nationals

Rendon, Turner avoid arbitration; Taylor, Barraclough do not

January 11, 2019, 9:34am

The Nationals were able to agree to terms on 2019 contracts with Anthony Rendon and Trea Turner before today's 1 p.m. Eastern time deadline, but couldn't complete negotiations with Michael A. Taylor and Kyle Barraclough, who now must file for arbitration, according to a source familiar with the decisions. Players across baseball with three to six years of big league service time were engaged in down-to-the-wire talks today, and there were so many submissions to Major League Baseball...

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Deadline day for four arbitration-eligible players

January 10, 2019, 7:59pm

Nationals

Deadline day for four arbitration-eligible players

It's arbitration deadline day across Major League Baseball, which sounds like one of those really important days of the offseason with lots of dramatic news. But, to be honest, it isn't nearly as interesting as some might think. The gist of what happens today: Players who are eligible for arbitration (more than three years' big league service time but fewer than six, plus those pesky "Super Two" players) must either come to terms with teams on their 2019 salaries or else file competing...

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Ross avoids arbitration with $1 million deal for 2019

January 10, 2019, 2:16pm

Nationals

Ross avoids arbitration with $1 million deal for 2019

The Nationals got a jump on Friday's arbitration deadline, agreeing to terms tonight with Joe Ross on a one-year contract that reportedly will pay him $1 million. Ross, who was eligible for arbitration for the first time, gets a raise from his 2018 salary of $567,900, though not nearly as much as some others with comparable big league service time will receive because he missed more than a calendar year while recovering from Tommy John surgery. The 25-year-old right-hander is 17-15 with a 4.01...

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Nats top prospects: No. 2 - SS Carter Kieboom

January 11, 2019, 10:51am

Nationals

Nats top prospects: No. 2 - SS Carter Kieboom

With second baseman Brian Dozier agreeing to join the Nationals, infielder Carter Kieboom's named bubbled to the surface again with many saying Dozier is just a placeholder for the prospect for one season or less. That's high praise for Kieboom, who is just 21 and was a first-round selection in the 2016 draft. Kieboom has done a nice job of demonstrating that he is closer to being ready for the responsibility of playing second base, and ultimately shortstop, in the major leagues in the near...

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Nats agree to deal with veteran second baseman Dozier

January 10, 2019, 7:02am

Nationals

Nats agree to deal with veteran second baseman Dozier

The Nationals have agreed to terms with veteran second baseman Brian Dozier on a one-year contract, perhaps helping offset somewhat the power they would lose if Bryce Harper ends up signing elsewhere while also filling the one remaining vacancy in their projected 2019 lineup. Dozier's deal, which is pending a physical, is worth a total of $9 million, with $2 million of that deferred, according to a source familiar with the terms. ESPN's Jeff Passan was first to report the agreement. It's a...

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#TBT to "Nationals Classics": In the beginning ...

January 08, 2019, 8:09am

Nationals

By now you're used to seeing select games from great and not-so-great Nationals teams of the past on MASN. But we're throwing you way back with a couple of "Nationals Classics" telecasts this week, starting this afternoon. The Nats' inaugural season of 2005 turned out better than one might expect of a new club with a bunch of guys no one is considering for Cooperstown. At least it wasn't a losing year, as the team went 81-81. The Nats did, nonetheless, finish fifth in the National League...

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Fans' guide to spring training, Part 2: The town

January 09, 2019, 11:31am

Nationals

Fans' guide to spring training, Part 2: The town

OK, you've made the decision to head to spring training in West Palm Beach. You've picked out your dates to watch the Nationals, whether for the mid-February morning workouts or the late March Grapefruit League final tune-ups. You know where to best position yourself to get autographs. But you don't know how to get to West Palm Beach yet. Or where to stay. Or what to eat or do when you're not at the ballpark. You're in luck, because you're reading Part 2 of our annual Fans' Guide to...

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Fans' guide to spring training, Part 1: The complex

January 08, 2019, 8:05pm

Nationals

Fans' guide to spring training, Part 1: The complex

We don't know yet where Bryce Harper will be reporting for spring training, but we do know when the Nationals will be reporting for spring training, with or without their longtime slugger. The club officially announced key spring dates Tuesday, with pitchers and catchers set to report to West Palm Beach on Feb. 13 (with their first workout the following day) and position players set to report on Feb. 18 (with the first full-squad workout the day after that). The Grapefruit League opener...

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Nats top prospects: No. 3 - SS Luis Garcia

January 09, 2019, 2:21am

Nationals

Nats top prospects: No. 3 - SS Luis Garcia

A lot has been written about Carter Kieboom as a top infielder in the Nationals system. But don't sleep on shortstop Luis Garcia. He is another top farmhand who has garnered national attention as the No. 3 prospect in Baseball America's Nats top 10. He was also the No. 3 prospect available from the 2016 international signing class. The 6-foot, 190-lb., 18-year-old native of the Dominican Republic slashed .299/.338/.412 for high Single-A Potomac, finishing the season hitting .357 in his last...

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Nationals bullpen has potential but few sure things

January 07, 2019, 10:13am

Nationals

There is no more volatile position in baseball than relief pitcher, no more volatile position group than the bullpen. Only a handful of the very best relievers can consistently be counted upon year after year, so that always makes this aspect of the roster tougher to predict than others. Which also makes the Nationals bullpen both intriguing and nerve-wracking here as the 2019 season looms in the not-so-distant future. This is nothing new, of course. Rarely have the Nats entered a season with...

