The Nationals have not been able to take advantage of opportunities presented to them at critical times this season. Thursday night was another example. With the Mets off, the Nationals could have jumped to seven games behind the leaders by taking down the Marlins on their home field. Instead, the Marlins beat them 6-4. Miami has now defeated the Nationals nine out of 16 times they have matched up this season. That should not happen against a team that has lost 20 more games than they have won...

Nationals had difficulty against Marlins right-hander Jose Fernandez in their last matchup, even though he only pitched five innings. Fernandez threw 69 pitches, 43 for strikes, and did not allow a run in the Marlins' 2-0 win over the Nationals on September 12 in Miami. So manager Matt Williams believes the strategy tonight is to work the count against Fernandez. "I want us to be patient because he's still a little bit on a pitch count," Williams said. "Coming out last time it was five...

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Orioles closer Zach Britton said he's available to pitch tonight if the club is in a save situation. Britton was held out of last night's 4-3 victory over the Rays, with manager Buck Showalter wanting to rest him in back-to-back games. Britton had appeared in three straight before Wednesday night's series finale against the Red Sox at Camden Yards. Showalter hinted following last night's game that Britton might be dealing with some soreness. "Not too much," Britton...

The nation's capital is the site for the majors' marquee pitching matchup tonight as a couple heavyweight right-handers are set to face off. The Nationals send Max Scherzer to the mound while the Marlins counter with Jose Fernandez. After struggling uncharacteristically for much of the second half of the season, Scherzer experienced his best start of the past three months in a 5-0 win in Miami last Sunday. Scherzer tossed eight scoreless innings in the victory, striking out six while refusing...

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Steve Pearce is starting in left field tonight, Dariel Alvarez returns to right and Nolan Reimold is leading off. Caleb Joseph is catching. Shortstop J.J. Hardy is batting .192/.224/.269 with two home runs and 10 RBIs in 43 games since the All-Star break. He's 4-for-35 this month with no home runs or RBIs in nine games. The Orioles have won seven of their last nine games and trail the Astros by 4 1/2 for the second wild card. Three teams are ahead of them, including the...

The Orioles tonight play the second game of a four-game series against Tampa Bay and it is the second contest of a 10-game road trip to Tampa Bay, Washington and Boston. The Orioles (72-74) have won four of five and seven of their last nine games after Thursday's comeback 4-3 win at Tropicana Field. They are 30-45 on the road, 33-30 versus the AL East, 9-7 against the Rays and 61-19 when they score four runs or more as they did last night. Tampa Bay (70-76) has lost five of its last six games...

BOWIE, Md. - As the Double-A Bowie Baysox face a must-win situation tonight against the Reading Fightin Phils, they turn to a 22-year-old right-hander that had an ERA of 5.83 at Single-A Frederick in June. After last night's loss, Bowie trails Reading 2-1 in the best-of-five Eastern League Championship Series. The Baysox need to win tonight and tomorrow to claim their first league championship. Before you think tonight's starter could be overmatched against a prospect-laden Reading team, keep...

Right-hander Erik Davis has returned to the Nationals as a September call-up. It has been a longer road than he anticipated getting back from Tommy John surgery in 2014. But he has returned and made 37 appearances with three teams in the minors this season. He did well, going 1-2 with a 3.88 ERA and 47 strikeouts and 27 walks. His best run came with Double-A Harrisburg. Davis pitched in 24 games, going 1-0 with a 2.65 ERA. He admitted that rehabilitation from a major surgery is not an easy task...

In discussing the Washington Nationals' approach to negotiations of contract extensions with pending free agents like Jordan Zimmermann (a free agent this winter unless he re-signs) and 2009 No. 1 overall pick Stephen Strasburg (under team control through 2016), both of whom are on their "second elbows" after having Tommy John surgery, Washington Post writer Thomas Boswell suggested last winter that in Zimmermann's case, previous talks likely centered around a deal similar to what Ian...

Who has had it worse this season, Baltimore Orioles fans or Washington Nationals fans? The two teams will square off next week in a series that fans of each franchise had expected to be a tune-up for postseason play. Instead, it will be a match-up of drowning teams gasping desperately for a breath of playoff air. Neither of the teams playing near the Navy Yard next week is fully submerged just yet, but the O's and Nats have both been sinking ships for some time now. The teams have both sounded...