nationals

A vote against expanding the postseason field

December 04, 2021, 5:28pm

Watching college football the last two weekends, I couldn't help but keep asking myself: Why does that sport still only allow four teams into its top-level playoff? How much better would it be if every major conference winner automatically qualified, plus two at-large teams and the highest-ranked team from one of the other conferences, making up an eight-team bracket? Which also got me thinking how baseball really does have its postseason system right at the moment. Ten of the sport's 30...

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Could work stoppage mean no rule changes in 2022?

December 03, 2021, 6:07pm

Nationals

Could work stoppage mean no rule changes in 2022?

In anticipating the negotiations between owners and players leading up to the expiration of the collective bargaining agreement, everyone assumed there would be two major areas of dispute: baseball's economic model and potential rule changes to the sport. Turns out the two sides really only discussed money before the CBA expired late Wednesday night and owners instituted a lockout. Commissioner Rob Manfred, during his Thursday news conference with reporters in Dallas, revealed the rule change...

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Nats have questions they can't answer until lockout ends

December 02, 2021, 5:49pm

Nationals

Nats have questions they can't answer until lockout ends

The baseball world came to an abrupt halt at midnight Thursday, and we don't know when the machine is going to be turned back on again. It would be weeks. It could be months. Which leaves every club and a whole lot of players feeling helpless for the time being. Normally, everyone would be gearing up for the Winter Meetings, which were to begin Monday in Orlando. Trades would've been made, free agents would've been signed, Scott Boras quips would've been trotted out to a throng of reporters...

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What happens now that the lockout has begun?

December 01, 2021, 7:51pm

Nationals

What happens now that the lockout has begun?

And so we have entered uncharted territory. Uncharted, that is, for the last 27 years. For the first time since the infamous 1994-95 strike, Major League Baseball is now officially in a work stoppage. When the collective bargaining agreement expired at 11:59 p.m. Wednesday with no new deal in place, owners enforced a lockout of players. How long will it last? What are they fighting over? What does this mean for the Nationals the rest of the winter? Let's try to address as much of this as we...

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Last chance to make moves before tonight's expected lockout

November 30, 2021, 7:14pm

Nationals

Last chance to make moves before tonight's expected lockout

After an awfully quiet start to the offseason, then a furious 48 hours of nonstop news, now baseball has fewer than 24 hours to wrap up any remaining business before the collective bargaining agreement expires and a league-imposed lockout is expected to commence. All of this has made for an unusual couple of days as clubs around the sport rushed to make moves both big and small before a transactions freeze brings a stop to all activity until owners and players can agree on a new CBA. It could...

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#TBT to "Nationals Classics:" Marathon matches galore as nights grow longer

November 29, 2021, 1:50pm

Nationals

Kinks in the supply chain have holiday shoppers jumpier than usual this year as they comb the Internet and the stores (remember those?) for the hot new toy or electronic gizmo. The good news is that the supply of warm baseball memories is flowing just fine via "Nationals Classics." In this week's batch, MASN brings you a big moment in the budding career of a young star, a signature win for a Cooperstown-bound hurler, some marathon matches ending in Nationals wins, more clutch hits for the...

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Four Nats qualify for early arbitration as Super Two players

November 27, 2021, 12:33pm

Nationals

Four Nats qualify for early arbitration as Super Two players

Four Nationals players will qualify for salary arbitration this winter despite having yet to accrue three full years of major league service time because each has crossed the lower threshold used to designate each year's so-called Super Two players. MLBTradeRumors.com reported Saturday the cutoff for Super Two qualification this winter is 2 years, 116 days of service time. That means Ryne Harper (2 years, 135 days), Austin Voth (2 years, 127 days), Tanner Rainey (2 years, 127 days) and Andrew...

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Desperate teams trying to make big moves before lockout

November 28, 2021, 7:40pm

Nationals

Desperate teams trying to make big moves before lockout

As Dec. 1 creeps ever closer, we're finally seeing some movement around the baseball world. With the collective bargaining agreement set to expire in two days and an owners' lockout of players looming, a group of prominent free agents is now motivated to get deals down as soon as possible and avoid falling victim to what could be a two-month stretch with zero transactions completed. And there may be no player more motivated to know where he's going to be playing in 2022 right now than Max...

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Scherzer headed to Mets, likely to debut versus Nats

November 29, 2021, 8:55am

Nationals

Scherzer headed to Mets, likely to debut versus Nats

Max Scherzer is going to be a Met for at least the next two years, possibly three. He's going to make more money each of those years than anyone who has ever played baseball has made. And he's almost certainly going to make his New York debut against the Nationals franchise he helped lead to their first championship. Happy Monday, everybody! What was percolating late Sunday night was finalized early this afternoon: Scherzer is signing with the Mets, a massive three-year, $130 million contract...

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Stevenson avoids arbitration, agrees to 2022 contract

November 29, 2021, 4:42pm

Nationals

Stevenson avoids arbitration, agrees to 2022 contract

The Nationals got a jump start on what should be a hectic Tuesday in advance of Major League Baseball's non-tender deadline and Wednesday night's expiration of the collective bargaining agreement, agreeing to terms with Andrew Stevenson on a 2022 contract to avoid arbitration. Stevenson, who qualified for arbitration despite having not yet accrued three years of big league service time as a so-called Super Two player, stands to earn a modest raise from his 2021 salary of $579,100. The...

