nationals

Game 113 lineups: Nats vs. Braves

August 07, 2018, 1:41pm

And we're back for the nightcap of today's doubleheader. The Nationals did what they needed to in the opener, riding five strong innings from Jefry Rodriguez and a pair of four-run rallies to an 8-3 victory that moved them to within five games of the Phillies and 3 1/2 games of the Braves. There's still an opportunity to either gain or lose ground the rest of the evening, with Philadelphia playing late at Arizona. The Nats have to like the fact they've got Max Scherzer on the mound tonight,...

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Nats take doubleheader opener, gain ground in NL East (updated)

August 07, 2018, 12:14pm

Nationals

Nats take doubleheader opener, gain ground in NL East (updated)

Davey Martinez didn't want his players looking at this week's critical series as a whole, believing there was no good to be had worrying about all four games with the Braves until they'd played the first one. Well, Martinez's Nationals did exactly what they needed to do it today's matinee opener. And now they get to go for a doubleheader sweep with their ace on the mound. Behind five strong innings from fill-in starter Jefry Rodriguez, a pair of four-run rallies in the middle innings and...

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Holland ready to go and ready to reverse his season (Nats up 8-2)

August 07, 2018, 8:41am

Nationals

Holland ready to go and ready to reverse his season (Nats up 8-2)

Greg Holland last pitched on July 21, for the Cardinals at Wrigley Field. He gave up three runs to the Cubs, took a blown save and watched his ERA rise to 7.92. The Cardinals would go on to designate the veteran reliever for assignment, then released him after he cleared waivers. Today, Holland is in a No. 56 Nationals jersey, active and almost certain to pitch at some point during their key doubleheader against the Braves, hoping he can turn around a season that hasn't gone anything close to...

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Game 112 lineups: Nats vs. Braves (Holland signed)

August 07, 2018, 6:25am

Nationals

Game 112 lineups: Nats vs. Braves (Holland signed)

Who's ready for a long - and important - day and night of baseball? The Nationals better hope they are. They enter the day 5 1/2 games behind the Phillies, four games behind the Braves. By night's end, they could be anywhere from four to seven games behind Philadelphia, two to six games behind Atlanta. So, yeah, it's a big day. It all gets started with the opener of this day-night doubleheader, with Jefry Rodriguez taking the mound for the Nats. It'll be the right-hander's sixth career...

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Nats open daunting four-game series with Braves today

August 06, 2018, 7:52pm

Nationals

Nats open daunting four-game series with Braves today

They're all big games and big series for the Nationals at this point, with fewer than one-third of the season remaining on the schedule. But four games in three days against the Braves? Yeah, this is an especially big series. The Nationals get 16 more cracks in total against the two teams that have resided above them in the National League East for much of the summer: seven with Atlanta, nine with Philadelphia. If they're going to make up this deficit and return to the postseason for the...

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On Herrera's one-run save and Martinez's late-game strategy

August 05, 2018, 7:30pm

Nationals

On Herrera's one-run save and Martinez's late-game strategy

Even though Sean Doolittle has been sidelined for four weeks now with a toe injury, the Nationals on Sunday called upon Kelvin Herrera in a save situation for only the third time. The vast majority of their wins over the last month have come with sizeable leads, leaving their fill-in closer rarely taking the ball in the ninth inning with a slim lead. Sunday, though, presented a new opportunity for Herrera. And the result was especially encouraging for the right-hander and the...

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Opposite dugout: Braves aim to stay in the thick of NL East race

August 06, 2018, 8:04pm

Nationals

Opposite dugout: Braves aim to stay in the thick of NL East race

Manager: Brian Snitker (3rd season) Record: 60-48 Last 10 games: 6-4 Who to watch: 1B Freddie Freeman (.316 average with 18 HR, 69 RBIs), RF Nick Markakis (.319 average with 68 RBIs, 135 hits), CF Ender Inciarte (.253 average with 105 hits, 23 stolen bases), 2B Ozzie Albies (.276 average with 20 HR, 123 hits), LHP Sean Newcomb (10-5, 3.23 ERA), RHP Mike Foltynewicz (8-7, 3.04 ERA), CL A.J. Minter (2.98 ERA, 8 saves) Season series vs. Nationals: 7-5 Pitching probables: Aug. 7: LHP Max Fried...

