nationals

Nats' biggest names embracing expanded roles in October

October 04, 2019, 11:45pm

LOS ANGELES - The Nationals have pitched 26 innings of postseason baseball so far this week, all of them high-stress, high-stakes innings, with one game officially must-win and another game ostensibly must-win. Max Scherzer, Stephen Strasburg and Patrick Corbin have pitched 21 of those 26 innings. Daniel Hudson and Sean Doolittle have pitched another three. That's 24 of 26 innings, a staggering 92.3 percent, manned by those five key members of the staff, the five best members of the staff. "I...

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Strasburg and surprise reliever Scherzer pitch Nats to win (updated)

October 04, 2019, 9:15pm

Nationals

Strasburg and surprise reliever Scherzer pitch Nats to win (updated)

LOS ANGELES - How much did the Nationals believe they needed to win Game 2 of the National League Division Series tonight? Enough to start Stephen Strasburg three days after he threw three innings of relief in the NL wild card game. And that wasn't even the biggest gamble Davey Martinez took this evening. No, Martinez felt victory tonight was so critical, he sent Game 3 starter Max Scherzer to the mound for the bottom of the eighth inning with his team leading by two runs. You think the Nats...

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Martinez, players hope for looser approach tonight (Nats win 4-2)

October 04, 2019, 4:17pm

Nationals

Martinez, players hope for looser approach tonight (Nats win 4-2)

LOS ANGELES - The Nationals know they played loose all season, enjoying the moment even when they at times struggled. And they know they didn't play loose during Thursday night's 6-0 shutout loss to the Dodgers in Game 1 of the National League Division Series. How, then, do they rediscover that essential mindset tonight while facing an even more pressure packed scenario, desperately trying to avoid falling behind 2-0 in the best-of-five series? Maybe a reappearance of the infamous camels from...

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Martinez needs to be more aggressive with bullpen in Game 2

October 03, 2019, 10:06pm

Nationals

Martinez needs to be more aggressive with bullpen in Game 2

LOS ANGELES - In Tuesday's do-or-die wild card game, Davey Martinez could justify an all-hands-on-deck philosophy with his pitching staff. In Thursday's opener of a best-of-five National League Division Series, the Nationals manager felt such an approach wasn't justified. Given the way his team lost 6-0 to the Dodgers, Martinez might have no choice but to treat tonight's Game 2 more like the elimination game he managed earlier this week. After getting six harrowing but ultimately effective...

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Nationals bats are silent in Game 1 shutout loss (updated)

October 03, 2019, 8:00pm

Nationals

LOS ANGELES - We can talk about the Nationals pitching staff - their dominant starters, their shaky relievers - and how they are deployed in the postseason until the cows come home. Until their hitters start, you know, hitting, it won't matter much. Game 1 of the National League Division Series saw Patrick Corbin battle disastrous command early to still produce a quality start. It saw a trio of setup men (Tanner Rainey, Fernando Rodney and Hunter Strickland) fail to keep the game close in the...

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NLDS Game 2 lineups: Nats at Dodgers

October 04, 2019, 2:22pm

Nationals

LOS ANGELES - If the Nationals are going to win tonight and even up this best-of-five series, they're going to have to score runs. That sounds like a "no, duh" statement, but it's a simple fact. They were shut out Thursday night in Game 1, and they really didn't hit much at all in their wild card win Tuesday night. They just need to find a way to put more runners on base, and then find a way to get as many of those runners as possible across the plate. That won't be an easy task against...

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After relief outing, Strasburg will start Game 2 (Nats fall 6-0)

October 03, 2019, 3:27pm

Nationals

After relief outing, Strasburg will start Game 2 (Nats fall 6-0)

LOS ANGELES - Stephen Strasburg and Davey Martinez spoke Wednesday evening, after the Nationals arrived here following a long flight from Washington following an emotional win over the Brewers in the National League wild card game. Strasburg had thrown 34 pitches in three innings of scoreless relief to help lift his team to victory in that do-or-die showdown. Now Martinez wanted to know if the right-hander was ready to start Game 2 of the National League Division Series on Friday...

