Lidge activated, Rodriguez lands on DL (Renda, Miller agree to terms)

Lidge activated, Rodriguez lands on DL (Renda, Miller agree to terms)
Davey Johnson indicated in his pregame session with reporters that in addition to Tyler Moore being recalled from Triple-A Syracuse, another roster move might be on the way. That move was announced less than 20 minutes prior to today's first pitch. Reliever Brad Lidge has been reinstated from the disabled list, while fellow reliever Henry Rodriguez has landed on the 15-day DL with a strained right finger. Lidge missed the Nationals' last 38 games due to an abdominal injury which required...

Nationals reinstate RHP Brad Lidge from DL, place RHP Henry Rodriguez on DL

Nationals reinstate RHP Brad Lidge from DL, place RHP Henry Rodriguez on DL
The Washington Nationals today returned from rehab and reinstated right-handed pitcher Brad Lidge from the 15-Day Disabled List and placed right-handed pitcher Henry Rodriguez on the 15-Day DL, retroactive to June 6, with a strained right index finger. Nationals Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations and General Manager Mike Rizzo made the announcement. Lidge, who missed the Nationals' last 38 contests with an abdominal injury, went 0-1 with a 6.75 ERA (one ER/1.1 IP) during a...

An immature man's pitching matchup (Moore addition official)

An immature man's pitching matchup (Moore addition official)
Being as immature as I am, I can't help but chuckle at today's pitching matchup, which features the Nationals' Chien-Ming Wang against the Mets' R.A. Dickey. Wang vs. Dickey. For all the marbles. It was an incredibly low-key morning, as players slowly trickled into the Nats' clubhouse with their suits ready for the road trip which they'll leave for after the game. Tyler Moore has officially been recalled from Triple-A Syracuse and Carlos Maldonado was placed on the 15-day DL with a...

Nats' 3-4-5 looking like a dangerous group

Nats' 3-4-5 looking like a dangerous group
For much of the first two months of this season, the Nationals have been working without two of their key power hitters. Now, even though Jayson Werth is still sidelined, they've finally got Ryan Zimmerman, Adam LaRoche and Michael Morse all healthy at the same time. And they know what that can mean for their outlook the rest of this season. "Oh, it's a whole new ballgame," manager Davey Johnson said. Tonight, we got a sample of what Nats fans have been waiting to see out of the middle...

Nationals recall 1B/OF Tyler Moore from Syracuse, place C Carlos Maldonado on DL

Nationals recall 1B/OF Tyler Moore from Syracuse, place C Carlos Maldonado on DL
The Washington Nationals today recalled first baseman/outfielder Tyler Moore from Syracuse of the Triple-A International League and placed catcher Carlos Maldonado on the 15-Day Disabled List, retroactive to May 30, with a lower back strain. Nationals Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations and General Manager Mike Rizzo made the announcement. Moore has played in 12 games this season with Washington, going 3-for-19 at the plate. The 25-year-old batted .310 with six doubles, one...

Dave Nichols: Nationals continue to look good a third of the way through the season

Dave Nichols: Nationals continue to look good a third of the way through the season
There's an old adage in baseball that goes, you win 60 and lose 60, it's what you do with the rest that makes or breaks you. While that's not quite an even one-third split, we have reached that point in the season. With last night's 5-3 win over the New York Mets, the Nats have played 54 games, exactly one-third of the season. Hey, I'm all for a little analysis using arbitrary end-points, so here goes. The Nats are 32-22, first in the NL East by two games over the Braves and the Marlins....

Maldonado to DL, Moore returns to Nats

Maldonado to DL, Moore returns to Nats
Manager Davey Johnson said after tonight's game that the Nationals will place catcher Carlos Maldonado on the 15-day disabled list with a back injury and will call up outfielder/first baseman Tyler Moore from Triple-A Syracuse. Maldonado said that he's having an issue with a muscle in the right side of his back, and described the injury as somewhat of a spasm. He has played in four games since getting called up from Syracuse back on May 15, going hitless in nine at-bats with two walks and...

Jackson remains the same, nets first win in 53 days

Jackson remains the same, nets first win in 53 days
Nationals right-handed starter Edwin Jackson had not recorded a win in more than a month and a half, but he didn't let that frazzle him. On April 14, Jackson through a complete game, two-hitter to subdue the Cincinnati Reds, 4-1. Since then, Jackson threw five straight no decisions, then lost back-to-back games at Philadelphia and at Miami. So Wednesday, when Jackson went seven innings and threw 100 pitches, only allowing two earned runs, the victory tasted even sweeter in a 5-3 dispatch of...

Veteran trio has Nats on top of Mets (Nats never trail in 5-3 win)

Veteran trio has Nats on top of Mets (Nats never trail in 5-3 win)
After a stretch where it seemed like none of the Nationals' middle-of-the-order hitters could get anything done at the plate, Ryan Zimmerman, Adam LaRoche and Michael Morse have done all the damage for the Nats tonight. The three veteran hitters are now a combined 5-for-8 with a walk, and they've delivered all four Washington RBIs. LaRoche got the scoring started in the first, drilling a three-run homer to right. It gave the Nats an early 3-0 lead and snapped what had been a brutal slump at...

Nationals select 24 players on Day 3 to conclude 2012 First-Year Player Draft

Nationals select 24 players on Day 3 to conclude 2012 First-Year Player Draft
The Washington Nationals today selected 24 players on the third day of Major League Baseball's First-Year Player Draft. Nationals Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations and General Manager Mike Rizzo, Nationals Assistant General Manager & Vice President of Player Personnel Roy Clark and Nationals Director of Scouting Kris Kline made the joint announcement. Over the three-day Draft, the Nationals selected a total of 40 players: 14 right-handed pitchers, six left-handed...

