Debbi Taylor Archive
The Nationals released veteran reliever Ron Villone Monday. It was tough for GM Mike Rizzo to let one of his favorite players go, but it was necessary for the long term benefit of the ballclub. Ron was a great teammate and he was a good leader on the ballclub. ... Read More
The Nationals got rained out on Friday but there was still talk of optimism in the team's future. Nats skipper Jim Riggleman said he will not look ahead to 2011, nor will he look back on 2009. The focus is on "right now". It's tempting to dream about the ... Read More
Back to Business... The Nats were back on the field Monday in Viera, Fla. and it was all business. There's a sense of urgency on this ballclub and it's all about winning. The players are not satisfied with simply playing .500 baseball. They want to win a lot more ... Read More
Mock Finishes Strong... Garrett Mock told me he has learned a lot this season in a year where he began as a reliever and was converted back to a starter. Pitching coach Steve McCatty has preached to Garrett for him to "trust his stuff." ... Read More
Orr Catching on... Pete Orr will be adding to his versatility after the season when he joins the Nationals' Florida Instructional League team in Viera. The infielder/outfielder will be working on becoming a catcher, too. He spent some time with Nats bench coach and former big league catcher Pat ... Read More
Nats hitting coach Rick Eckstein and his brother, Padres second baseman David Eckstein are two of the hardest working men in baseball. The two grew up in Sanford, Florida, just outside of Orlando. They are the two youngest of five Eckstein kids. When they were younger, David would always ... Read More
Chicago, My Kind of Town! Baseball at Wrigley Field is such a treat. It's a throwback to the good old days of baseball. Fans in Chicago are very educated and passionate. With that said, half of the folks are soaking in the atmosphere with one eye on the ballgame. ... Read More
It's with open arms that all of NatsTown welcomes you and your family to our Nationals family. No doubt this weekend will be a busy one but try to enjoy it and soak it all in. The excitement surrounding the Nationals right now has to be at an all-time ... Read More
Dunn Returns to Cincy Adam Dunn returned to Cincinnati for the first time as a member of the Washington Nationals Thursday night. Before the game he met with reporters and told everyone he was not bitter that he was traded away from the Reds. The Nats slugger had plenty ... Read More
The Washington Nationals are in the midst of their hottest winning streak of the year and now it's time to recognize the work that has been done by acting General Manager Mike Rizzo by removing the "acting" from his title. In less than six months, Mike has proven that ... Read More
Nats starter Jordan Zimmermann told me a day after his rehab stint with Potomac that the back of his leg where he was hit by a line drive still hurt. But he's tough--after all, he is a former Wisconsin high school football standout. He told me with treatment he ... Read More
Road Trip Can Spark Momentum The Nats' recent road swing through Milwaukee and Pittsburgh finished with a .500 winning percentage which is quite respectable. The Nats have been playing much better baseball, having won six of their last ten. Sometimes it's the little things that can make a huge ... Read More
Wild About Willingham! How about Josh Willingham's two grand slams on Monday night in Milwaukee? The Nats slugger has really set a great example for the younger players on this team. Josh, like Austin Kearns, has never moped about playing time or lack of opportunities. He's made the best ... Read More
What do Tiger Woods, LeBron James and the Washington Nationals all have in common? They all share the same sports psychologist, Robert Rotella, PhD. Dr. Rotella is a world renowned sports psychologist who helps professional athletes reach their peak performance levels. ... Read More
Jim Riggleman has called a brief meeting after each game he's managed here in Washington. He has pointed out his players' hard work, citing the infield and outfield drills done before batting practice and how it's paying off. I asked Joe Beimel if he'd ever experienced a manager calling ... Read More
Start Me Up....Again! Nats starter turned reliever turned starter Garrett Mock is ready to take the hill Sunday afternoon against the Cubs. We'll see a new-look Mock, literally. The 26-year-old has a newly shaved head. I asked him what happened to his hair and he told me, "It's hot. ... Read More
Manny, a Man who will be Missed As someone who spent a lot of time with Manny Acta over the last two and a half years, I have to say he was always a true professional and one of the most positive people I've ever met. I appreciated his ... Read More
Some of the Nationals coaches and players left Houston to spend a few days away from our nation's capitol at their offseason homes. Adam Dunn in particular didn't have to go far since he lives in the Houston area when he's not playing baseball. ... Read More
Lannan Likes Minute Maid John Lannan told me Wednesday morning that he likes pitching at Minute Maid Park in Houston. That's good news considering the ballpark isn't exactly known for being pitcher friendly. Lucky Seven? John is aiming for his seventh victory of the season. He already leads Nats ... Read More
Anytime you get voted to an All-Star team, it's a pretty big honor. For Nats third baseman Ryan Zimmerman, knowing his peers had a hand in his selection made it even more special for the first time All-Star. ... Read More
