The Winter Meetings are still a few days away. However, that didn't stop the Nationals from making moves and headlines this week.
Heading into the offseason, the Nats were looking for a left-handed bat and possibly another starter to fill out the rotation. They got both in the past week.
Today, former Orioles outfielder Nate McLouth signed a two-year deal with the Nats. On Monday, the Nats made a deal with the Tigers, bringing right-hander Doug Fister to D.C., for Steve Lombardozzi, Ian...
Another Hall of Fame ballot, another smattering of former Nationals and Expos who will likely be on the outside looking in when results of balloting of Baseball Writers' Association of America members is announced Jan. 8.
Among the 19 new candidates, there is only one ex-National: catcher Paul Lo Duca, who played 46 games in a Washington uniform in 2008 before being released. Lo Duca, a .286 hitter in 11 major league seasons, batted only .230 with 12 RBIs for the Nats.
There are still some...
The baseball world was rocked this week by a huge trade. The Tigers sent Prince Fielder and $30 million to the Rangers for Ian Kinsler. What offseason?
While the blockbuster trade dominated national headlines, the Nationals were busy filling vacancies and finalizing their 40-man roster this week.
The Nats brought in a familiar face as their new third-base coach. Bob Henley, who has been with the Nats/Expos for the last 11 years, was hired as the new windmill, filling the vacancy created by...
If you've ever stared up at the giant video board at Nationals Park during a game, seen the in-game video host running a contest or trying to engage fans and thought, "Gee, I could do that," the Nationals may want to talk to you.
The Nats are commencing a casting call for a new in-game video host and, providing you have an effusive personality, have performed in front of large crowds, have on-air experience and possess a knowledge of both baseball and the Nationals, your dream could come...
While fan challenge winners Brady Doyle and Bella Ronca may not be able to snag line drives or smash home runs as well as Ryan Zimmerman, they proved that that they could take down the Nationals third baseman in an Xbox battle. Thanks to MASN's annual fan challenge, the duo had the opportunity to meet Zimmerman and take him on in a game of MLB 2K13.
Doyle and Ronca submitted a video during the season, challenging Zimmerman to try to beat them in a game of MLB 2K13. Eventually, their video was...
With the offseason comes trade rumors, waiver news and coaching staff shakeups. The Nationals have experienced all three this week.
Both Trent Jewett and Roy Clark left the Nats organization this week to pursue different opportunities. Clark, the Nats' former assistant general manager and vice president of player personnel, has joined the Dodgers, and former third base coach Jewett is now the bench coach of the Seattle Mariners.
As it is only November, many offseason trade rumors will...
During the 2013 season, we gave Nationals fans the chance to earn points for interacting with us on social media through our "Touch 'Em All" social rewards program. The top 10 finalists would have the chance to meet Ryan Zimmerman, with one lucky fan being selected to win a private hitting lesson with the third baseman.
Fingers flew over keyboards, Instagam pictures were posted and MASN Nationals postgame memes were shared on Facebook. Each month, top followers on our social media accounts...
Although the offseason is in full swing, the Nationals have continued to make national headlines with the hiring of a new manager and a shortstop being recognized for his bat.
While the Nats had been expected to hire Matt Williams, he was officially introduced last Friday.
On Wednesday, Ian Desmond was honored with his second consecutive Silver Slugger Award.
While those were the biggest stories around the Nats this week, there are many other headlines that you may have missed. Go to...
The Boston Red Sox are 2013 World Series champions, and with another season wrapping up Wednesday, the Nationals officially announced that Matt Williams is their new manager.
The official statement came from the Nationals on Thursday morning. With the announcement came the news that Randy Knorr would be continuing his role as bench coach.
In case you missed the news, we'll have you covered here on MASNsports.com each Friday with top news from the Nationals.
Here are some other headlines...
Have you watched the Red Sox and Cardinals duke it out in the first two games of the World Series? While you continue watching to see who emerges as World Series champs, let's catch you up on things you may have missed around the Nationals organization this week.
The Nats are continuing managerial interviews, including one with DeMarlo Hale this week. In addition, they have met with Diamondbacks third base coach Matt Williams, Padres executive Brad Ausmus and Randy Knorr. An announcement...
