TAMPA, Fla. - See what I did there? In Jason Hammel's previous start, he lasted only two innings against the Boston Red Sox because he threw 39 pitches in the second and manager Buck Showalter didn't want to tax his arm. Tonight, he lasted 5 1/3 innings against the New York Yankees and is charged with two runs and five hits, with no walks and five strikeouts. He also hit a batter. Hammel threw 75 pitches through five innings, and Showalter sent him back out for the sixth. The first batter...

SARASOTA, Fla. - Jim Johnson knew what was coming. I approached his locker yesterday and asked about his spring training and whether he's where he needs to be with opening day almost here. "I'm pretty much where I need to be," he replied. "I'm looking forward to (today) because this is the first part of the back-to-back. I've thrown, day off, thrown, day off, so I've been on a real heavy workload, which is what I'm used to. Gets me ready for the season. "For the most part, I think...

TAMPA, Fla. - Executive vice president Dan Duquette and manager Buck Showalter arrived at George M. Steinbrenner Field during the Orioles' batting practice session, which included one ball launched by Mark Reynolds that slammed halfway up the scoreboard in left-center field. Duquette said he's had trade discussions with "a lot of teams." Asked if anything is close, he replied, "Not really. Not really." "It's an active market this time of the year," he said. But nothing's...

VIERA, Fla. - Not many pitches that left Edwin Jackson's right hand this afternoon were struck well by Braves hitters. One of them was. And it went a very long way. With nobody out in the top of the fifth, Jackson threw a 2-2 fastball to Braves center fielder Jason Heyward. The pitch caught a little too much of the plate and Heyward absolutely crushed it, sending the ball over the batter's eye in center field - a piece of fencing that stands about 400 feet away from home plate and is at...

VIERA, Fla. - Here's what Davey Johnson had to say about his bench players following today's win over the Braves: "It's no secret I like the way (Brett) Carroll fits. He's a little better fit for what we're trying to do. (Xavier) Nady is a nice fit, too. (Mark) DeRosa's a nice fit." It might not be official that Carroll and Nady will make the Nats' 25-man roster, but it's pretty darn close to official. Carroll helped get that much closer to locking up a roster spot by going 1-for-2...

The Washington Nationals today optioned left-handed pitcher Atahualpa Severino and right-handed pitcher Ryan Perry to Syracuse of the Triple-A International League. Additionally, the Nationals reassigned infielder Andres Blanco to minor-league camp and released outfielder Jason Michaels. Nationals Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations and General Manager Mike Rizzo made the announcements.

VIERA, Fla. - The day that one Nationals first baseman returned to the lineup after a two-week injury absence, another Nationals first baseman was scratched from the lineup because of injury. That's the way things have gone in Viera lately. Luckily for the Nats, the injury news today was mostly positive, as Adam LaRoche made it through today's game - his first since March 15 - feeling good. LaRoche went 1-for-2 against the Braves today, grounding out to second in the second inning, ripping...

VIERA, Fla. - The Nationals beat the Braves 6-3 today, but the game notes will have to get pushed aside for a few minutes with news of a few roster moves. The Nats have signed left-handed pitcher Zach Duke to a minor league contract. Duke was released by the Astros earlier this week. Duke, 28, has a career record of 48-74 with an ERA of 4.56. He spent last year with the Diamondbacks, going 3-4 with a 4.93 ERA. The lefty will likely be added to the rotation at Triple-A Syracuse. "Our depth...

Another outfielder working his way up the system is Dominican prospect Eury Perez, who hit .283 with 41 RBIs, 45 stolen bases in 119 games last season for Single-A Potomac. Now he is poised to make that next step. But let's not put too much pressure on the kid, says Nationals outfield coordinator Tony Tarasco. After all, he is only 21 years old and is still learning the game. "Eury has all the tools," Tarasco said. "He is another great ball player. I worry that because of our need for a...

VIERA, Fla. - A six-run sixth inning has given the Nationals a 6-1 lead over the Braves and has Edwin Jackson in line for his second win of spring. Ah, the old meaningless Grapefruit League statistics. The numbers are almost always insignificant in spring, but every now and then, they prove to be important. Such was the case in that sixth inning, when Brett Carroll - a guy who is trying to win one of the Nats final roster spots - cleared the bases with a triple to right-center and then came...