nationals

Game 20 lineups: Nats at Marlins

April 21, 2019, 5:39am

MIAMI - Well, this certainly is not what the Nationals expected. Arriving Thursday night, the Nats were above .500 again after a series win at home against the Giants. As of today they have lost two in a row to the last-place Marlins and now look to veteran right-hander Stephen Strasburg (1-1, 5.56 ERA) to be the stopper and avoid the sweep. I wrote this morning about how Strasburg has used a matured mental approach to get better with each start. Strasburg needs two innings to become the...

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Rendon leaves game after being hit on elbow (Nats fall 9-3)

April 20, 2019, 3:18pm

Nationals

Rendon leaves game after being hit on elbow (Nats fall 9-3)

MIAMI - Nationals third baseman Anthony Rendon left Saturday's game against the Marlins after being struck in the left elbow by a Jose UreÃ±a pitch in the third inning. With his departure, Rendon's 17-game hit streak comes to an end. We will wait for an update from the Nationals as to the status of Rendon. Howie Kendrick replaced Rendon at third base, only his second appearance at the position since 2016. The Marlins strung together good contact against the Nationals starter Max Scherzer...

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Glover pays visit to Nats; Ross could pitch again tonight

April 20, 2019, 1:35pm

Nationals

Glover pays visit to Nats; Ross could pitch again tonight

MIAMI - Right-handed reliever Koda Glover was in the clubhouse at Marlins Park today and got the chance to work out with the Nationals as he rehabs from a right forearm strain. Glover was already at his locker when the first team bus arrived before the game. He gave outfielder Michael A. Taylor a handshake and a big bear hug as his teammates made their way over to greet him. "I can't get my grin off my face, like seeing my boy Joe (Ross) and some of the guys," Glover said. "It's awesome....

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Ross big find for bullpen, Dozier connects

April 20, 2019, 4:18am

Nationals

Ross big find for bullpen, Dozier connects

MIAMI - Right-hander Joe Ross arrived in a high-leverage situation out of the bullpen Friday night. He threw 96 mph and he threw strikes to get outs. Where have you been this whole season? The Nationals didn't use Ross for 10 days because maybe manager Davey Martinez was waiting for a long-man role for the youngster to materialize, or he wanted to get Trevor Rosenthal on track? But in Friday's 3-2 loss to the Marlins, Davey found out what Ross can do: a lot. Ross ended the Marlins' chances...

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Ross a bright spot in series-opening 3-2 loss to Marlins

April 19, 2019, 7:27pm

Nationals

Ross a bright spot in series-opening 3-2 loss to Marlins

MIAMI - The Marlins were able to score two runs in the sixth to break open a tight pitcher's duel, and that was enough in the end, as the Nationals fell 3-2 in the road trip opener at Marlins Park. It was the last-place Marlins' first win in five games, and only their fifth in 20 games. Left-hander Caleb Smith was a little bit better than Nats right-hander AnÃbal SÃ¡nchez, but it was close. Smith tossed six innings, allowing one run on five hits with no walks and eight strikeouts. Brian...

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Game 19 lineups: Nats at Marlins

April 20, 2019, 9:16am

Nationals

MIAMI - Just because the Marlins don't have Giancarlo Stanton, J.T. Realmuto or Christian Yelich any more doesn't mean they still can't play some baseball and make an impact in the National League. The thought that the rest of the NL East is a dogfight and the Marlins are cupcakes may not quite be true, even with their brutal start. Right-hander AnÃbal SÃ¡nchez, who took the loss Friday night to fall to 0-2, remembers playing for the Florida Marlins from 2006-2011 and says the club...

