Dan Kolko

How to handle Harper's struggles

How to handle Harper's struggles
Before last night's series finale against the Braves, the Nationals presented Braves third baseman Chipper Jones with some going-away presents. Yesterday marked the future Hall of Fame third baseman's final game at Nationals Park before he steps away from the game, so the Nats put together a video tribute which was played on the Jumbotron and held a presentation in which Ryan Zimmerman, Mark DeRosa, Adam LaRoche and GM Mike Rizzo gave Jones a few gifts. Those gifts included a base which was...
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Dan Kolko

Injury updates on Desmond, Suzuki; plus Harper quotes

Injury updates on Desmond, Suzuki; plus Harper quotes
Ian Desmond scared the heck out of his manager and 29,111 fans in attendance at Nats Park tonight when the Nationals' All-Star shortstop came up limping mid-way through his sprint down the first base line in the eighth inning. Desmond appeared shaken up for a minute, then strangely shook off whatever was bugging him and convinced Davey Johnson and a team trainer that he was fine. So what the heck happened there? "I'm not really exactly sure," Desmond said with a smile. "I think it was a...
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Dan Kolko

Johnson discusses Nats' 5-1 loss to Braves

Johnson discusses Nats' 5-1 loss to Braves
Braves starter Kris Medlen, who threw seven shutout innings tonight in a win over the Nationals, was a switch-hitting shortstop back in his days at Santa Ana Community College. The Braves drafted him as a pitcher, one who now has a 1.86 ERA this season following tonight's game. "Wish they'd have kept him as a shortstop," Davey Johnson said after tonight's game. Medlen and Ross Detwiler matched zeros through four innings tonight, but in the fifth, the Braves got to Detwiler. The Nats, on...
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Dan Kolko

Nats drop series finale 5-1

Nats drop series finale 5-1
A sweep would've meant a nice eight-game lead in the division. Instead, the Nationals will have to settle for taking two out of three and holding a six-game lead over the Braves. The Nats dropped the series finale 5-1 tonight, allowing the Braves to leave town with a bit of momentum when they entered today staring down a possible three-game sweep. If you're Nationals manager Davey Johnson, this one sure wasn't pretty. The Nats managed little off Braves starter Kris Medlen and only got on...
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Dan Kolko

Harper's rough stretch carries over into the field (a rally falls apart)

Harper's rough stretch carries over into the field (a rally falls apart)
It's no secret that Bryce Harper has been struggling at the plate recently. Last night, Harper notched the dreaded Golden Sombrero, striking out all four times he came to the plate. Tonight, he's gone 0-for-2 with a weak ground ball and a pop up. But through his offensive issues the last couple months, Harper has still managed to play strong defense, getting good reads on fly balls and covering lots of ground. Tonight, one defensive miscue from Harper has cost the Nationals two runs and put...
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Dan Kolko

Mapping out the Strasburg timetable (we're underway)

Mapping out the Strasburg timetable (we're underway)
At the risk of this blog becoming all Stephen Strasburg, all the time, I wanted to pass along some quotes from Davey Johnson which set a bit of a rough timetable for when the Nationals might shut down their ace right-hander. Because of off-days down the stretch, Johnson said that the Nationals will only need an extra starter (we're talking about you, John Lannan) for two or, at most, three starts once Strasburg is shut down. Knowing that, we can map out Strasburg's next few starts and take...
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Dan Kolko

Nats lineup for series finale vs. Braves

Nats lineup for series finale vs. Braves
We've got a battle of promising 26-year-old hurlers in the series finale between the Nationals and Braves. The Nats will take their hacks at right-hander Kris Medlen, who has torn it up for the Braves since moving into the rotation July 31. He's 3-0 in his four starts this season, and hasn't allowed more than one run in any of those four outings. His last time out, Medlen pitched a five-hit, complete-game shutout against the Padres, walking none and striking out six. So yeah, he's kind...
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Dan Kolko

