Catcher Jesus Flores left tonight's game in the seventh inning with a stiff back. He said after the game that he should be fine for tomorrow's doubleheader. Also, Xavier Nady's rehab stint ended today with a 1-for-3 performance at Single-A Potomac. There's no official word from the Nationals yet, but it sounds like the team is planning on designating Nady for assignment. Now back to the shocking nine-run blown lead ... The game lasted 4 hours, 21 minutes. It saw the Braves come all the...

Tonight was the largest blown lead in Nationals/Expos history. And Davey Johnson is putting it squarely on his own shoulders. "It was probably, arguably the worst game I've ever managed in my life," said the Nationals' skipper, who has managed 16 seasons in the majors. "I've never lost a nine-run lead when it was my part of the game to handle the pitching. It'll be hard for me to sleep. I had a worse night than the guys did. It was a tough loss. But it was just one loss." It was just...

Something is going on with Tyler Clippard and he knows it. In last three outings, he has surrendered seven runs in three innings. His third blown save of the season came in an historic collapse for the Nationals, who were leading 9-0 only to fall to the second-place Atlanta Braves 11-10 in 11 innings. With his team leading 9-8 on Friday night, Clippard was handed the ball to get three outs in the ninth. Getting three outs had been something he had pretty much mastered since his return to...

In a brief phone conversation yesterday morning with executive vice president Dan Duquette, I asked whether the Orioles were comfortable platooning Steve Tolleson and Ryan Flaherty at second base, or whether they needed to bring in someone from outside the organization. "We'll see what comes on the market," Duquette replied. "If Tolleson and Flaherty can do it, we'll let them do it. If they can't do it, we'll have to look for some other alternatives." Later that afternoon, the Orioles...

What was a 9-0 Nationals lead entering the sixth turned into a 10-9 deficit. How the heck did this happen? The Nats were cruising over the Braves through five, smacking Atlanta pitchers around and putting up crooked numbers. Then Stephen Strasburg got ambushed in the sixth, allowing hits to four of the five hitters he faced and getting charged with four runs. In the eighth, the Braves hit up Drew Storen and Sean Burnett for four more. Storen, who manager Davey Johnson surprisingly went to...

The highest minor league promotion of the week goes to centerfielder Eury Perez, who moved from Double-A Harrisburg to Triple-A Syracuse. In his Syracuse debut Friday night, Perez went 1-for-4 with a fourth-inning RBI single in a 6-5 win over Norfolk. Perez had the groundball single for the run-scoring hit. On defense, Perez misplayed a ball over his head in center field but also made one nice running catch. The 22-year old hit .299 in 82 games for the Senators with two doubles, 26 stolen...

Orioles reliever Matt Lindstrom took a Johnny Damon line drive off the inside portion of his left knee, forcing him out of the game with two outs in the bottom of the eighth inning. Lindstrom bent at the waist a few times and kept grimacing as manager Buck Showalter and assistant athletic trainer Brian Ebel checked on him. He didn't bother to throw a few warmup tosses. His night was over. Kevin Gregg replaced Lindstrom with the bases loaded and retired Casey Kotchman on a fly ball to center...

For a team struggling to get big hits with runners in scoring postion, it was a welcome sight. Not just scoring 10 runs tonight in a 10-2 win at Cleveland, but the two big hits the Orioles got came seconds apart in the top of the third. With the Orioles leading 2-1, one inning removed from stranding the bases loaded, Mark Reynolds came up with the sacks full and one out in the third. Reynolds crushed a two-run double to left center that didn't miss being a grand slam by much. The next...

If you're driving around the district tonight and happen to have a baseball land on your car, you can thank Michael Morse. Morse just destroyed a Tommy Hanson offering, and there's a decent chance it still hasn't landed. The Nationals have a 3-0 lead thanks to the Morse homer, which brought in Ryan Zimmerman and Adam LaRoche. Both guys reached with two outs. It's Morse's fifth home run of the season, and he's now up to 23 RBIs on the year. He took a 89 mph fastball from Hanson and...

J.J. Hardy was in a 7-for-70 slump before doubling in the first inning tonight and racing home on a wild pitch by Indians starter Derek Lowe. The lead didn't last long. Asdrubal Cabrera homered off Miguel Gonzalez in the bottom of the inning, and the Indians left the bases load. Gonzalez threw 25 pitches in the inning. Lowe threw 26. Gonzalez surrendered one home run with Triple-A Norfolk. He's given up one in each of his three starts with the Orioles. Since June 29, 19 of the last 21...