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Kelley traded to A's for international bonus slot value

August 05, 2018, 2:05pm

Nationals

Kelley traded to A's for international bonus slot value

Shawn Kelley's tenure with the Nationals officially came to an end today when the club traded the veteran reliever to the Athletics in exchange for international bonus slot value. Kelley had been designated for assignment Wednesday, the morning after he upset team officials when he slammed his glove to the ground after giving up a home run in the top of the ninth inning of a 25-4 rout of the Mets. That transaction unofficially ended his time with the Nationals, but officially they had seven...

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Scherzer's emphasis on hitting another phase to his unbeatable success

August 07, 2018, 3:54am

Nationals

Scherzer's emphasis on hitting another phase to his unbeatable success

Nationals right-hander Max Scherzer gets the nod for game two tonight against the Atlanta Braves as he puts his 15-5 and 2.33 ERA on the line in a crucial divisional matchup. He also puts his .292 batting average and .333 on-base percentage on the line as well. His .283 average as a pitcher is second only to Colorado's German Marquez (.350) in the National League. His 14 overall base hits are second most in his career. He had 15 base hits in 2015 and that was 69 at-bats. Nationals manager...

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Marty Niland: Nats need streak like they had in 2014 to get back in the race

August 05, 2018, 5:51am

Nationals

Marty Niland: Nats need streak like they had in 2014 to get back in the race

The Nationals have played their best baseball of the season since the All-Star break, and especially since Tuesday's non-waiver trade deadline, yet they're still looking up at Atlanta and first-place Philadelphia in the National League East standings. What they really need right now is a winning streak, one like the amazing 10-game run they put together four years ago this month that secured their place at the top of the division. Like this season, the Nats were under the guidance of a...

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Martinez on getting production from the pitcher's spot in the batting order

August 06, 2018, 2:30am

Nationals

Martinez on getting production from the pitcher's spot in the batting order

Nationals manager Davey Martinez believes he has a pitching staff that can also hit, can put the bat on the ball, move runners and have a positive effect on game for the offense. Martinez said the pitcher's spot can change a game and allow him to flip his lineup over instead of it being the end of an inning. "Well, it's been huge. Tanner (Roark two starts ago) driving in some big runs for us. It gives you options when you know the pitcher can swing the bat. He can't hit, so we got to bunt....

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Roark rounding into form right as Nationals need it

August 05, 2018, 1:43pm

Nationals

Tanner Roark isn't No. 1 on the list of "Most Important Nationals for the Remainder of the Season," but he's on the list somewhere, and probably closer to the top than the bottom. The Nats have been built to win behind consistently great starting pitching for many years now, and typically as Roark has gone so has the team as a whole. So among the most significant developments of the second half to date has been the reemergence of the wily right-hander as a guy who can be counted on to...

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Nats hold off Reds 2-1, get long-awaited one-run victory

August 05, 2018, 12:16pm

Nationals

Nats hold off Reds 2-1, get long-awaited one-run victory

The Nationals have shown they can win some lopsided games, riding big offensive showings to big victories. If, however, they're going to pull off a late-season surge, they're going to have to start winning some tight ballgames when there's little-to-no margin for error. Like today's series finale against the Reds, in which the Nationals held a one-run lead in the fourth inning and then tried to make it hold up the rest of the afternoon. It wasn't easy, but the challenge facing the Nats...

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Game 111 lineups: Nats vs. Reds

August 05, 2018, 6:51am

Nationals

After a long day and night at the ballpark on Saturday, the Nationals return to the ballpark today for what amounts to a pretty big series finale with the Reds. Obviously, every game is big at this point, but consider that the Nats need to win today to win the series. And carry some positive momentum into their critical upcoming four-games-in-three-days series with the Braves. Which leads into a seven-game road trip to Chicago and St. Louis. So, yeah, a win today would help a lot of things....