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Suero, Voth added to Nationals bullpen for NLDS

October 03, 2019, 9:59am

Nationals

LOS ANGELES - With a best-of-five National League Division Series to consider now instead of a winner-take-all wild card game, the Nationals knew they were going to need to make some roster adjustments. Those adjustments, it turns out, come in the form of two extra pitchers added to their bullpen to face the Dodgers: Wander Suero and Austin Voth. After carrying only nine pitchers for Tuesday's wild card win over the Brewers - they actually used only three of them - the Nationals will now have...

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As glow of wild card win fades, Nats shift focus to NLDS

October 02, 2019, 10:18pm

Nationals

As glow of wild card win fades, Nats shift focus to NLDS

LOS ANGELES - The thrill of victory and the smell of champagne and beer had worn off. In their place was a happy but tired Nationals club that celebrated Tuesday night's epic wild card victory over the Brewers hard, then spent all of Wednesday afternoon flying across the country, then spent Wednesday night working out under the lights at Dodger Stadium, where tonight they'll open a best-of-five National League Division Series with a 106-win team from L.A. The previous 24 hours had been a...

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NLDS Game 1 lineups: Nats at Dodgers

October 03, 2019, 1:23pm

Nationals

LOS ANGELES - It's a beautiful day in the City of Angels, but then again most days here are. Dodger Stadium is resplendent as ever, set to host yet another postseason series, the Nationals for the second time. The Nats won one of the two games they played here in 2016. Everything starts anew tonight, with Game 1 of the National League Division Series pitting these two star-studded franchises against each other again, with some of the same cast of characters but plenty of new ones as well....

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Nats waiting to see if Strasburg is ready to start Game 2

October 02, 2019, 6:56pm

Nationals

Nats waiting to see if Strasburg is ready to start Game 2

LOS ANGELES - The Nationals will send Patrick Corbin to the mound Thursday night for Game 1 of their National League Division Series against the Dodgers. That much they know for sure. They do not yet know who will start Game 2 on Friday night, but they certainly appear to be open to the idea of giving the ball to Stephen Strasburg only three days after his dominant three-inning relief appearance in their wild card game victory over the Brewers. "Most definitely," manager Davey Martinez said...

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How Martinez's in-game decisions helped make win possible

October 02, 2019, 8:28am

Nationals

How Martinez's in-game decisions helped make win possible

There was a point during Tuesday night's wild card game, around the third inning or so, when it looked like Davey Martinez's postseason managerial debut was going to be remembered for the wrong reason. With Max Scherzer digging the Nationals into a 3-0 hole after serving up a pair of quick homers and the Brewers all set up to use their pitching staff exactly as they planned, Martinez's decision not only to start Scherzer in this game but to then let him bat for himself and continue pitching...

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How Scherzer, Strasburg and Hudson held Brewers to three runs

October 01, 2019, 9:00pm

Nationals

How Scherzer, Strasburg and Hudson held Brewers to three runs

The Nationals made a miraculous comeback Tuesday night to beat the Brewers 4-3 in the National League wild card game. Max Scherzer and Stephen Strasburg combined for eight innings, allowing only three runs. Then Daniel Hudson worked the ninth and found a way to record three outs for the save. But it did not start off well for Scherzer, who made the start. The right-hander allowed two early homers in the first two innings. Before he could get comfortable, the ace of the staff was down 3-0 after...

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Corbin to start Game 1, Strasburg could start Game 2

October 02, 2019, 3:15am

Nationals

Corbin to start Game 1, Strasburg could start Game 2

Following a 4-3 win in the National League wild card game, the Nationals turn their focus to Los Angeles for Game 1 of the NL Division Series on Thursday night at Dodger Stadium. Manager Davey Martinez confirmed that left-hander Patrick Corbin will start Game 1. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts has not announced his Game 1 starter. Right-hander Stephen Strasburg tossed three scoreless innings in Tuesday's comeback win over the Brewers, taxed for only 34 pitches. So that opens the door for...