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Nats announce 2019 minor league staff

January 07, 2019, 9:34am

Nationals

Randy Knorr has been named the manager of the Triple-A Fresno Grizzlies, highlighting the announcement of the Nationals' 2019 minor league staff. The former major league catcher, and longtime mainstay as a coach at every level for several seasons for the Nats, becomes the 11th manager in Grizzlies history. The 2019 campaign marks his third season as skipper of the Nats' Triple-A affiliate. Brian Daubach is the hitting coach and Brad Holman will be the pitching coach, the same coaching staff...

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Nats top prospects: No. 4 - RHP Mason Denaburg

January 05, 2019, 7:59am

Nationals

Nats top prospects: No. 4 - RHP Mason Denaburg

The excitement the Nationals have for their new high school top draft pick, right-hander Mason Denaburg, is equaled in Baseball America's Nats top 10 rankings. Denaburg is ranked at No. 4 in the Nats top 10 as he heads into his first full season as a pro. Denaburg had a full ride to the University of Florida on his resume, dealing at 92-96 mph with his fastball and throwing a 77-81 mph curveball, according to this FanGraphs.com preview from April 2018. The write-up described Denaburg's...

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Looking at Nationals lineups with and without Harper

January 06, 2019, 7:47pm

Nationals

As the world waits for Bryce Harper to make his long-awaited decision, the Nationals wait to figure out what exactly their 2019 lineup is going to look like. It's no hyperbole to suggest this lineup would look dramatically different without Harper in it than with him, and not simply because of his large presence in the heart of it all. There are some significant domino effects to Harper's decision that will impact not only who bats in the middle of the lineup but probably the top as well. If...

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Can the Nats count on a full recovery from Kendrick?

January 05, 2019, 5:32pm

Nationals

Can the Nats count on a full recovery from Kendrick?

There's no denying the Nationals sorely missed Howie Kendrick last season. The veteran utilityman was being counted on both for his performance on the field and his leadership off the field. Then, six weeks into the season, he ruptured his right Achilles tendon. Though he made occasional appearances in the clubhouse so team doctors could check on his progress, Kendrick was mostly a forgotten man the rest of the year. So the Nationals are particularly excited about the prospect of having...

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Nationals announce 2019 minor league staff

January 07, 2019, 9:41am

Nationals

The Washington Nationals announced their Minor League managers, coaches and coordinators for the 2019 season on Monday. Nationals President of Baseball Operations and General Manager Mike Rizzo made the announcement. The coaching staffs of the Triple-A Fresno Grizzlies, Double-A Harrisburg Senators and Single-A Potomac Nationals will remain intact for the 2019 season. Mack Jenkins joins the organization as the pitching coach of Single-A Hagerstown after spending 32 seasons with the Cincinnati...

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On the importance of 30-plus starts from the Nats' three aces

January 04, 2019, 7:02pm

Nationals

On the importance of 30-plus starts from the Nats' three aces

General manager Mike Rizzo, as has been noted here before, believes the single best path toward a championship is through a dominant rotation. No, you can't win with great starters and nothing else. But he firmly believes no matter what other strengths your roster boasts, it won't amount to anything without a top-notch rotation. Hence the significance of this winter's Patrick Corbin signing. Along with Max Scherzer and Stephen Strasburg, Corbin gives the Nationals three potentially dominant...

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Harper and Machado are connected as teams pursue them

January 04, 2019, 2:35am

Nationals

Harper and Machado are connected as teams pursue them

It appears again that the Bryce Harper hot stove is connected to the Manny Machado hot stove. USA Today's Bob Nightengale reported that the White Sox have made a formal offer to Machado. The former Orioles and Dodgers infielder is reportedly seeking a 10-year deal worth more than $300 million. Ironically, that is the same offer that the Nationals reportedly made to Harper and his agent when their negotiations began after the 2018 season. Sports-talk radio station 670 The Score in Chicago...

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Why it's smart for Mike Rizzo to wait to fill final roster spots

December 28, 2018, 5:03pm

Nationals

Why it's smart for Mike Rizzo to wait to fill final roster spots

Unlike other teams in the major leagues, the Nationals did a bulk of their heavy offseason lifting before the Winter Meetings convened in Las Vegas. They bolstered the bullpen with the additions of right-handers Kyle Barraclough and Trevor Rosenthal. They remade their catching corps, signing free agent Kurt Suzuki for another tour of duty and trading for Yan Gomes. And they spent big on starter Patrick Corbin, giving the left-hander a six-year, $140 million contract that represents the largest...

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Harper's hot stove heats up with arrival of 2019

January 02, 2019, 6:27pm

Nationals

Harper's hot stove heats up with arrival of 2019

The hot stove as it relates to free agent outfielder Bryce Harper appears to be heating up again since the calendar turned to 2019. ESPN's Jeff Passan reported that Nationals owner Ted Lerner met with agent Scott Boras "multiple times," and The Washington Post reported that one meeting right before Christmas lasted five hours. It was thought that the Dodgers had paved the way for Harper to play in Chavez Ravine with their clearing of payroll and players in their mega-deal with the Reds last...

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#TBT to "Nationals Classics": Ringing in the old

December 30, 2018, 5:17am

Nationals

How are those resolutions coming? Already, huh? Well, there's always next year ... As we try to remember to put the correct year on the checks we write, we start to see some light at the end of the baseball tunnel. Spring training's about a month and a half away now, and while we still don't know whether Bryce Harper will be back, we do know that Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo has been busy assembling a roster that should give the club a chance to retake the National League East...