nationals

Kelley's 2018 debut displays renewed confidence and strength

April 02, 2018, 8:48pm

ATLANTA - Just ask Shawn Kelley about his pitching last season: He knew it wasn't close to what he was capable of delivering. Kelley struggled through injury and rough outings, stumbling to a career-worst 7.27 ERA. This followed back-to-back seasons of 2.45 and 2.67 ERAs. The right-hander landed on the disabled list several times last season with a strained lower back, strained right trapezius muscle and, finally, bone chips in his right elbow. Fast forward to 2018. Kelley watched as the Nats...

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Severino looks the part of sage veteran in return to Nats

April 03, 2018, 5:01am

Nationals

Severino looks the part of sage veteran in return to Nats

ATLANTA - It was only his 36th game in the major leagues, but Nationals catcher Pedro Severino looked like the veteran catching Tanner Roark's first start and win of 2018, and going 2-for-2 at the plate in an 8-1 dispatch of the Braves to open their series at SunTrust Park. Roark spun seven masterful innings, keeping pace with the Nats' amazing starting pitching to begin the season. Max Scherzer, Stephen Strasburg, Gio Gonzalez and Roark have combined to pitch 25 1/3 innings and have allowed...

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Roark, Harper and Severino highlight Nats 8-1 win over Braves

April 02, 2018, 7:44pm

Nationals

Roark, Harper and Severino highlight Nats 8-1 win over Braves

ATLANTA - Three players who had yet to appear in a Nationals game in 2018 came up big in an 8-1 series-opening victory over the Braves at SunTrust Park. Tanner Roark, Pedro Severino and Shawn Kelley made significant contributions, coupled with a mammoth three-run homer by Bryce Harper, lifting the Nats to their fourth straight win to begin the season. The Nationals are 4-0 for the first time in franchise history. Roark (1-0) tossed seven innings, allowing only one run. Kelley fired a shutout...

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Murphy moves on to field running; Hellickson update

April 02, 2018, 3:50pm

Nationals

Murphy moves on to field running; Hellickson update

ATLANTA - Daniel Murphy moved from the treadmill to running on the field today, another positive update as the veteran recovers from offseason microfracture right knee surgery that has placed him on the disabled list to begin the season. "I thought it went well," Murphy said of running on the field. "Well, the grass doesn't really move. But obviously it's more realistic. As far as being limited in my pace I would say no. Yeah, same pace." Murphy said his rehab focus continues to be about...

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Wieters on DL stint, Severino starts versus Braves

April 02, 2018, 3:08pm

Nationals

Wieters on DL stint, Severino starts versus Braves

ATLANTA -- Starting catcher Matt Wieters has a mild left oblique strain and has been place on the 10-day disabled list. Nationals manager Davey Martinez said the injury was suffered in the fifth inning of Wieters last game against the Reds. "We don't want to take a chance," Martinez said. "He's got a very slight, mild strain in his oblique. Rather than let it become a really big issue, we figured we'd give it the 10 days and get it taken care of and get him going again." Wieters said he...

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Game 4 lineups: Nats at Braves

April 02, 2018, 9:14am

Nationals

ATLANTA - Right-hander Tanner Roark did not get a chance to contribute in the 2017 National League Division Series against the Chicago Cubs. Tonight at SunTrust Park, Roark will make his first appearance in a game that counts since October 1 of last year against the Pirates. This will also be his first start since September 27 at Philadelphia. Last season started off slowly for Roark, he pitched better as the season progressed and finished 13-11 with a career-high (or low) 4.67 ERA. In 2016, he...

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Adam Eaton named National League Player of the Week

April 02, 2018, 11:24am

Nationals

Adam Eaton named National League Player of the Week

ATLANTA - Outfielder Adam Eaton raced out of the gates quickly offensively for the Nationals, highlighted by a 5-for-5 game Saturday afternoon in Cincinnati. Today he was rewarded for the effort with the National League Player of the Week honor. Eaton dropped an impressive slash line of .615/.643/1.231 over the weekend in Cincinnati with seven runs scored. He went 8-for-13, with two doubles, two home runs and five RBIs. The Nationals won all three games. The award is all the more impressive in...

