Davey Johnson joked today that the Nationals' roster is starting to resemble a M*A*S*H unit. It's not far off. Reporters met with Nationals medical director Dr. Wiemi Douoguih and head trainer Lee Kuntz for about eight minutes earlier this afternoon, getting briefed on the latest medical details involving Bryce Harper, Danny Espinosa, Jayson Werth and Wilson Ramos. You already know what's going on with Harper, so here's the rest. Today will mark the fourth straight game that Espinosa...

Bench depth was critical to the Nationals' success last season. This season, the bench got off to a slow start, in part because reserves were not getting enough starts, instead having to settle of occasional pinch-hit appearances or Sunday substitutes. But with injuries to Jayson Werth, Danny Espinosa and Bryce Harper, the bench spotlight is turned back on. Manager Davey Johnson said the bench will get more starts now. The need for them to excel is critical for the Nationals to stay in the...

The good news for the Nationals and Bryce Harper is that an MRI has revealed that there is no structural issue with Harper's sore left knee. The bad news is that Harper has bursitis in the knee and will need to rest the knee to avoid further damage. Harper is out of the lineup today against the Orioles and there's a good chance he'll sit again tomorrow as the Nationals attempt to get Harper's nagging knee issues behind them. Harper initially injured the knee when colliding with a wall at...

WASHINGTON - Orioles manager Buck Showalter said Tommy Hunter will likely have an X-ray taken on his right hand today, though the reliever said this morning that it wasn't necessary. "There's different levels of X-rays. We're at level two," Showalter said. "Richie (Bancells) said he felt pretty good, all things considered, so I'm hoping we dodged an injury. Not necessarily the ball. "Richie's pretty upbeat about what he was hoping he would see today, compared to yesterday. He got...

Something worth tracking in the Orioles-Nationals series over the next four days is the defensive disparity between the teams. The Orioles are tied for first in the American League with a .990 fielding percentage while the Nats tie for last in the National League at .979. The O's have made the fewest errors in the AL (18) while the Nats are tied for the most in the NL (39). O's catchers rank first in the AL, throwing out 52 percent on the season while the Nats rank last in the NL at 13.2...

After leaving yesterday's game in the seventh inning with a sore left knee, Bryce Harper is out of the Nationals lineup for today's series opener against the Orioles. Harper aggravated the knee injury sliding into first and second base head-first in the first inning of yesterday's 6-1 win over the Phillies. He initially injured the knee colliding with the right field wall in Dodger Stadium nearly two weeks ago. Manager Davey Johnson said after last night's game that he planned to give...

Left-hander Matt Purke will make his season debut for the low Single-A Hagerstown Suns at Asheville on Wednesday night, according to Nationals director of player development Doug Harris. This is good news for the former Texas Christian star, who has not pitched in a professional game since early 2012. Purke, ranked by Baseball America as the Nationals' No. 9 prospect, has been recovering from offseason shoulder surgery. The procedure was to relieve bursitis in his left shoulder and remove...

WASHINGTON - Tommy Hunter said he won't undergo a second X-ray on his right hand. There's minimal swelling and bruising, and he expects to be available on Tuesday. Hunter probably will play catch today. "It's fine," he said. "Feels like it got hit by a ball, but other than that, it'll be all right. Kind of like taking one off the shin, I guess. it's not that bad at all. It's going to be. Got me in the meat of it. But it'll be all right, hopefully. Maybe I'll get a day off today....

The Washington Nationals placed left-handed pitcher Ross Detwiler on the 15-Day Disabled List, retroactive to May 16, with a right back muscle strain and recalled left-handed pitcher Xavier Cedeno from Syracuse of the Triple-A International League. Nationals Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations and General Manager Mike Rizzo made the announcement. Cedeno - selected off waivers on April 23, after posting an 11.37 ERA in five relief appearances in '13 with Houston - went 1-0 with a...

Raise your hand if you expected the following players to have made an appearance on the Nationals' active roster by the end of May: Yunesky Maya, Fernando Abad, Jeff Kobernus, Eury Perez and Xavier Cedeno. Stop being silly. Put your hand down. All teams have to deal with injuries over the course of a season. It's a part of sports, and it tests the all-important depth that your team has built up within its organization. The Nationals have been hit with a pretty difficult test within the...