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SÃ¡nchez and Smith locked in pitching battle (Nats fall 3-2)

April 19, 2019, 4:18pm

Nationals

SÃ¡nchez and Smith locked in pitching battle (Nats fall 3-2)

MIAMI - The Nationals used patience and aggressiveness to go after Marlins left-hander Caleb Smith early on. In Smith's 10-3 win over the Phillies in his last start, he surrendered one hit in six innings. The Nats connected on two base hits in their first at-bat Friday night at Marlins Park. Adam Eaton led off the game by bunting for a base hit on the first pitch from Smith. He went to second on a wild pitch and scored thanks to incredible patience from slugger Juan Soto. Down 1-2 in the...

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Adams is up, Williams to injured list; Doolittle could have night off

April 19, 2019, 2:36pm

Nationals

Adams is up, Williams to injured list; Doolittle could have night off

MIAMI - Nationals manager Davey Martinez said the Nats will not take the Marlins lightly despite their 4-15 start as they begin a three-game set indoors at Marlins Park. The Nats were 13-6 against thre Marlins last season. This is their first meeting in 2019. "We got to concentrate on today," Martinez said. "They understand that any given day we are facing a good opponent in Caleb Smith. So, we got to be ready to go. We got to play our kind of baseball. "Every game matters. Regardless of...

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After surviving opening stretch, time for Nats to start thriving

April 18, 2019, 2:04pm

Nationals

After surviving opening stretch, time for Nats to start thriving

They faced an 11-game opening gauntlet against nothing but two division rivals expecting to win this season. They've been without their starting shortstop for more than two weeks now. They continue to have to piece together their bullpen on a nightly basis, hoping to find a combination that records the necessary outs before giving up too many runs. Things have not gone swimmingly for the Nationals so far in 2019. And yet after hanging on for Thursday's 4-2 win over the Giants, they left town...

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Game 18 lineups: Nats at Marlins

April 19, 2019, 8:00am

Nationals

MIAMI - Welcome to Miami, where the Nationals arrive winners of three of their last four series and hold a 9-8 record. The Nats took their series with the Giants Thursday with a 4-2 win, thanks to some timely early hits and another gem from left-hander Patrick Corbin. This series marks the beginning of a six-game road trip with three here in South Florida and then three games in Denver against the Rockies starting Monday night. Sean Doolittle pitched again Thursday for the second game in a row...

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Corbin hits his spots, finally rewarded with first Nats win

April 18, 2019, 1:40pm

Nationals

Corbin hits his spots, finally rewarded with first Nats win

The Nationals had seen glimpses of Patrick Corbin at his best, but today they saw the left-hander at his absolute best from the moment he took the mound until the moment he departed 7 2/3 innings later. And what they saw during a 4-2 victory over the Giants confirmed what they've suspected all along: This is one of the best starters in baseball. "He really wasn't giving them any chance to get into any kind of rhythm," catcher Yan Gomes said. "He was taking apart the corners. We were...

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Behind Corbin's gem, Nats take series from Giants

April 18, 2019, 11:58am

Nationals

Behind Corbin's gem, Nats take series from Giants

Patrick Corbin had pitched well every time he had taken the mound wearing a Nationals uniform. Now the prized lefty finally has his first win in Washington. With 7 2/3 innings of two-hit ball, Corbin put his team in prime position to defeat the Giants today. And thanks to some early offense and a late escape act by the bullpen, the Nationals walked off the field with a 4-2 win and another series victory. At one point, Corbin (1-0) looked poised to go the distance and spare Davey Martinez from...

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Game 17 lineups: Nats vs. Giants

April 18, 2019, 5:59am

Nationals

Surely this is the most important official release of the day in Washington: the Nationals' starting lineup for their series finale against the Giants! While much of the world is focused on a different building in a different part of town, baseball fans are most interested in what takes place here on South Capitol Street, where the Nats are trying to take back-to-back games and win this three-game series in order to head out on a road trip to Miami and Colorado with a winning record. Patrick...