NatsTown is prepared for a new manager, and one should be named during the first week of November. But whether general manager Mike Rizzo decides to turn the managerial reins over to an in-house candidate or picks someone from outside the organization to succeed Davey Johnson, there will likely be a ripple effect that changes the makeup of the Nationals coaching staff.
A new manager will want the latitude to assemble his own staff. Obviously, if either current third base coach Trent Jewett or...
In case you haven't noticed, there's some pretty great postseason baseball being played right now. The Red Sox are looking to head to the World Series, and they're in need of just one more win. The Dodgers will send Clayton Kershaw to the mound tonight as they look to even up their series with the Cardinals.
However, if your attention is solely on postseason baseball, you may have missed some news surrounding the Nationals this week. The Nats are continuing their managerial search, looking...
Offseason baseball events have come a long way since the rubber chicken awards dinners of winters past.
Mark your calendars now for Wednesday, Dec. 4 - that's the night when the Cal Ripken, Sr. Foundation will host "The Hot Corner: A Conversation of Baseball Greats" at the Four Seasons Hotel in Washington, D.C. The event will feature an intimate conversation between Cal Ripken Jr., the longtime Orioles third baseman who was enshrined in the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 2007, and...
The past three September in D.C. have felt completely different. September 2011 was a quiet time. The Nationals went 80-81 that year, which was an improvement on all the seasons prior. The 2012 season was the most successful season played by this incarnation of D.C. baseball since the Nats' inaugural year in 2005. Despite a short-lived playoff run, the Nats entered the offseason as National League East champions for the first time. And in 2013, well, high expectations were met with somewhat...
This is a tale of two teams. One has an average age of 27.8 and the other 31.8. One has a solid young core composed of a 20-year-old former Rookie of the Year outfielder with back-to-back 20-homer seasons, a young pitching staff with three top-of-the rotation starters who are finishing the season with a 3.50 ERA or lower, a converted third baseman playing second who has slashed line drives all over the park since being recalled, and veterans in a third baseman that always seems to be an .800...
There are landmark moments that stand like Mount Rushmore looking down upon the crowd of gameday events that have transpired since the first pitch was thrown out at RFK Stadium in 2005. There was Jayson Werth's walk-off home run to send the Nationals to a Game 5 in the 2012 National League Division Series, Stephen Strasburg's 14-strikeout debut in 2010 and maybe Bryce Harper's breakout game against the Phillies when he stole home.
But the launch date for the current Nationals team happened...
Well, here we are. The final week of the 2013 regular season. It's been a fascinating but ultimately disappointing season. Unless the Nationals manage to win out this week and get an extraordinarily well-timed losing streak by either the Reds or Pirates, the Nats' season will come to an end without reaching the playoffs.
It's funny, if the Nats had finished a couple of games out of the playoffs last season as they will this one, it would not have been particularly disappointing. Rather,...
For just a few minutes (or at least while you read this blog post) let's try and forget that the openly-hyped 2013 Nationals are 5 1/2 games behind the Reds for the second National League wild card. Instead, I'd like to give my two cents on September baseball.
It's the end of summer and the start of the school year come September. Fall is here, even in D.C., and the conversation I had with my buddy Tom on Tuesday helped cement in my mind something that I've already felt to be true for...
According to the modern baseball catalog of knowledge, Baseball Reference, the official major league history of Washington baseball began in 1884 with the Washington Nationals and the Washington Statesmen playing that season. The Nationals finished with a record of 47-65 and the Statesmen were 12-51. That would turn out to be a fitting beginning to Washington baseball history. There would be two more defunct franchises and neither of them would have a winning season, and then in 1901 Ban...
Events like those that transpired at the Navy Yard yesterday seem to plague our country with disturbing frequency. It is unfortunate that they happen at all, or that they happen in any neighborhood or any work place. But they came home yesterday to the Navy Yard, part of the neighborhood around Nationals Park. The most exciting thing happening Monday should have been the Braves series about to begin, but unspeakable tragedy intervened.
The Navy Yard begins just across 1st Street from Nationals...