Barrera makes the most of rare opportunity with two-hit day

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It wasn’t the most graceful of slides. A catcher barreling headfirst into first base, a Velcro strap careening off of his elbow guard. 

But he was safe. Anything for Tres Barrera to get his first big league hit in over a month.

“First, I was trying to run so fast to get to first base,” Barrera said, smiling. “I saw (Braves second baseman Vaughn Grissom) dive, I was like, 'Dang, I gotta get there.' I kinda felt my body weight shift over to the front side, so I was almost trying to keep myself from falling and looking dumb so I just said, 'I’ll go into a headfirst slide' after that.

“It probably still didn’t look very cool, but honestly, that’s what happened.”

Despite being recalled from Triple-A Rochester three weeks ago, Barrera hadn’t received a single plate appearance since Aug. 21, instead watching from the bench as Riley Adams and Israel Pineda caught game after game.

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Meneses’ go-ahead homer helps Nats salvage series finale in Atlanta (updated)

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ATLANTA - Like a library desperate for an overdue rental, the Nationals were making empty threats, lacking the power to follow through. 

Washington had scored just five total runs and gone a combined 4-for-22 with runners in scoring position over the last three games, all losses. 

But Wednesday in Atlanta, the Nats finally broke through, and all it took was one mighty swing from Joey Meneses. 

The 30-year-old rookie mashed a two-run homer onto the second deck in left field in the seventh inning, turning around what was then a 2-1 game and helping the Nationals (52-97) take the series finale over the Braves (93-56) by a final of 3-2. 

"I can't say enough about what Joey's been doing since he came here," manager Davey Martinez said after the win. "He's been hitting doubles, homers, getting on base, playing good defense."

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Gore's impending Nats debut provides optimism before season's end

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ATLANTA - Thirty-four Nationals have pitched at least one inning this season, a remarkably high total that includes five rookies and three position players.

The 35th could be the most intriguing to date.

MacKenzie Gore, the former top-100 prospect acquired from the Padres in the Juan Soto/Josh Bell trade, will make another rehab start for Triple-A Rochester tonight as he pushes to make his Nats debut before season’s end.

Manager Davey Martinez expects Gore to throw about 60-65 pitches, hoping to see more consistency from the 23-year-old.

“This is like spring training all over for him,” said Martinez. “We’ll try to give him four ups and see where he’s at.”

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Game 149 lineups: Nationals at Braves

Game 149 lineups: Nationals at Braves

ATLANTA - Last night’s injury to Patrick Corbin shined an even brighter light on the Nationals’ missing pitching depth.

But it doesn’t get to the heart of the team’s central issue right now: lack of run production. 

The Nationals have scored just five total runs over their last three games, including two in each of the first two games of their series against the Braves. They haven’t left the yard since a four-homer game against the Marlins on Sept. 17.

After Joey Meneses’ four-hit day in the series opener Monday, no Nat collected more than one hit in Tuesday’s 5-2 loss. Washington went just 2-for-11 with runners in scoring position. 

Atlanta, meanwhile, clinched a postseason berth with last night’s win and the Brewers’ loss to the Mets. 

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Long list of injured pitchers grows with addition of Patrick Corbin

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ATLANTA - Cade Cavalli, Sean Doolittle, Stephen Strasburg, Tanner Rainey, Jackson Tetreault, Evan Lee…

Patrick Corbin.

The list of injured Nationals pitchers contains rookies and veterans. It has consumed righties and lefties alike. It seems to grow by the week.

After Corbin exited Tuesday’s game with back spasms, an already lean Nats rotation thinned even more, leaving Josiah Gray, Erick Fedde and Anibal Sanchez as the only bona fide starters. 

Perhaps you could throw Cory Abbott in the mix. Paolo Espino lurks.

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Nats' bats scuffle again, Corbin exits in 3-2 loss to Braves (updated)

Nats' bats scuffle again, Corbin exits in 3-2 loss to Braves (updated)

ATLANTA - Patrick Corbin took an exceptionally long time between pitches. He shuffled his feet, kicked some dirt and adjusted his belt ever so slowly before turning around and motioning to the second base umpire.

