The Nationals have taken their lead in the National League East and run with it. At the start of play Tuesday, they enjoy a seven-game lead over the Atlanta Braves, who have been mired in mediocrity for weeks now - and were no-hit Monday afternoon by a group of Philadelphia Phillies pitchers. Additionally, with Monday's 6-4 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Nats have wrested the mantle of winningest team in the entire NL, owning one more victory than their hosts for the next two days. Of...

When it comes to data scientists trying to mainstream the thoughts they have, there can be some misunderstandings. A major topic is how exactly to treat uncertainty or a relatively minimal probability. Three years ago, the Boston Red Sox led a journey starting on Sept. 3 when they reached a 99.6 percent chance of making the playoffs when Carl Crawford mashed a home run and a double, notching four RBIs, to when Carl Crawford feebly dove for a duck snort off of the bat of Oriole Robert Andino and...

Manager: Bryan Price, first year Record: 66-71 Last 10 games: 5-5 Who to watch: C Devin Mesoraco (.280/.361/.531, 21 doubles, 20 HR, 65 RBIs); 3B Todd Frazier (.278/.340/.456, 20 doubles, 23 HR, 70 RBIs, 73 R, 19 SB); RHP Mat Latos (5-3, 3.15 ERA, 1.08 WHIP); RHP Mike Leake (10-11, 3.38 ERA, 1.22 WHIP) Season series vs. O's (2013): Did not play Pitching probables Sept. 2: Mat Latos vs. Bud Norris, 7 p.m., MASN HD Sept. 3: Dylan Axelrod vs. Miguel Gonzalez, 7 p.m., MASN2 HD Sept. 4: Mike Leake...

LOS ANGELES - The division lead is back to seven games. Only 26 games remain on the Nationals' schedule. You can do the math. The Nats' magic number is now down to 19. When is it appropriate to start talking about what a division leader's magic number is? I asked a fellow reporter that question last night. He said when the magic number dips below 20. I say when the calendar has reached September. Both of those qualifications have now been met. Any combination of 19 Nats wins or Braves...

LOS ANGELES - The longball barrage continues. The Nationals pounded out four more homers tonight - this after hitting 40 home runs in August - and hung on to a shrinking lead late, taking the opener of a three-game series agains the Dodgers by a 6-4 final. Denard Span ripped two homers, giving him three in his last five games, and Jayson Werth and Asdrubal Cabrera also went yard, giving Gio Gonzalez a solid lead to work with. Gonzalez went six-plus innings, allowing three runs on three hits,...

Even with a loss on Monday afternoon, the Orioles are having a pretty good homestand. They have gone 3-1 in both series and are 6-2 with three games left on the homestand. The Orioles have outscored their opponents 47-27 during these last eight games, with a team batting average of .279, scoring 5.9 runs per game and with a team ERA of 3.00. Monday's loss was just the 11th by the Orioles this year when they hit two or more homers. They are now 41-11 with a multi-homer game. Kevin Gausman had...

The clubhouse is getting more crowded today with the arrivals of reliever Ryan Webb, outfielder Quintin Berry and catcher Steve Clevenger. Left-hander T.J. McFarland returned yesterday, but he won't be recalled until this afternoon. Berry is the only real newcomer. The trade for Alejandro De Aza, another left-handed hitting, plus defensive outfielder with speed didn't impact Berry as the Orioles expanded their roster. You've seen the list of call-ups and players on the taxi squad in...

If every batter could work the pitcher and force them to throw the pitch he wants like Jayson Werth does, the Nationals would average 10 runs a game. Facing a very feisty Roberto Hernandez in the series opener against the Dodgers, Werth worked him to seven pitches with two outs in the first inning. On Hernandez's 2-2 offering, Werth crushed the 92 mph sinker over the left-center field wall, his 16th homer of the season, and the Nationals led 1-0. But left-hander Gio Gonzalez could not hold...

While the Nationals get set to take on the Dodgers for a three-game series in Los Angeles, Matt Williams will get used to a more crowded clubhouse. September is here, allowing for expanded rosters. To kick off the month, the Nats added six players: right-hander Aaron Barrett, left-hander Xavier Cedeno, catcher Sandy Leon, first baseman/outfielder Tyler Moore, outfielder Steven Souza Jr., and right-hander Blake Treinen. "That's the beauty of having all these guys in September," Williams...

Kevin Gausman had pitched a total of nine innings, allowing 12 hits and six runs in his previous two starts. But he took a step forward today. He took a shutout into the sixth and gave up four earned runs over a career-high 7 1/3 innings against Minnesota as the Twins won 6-4. "Thought I threw the ball where I wanted to," Gausman said. "A lot of their hitters are down hitters, so I think fastball up was a big pitch for me today. It (stinks) that I walked the leadoff guy in the eighth...