in four years after overcoming a myriad of injuries, has filled in capably for the injured starter. Flores has excelled defensively and capably handled the Nationals excellent...

Desmond sits for second straight day

Desmond sits for second straight day
The Nationals will be without Ian Desmond for tonight's series finale against the Marlins. Desmond also sat out yesterday's game against the Marlins because of a sore left oblique which tightened up on him. He had played every inning for 71 straight games prior to missing yesterday's contest. With Desmond out of the lineup, the Nationals will again go with Danny Espinosa at shortstop and Steve Lombardozzi at second base. They'll face veteran right-hander Carlos Zambrano tonight at...

With one game on the line, which Nats starter do you want?

With one game on the line, which Nats starter do you want?
Over the last three days, Jordan Zimmermann, Gio Gonzalez and Stephen Strasburg have allowed a total of two runs in 18 innings pitched. The Nationals' trio of aces is at it again. All three put up incredibly impressive first halves, and all three are coming out of the gates strong after the All-Star break. You could certainly argue this is the best trio of starting pitchers on any team in baseball. In fact, it might be hard to argue against it. And that got me thinking. If you had one game...

Looking at possible moves before the MLB trade deadline

Looking at possible moves before the MLB trade deadline
As the trade season hits full throttle before the non-waiver July 31 deadline, the Orioles say they are looking for a batter that can pump life into the top of the order and improve their on-base percentage (.302), which ranks 13th in the American League. Another on-base guy would be perfect for the Orioles, but the question is: What would the Orioles have to pay to get it done? Can they make a trade without giving up blue-chip prospects Dylan Bundy and Manny Machado? Minnesota's Denard Span...

Harper, Guillen and a sticky situation

Harper, Guillen and a sticky situation
So let me get this straight: We've got another pine tar incident on our hands? The first time around, it involved Joe Maddon and the Rays, with Joel Peralta being ejected for having pine tar on his glove. This time, it's Marlins skipper Ozzie Guillen, who always seems to find himself in the headlines, accusing Bryce Harper of having pine tar too high up on his bat. The timing of this incident is comical, considering that during the All-Star Game festivities just last week, Harper got a...

Guillen heated, Strasburg hitting (Nats win 4-0)

Guillen heated, Strasburg hitting (Nats win 4-0)
There's been no shortage of fireworks through the first few innings of today's ballgame. We've got Ozzie Guillen dropping F-bombs in the direction of Nationals players or their manager, Roger Bernadina laying out to make a diving, run-saving grab, Davey Johnson giving it to first base umpire D.J. Reyburn and Stephen Strasburg sending his OPS to ridiculous levels. The Nationals lead 2-0 in the sixth thanks to RBI singles from Strasburg and Steve Lombardozzi. Strasburg's base knock came...

Desmond not in Nationals lineup

Desmond not in Nationals lineup
For the first time in 71 games, Ian Desmond will not be at shortstop when the Nationals take the field today. Desmond and his sore oblique will get the day off, with Danny Espinosa sliding over from second base to play shortstop and Steve Lombardozzi filling in at second. Interestingly enough, Desmond needs the day off just two games into the second half of the season, after getting four days of rest over the All-Star break. Desmond started all but one game over the first half, and has...

Nationals' Storen knocked around in Harrisburg rehab appearance

Nationals' Storen knocked around in Harrisburg rehab appearance
Nationals closer Drew Storen continued his rehab from elbow surgery with an appearance for Double-A Harrisburg and did not have his best stuff. With the Senators leading 4-1 in the seventh, Storen surrendered four runs on three hits to Richmond, including a solo homer that lost the lead. Richmond's Johnny Monell cranked a solo shot, No. 8 on the season, with two outs in the seventh off of Storen to give the Flying Squirrels a 5-4 lead. Storen also allowed a single, a triple and a sacrifice...

Marlins succeeding with small ball (Nats lose 2-1)

Marlins succeeding with small ball (Nats lose 2-1)
Davey Johnson typically isn't a huge fan of giving away outs by sacrificing and relying on the small-ball game. Tonight, Ozzie Guillen's Marlins have done just that. And they have two big runs on the board as a result. In the fourth, Jose Reyes reached on a leadoff single and was immediately moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by Omar Infante. One batter later, Reyes came around to notch the game's first run on an RBI single to right-center off the bat of Carlos Lee. The Nationals tied...

Two tough lefties square off in Miami

Two tough lefties square off in Miami
Remember when the Nationals tried signing Mark Buehrle this offseason and he spurned their advances only to sign with another National League East team, the Marlins? Remember when the Nats then filled the void in their rotation by trading for Gio Gonzalez? Today, the two lefties, whose offseason maneuverings were intertwined, will face off when the Nats look to take their second straight game from the Marlins. Buehrle, 33, ended up signing a four-year, $58 million deal with Miami this...