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Soto's clutch hit finally lifts Nats in do-or-die game (updated)

October 01, 2019, 7:12pm

Nationals

Soto's clutch hit finally lifts Nats in do-or-die game (updated)

One of these years, the Nationals had to catch a break in a winner-take-all game on South Capitol Street, right? They had suffered too much heartache, too many crazy moments that all went against them with their season on the line in October. Just once, it had to go the other way, right? It did. Finally. And because of it, they will get to keep playing in 2019. Down two runs to the Brewers with two outs in the bottom of the eighth of tonight's National League wild card game, the Nationals...

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Dodgers, Nats' NLDS foe, boast left-handed power bats and strong rotation

October 02, 2019, 7:57am

Nationals

Dodgers, Nats' NLDS foe, boast left-handed power bats and strong rotation

Of all the ups and downs the Nationals bullpen has struggled through this season, the biggest challenge is waiting for them in Dodger Stadium. The Dodgers offense is loaded with left-handed batters. The Nationals bullpen, as was seen with the wild card roster, has only one lefty, Sean Doolittle. The Dodgers, who host the Nationals in the National League Division Series starting Thursday, have a versatile power-hitting lineup that hit 279 home runs during the regular season, most in the NL. Los...

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Martinez explains final wild card roster decisions

October 01, 2019, 2:47pm

Nationals

Martinez explains final wild card roster decisions

When it came time to make their final roster decisions for tonight's National League wild card game, the Nationals decided to prioritize speed. As in the speed of pitches and the speed of baserunners. In choosing to keep Tanner Rainey and Hunter Strickland in their bullpen over the likes of Wander Suero, Austin Voth and Javy Guerra, the Nats went with a couple of hard-throwing right-handers who get hitters out with velocity. And in choosing to keep both Michael A. Taylor and Andrew Stevenson...

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Early homers haunt Scherzer (Nats win 4-3)

October 01, 2019, 5:04pm

Nationals

Early homers haunt Scherzer (Nats win 4-3)

The Brewers struck quickly against Nationals starter Max Scherzer in tonight's National League wild card game. After a leadoff walk to Trent Grisham, Yasmani Grandal hit a two-run shot that bounced off the top of the right field wall at the Nats bullpen. That was his first homer of the postseason after 28 homers in the regular season. The Brewers led 2-0. Right-hander Brandon Woodruff used a 100 mph fastball to strikeout Adam Eaton swinging for the second out of the first. The longballs...

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Brewers' strategy derailed in eighth when Hader struggles with his location

October 01, 2019, 8:30pm

Nationals

Brewers' strategy derailed in eighth when Hader struggles with his location

For seven innings Tuesday, the Brewers' bullpen game was working to near perfection. Then, the eighth inning arrived. Brewers closer Josh Hader couldn't find the strike zone and the Nationals scored three runs to beat Milwaukee 4-3 in the National League wild card game at frenzied Nats Park. With one out, Hader hit pinch-hitter Michael A. Taylor with a pitch. Then pinch-hitter Ryan Zimmerman hit a broken-bat single to center, with Taylor going to third. Anthony Rendon walked to load the...

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NL wild card game lineups: Nats vs. Brewers

October 01, 2019, 12:15pm

Nationals

NL wild card game lineups: Nats vs. Brewers

Well, here we go. Tonight the Nationals take the field for a ballgame that both feels familiar and yet completely foreign. It's another winner-take-all home game in October, the fourth in eight years for this team. But it's the first wild card game, so that gives tonight's proceedings an entirely different context. So much of the talk leading up to this game has been about the Nationals' pitching plan. And certainly it will be important who Davey Martinez decides to use after Max Scherzer...