Something wasn’t quite right.

Corbin left with back spasms in the first inning of Tuesday’s 3-2 loss to the Braves after throwing just 12 pitches. After throwing a 76-mph slider high and outside to Matt Olson and fidgeting around the rubber, the lefty was greeted by manager Davey Martinez and head athletic trainer Paul Lessard.

Corbin, who leads the Nationals (51-97) in both starts and innings pitched, stretched his back before taking a slow walk to the visitors' dugout.

"He just threw a pitch and (his back) tightened up on him," Martinez said after the game. "We watched him, he started trying to stretch. We went out there and he said it just cramped up on him. ... As he was getting back on the mound, he said he couldn't get loose, so the smart thing to do is just get him out of there."

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Corbin exits with apparent injury after throwing 12 pitches vs. Braves

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ATLANTA - Nationals starter Patrick Corbin exited Tuesday’s game against the Braves with an apparent injury after throwing just 12 pitches in the first inning.

Corbin’s final pitch of the evening was a 76-mph slider up-and-away to Braves cleanup hitter Matt Olson. The lefty was slow to return to the rubber before eventually calling for time.

Corbin, who leads the team in innings pitched, has averaged 82 mph on his slider this season, per FanGraphs. 

He stretched his back while being attended to by manager Davey Martinez and director of athletic training Paul Lessard, then headed toward the visitors' dugout with Lessard. Erasmo Ramirez warmed quickly and replaced Corbin on the mound, completing a strikeout of Olson.

Corbin retired just two batters and allowed a single to Dansby Swanson.

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30-year-old rookie Joey Meneses brings savvy to Nats clubhouse

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ATLANTA - When Joey Meneses signed with the Atlanta Braves, he was three days from his 19th birthday. It was May 2011, and Truist Park was six years from being built.

Eleven years later, a 30-year-old Meneses played his first game in Atlanta, wearing the uniform of the Braves’ division rivals. He went 4-for-4 with four singles, raising his batting average to .325 through his first 41 career big league games. 

“The whole time I was playing in the minors to get to this point, to get this opportunity,” Meneses said through interpreter Octavio Martinez after Monday’s game. “I just want to do as well as possible up here and, hopefully, remain here as long as possible.”

Meneses’ Baseball-Reference page can’t be read without scrolling several times. His career includes stops in Mexico, Japan and four major league organizations, spanning 12 years.

There were plenty of good seasons in there. His final season in the Braves organization came in 2017, when he hit .292 with a .763 OPS for Double-A Mississippi at age 25. After signing with the Phillies that winter, Meneses hit .311 with 23 home runs and an .870 OPS for Triple-A Lehigh Valley.

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Game 148 lineups: Nationals at Braves

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ATLANTA - It’s been an awfully long time since the Nationals have put together a complete offensive game. The Nats haven’t scored more than five runs in a game since a Sept. 8 blowout win in St. Louis. 

A day after Marlins ace Sandy Alcantara tossed a one-run complete game in Washington, the Nats' bats sputtered again in Atlanta last night, plating just two runs on nine hits in a 5-2 loss.

Optimism comes in the form of the opposing pitcher, veteran Charlie Morton, who has been prone to surrendering the longball this season. The 38-year-old has allowed 24 homers in 28 starts, tied for sixth-most in the National League.

Nats starter Patrick Corbin is two spots ahead of Morton on that list, lobbing 27 dingers in his 29 starts. 

Last night’s loss dropped the Nats to 3-11 against the Braves this season and 13-48 against the NL East as a whole.

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With Cruz close to returning, Nats face decision at designated hitter

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ATLANTA - Lined with wooden lockers and topped by fluorescent bulbs, the visitor’s clubhouse at Truist Park isn’t the most well-lit room. It’s even darker from behind Nelson Cruz’s sunglasses.

The 42-year-old has donned the shades as he deals with a lefty eye infection that has kept him out of action since Sept. 13. But the specs could be coming off soon.