Final draft update (with Morse notes and quotes)

Final draft update (with Morse notes and quotes)
I'll say it again - if draft experts handed out grades based on the quality of the names in a draft class, the Nationals would be getting stellar marks. They took Stanford left-hander Brett Mooneyham in the third round, Clemson catcher Spencer Kieboom in the fifth, Florida Southern catcher Austin Chubb in the 21st (is Chubb a great name for a catcher, or what?) and prep outfielder Skye Bolt in the 26th. The draft is now complete after three long days, and here's how the Nats' class breaks...

Tough bullpen decisions to come shortly (plus Maldonado injury note)

Tough bullpen decisions to come shortly (plus Maldonado injury note)
With the addition of Michael Gonzalez a couple days ago, the Nationals now have four lefties in their bullpen. It might not be that way for long, however. Both Brad Lidge and Ryan Mattheus are closing in on returns to the Nats, and when the righties are ready to come back, the team will need to make some tough decisions on how they want to structure their bullpen. Lidge is pitching in his second rehab game for Single-A Potomac tonight as he works back from hernia surgery, while Mattheus, who...

Nats lineup vs. Hefner, Mets

Nats lineup vs. Hefner, Mets
Who would you rather face if you were the Nationals - Johan Santana, coming off a no-hitter his last time out, or Jeremy Hefner, making his third career start? Yeah, me too. Santana might have been a bit tired had he pitched tonight on normal rest, but if I'm Nats manager Davey Johnson, I'll take a matchup with an unproven hurler over one with a worn-down yet in-the-zone veteran any day. The Mets have opted to push Santana back to Friday to give him a chance to rest up from his lengthy...

Harper's play leaving teammates in awe

Harper's play leaving teammates in awe
The list of superlatives that were used to describe Bryce Harper in the Nationals' clubhouse late last night was a lengthy one. "He's a man-child," outfielder Michael Morse said. "He's unbelievable." "The kid's a gamer," said shortstop Ian Desmond. "He's unbelievable. One of the best players I've ever seen, to be honest." This all came after Harper delivered another big-time moment - his first career walk-off hit in the Nats' 7-6 12-inning win over the Mets last night. It was...

Nats just wouldn't give up in wild, wacky 12-inning affair

Nats just wouldn't give up in wild, wacky 12-inning affair
Well, this one was nuts. Twelve innings, 14 total pitchers used, three blown Mets leads in the eighth inning or later, countless misplayed balls (two in the bottom of the 10th by poor Jordany Valdespin), three wild pitches and the first walk-off hit by a teenager in nearly 24 years. It felt like it might never end, but it did. A thrilling - and exhausting - contest finally went to the Nationals by a 7-6 score. "It was a wild game," manager Davey Johnson said. "They didn't play very well,...

Desmond uses inspiration from different place to deliver clutch RBIs

Desmond uses inspiration from different place to deliver clutch RBIs
Shortstop Ian Desmond continues to deliver in the clutch. On Tuesday, Desmond produced three straight RBIs, with his team trailing each time. In the eighth frame, Desmond's RBI single tied the game at 4-4. In the tenth, Desmond reached on an error hit so hard that Ryan Zimmerman scored to knot the contest at five. And finally, in the game-changing 12th inning with the Nats trailing 6-5, Desmond's RBI double scored Michael Morse to even the game again. Whether it has been leading off or...

Could interest in Lannan intensify after latest quality start?

Could interest in Lannan intensify after latest quality start?
The Nationals have spoken to a good amount of teams since the beginning of the season regarding left-hander John Lannan. General manager Mike Rizzo said their had been "mild interest" in early April. Now, Ken Rosenthal of FOXsports.com reports that the Colorado Rockies and Los Angeles Dodgers have had "recent discussions" with the Nationals about their former front line starter. It seems that the talks have yet to intensify, but with Lannan's latest impressive start Tuesday, and team's...

Rachel Levitin: Watching Harper play is just plain fun

Rachel Levitin: Watching Harper play is just plain fun
If I were to keep it simple, I'd summarize watching Bryce Harper play baseball as fun because it is - whether it was his post-draft introductory press conference (where he took batting practice before the formal session), his home debut at Nationals Park, the time he stole home off Cole Hamels or Tuesday night's first career walk-off. I know I'll always kick myself for missing his first career home run. A friend and I were going to make it to that game too. We were planning on it, rain got...

How 'bout some bonus baseball? (Harper walks 'em off in 12)

How 'bout some bonus baseball? (Harper walks 'em off in 12)
As if nine innings of tonight's Nationals-Mets contest hasn't been entertaining enough, we're going to extras. The Nats and Mets are tied 4-4 after nine in an up-and-down game which saw both teams squander a lead in the late innings. After tying it in the eighth, Washington had a chance to win it in the bottom of the ninth when Roger Bernadina singled with two outs, bringing Bryce Harper to the plate and the crowd to its collective feet. Harper smoked a ball to left field on a line, but...

Morse is on the board (we're tied in the ninth)

Morse is on the board (we're tied in the ninth)
In his 10th at-bat of the 2012 season, Michael Morse got into the hit column. Up in the bottom of the fourth, Morse roped a double to the opposite field in right-center and galloped into second base standing up. It was a vintage Morse swing and result, and had to feel nice for the big guy after going hitless in his first nine at-bats since coming off the disabled list. Unfortunately for the Nationals, Morse stayed stuck at second, as Ian Desmond flied out to shallow center and Danny Espinosa...