Bucc-ing the System The newest members of the Nationals, former Pittsburgh Pirates OF Nyjer Morgan and LHP Sean Burnett, began their day on Wednesday at 4:00 a.m. in Pittsburgh and made it to Miami in time for the Nats' finale in Florida against the Marlins. Burnett admitted he was ... Read More
Former Marlins Face Old Friends In Florida Scott Olsen threw well enough for the Nationals to beat the Marlins. Unfortunately, the bullpen could not hold on. After Monday's game in Miami, Scott credited the Nats training staff for helping him get back on track. He said he's been doing ... Read More
Willie Harris: Player of the World! Nationals principal owner Mark Lerner admitted to me this week that Nats utilityman Willie Harris is his favorite player. He also added that he wished he had a whole team of players like Willie. Last year when Willie earned Player of the Week ... Read More
Craig Stammen Ready for Sox... Nats rookie Craig Stammen is coming off the best outing of his career--a 1-0 shutout against the New York Yankees. He, in fact, will go down in the record books as the first pitcher recording a shutout in the new Yankee Stadium. ... Read More
Sometimes it's the little things in life that you grow to appreciate. After Sunday's game against the Blue Jays, the Nationals will hold their inaugural Father's Day Catch at Nationals Park. A group of 150 Nationals fans will be able to take the field and play catch. ... Read More
Dunn Digging the DH... Adam Dunn told me it's been helpful having the opportunity to DH this week. Nats skipper Manny Act said he's been using the DH to give some of his regulars a rest. ... Read More
Nationals Southpaw John Lannan will take the mound tonight against a team he grew up rooting for. As a youngster, his father, Ed, would take him to the old Yankee Stadium and they would watch the likes of Derek Jeter, Bernie Williams, Don Mattingly and others donning the precious ... Read More
The "Draft Room" at Nationals Park has been active since 9:00 a.m. Monday morning. Nationals scouts from across the country have been meeting at the ballpark now for two weeks to prepare for Tuesday's historic day. ... Read More
Historically, lefty hitters have struggled against lefty pitchers. Over his career, Randy Johnson has held left-handed batters to a .199 batting average while right-handed batters have hit only .244 against him. Let's hope the Nationals don't swing at the Randy Johnson name. While he's still impressive, he's not what ... Read More
Jordan Zimmermann will be looking for his third win of the season and his career while five-time Cy Young winner and future Hall of Famer Randy Johnson will be looking for win number 300 of his career. The Road to 300 started when the Big Unit made his big ... Read More
The Nationals spent some extra time on Sunday morning working on their defense. It's no secret that this is an area the team has struggled with all season, but the Nats are trying to fix that. ... Read More
Young Guns... The Nationals' young starters have done a solid job keeping the team in games. Now the bullpen needs to pull its weight and start saving some of their games. It's important in the development of these young pitchers to know their wins will remain in tact once ... Read More
Before the game on Friday night against the Orioles, nine youngsters took the field for the Nationals starting nine. Friday was a Military Appreciation Night and these kids were guests of the Nationals through a program called TAPS (Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors). ... Read More
One thing about Nick Johnson this season is that he seems to be doing it all. What a difference a year makes. Wednesday night against the Pirates, Nick tied the game at 1-1 in the fifth inning with an RBI single. He also stole his first base since August ... Read More
Nats Manager Manny Acta spent a good part of his morning on Tuesday visiting with kids at Kimball Elementary, the Nats' adopted school. Manny teamed up with Reading is Fundamental (RIF) President and CEO Carol Rasco to read to 45 second graders at the school. ... Read More
The Nationals and Phillies all wore #42 Saturday night at Nationals Park in honor of Jackie Robinson, the man who broke the color barrier in baseball. Nats outfielder Willie Harris told me it's special to wear the #42 and he tries to play hard like Jackie Robinson always did. ... Read More
Ryan ready for another one... Ryan Zimmerman acknowledged after Wednesday's win over the Giants that he was exhausted and couldn't wait for the day off on Thursday. He also admitted that he now understands more about how tough it was for Yankee legend Joe DiMaggio to set the record ... Read More
Giants second baseman Emmanuel Burriss told me today it means a lot to him that he is a role model for other inner city kids in the Washington, DC area. He said he hopes he can inspire those youngsters to play baseball. ... Read More
Nats rookie Jordan Zimmermann grew up in Wisconsin, so he enjoys pitching in the cooler weather. We're talking about someone who has pitched in the snow; so this chilly San Francisco weather is nothing to him. ... Read More
West coast swing... Adam Dunn told me after the Nats took two out of three from the Diamondbacks in Arizona that he couldn't remember the last time a team he was on won a series out west. It's a tough thing to do and the Nats should be proud ... Read More