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Rendon extends hit streak to 16 games (Nats up 4-0)

April 18, 2019, 9:59am

Nationals

Rendon extends hit streak to 16 games (Nats up 4-0)

Anthony Rendon went hitless on opening day against Jacob deGrom. He hasn't gone hitless since. With a double off the left field wall in the bottom of the third this afternoon, Rendon extended his career-best hitting streak to 16 games and helped the Nationals open up a 2-0 lead on the Giants. Rendon, who kept his streak alive with a single in his final at-bat Wednesday night, didn't make things nearly as dramatic today. Though he struck out looking at a 3-2 fastball in the bottom of the...

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Hellickson keeps Giants away from big inning for another win

April 18, 2019, 3:32am

Nationals

Hellickson keeps Giants away from big inning for another win

Right-hander Jeremy Hellickson is turning into one of the most consistent Nationals starters. He did it again Wednesday in the Nats' 9-6 win over the Giants. Hellickson (2-0) went 5 2/3 innings, allowing two runs on five hits with four walks and no strikeouts. He had to throw only 79 pitches, 51 for strikes. Hellickson's first two starts of the season have come seven days apart, but the 32-year-old now has allowed only two runs in 11 2/3 innings to drop his ERA to 2.63. "Hellickson was...

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Eaton gets first day off, Robles gets first chance to bat first

April 18, 2019, 8:19am

Nationals

Eaton gets first day off, Robles gets first chance to bat first

It's been kind of taken for granted, but given what he went through the last two years, the fact that Adam Eaton started each of the Nationals' first 16 games this season is quite significant. Eaton, of course, missed most of 2017 after tearing the ACL in his left knee. Then he missed considerable time early in 2018 after Baltimore foot specialist Lew Schon suspected loose cartilage in the outfielder's ankle following an awkward slide, a diagnosis that was later confirmed by Green Bay...

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NL East has a bullpen problem

April 18, 2019, 6:29am

Nationals

The Nationals aren't the only team in the National League East with bullpen issues. After an offseason of acquiring bullpen arms, NL East teams are having difficult times finding reliable relief arms. And there are still two weeks to go in April. The Nationals' Austen Williams gave up four ninth-inning runs Wednesday in a 9-6 win against the Giants at Nationals Park, meaning the Nationals went into Thursday's game with the highest bullpen ERA (8.04) in the league. The Mets were the...

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Martinez forced to go to Doolittle again as bullpen almost gives away big lead late

April 17, 2019, 7:51pm

Nationals

Martinez forced to go to Doolittle again as bullpen almost gives away big lead late

With a late seven-run lead, Nationals manager Davey Martinez was certainly hoping that he wouldn't have to go to his closer to finish out the game. But when the bullpen unraveled yet again, he had no choice but to call on Sean Doolittle. The Nats were feeling good up 9-2 heading to the ninth, thanks to four homers, highlighted by a three-run shot from Matt Adams and two-run homers by Juan Soto and Kurt Suzuki. However, reliever Austen Williams was unable to record an out in the ninth, allowing...

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Big blasts for Soto and Adams, for different reasons

April 17, 2019, 7:46pm

Nationals

Big blasts for Soto and Adams, for different reasons

Let's ignore, tough as it may be, the Nationals bullpen for just one night. Yes, this remains the biggest topic of discussion on a team that too often is seeing the good work of others overshadowed by ineffective work in the late innings by the majors' worst relief corps. Tonight's 9-6 victory over the Giants was that close only because of a near ninth-inning collapse, rescued only by Sean Doolittle's hurried appearance to record the final two outs with the tying run at the plate. But the...

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Early, late blasts power Nationals to 9-6 win over Giants

April 17, 2019, 6:12pm

Nationals

Davey Martinez spent most of the evening sweating in the dugout, this despite the heavy coat he was wearing on a deceptively chilly mid-April evening on South Capitol Street. His Nationals had opened up an early lead on the Giants but couldn't add on, and so now the second-year manager had to figure out how he was going to get the requisite outs necessary from his beleaguered bullpen while protecting only a two-run lead. Then Matt Adams and Kurt Suzuki made life a whole lot easier on Martinez...