nationals

Nationals select Brady House in First-Year Player Draft

July 11, 2021, 5:22pm

The Washington Nationals selected prep shortstop Brady House out of Winder-Barrow High School with the No. 11 selection in the 2021 First-Year Player Draft on Sunday. President of Baseball Operations and General Manager Mike Rizzo, Assistant General Manager & Vice President of Scouting Operations Kris Kline and Director of Scouting Operations Eddie Longosz made the joint announcement. House, 18, hit .549 (50-for-91) with 12 doubles, eight home runs, 20 RBI, 21 stolen bases, 29 walks, nine...

Comments

Tags:

Nationals News Release nationals

For Scherzer, All-Star nod - even late - is still a big deal

July 10, 2021, 12:35pm

Nationals

For Scherzer, All-Star nod - even late - is still a big deal

When the call finally came from Major League Baseball on Saturday afternoon, inviting Max Scherzer to his eighth All-Star Game as a replacement player for a pitcher who was throwing Sunday or had to beg off with an injury, the Nationals ace reacted with the glee of a rookie rather than the carefully measured words of a grizzled 14-year veteran. "Just excited. Awesome. Anytime, it's a heck of an accomplishment," Scherzer said in a Zoom call with reporters before Saturday's game against the...

Comments

Tags:

all-star game davey martinez featured_sidebar juan soto max scherzer nationals nationals pastime pete kerzel frontstory_nationals3

Defense, bounces don't go Lester's way in 10-4 loss (updated)

July 10, 2021, 3:06pm

Nationals

Defense, bounces don't go Lester's way in 10-4 loss (updated)

In an alternate universe, Jon Lester would have deserved a better fate. The ground balls he induced would have found gloves rather than grass, his fielders wouldn't have betrayed him with clunky defense and he'd have been much more pitch-efficient. Instead, Lester endured a death by a thousand cuts Saturday afternoon, when the Giants both hammered and doinked him with regularity, his defense contributed to five unearned runs on two errors and the southpaw departed after just 2 2/3 innings...

Comments

Tags:

gerardo parra giants jon lester kyle mcgowin nationals nationals pastime pete kerzel alcides escobar jakson reetz featured_sidebar frontstory_nationals3

Game 89 lineups: Nats at Giants

July 10, 2021, 6:47pm

Nationals

After dropping the first two games of a three-game set at Oracle Park, the Nationals will turn to Erick Fedde (4-5, 4.53ERA) to try to snap a three-game losing streak and end the season's first half on a high note. The right-hander will be making his 13th start of the season and his second since returning from the injured list with an oblique issue. In his first game back from the injury, Fedde struggled through 4 1/3 innings against the Padres at Nationals Park, allowing six runs on eight...

Comments

Tags:

erick fedde josh bell lineups nationals nationals pastime pete kerzel starlin castro frontstory_nationals1

Gomes hits IL, so catching falls to Barrera for now (updated)

July 10, 2021, 10:53am

Nationals

Gomes hits IL, so catching falls to Barrera for now (updated)

Catcher Yan Gomes, who was removed in the second inning of Friday night's game against the Giants, is undergoing an MRI this afternoon and the Nationals will wait until the results of that diagnostic test to determine whether Gomes needs to be placed on the injured list, manager Davey Martinez said. "We have nothing yet," Martinez said in his pregame Zoom session with reporters. "He's getting an MRI as we speak, so hopefully he gets back here soon and we know something after the...

Comments

Tags:

alex avila davey martinez jakson reetz nationals nationals pastime pete kerzel raudy read tres barrera yan gomes featured_sidebar frontstory_nationals3

Game 88 lineups: Nats at Giants

July 09, 2021, 5:34pm

Nationals

Jon Lester may still be finding his footing in his first season with the Nationals, but history suggests there's ample reason for the left-hander to turn in a steller start when he faces the Giants this afternoon. Sure, Lester (2-3, 5.34 ERA) has gone six innings only twice in 13 starts this season, and his last outing saw the veteran log just 3 1/3 innings against the Padres in San Diego. But Lester has won two of his last three decisions and his career numbers against the Giants are pretty...

Comments

Tags:

gerardo parra jon lester josh bell lineups nationals nationals pastime pete kerzel starlin castro frontstory_nationals1

Nationals select the contract of Jakson Reetz

July 10, 2021, 12:05pm

Nationals

The Washington Nationals selected the contract of catcher Jakson Reetz from Triple-A Rochester and placed catcher Yan Gomes on the 10-day Injured List with an oblique strain Saturday. Additionally, the Nationals designated left-handed pitcher Kyle Lobstein for assignment. Nationals President of Baseball Operations and General Manager Mike Rizzo made the announcements. Reetz, 25, joins the Nationals after hitting .215 with 12 doubles, two homers, eight RBI, 19 walks and 22 runs scored in 38...