Old friend and former Nats closer Chad Cordero was sitting behind the Nationals dugout watching his former team defeat the Diamonbacks on Friday night. Before the game, he renewed acquaintances with his former coaches, teammates and friends on the Nationals. ... Read More
Washington Wizards forward Caron Butler redeemed himself on Tuesday when he threw out the ceremonial first pitch before the Nats game against Houston. You might remember the last time he tossed a ceremonial first pitch. It was at RFK in 2007 and embarassingly, it bounced in the dirt. ... Read More
Dream Foundation Gala a Hit! It's not very often you get an entire baseball team to attend a charitable dinner together. Well, Saturday night at the Gaylord National Harbor Resort and Convention Center the Nationals did just that. ... Read More
Patience of a Saint... You have to give Nats pitching coach Randy St. Claire kudos for coming out to speak with the media after Thursday night's disappointing loss to the St. Louis Cardinals. You could see the look of despair on his face after he watched his pitchers issue ... Read More
Go with the Flo... Nats catcher Jesus Flores grew up in Carupano, Venezuela speaking Spanish, but he has made incredible strides in mastering the English language since becoming a professional baseball player. Manny Acta told me it is extremely important for Flores to speak English so he can communicate ... Read More
Rookie Hopes to End Road Woes... Nats Rookie pitcher Jordan Zimmerman said he is looking forward to pitching in front of a packed Citi Field and under the spotlight in New York. The stage doesn't get any bigger than this for the young righty who is trying to help ... Read More
Lannan Successful with First Pitch... John Lannan threw first pitch strikes to 17 of the 28 Braves batters that he faced on Wednesday night. That's something that Nats pitching coach Randy St. Claire has been preaching to the 24-year-old lefty since he first put on a big league uniform. ... Read More
Justin Maxwell is adjusting well to his new role with the Nationals, even though it's only been a couple of days. He's also adjusting to being a first time father, but more on that in a moment. ... Read More
Nats outfielder Roger Bernadina visited the Nats clubhouse this morning just hours after having two screws put in his fractured right ankle. He could be walking in a month, and he told me he hopes to begin his rehab in about two months, though he added that he wants ... Read More
Ollie Rematch with friends now foes: The Marlins... Scott Olsen spent some time Friday renewing acquaintances with his former Florida teammates. During the baseball season this year, Olsen has a tenant in his South Florida home--Marlins closer Matt Lindstrom. Olsen told me that so far Lindstrom is neat, keeping ... Read More
Caps forward Brooks Laich took in the game Thursday night with his dad, Harold. The Caps are in the playoffs and coming off a disappointing Game One 4-3 loss to the Rangers, so it was nice for Laich to take a break from the rink for a little bit ... Read More
There was a sad feeling at Nationals Park today with the passing of Hall of Fame broadcaster Harry Kalas. Nats Assistant GM and VP Bob Boone told me he was shocked and saddened by the sudden death of the longtime voice of the Phillies. ... Read More
Second baseman Willie Harris is going to be re-evaluated Monday in Washington. After Sunday's game Manny Acta admitted the second base position is a concern to him. It looks like Anderson Hernandez might be brought back sooner than expected from his rehab start. ... Read More
Nats first base coach and former Expos and Braves Outfielder Marquis Grissom is spending his day off here in Atlanta giving back to the community. He's kicking off the grand opening of the Marquis Grissom Field of Dreams located about 20 minutes outside of Atlanta. ... Read More
Former Marlins starter Scott Olsen told me he spent a good part of Opening Day catching up with old friends on the home side of Dolphins Stadium. You can tell a lot about the character of a player when he takes time out not only for his former teamates ... Read More
Before Saturday's game, Ryan Zimmerman said this Nationals team already has better chemistry than last year's squad. He said the guys get along and have fun. Zimmerman added that the 2009 team has better defense and that should help the Nats avoid giving teams extra outs. ... Read More
It was nice to visit with Nats LHP Matt Chico in Viera recently. The promising lefty had his summer interrupted last season because of pain in his pitching arm. Now he's trying to come back after having Tommy John surgery. ... Read More
While Dmitri Young's season last year was a bust, let's hope he can control his diabetes and turn things around this year to win another Comeback Player of the Year Award in 2009. Who wouldn't want to see his healthy bat coming off the bench? I'm sure Manny Acta ... Read More
Julian Tavarez is in the Dominican Republic today trying to obtain his work visa. Once he does that he should be in camp tomorrow to workout and get back on track. Manny Acta told us in his pre-game visit that Dimitri Young looked good in a minor league game ... Read More
Now that the World Baseball Classic is finished (Congrats to Japan), Adam Dunn and Joel Hanrahan will be heading back to Viera to rejoin the Nats. I really think the WBC helped boost Hanrahan's confidence and it helped Dunn play in a playoff type atmosphere. These are the types ... Read More