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Hellickson on his cutter; Soto on success in both games of twinbill

August 04, 2018, 8:36pm

Nationals

Hellickson on his cutter; Soto on success in both games of twinbill

Nationals manager Davey Martinez said the second game of the doubleheader turned back into starter Jeremy Hellickson's favor Saturday night when he started to use his fastball more. The Reds were looking for his off-speed stuff, but when he regained his confidence in his fastball, results arrived. The Nats defeated the Reds 6-2, and Hellickson recorded his fifth win of the season. He allowed only two runs on four hits, did not walk a batter and struck out three. Hellickson agreed with his...

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Harper back in lineup after Saturday night plunking (Nats up 2-1)

August 05, 2018, 9:05am

Nationals

Harper back in lineup after Saturday night plunking (Nats up 2-1)

Bryce Harper is back in the Nationals' lineup for today's series finale against the Reds, a development that was very much uncertain when the star outfielder left the ballpark Saturday night with a barking right knee. Harper was hit by a pitch square on the kneecap during the bottom of the sixth inning of the Nats' 6-2 win over Cincinnati. He remained in the game and did take his position in right field to begin the top of the seventh but then was removed after laboring to track down a...

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Harper leaves game; Madson "didn't mean to hit" Votto in win

August 04, 2018, 7:17pm

Nationals

Harper leaves game; Madson "didn't mean to hit" Votto in win

The Nationals dropped the Reds 6-2 by scoring early and getting a solid performance from Jeremy Hellickson, who went 5 2/3 innings for his fifth win of the season. Coupled with a 7-1 setback in game one, the Nats ended up splitting the day-night twinbill. The concern after the game was the status of star outfielder Bryce Harper, who had to leave in the top of the seventh after getting hit by pitch from Austin Brice with two outs in the sixth. Harper said the pitcher apologized afterwards. "He...

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Bats keep pressure on Harvey early (Nats win 6-2)

August 04, 2018, 4:03pm

Nationals

Bats keep pressure on Harvey early (Nats win 6-2)

The Reds jumped on top in the first, thanks to a leadoff homer by JosÃ© Peraza. His sixth homer of the season came on an 0-1 pitch. Jeremy Hellickson then got out of the rest of the inning and went onto hold the Reds scoreless the next two frames. Against Matt Harvey, the Nationals scored a run on two hits in each of their first two innings. In the first, Juan Soto and Anthony Rendon contributed back-to-back doubles to get the Nats on the board. In the second, the Nats took their first lead...

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Gonzalez on 7-1 loss to Reds: "It's hit or miss right now"

August 04, 2018, 12:51pm

Nationals

Gonzalez on 7-1 loss to Reds: "It's hit or miss right now"

Nationals left-hander Gio Gonzalez was inconsistent in the first inning in game one of their doubleheader against the Reds. After fighting his way through six batters, allowing three hits and only one run, it looked like he would be able to use that confidence to build into the second frame. But it just got worse from there. The Reds connected on a three-run shot by Phillip Ervin in the second, to pull away for a 7-1 victory in game one of a split doubleheader at Nats Park. "They came out,...

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Rodriguez likely Tuesday; Strasburg update (Nats fall 7-1)

August 04, 2018, 8:21am

Nationals

Rodriguez likely Tuesday; Strasburg update (Nats fall 7-1)

With a doubleheader today and a doubleheader Tuesday, manager Davey Martinez will have to be a bit creative in deciding where to place a starter for the Tuesday games against Atlanta. Max Scherzer will start one of those games. It would make sense based on past results that Scherzer will be the starter for the night cap. So who will start game one Tuesday? "We are probably going to need a pitcher," Martinez said. "Definitely for Tuesday. We haven't decided yet. I think right now if you look...