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Heavily used Madson delivers in an emergency for Nats

April 01, 2018, 7:00pm

Nationals

Heavily used Madson delivers in an emergency for Nats

CINCINNATI - The plan was to give both Brandon Kintzler and Ryan Madson the day off. Both had pitched in Friday's season opener. Both had warmed up in the bullpen during Saturday's nailbiter, even though neither was needed in the game. But when Sammy SolÃs failed to retire the first four Reds batters he faced in the bottom of the eighth Sunday evening, and with the bases loaded and nobody out in what had become a three-run game, Nationals manager Davey Martinez thought back to the...

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With quick strikes from the top, Nats lineup feasts all weekend

April 01, 2018, 4:29pm

Nationals

With quick strikes from the top, Nats lineup feasts all weekend

CINCINNATI - There were home runs, four of them during today's 6-5 victory over the Reds, and four more during Saturday's blowout win. The Nationals are going to hit a lot of home runs this season, given the thunder they have up and down their lineup. But everything they did offensively this weekend during a season-opening sweep at Great American Ball Park began with one simple act from the first batter they sent to the plate. Adam Eaton led off Friday's game with a single to right, then...

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Pitcher batting eighth for first time since 2011 (Nats win 6-5)

April 01, 2018, 1:20pm

Nationals

Pitcher batting eighth for first time since 2011 (Nats win 6-5)

CINCINNATI - In their first 13 seasons of existence, the Nationals submitted a starting lineup with their pitcher batting eighth only 11 times, all of them coming in succession in mid-June 2011. Unable to find a consistently effective leadoff man, former manager Jim Riggleman decided to shake things up, move Jayson Werth to the No. 1 spot, slide everybody else up a slot and bat guys like Roger Bernadina or Ian Desmond ninth behind the pitcher. Whether because of the change or not, the Nationals...

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Marty Niland: Nats fans demand more than, "Wait'll next year and hope"

April 01, 2018, 10:22am

Nationals

Marty Niland: Nats fans demand more than, "Wait'll next year and hope"

Baseball is said to be a timeless game. The rhythm of the game and the season bring generations together, and phrases like "Bang! Zoom!" and "See you later!" have a special meaning around here in the spring, summer and fall. Year after year, we pack the ballpark, gather around the television, tune in to broadcasts, even shuttle the kids to Little League practice and games, united by traditions and the history behind them. But as enduring as the national pastime is supposed to be, it has...

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Opposite dugout: Braves hoping to turn tide against Nationals

April 01, 2018, 7:35am

Nationals

Manager: Brian Snitkner (3rd season) Record: 2-1 Who to watch (2017 stats): 1B Freddie Freeman (.307/.403/.586 with 28 HR, 71 RBIs), CF Ender Inciarte (.304, 22 SB), RF Nick Markakis (.275, 76 RBIs), RHP Julio Teheran (11-13, 4.49 ERA), RHP Arodys Vizcaino (.283 ERA, 14 saves) Season series vs. Nationals: First meeting (9-10 in 2017) Pitching probables: April 2: RHP Tanner Roark (13-11, 4.67 ERA in 2017) vs. LHP Sean Newcomb (4-9, 4.32 ERA in 2017), 7:35 p.m., MASN2 April 3: RHP A.J. Cole...

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SolÃs delivers big outs in first relief opportunity

April 01, 2018, 11:22am

Nationals

SolÃs delivers big outs in first relief opportunity

CINCINNATI - Davey Martinez knows he can't rely exclusively on his three best relievers this season, especially early on when workloads have to more diligently be monitored. Someone else from the eight-man 'pen is going to have to step up and deliver in key situations. So consider Saturday's performance by Sammy SolÃs a significant one, not only for the role it played in the Nationals' 13-7 over the Reds but perhaps for the trust it may earn the left-hander in his new manager's eyes...

