Finding meaningful developments on an ugly day for Nats

Finding meaningful developments on an ugly day for Nats
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - Earlier this spring, Davey Martinez explained that he never lets himself obsess over a day's game for more than 30 minutes upon its completion, win or lose. In this sport, there's no value in stressing out over what just happened, not when there's another game to prepare for in 24 hours. So as he sat in his office this afternoon following an excruciating 12-3 exhibition loss to the Astros that featured just about every manner of sloppiness possible in one ballgame,...

Rizzo on state of bullpen and S. Romero's return (Nats fall 12-3)

Rizzo on state of bullpen and S. Romero's return (Nats fall 12-3)
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - Koda Glover hasn't thrown a baseball since reporting to camp with a sore shoulder. Joaquin Benoit, signed the first week of spring training, has a 9.00 ERA. Matt Albers is in Arizona wearing a Brewers uniform. That might all be cause for concern for the Nationals, who don't have any real sure things in their bullpen beyond the three veterans acquired last July in trades. But general manager Mike Rizzo insists he's not looking for more upgrades from outside the...

Time running out for Murphy, but Eaton about ready to play

Time running out for Murphy, but Eaton about ready to play
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - Though they still won't rule out the possibility, the Nationals recognize Daniel Murphy's odds of being ready for opening day are getting slimmer by the day. Murphy, who had microfracture surgery on his right knee in October, has been taking batting practice and fielding light grounders but has not been in any game-like situations yet. With the season opener in Cincinnati only 14 days away, time is running out for the veteran second baseman to get the preparation...

What drives veteran Madson to keep pitching at elite level?

What drives veteran Madson to keep pitching at elite level?
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - Ryan Madson is the type of person who doesn't provide a quick, stock answer to a question. Ask the 37-year-old reliever something and he'll pause before saying anything, consider his thoughts on the subject and then reveal them in a matter-of-fact tone. Which made his answer to the following question - "After a long and productive career spanning 15 seasons, what drives you to keep pitching in the majors?" - more elaborate and more interesting than a reporter might...

Starting lineups: Nats vs. Astros in West Palm Beach

Starting lineups: Nats vs. Astros in West Palm Beach
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - Would you believe we're now only two weeks away from opening day? It's true: A mere 14 days from now, the Nationals will be taking the field in Cincinnati for a game that actually counts in the standings. If you're looking for the Nats to field their full "A" lineup for the first time this spring, though, you're going to have to keep waiting. Adam Eaton, Michael A. Taylor and Ryan Zimmerman continue to get their at-bats in minor league games, and Daniel Murphy...

The history of Nats managers, through Zimmerman's eyes

The history of Nats managers, through Zimmerman's eyes
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - The Nationals have experienced plenty of change over the years, nowhere more so than in the manager's office. Davey Martinez is now the club's seventh full-time manager in 14 seasons in Washington, with none of his predecessors having survived longer than 2 1/2 seasons. Only one player has been around for every one of the seven skippers: Ryan Zimmerman, the organization's first draft pick in 2005. Zimmerman's career has included its own share of changes, but he has...

Minors to implement runner on second base in extra innings

Minors to implement runner on second base in extra innings
Major League Baseball has gone back and forth this offseason on directives that could help to speed up the pace of play. Unable to come an agreement with the Major League Baseball Players Association, Minor League Baseball instead will implement a good amount of these regulations starting this season. The biggest change will be an attempt to shorten games that are tied after nine innings. At all levels of Minor League Baseball, extra innings will begin with a runner on base. The runner will be...

Scherzer ramps things up, Nats make six more cuts

Scherzer ramps things up, Nats make six more cuts
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - Maybe it was the fact they were playing under the lights for the first time this spring. Maybe it was the fact he was stretched out to five innings for the first time. Or maybe it was simply the fact he's Max Scherzer. Whatever the case, the Nationals ace seemed to be even more amped up than usual for tonight's start against the Mets, one in which he posted five zeros, allowed one hit, struck out nine and strutted around the mound more than once. Scherzer may not be...

Gardner on his transition to minor league roving coordinator

Gardner on his transition to minor league roving coordinator
Following four seasons as the manager of the Triple-A Syracuse Chiefs, Billy Gardner Jr. takes on a new challenge within the Nationals organization as the minor league roving coordinator. Gardner said it was a new position that assistant general manager and vice president of player personnel Doug Harris brought to Gardner in the offseason. Randy Knorr would then move to Triple-A manager. Gardner is excited about this new opportunity. "Well, Doug called me at the end of the year and said there...

Gardner with high praise for right-hander Suero

Gardner with high praise for right-hander Suero
I continued my visit with Nationals minor league roving coordinator and former Triple-A Syracuse manager Billy Gardner Jr. and asked him about the breadth of Dominican talent that the organization continues to stockpile. In their 2018 Nationals prospect watch, MLB.com has Victor Robles and Juan Soto listed No. 1 and No. 2. Shortstop/third baseman shortstop Luis Garcia is at No. 6 and infielder Yasel Antuna is at No. 7. Gardner said all of these players have improved each season, which is the...