Comments

Tags:

Nationals News Release nationals

Nats balancing rest and momentum heading into break

July 09, 2021, 10:28pm

Nationals

Nats balancing rest and momentum heading into break

It might be easy to look at the recent body of work and be down on the Nationals entering the All-Star break: a four-game sweep at home at the hands of the Dodgers, a four-game series split with the Padres when winning three of four was right in their grasp, a loss in the first game against the Giants and a growing list of injuries. But looking at the greater body of work shows that the Nationals are carrying some real momentum into next week's pause: Over their last 30 games, they are 18-12,...

Comments

Tags:

bobby blanco davey martinez gerardo parra josh bell nationals nationals pastime paolo espino yan gomes featured_sidebar frontstory_nationals2

Scherzer chosen as an All-Star replacement

July 10, 2021, 8:20am

Nationals

Scherzer chosen as an All-Star replacement

Turns out Max Scherzer will get another star turn after all. The Nationals right-hander was selected as a replacement player for Tuesday's All-Star Game in Denver, Major League Baseball announced Saturday morning. Scherzer, who is 7-4 with a 2.66 ERA, 0.878 WHIP and 134 strikeouts in 98 innings, is an All-Star for the eighth time in his career. He has been chosen for the Midsummer Classic each season since 2013 He, Dodgers righty Walker Buehler, Brewers righty Freddy Peralta and Mets...

Comments

Tags:

all-star game featured_sidebar juan soto kyle schwarber max scherzer nationals nationals pastime pete kerzel trea turner frontstory_nationals3

Another injury and another loss for Nats (updated)

July 09, 2021, 8:50pm

Nationals

Another injury and another loss for Nats (updated)

Who said it couldn't get worse for the Nationals? Be honest, because I know you're out there. After a tough loss Thursday night to end a four-game series in San Diego, and with an already jam-packed injured list, why would you say that knowing full well that it could, in fact, get worse? Indeed, it did get worse for the Nationals in the form of a 5-3 loss to the Giants in front of 27,345 fans at Oracle Park to start the final series of the first half of the season, while also losing their...

Comments

Tags:

bobby blanco davey martinez gerardo parra nationals nationals pastime paolo espino san francisco giants tres barrera yan gomes featured_sidebar frontstory_nationals3

Game 87 lineups: Nats at Giants

July 09, 2021, 3:04pm

Nationals

The beauty of baseball is the everyday nature of the sport, making it easy to shake off bad losses and move on to the next game. So even though it wasn't a happy flight from San Diego to San Francisco following last night's heartbreaking loss to the Padres, the Nationals can put it behind them right away with tonight's opener against the Giants. Paolo Espino will take the mound for his first road start of the season (and the first since his major league debut back on May 19, 2017 with the...

Comments

Tags:

bobby blanco buster posey derek dietrich gerardo parra lineups logan webb nationals nationals pastime paolo espino san francisco giants victor robles

Break will help injured players, Nats sign Dietrich to minors deal

July 09, 2021, 5:13pm

Nationals

Break will help injured players, Nats sign Dietrich to minors deal

Only three games stand between the Nationals and the All-Star break, starting with tonight's series opener in San Francisco against the Giants. While Juan Soto, Trea Turner and Kyle Schwarber will stop in Denver next week for their first All-Star Game selections before returning home (though it's unclear whether Schwarber will attend or continue to rehab his hamstring injury), the rest of the team will be using the break to give some of their injured players more time to heal. One of those...

Comments

Tags:

alex avila andrew stevenson bobby blanco davey martinez derek dietrich nationals nationals pastime rochester red wings san francisco giants stephen strasburg featured_sidebar frontstory_nationals3

Breaking down the breakdowns in shocking loss

July 08, 2021, 11:22pm

Nationals

Breaking down the breakdowns in shocking loss

There's still so much to process about Thursday night's 9-8 loss in San Diego, a Nationals loss that can't begin to be adequately explained merely through the final score. Let's try to delve into a few more aspects of this wackadoodle game at Petco Park, which at times defied explanation. ... * Max Scherzer's meltdown was as quick as it was shocking. It's not just that he gave up seven runs in the bottom of the fourth. It's that he gave up seven runs in the bottom of the fourth after...