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Nats again score early, never look back to complete sweep

April 01, 2018, 2:57pm

Nationals

Nats again score early, never look back to complete sweep

CINCINNATI - At some point this season, a Nationals pitcher will take the mound with his team trailing. Or even tied. That point, though, did not come during the club's three-game weekend series against the Reds. No, thanks to top-of-the-first runs in all three games at Great American Ball Park, Nationals starters never once stood on the mound with anything but a lead. And thanks to some sustained offense and effective pitching throughout the weekend, no Nats hurler ever threw a pitch with...

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Goodwin makes most of his start with first career grand slam

March 31, 2018, 8:22pm

Nationals

Goodwin makes most of his start with first career grand slam

CINCINNATI - Brian Goodwin got to be a part of some significant moments last year, the first time the young outfielder was on a big league roster for an extended stretch. He led off two games for the Nationals with home runs. He gave his team late leads with clutch hits. He made the postseason roster. When asked Saturday where his ninth-inning grand slam during the Nats' 13-7 win over the Reds would rank among career highlights, though, Goodwin couldn't come up with anything better. "It's...

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Game 3 lineups: Nats at Reds

April 01, 2018, 8:33am

Nationals

CINCINNATI - To the best of my knowledge, the Nationals have batted the pitcher eighth only 11 times in club history. All of those came in succession during a stretch in June 2011, when then-manager Jim Riggleman didn't have a real viable leadoff hitter and decided to just bump everyone else up a slot and have Jayson Werth at the top. The Nats proceeded to win 10 of those 11 games, at which point Riggleman decided to resign over a contract dispute. The Nationals haven't batted the pitcher...

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Eaton turns emotional after 5-for-5 day in front of family

March 31, 2018, 3:11pm

Nationals

Eaton turns emotional after 5-for-5 day in front of family

CINCINNATI - Adam Eaton thought he had already experienced the emotional high point of his return from reconstructive knee surgery two weeks ago when he played in his first Grapefruit League game in West Palm Beach, homered and then motioned to his pregnant wife and young son in the stands. Little could the Nationals outfielder have known what still awaited him this afternoon at Great American Ball Park. It's not just that Eaton went 5-for-5 with 10 total bases during a 13-7 thumping of the...

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Big blasts aplenty in Nationals' 13-7 win over Reds

March 31, 2018, 1:27pm

Nationals

CINCINNATI - Matt Adams supplied the early power. Adam Eaton supplied the sustained offense all afternoon. Stephen Strasburg supplied another gem. And then Brian Goodwin supplied the biggest blast of all late to ensure the Nationals would open the season with back-to-back wins. Today's 13-7 victory over the Reds featured a little bit of everything, with contributions aplenty. And thanks to that, the Nats are 2-0 with a chance to sweep the series Sunday afternoon at Great American Ball...

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Why Adams and Goodwin are in today's lineup

March 31, 2018, 9:22am

Nationals

Why Adams and Goodwin are in today's lineup

CINCINNATI - The sight of today's lineup may have induced a sense of dread for more than a few Nationals fans who are curious why Ryan Zimmerman and Michael A. Taylor are sitting out the season's second game. Manager Davey Martinez, though, insists he was planning to do this all along. Not as a reaction to anything Zimmerman or Taylor did on opening day but as a way to make sure Matt Adams and Brian Goodwin don't waste away on the bench. "Coming into the series, I had different lineups,...

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Adams' blast leads early offensive barrage (Nats win 13-7)

March 31, 2018, 11:23am

Nationals

Adams' blast leads early offensive barrage (Nats win 13-7)

CINCINNATI - Matt Adams is making the most of his first start with the Nationals. Given a chance to bat cleanup on the second day of the season with Ryan Zimmerman on the bench, Adams launched a three-run homer into the far reaches of the right-center field bleachers at Great American Ball Park. That first-inning blast, which measured 460 feet, gave the Nationals an early lead over the Reds, which they went on to extend to 5-0 in the fourth inning. With two on and one out in the top of the...