Wieters keeps hitting, Scherzer keeps dealing (Nats win 7-4)

Wieters keeps hitting, Scherzer keeps dealing (Nats win 7-4)
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla - The closer we get to opening day and the more he keeps piling up hits, the more Matt Wieters looks like he may legitimately have figured something out at the plate. Already having shown marked improvement through the first half of spring training, Wieters hasn't let up tonight. The veteran catcher had hits in each of his first two at-bats against Mets right-hander Zack Wheeler, raising his Grapefruit League batting average to a cool .438. Wieters' hits tonight, like...

Updates on Cole, Taylor, Murphy and more

Updates on Cole, Taylor, Murphy and more
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - Though he couldn't make his scheduled start Monday due to an illness, A.J. Cole is already back throwing and should be able to slot back into his spot in the Nationals rotation by the end of the week. Cole was supposed to face the Tigers in Lakeland but had to be scratched a day in advance after he fell victim to a stomach bug. The right-hander did feel well enough Monday to throw a side session off a bullpen mound, manager Davey Martinez said, and he emerged from that...

Starting lineups: Nats vs. Mets in West Palm Beach

Starting lineups: Nats vs. Mets in West Palm Beach
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - And we're back. Caught a flight back down to Florida this morning, just in time to see the Nationals take on a Mets split-squad this evening at FITTEAM Ballpark of the Palm Beaches. Thanks as always to Pete Kerzel for filling in during my break; I'll be with you the rest of the way, which actually isn't that much longer. There are only 12 Grapefruit League games left on the schedule before the club packs up and heads north. We still aren't seeing anything close to...

How should the Nationals handle Victor Robles?

How should the Nationals handle Victor Robles?
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - There's no question Victor Robles is a special player. If anyone misunderstood this indisputable fact, spring training has driven home the point. The top Nationals prospect is just 20, has already made his major league debut and appeared in a playoff series. What's next on his to-do list? Many think he should be on the Nationals' 25-man opening day roster, even though there seems to be no clear opening for him to play. And every time Robles steps onto the field in a...

Jackson on his outing, Martinez on youth and running into outs

Jackson on his outing, Martinez on youth and running into outs
LAKELAND, Fla. - Last year at this time, Edwin Jackson was home in Arizona, an unemployed pitcher throwing bullpen sessions and trying to stay ready in case someone in need of a veteran right-hander called with a job offer. After 15 major league seasons, little fazes Jackson, who's on his third tour of duty with the Nationals and hopeful of a role with what he calls a "special team." Today that role was emergency starter, a move necessitated when righty A.J. Cole came down with the stomach...

Jackson done after three (Nats win 5-4)

Jackson done after three (Nats win 5-4)
LAKELAND, Fla. - Edwin Jackson made it through three innings against the Tigers this afternoon, a laborious third running up his pitch count and hastening his exit from the game. The right-hander did a good job of minimizing the damage in the third, and was helped out by a nice play to nab Edwin Espinal at home on an ill-advised send. Espinal walked and tried to score when JaCoby Jones lashed a double to left on which Andrew Stevenson almost made a diving grab at the wall. Center fielder Brian...

Martinez on Jackson's start vs. Tigers and roster chances

Martinez on Jackson's start vs. Tigers and roster chances
LAKELAND, Fla. - He may be a rookie manager, but Davey Martinez knows enough about right-hander Edwin Jackson to understand that what you see from the veteran right-hander is what you get. "He's very low-key," Martinez said. "He's taking it one day at a time, and it's good. Like I said, he's a veteran guy and he understands the process." Martinez is referring to the elephant in the clubhouse, that Jackson seems to be a guy without a clear path to the 25-man roster. Jackson, who signed...

Starting lineups: Nats vs. Tigers in Lakeland

Starting lineups: Nats vs. Tigers in Lakeland
LAKELAND, Fla. - Today marks the Nationals' lone visit to Tigertown this spring, a far cry from when they made multiple trips here for Grapefruit League play each spring when they were headquartered in Viera. Right-hander A.J. Cole was scheduled to start today's game for the Nationals, but he was scratched, a victim of the stomach bug that's been working its way around the clubhouse. In his place, righty Edwin Jackson will get the call. There aren't many of the Nationals regulars on this...

Roark: "I just didn't feel all locked in like I have been"

Roark: "I just didn't feel all locked in like I have been"
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - It didn't take Tanner Roark long to figure out that he didn't have his best stuff in Sunday's start against the Cardinals. Three batters into the game, the Cards had a 2-0 lead after José Martínez ripped a two-run homer to left field, ending Roark's string of Grapefruit League innings without allowing an earned run at 8 1/3 over four starts. "Sometimes you have those days where you don't know how it's going to go," Roark said after the Nationals lost 4-3 to...

Roark struggles, Nats finally on the board (Nats lose 4-3)

Roark struggles, Nats finally on the board (Nats lose 4-3)
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - Tanner Roark's spring string of innings without allowing an earned run ended at 8 1/3, and the right-hander struggled in the first and fourth innings against the Cardinals on Sunday afternoon. Roark surrendered a one-out single to Tommy Pham in the first, and José Martínez followed with a no-doubter of a home run to left field, the first earned runs Roark has allowed in four Grapefruit League starts. After two scoreless innings featuring three groundball outs and...