“He’s better,” said manager Davey Martinez. “The drops are working. It’s very slow but he said he feels better today.”

“It’s good news, so hopefully we can get him back here in a few days.”

Cruz took batting practice with the team before Monday’s series opener, another step towards a return that appears imminent.

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Nats do little with nine hits, fall to Braves 5-2 (updated)

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ATLANTA - Alex Call raced back to the warning track, found the wall, halted, and leapt upward, kicking up dirt and reaching his glove toward the sky.

He missed.

The ball, hit at a 41-degree launch angle, floated inches above Call’s glove, and Austin Riley’s 37th home run of the season landed in the seats just beyond the left field wall.

Even the Braves’ pop-ups are home runs.

Atlanta (92-55) mashed their National League-leading 221st and 222nd homers of the season in a 5-2 win over Washington (51-96) in the series opener on Monday night. The Nationals, meanwhile, scored just two runs on nine hits, keeping their homer total at a paltry 126.

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Nats' young catchers helping each other navigate life behind the plate

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ATLANTA - When the equipment truck loaded up in D.C. and prepared to drive to the Nationals' charter plane, it was crammed with more catching gear than usual.

A total of four catchers have spots in the visitors' clubhouse at Truist Park: Riley Adams, Tres Barrera, Israel Pineda and Keibert Ruiz. Adams starts tonight, catching starter Cory Abbott, while Barrera and Pineda will be on the bench. Ruiz is the surprise addition, as the 24-year-old has recently been cleared to travel with the team.

“He’s feeling better,” said manager Davey Martinez of Ruiz, who has been sidelined since Sept. 8 with a testicular contusion. “He’s still pretty sore, but he obviously is feeling better, he’s able to fly with us.”

Ruiz won’t appear in any more games in 2022, but the Nats have designs for him in the final two weeks of the season.

“We want to keep him around,” Martinez said before Monday’s series opener. “Before the season’s over, he can maybe just kinda work out light and get going so that when the time comes, we feel like he’s ready to get ready for the season, spring training next year.”

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Game 147 lineups: Nationals at Braves

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ATLANTA - The Nationals' penultimate road trip of the season begins in Atlanta, with serious National League East implications at play, at least for the home team.

Cory Abbott, hours before his 27th birthday, takes the mound for the Nats as they open a three-game series against the Braves, who sit just one game behind the Mets in the division. Serving a variety of roles for Washington this season, Abbott is looking to improve upon a quietly impressive September, during which the righty has posted a 3.48 ERA in 10 1/3 innings. 

Abbott will face an Atlanta lineup that lacks star second baseman Ozzie Albies, who fractured his right pinkie in Sunday's win over the Phillies. The 25-year-old will be sidelined for the remainder of the regular season. He'll be replaced by rookie Vaughn Grissom, who bats ninth in the series opener tonight.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS at ATLANTA BRAVES
Where:
 Truist Park

Gametime: 7:25 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, MLB.com
Weather: Sunny, 86 degrees, wind 6 mph out of the north

NATIONALS

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A few thoughts before I hit the road for retirement ...

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“How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard.” — A.A. Milne, "Winnie The Pooh"

In December 2010, I walked through the doors of the MASN web studio on the fifth floor of the Camden Yards warehouse and into the best job I’ve ever had. And I’ve had a few jobs, from cleaning the bathrooms at a Dunkin’ Donuts to years in newspapers as a reporter and editor to a gig as a public relations executive and a soul-crushing stint in a publishing house, from which I was laid off as the economic downturn of 2008 was just beginning.

That exit from the publishing world, where I edited everything from travel guides to a compendium of lawyers and law firms in Philadelphia, was especially painful. It came out of the blue; I had misjudged the landscape, thinking that our three-person editorial staff that handled about 80 projects a year was safe. But with profits cratering and no one advertising, something had to go – and that something was me.