A couple of thoughts from being in Viera this week ... While the release of Shawn Hill was disappointing to many of his teammates, it also sent a message that acting GM Mike Rizzo isn't worried about hurting anyone's feelings. ... Read More
Wednesday night's game against the Marlins not only features newcomer Scott Olsen facing his former Florida team for the first time, but it's also the first time MASN viewers will get to hear Rob Dibble in the Nationals broadcast. The last time I saw Rob was back in January ... Read More
The Nationals' home opener is Monday, April 13 against the defending World Champion Phillies. I know you've got your calendar marked. Now we need to convince the White House scheduling department to make some room on its calendar for a very special occasion. ... Read More
Although the Nats fell to the Braves today 6-2, there were a couple of good things going on for Washington. ... Read More
If you look at today's linescore against the Mets, you'll see that Jordan Zimmermann continues to impress. He threw three and a third scoreless innings and continues to have a perfect 0.00 ERA this spring. ... Read More
There is a definite feeling of renewed enthusiasm around the ballpark here in Viera, Florida. Players are competing for spots and now with the resignation of Jim Bowden as the team's General Manager, front office folks are competing to show the Nationals brass the team can be run effectively. ... Read More
In The Spirit of the Game... Nationals General Manager Jim Bowden, Assistant General Manager Mike Rizzo, Vice President of Player Development Bob Boone and Special Assistant to the General Manager Moose Stubing, along with Advance Scout Wade Taylor were among 1300 people gathered at the Century City Plaza Hyatt ... Read More
Scottsdale, AZ I took my daughter Kaitlyn to her first professional baseball game this week. She got a chance to see the Peoria Saguaros take on the Scottsdale Scorpions at Scottsdale Stadium, the Spring Training home of the San Francisco Giants. ... Read More
The season is coming to a close and while it has certainly been challenging, there are some nice moments to reflect on. Who can forget Ryan Zimmerman taking center stage on Opening Night? He is the face of the franchise and this reporter hopes the Nats are able to ... Read More
Manny Acta Pitches in... Nats Skipper Manny Acta spent part of his morning on Wednesday packing and delivering meals along with Food and Friends, a partner of the Capitol Area Food Bank to some local folks in need of it. Manny said his community service commitment is the easiest ... Read More
More Baseball for Manny How much does Manny Acta like baseball? So much that after yesterday's win over the Cubs, he headed across town to see the White Sox host the Rays. He sat in the family section and got a good feel for how the fans watch the ... Read More
Red Hot Ronnie Ronnie Belliard has done an outstanding job filling in for the injured Cristian Guzman. In the month of August he's hitting .440. Last night he collected four hits against the Phillies, including his 300th career double. Yesterday Guzman took batting practice and he told me he's ... Read More
You could draw a picture of the human body and nearly all its parts would be represented by Nats injures. Starting with the leg, Elijah Dukes is out with a calf strain, and he suffered a knee injury earlier in the season, as well as a hamstring inury. ... Read More
With a four-run first inning yesterday, the Nats posted multi-run first innings in four of the six games during the homestand for a total of 11 runs in the first. The Nats took batting practice again Sunday even though it was a day game after a night game. "It's ... Read More
Jesus Flores earned the Heart and Hustle Award this week. It was presented to him by former Washington Senators pitcher Jim Hannan. He is the Chairman of the Board for the MLB Players Alumni Association. Flores will now be among 30 players up for the National Award. Jim told ... Read More
Earlier this month Willie Harris visited the St. Coletta School for kids with severe mental disabilities and autism. He told me all players should have to make such visits and that taking time out of his schedule to interact with these youngsters made his day. ... Read More
Nationals All-Star shortstop Cristian Guzman said he was looking forward to heading to the Bronx for the 2008 All-Star Game. "It's the only game that day, so everyone is watching," he beamed after being asked about his second All-Star appearance. ... Read More
Bonds Strikes Out in DC While speculation swirled around Nationals Park on Wednesday about the possibility of Barry Bonds joining the D-Backs, I had a chance to ask Jim Bowden if he'd consider bringing the all-time home run champ to the District. His response? An emphatic, "No!" Bowden added, ... Read More
Over the weekend the struggling Roger Bernandina got some batting tips from the unlikeliest of sources: Nats closer Jon Rauch. "He noticed opposing pitchers are pounding the strike zone against me," Bernadina said. "He said I should get off the plate." ... Read More
Twenty-three-year-old rookie pitcher Collin Balester said he's been getting some great one-on-one advice from a number of different Nationals personnel. He said Nats special assistant to the GM Jose Rijo has been helpful and so has pitching coach Randy St. Claire. ... Read More
Nats reliever Joe Hanrahan is teaming up with the American Red Cross to raise money for the flood victims in the Midwest. He recently participated in an online auction to help those affected by the treacherous floods. ... Read More