Comments

Tags:

brad hand davey martinez mark zuckerman max scherzer nationals nationals pastime sam clay san diego padres featured_sidebar frontstory_nationals2

Scherzer, Nats turn eight-run lead into 9-8 loss (updated)

July 08, 2021, 9:00pm

Nationals

Scherzer, Nats turn eight-run lead into 9-8 loss (updated)

They led by eight runs after 3 1/2 innings, with Max Scherzer cruising and looking very much like he wanted to make a definitive statement about his exclusion from the All-Star Game roster for the first time since 2012. How that somehow turned into a one-run lead 10 batters into the worst nightmare of a fourth inning Scherzer or anyone else on the Nationals could ever have dreamed up, a nightmare that included the first grand slam by a relief pitcher in the major leagues since 1985, defied...

Comments

Tags:

davey martinez mark zuckerman max scherzer nationals nationals pastime sam clay san diego padres trea turner featured_sidebar frontstory_nationals3

Ross lands on IL but expected to return after break

July 08, 2021, 3:58pm

Nationals

Ross lands on IL but expected to return after break

The Nationals have been talking for months about the need to monitor Joe Ross' workload after the he opted out of the 2020 season. They weren't necessarily planning to give the right-hander time off right now in advance of the All-Star break, but when he reported tightness in his forearm following his between-starts bullpen session Wednesday, it was an easy decision for the club to take him off the active roster. Ross was placed on the 10-day injured list with right elbow inflammation before...

Comments

Tags:

davey martinez joe ross jon lester mark zuckerman nationals nationals pastime paolo espino ryne harper san diego padres featured_sidebar frontstory_nationals3

Could Nats get both Bell and Zimmerman in lineup?

July 07, 2021, 9:24pm

Nationals

Could Nats get both Bell and Zimmerman in lineup?

For much of the season to date, Nationals manager Davey Martinez's plan at first base was fairly simple. Josh Bell almost always started against right-handers and Ryan Zimmerman almost always started against lefties. At this point, though, with Bell on a prolonged surge at the plate and Zimmerman now slumping after an electric April and May, Martinez's decision on playing time isn't quite as clear cut. Take Tuesday night's game in San Diego, for example. The Padres were starting Ryan...

Comments

Tags:

josh bell mark zuckerman nationals nationals pastime ryan zimmerman san diego padres featured_sidebar frontstory_nationals3

Nats bats stay hot during blowout win in San Diego (updated)

July 07, 2021, 9:45pm

Nationals

Nats bats stay hot during blowout win in San Diego (updated)

There was the tone-setter, the three-run homer by Juan Soto in the top of the first that seemed to leave Petco Park in 1.3 seconds. There were the back-to-back, two-run singles by Josh Bell and Starlin Castro in the top of the second that kept the pressure on Padres starter Chris Paddack. And then there were the three additional runs the Nationals scored soon thereafter to extend their lead to a whopping 10 runs by the top of the fourth and ensure this would be a very good (albeit very long)...

Comments

Tags:

josh bell juan soto mark zuckerman nationals nationals pastime patrick corbin san diego padres starlin castro featured_sidebar frontstory_nationals3

Game 86 lineups: Nats at Padres

July 08, 2021, 2:13pm

Nationals

We talked about the daunting two-week stretch the Nationals were going to face heading into the All-Star break, with 14 games in 14 days against five contenders. Well, 10 games in they've managed to go 5-5 despite a swath of injuries and a four-game sweep at the hands of the Dodgers last weekend. And tonight they have a chance to win three of four on the road from the Padres. That's not bad at all. It's a premier pitching matchup for the series finale at Petco Park, with All-Star Yu Darvish...

Comments

Tags:

alcides escobar josh bell juan soto lineups mark zuckerman max scherzer nationals nationals pastime san diego padres frontstory_nationals1

Hudson activated, bringing bullpen closer to full strength

July 07, 2021, 5:22pm

Nationals

Hudson activated, bringing bullpen closer to full strength

With only five days to go until the All-Star break and five more games to be played against a couple of National League West contenders, the Nationals are aggressively fortifying their pitching staff with some big names returning from injury. On Tuesday night, it was Erick Fedde and Kyle Finnegan coming off the injured list and pitching against the Padres. Tonight, it's Daniel Hudson activated off the 10-day IL, seemingly ahead of schedule. The Nationals announced the return of Hudson (and the...

Comments

Tags:

andres machado daniel hudson mark zuckerman nationals nationals pastime san diego padres featured_sidebar frontstory_nationals3

Soto will participate in Monday night's Home Run Derby

July 07, 2021, 12:55pm

Nationals

Soto will participate in Monday night's Home Run Derby

Maybe the cure for Juan Soto's struggles to elevate the ball is to hit a bunch of balls at high elevation in the Home Run Derby. Whether it helps him rediscover his power stroke or not, Soto is going to participate in Monday night's derby at Coors Field, the Nationals star outfielder announced today. It's Soto's first career appearance in the Home Run Derby, and it coincides with his first career All-Star selection. The timing may seem a bit off, given that Soto is currently struggling...