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Nationals face tender decisions with nine players today

November 29, 2021, 5:58pm

Nationals

After a frantic Monday that saw a handful of clubs handing out hundreds of millions of dollars to free agents like candy, every major league club now faces a busy Tuesday deciding whether or not to retain a bunch of its own players. By 8 p.m. today, teams must tender contracts to all arbitration-eligible players. Those who don't receive offers are non-tendered and immediately become free agents. So while the Nationals have been awfully quiet on the transaction front so far this winter, they...

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Suero, Harper, Ford are non-tendered by Nats before deadline

November 30, 2021, 3:37pm

Nationals

Suero, Harper, Ford are non-tendered by Nats before deadline

The Nationals chose not to tender contracts to relievers Wander Suero and Ryne Harper, plus minor league first baseman Mike Ford, before tonight's league-wide deadline, making all three free agents only 28 hours before Major League Baseball is expected to begin a lockout of players that could stretch through most of the winter. The Nats did tender contracts to all other unsigned players on their 40-man roster, including seven arbitration-eligible players - Juan Soto, Josh Bell, Joe Ross, Erick...

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Nats add two infielders, including 40-man roster addition Fox

November 30, 2021, 10:04am

Nationals Orioles

Nats add two infielders, including 40-man roster addition Fox

The Nationals have added to their infield depth, claiming Lucius Fox off waivers from the Orioles and signing former Blue Jays shortstop Richard UreÃ±a to a minor league contract. Fox immediately joins the Nats' 40-man roster, which for the moment is full. That very well could change by the end of the day if the club chooses not to tender contracts to any of their nine unsigned arbitration-eligible players before the league's 8 p.m. deadline. Fox was acquired only two weeks ago by the...

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Looking at some lesser-known players on the 40-man roster

November 26, 2021, 6:06pm

Nationals

Looking at some lesser-known players on the 40-man roster

We've mentioned players who were added or subtracted from the Nationals' 40-man roster on several occasions so far this offseason, but it's probably worth mentioning everyone who currently resides on that roster, because some names tend to slip through the cracks and don't garner much attention. The 40-man roster, for those who don't know, serves multiple purposes. First and foremost, it represents the pool of players a club can call up to the major leagues at any point in time. In order...

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What's on your Black Friday wish list for the Nats?

November 25, 2021, 5:37pm

Nationals

What's on your Black Friday wish list for the Nats?

It's Black Friday, and that can only mean one thing: It's time to start crossing items off your holiday shopping list. Far be it from us to try to tell you what you should be buying your significant other, your child or your other loved ones this year. But around here, we do like to put together wish lists for roster needs. So let's think about what's on the Nationals' wish list this year. It's not the same kind of list they've put together in recent years. They don't have one or two...

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Finding reasons to be thankful in spite of a difficult season

November 24, 2021, 6:58pm

Nationals

Finding reasons to be thankful in spite of a difficult season

Are we really going to try to find something to be thankful about the 2021 Nationals? Yes, yes we are. That's what this day is all about. It may seem like a daunting task, looking for silver linings in a 97-loss season that included injuries, agonizing losses and emotional departures of some beloved players. But if you dig a little deeper, think a little more critically, you can indeed find reasons to be thankful. For starters, we all got to attend baseball games in person again this year. We...

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What Franco's deal with Rays says about Soto and Nats

November 23, 2021, 6:03pm

Nationals

What Franco's deal with Rays says about Soto and Nats

It's been a quiet start to the offseason, not only for the Nationals but for the entire sport, which unfortunately appears to be reluctant to sign too many free agents before the collective bargaining agreement expires one week from today, at which point the league may lock out the players. There have been a handful of intriguing signings, though, and there certainly was one Tuesday, when the Rays agreed to a reported 11-year extension with phenom shortstop Wander Franco worth a guaranteed...

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#TBT to "Nationals Classics": Some viewing sides for your Turkey Day feast and beyond

November 22, 2021, 5:10am

Nationals

By now, the turkey may be in the oven, your kitchen may smell wonderful and you're looking at the timer counting down the hours and minutes before your Thanksgiving feast can commence. In a few hours, you'll be stuffed, thankful for the expanding or flexible waistband on your pants and settling into your comfiest chair for the rest of the day. Whatever is on your post-Thanksgiving meal menu - pumpkin pie, a turkey sandwich trimmed with dressing and cranberry sauce, a nip of your favorite...

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Hall of Fame ballot loaded with big names and controversy

November 22, 2021, 6:13pm

Nationals

Hall of Fame ballot loaded with big names and controversy

If you glanced at the 2022 Hall of Fame ballot that was released Monday hoping to find some prominent Nationals representation, you were sorely disappointed. Sure, Jonathan Papelbon made the list, but you probably aren't going to find too many Nats fans excited to relive those regrettable 12 months in club history. You'll just have to wait another year, because among the players eligible to make the 2023 ballot is none other than Jayson Werth. We'll have some fun with that one when the time...

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Can Nats regain their standing among D.C. sports teams?

November 21, 2021, 3:11pm

Nationals

Can Nats regain their standing among D.C. sports teams?

If you took a stroll around town on Nov. 3, 2019, and asked a random sampling of 100 people on the streets who the most popular professional team in D.C. was at that moment, there's a good chance more people would've said the Nationals than anyone else. The fact they had just held a parade for the World Series champs 24 hours earlier probably would've played a role in that, but that championship really was the culmination of something that had been building for some time. After two decades...