To make ends meet for most of the next three years, I retreated into baseball, my part-time vocation since 1993, working for anyone who would offer a job and a few bucks – The Associated Press, MLB.com, out-of-town daily newspapers. I worked all of spring training on my own dime and 13 of every 14 days during the regular season, praying that the paychecks arrived in time to cover the mortgage, car payment and health insurance bills. Most times they did, but I had to be creative.

Creativity has never been a challenge for me. Nor has following the national pastime, which was always my intended path, even if I took a roundabout route to get there. But the 14-year-old kid who went to junior high school an hour early to pore over the box scores in the morning paper, the youngster who played APBA Baseball and then in Rotisserie leagues, the guy who made his major league press box debut at 33 and marveled at the opportunity to step onto the field of a big league ballpark and talk to managers and players wasn’t deterred.

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Remembering a loving grandfather and avid sports fan

Remembering a loving grandfather and avid sports fan
It's crazy how much we take after our role models. It's unfortunate that you sometimes don't fully understand their impact and the similarities between you until those people are gone. My grandfather passed away early Sunday morning. Ramiro Blanco was 91 and thankfully passed away peacefully. He had a few ailments that came with old age, including prostate cancer, but it was just his time. He was at peace with that. And so is the rest of the Blanco Family Circus, as we so lovingly call...
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#TBT to "Nationals Classics": Victories in all shapes, colors and sizes

#TBT to "Nationals Classics": Victories in all shapes, colors and sizes
The goal is always the same: Win the game. But in baseball, not every win looks or feels the same. Sometimes, pitchers dominate. Other times, the hitters take center stage. Games can be blowouts, decided long before the final out, or tense affiars that go down to the wire. This week's platter of "Nationals Classics" on MASN shows a variety of ways the Nats won games over the past handful of years. Enjoy! Friday, Dec. 10 - 5:30 p.m. - Newly minted American League Gold Glove winner Michael...
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#TBT to "Nationals Classics:" Marathon matches galore as nights grow longer

#TBT to "Nationals Classics:" Marathon matches galore as nights grow longer
Kinks in the supply chain have holiday shoppers jumpier than usual this year as they comb the Internet and the stores (remember those?) for the hot new toy or electronic gizmo. The good news is that the supply of warm baseball memories is flowing just fine via "Nationals Classics." In this week's batch, MASN brings you a big moment in the budding career of a young star, a signature win for a Cooperstown-bound hurler, some marathon matches ending in Nationals wins, more clutch hits for the...
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#TBT to "Nationals Classics": Some viewing sides for your Turkey Day feast and beyond

#TBT to "Nationals Classics": Some viewing sides for your Turkey Day feast and beyond
By now, the turkey may be in the oven, your kitchen may smell wonderful and you're looking at the timer counting down the hours and minutes before your Thanksgiving feast can commence. In a few hours, you'll be stuffed, thankful for the expanding or flexible waistband on your pants and settling into your comfiest chair for the rest of the day. Whatever is on your post-Thanksgiving meal menu - pumpkin pie, a turkey sandwich trimmed with dressing and cranberry sauce, a nip of your favorite...
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Brady House not feeling extra pressure with rebuild

Brady House not feeling extra pressure with rebuild
All rebuilds have a face attached to them. Usually one of a young, up and coming player - whether a high draft pick or fast-rising prospect - that signifies the hope of what's to come. The light at the end of the tunnel. The success of the future. I know Nationals manager Davey Martinez said he doesn't like the term "rebuild," but for our purposes, let's just stick to calling it that, even if this new direction for the franchise is more of a retooling or reloading. Whatever "re-" you...
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Fedde extends scoreless innings streak as Gomes walks off Mets (updated)

Fedde extends scoreless innings streak as Gomes walks off Mets (updated)
It hasn't been easy going for Erick Fedde over the last month. Almost a month ago, he was placed on the COVID-19 injured list after testing positive for the coronavirus in Chicago. That was just three days after he turned in one of the best performances of his career in Arizona. A little over three weeks after landing on the IL, he was reinstated after quarantining in Chicago and building his arm strength back up. That roller coaster stretch would be enough to throw any pitcher out of...
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