VIERA, Fla. - Rick Eckstein was talking shop with some of the Nationals' hitters the other day when Bryce Harper injected himself into the discussion. What the Washington hitting coach heard from his top prospect made Eckstein smile when he recounted the tale because it spoke to how advanced a hitter Harper is, assuming you can believe that a 19-year-old with no major league experience can be considered advanced. "We were talking about certain pitchers, talking about zones," Eckstein said....

VIERA, Fla. - Nationals manager Davey Johnson has announced his starting lineup for Friday's exhibition game against the Georgetown Hoyas: 2B - Steve Lombardozzi LF - Xavier Paul RF - Bryce Harper 1B - Tyler Moore DH - Brett Carroll 3B - Anthony Rendon CF - Corey Brown SS - Andres Blanco C - Sandy Leon P - Matthew Purke Purke will be limited to 40 pitches, the manager said. Johnson said he would try to coax eight innings out of four pitchers in two-inning stints, with three non-roster...

SARASOTA, Fla. - Zach Britton and Jim Johnson will throw in the bullpen tomorrow. This will be Britton's first time on a mound. "That's good news," manager Buck Showalter said. Showalter also noted that Jason Berken (hamstring) "has made some strides, feeling better." And Willie Eyre (groin) "is pretty close to rejoining us" after playing catch today and participating in some fielding drills. I told you earlier that Tommy Hunter has been scratched from Tuesday's exhibition game...

SARASOTA, Fla. - Tsuyoshi Wada will play catch again tomorrow, assuming his left elbow responds favorably to today's session, and he could return to the mound sometime next week. Wada had his elbow drained on Sunday and received a cortisone injection. He was shut down until today. "I felt very good. I felt much better than I did before I took this rest," he said through his interpreter. "I'm going to play catch tomorrow and then we're going to see how things go and make a new plan....

SARASOTA, Fla. - Tommy Hunter has been scratched from making Tuesday's exhibition start against the Red Sox in Fort Myers because of lower-back stiffness. Hunter will stay back in camp and throw a two-inning simulated game. This move is done mostly as a precaution. It's not like the Orioles are shutting him down. They just want to control his environment - prevent him from having to field balls or get too deep into counts if he's tiring. I'll post manager Buck Showalter's comments...

VIERA, Fla. - A mild left ankle sprain will keep Adam LaRoche out of today's organized workouts, but the Nationals first baseman expects to throw and hit a little in hopes of being ready to play Sunday for the team's home Grapefruit League opener against the Astros. "I don't want to flare it up any more than it is," said LaRoche, who injured the ankle in base running drills two days ago. "There's no point right now risking dragging this thing out for another week if we can knock it out...

VIERA, Fla. - For Edwin Jackson, starting Saturday's Grapefruit League opener against the Astros in Kissimmee, Fla., is nothing more than a ceremonial assignment. But the right-hander is eager to move on to the next phase of spring training and to begin forging a relationship with his starting catcher, likely Wilson Ramos. "It's an upgrade from live BP," Jackson said. "It's more game mode. You're out there (and) it's more game focused." It's also an opportunity to formulate a...

When discussing Nick Markakis and what he might be able to do on offense this year, many fans now seem to be of the opinion that Markakis is no longer considered a middle-of-the-order hitter. Those fans have some stats to back up that opinion. His slugging percentage has dropped every year from 2008 on, from .491 to .453 to .436 to last year's .406. His 31 doubles in 2011 is much fewer than recent seasons when he had 48, 45 and 45. His extra-base hits total has dropped the last few years,...

SARASOTA, Fla. - Today is Photo Day at the complex, when players in their home whites are paraded in front of photographers from various media outlets. It's a spring training tradition. It's also the last thing they want to do, but it's one of their responsibilities. Players will then head to the back fields as usual for another round of catch, infield drills and batting practice. The intrasquad games begin on Friday. Dylan Bundy will throw an inning in Saturday's game. And no matter how...

VIERA, Fla. - One look at Ryan Perry's arms tells you the relief pitcher isn't afraid to share his point of view. Each arm is covered in a sleeve of tattoos, and the intricate work on the baseball-themed ink on his left arm is the newest addition. It was done this winter by Glendale, Ariz., tattoo artist Justin Kramer in three separate sessions that each required seven to eight hours to complete. "Everything's intertwined in baseball," said Perry, who was acquired from the Tigers in...