Strasburg still feeling strong, Nats shooting for a sweep

Strasburg still feeling strong, Nats shooting for a sweep
After last night's outing, Stephen Strasburg has now thrown 145 1/3 innings this season, nearly 22 more than he's put up in either of his two prior professional seasons. Is the hard-throwing right-hander starting to tire at all? If you watched him work last night, you can probably guess the answer. "No, it's a tribute to the program that I've been on," Strasburg said. "It's really helped me get stronger and I think I've been able to refine my mechanics as the season went on. I feel...
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Dan Kolko

More Strasburg stuff, plus quotes on Flores, Clippard

More Strasburg stuff, plus quotes on Flores, Clippard
As you might imagine, Stephen Strasburg was the talk of the Nationals' clubhouse after this one. "He was totally locked in tonight," catcher Jesus Flores said. "I love it. He was hitting my spots. We were pitching a lot inside to those guys and then the breaking ball was so effective to them that they (were) pretty much swinging at everything." "He was on," shortstop Ian Desmond said. "He was just painting. Had everything working. It was fun to watch. Changuep, curveball, fastball....
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Dan Kolko

Strasburg, Johnson recap the ace's stellar start

Strasburg, Johnson recap the ace's stellar start
If tonight's rain delay had lasted longer than an hour, Davey Johnson said he was going to pull Stephen Strasburg from the game. That was the "drop-dead" point for Strasburg, as far as the Nationals' skipper was concerned. I guess it's a good thing the delay was just 51 minutes. Strasburg stepped back on the mound after the rain delay, which hit Nats Park in the top of the third inning, and immediately got into a zone. He wasn't bad before heavy rain forced the stoppage, giving up two...
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Dan Kolko

Rain or no rain, Strasburg is dealing (Nats take two in a row from Braves)

Rain or no rain, Strasburg is dealing (Nats take two in a row from Braves)
Prior to the rain delay, which hit in the third inning, Stephen Strasburg had struck out four hitters over 2 2/3 innings, much of that in the pouring rain. He sat around for 51 minutes as the tarp sat on the infield, but that time away from the mound didn't slow him down. If anything, Strasburg came back from the delay even stronger than before. Since the delay, Strasburg has been absolutely filthy. He's struck out six of the eight hitters he's faced; three swinging, three looking. All of...
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Dan Kolko

Another rain delay at Nats Park (Strasburg on mound as game resumes)

Another rain delay at Nats Park (Strasburg on mound as game resumes)
Mother nature is trying to work her way into the National League East pennant race. For the third straight day, we've got a rain delay at Nationals Park. Sunday's delay lasted nearly 2 1/2 hours, last night's game was delayed 56 minutes and now we'll have to wait and see how long we're stuck with the tarp on the field today. The delay started at 7:43 with the Nationals leading the Braves 1-0 with two outs in the top of the third. Ian Desmond got the Nats on the board in a pouring rain...
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Dan Kolko

Why not alter Strasburg's throwing schedule? Here's why...

Why not alter Strasburg's throwing schedule? Here's why...
Another Stephen Strasburg start, more questions about The Shutdown. They've become expected at this point. Death, taxes, lengthy rain delays at Nats Park and questions about the Nationals' decision to go into the playoffs with Strasburg watching from the dugout. I've had numerous conversations, dating all the way back to spring training, with people both within and outside the organization about the reason why the team didn't decide to somehow stretch Strasburg's innings out so that...
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Dan Kolko

Chipper out of Braves lineup vs. Strasburg

Chipper out of Braves lineup vs. Strasburg
The Nationals won't have to deal with Chipper Jones tonight, as the future Hall of Fame third baseman is out of the Braves lineup. The 40-year-old Jones played all 13 innings last night, but won't be starting against Stephen Strasburg in Game 2 of this big division series. Jones went 1-for-5 with a walk last night. He came into this series with three homers in his past three games. The Nats will face off against left-hander Paul Maholm, who the Braves acquired from the Cubs prior to the...
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Dan Kolko

The emotional swing between a thrilling win and a frustrating loss

The emotional swing between a thrilling win and a frustrating loss
Think a postgame entry and a morning entry is enough to encapsulate all that happened at 1500 S. Capitol St. last night? Think again. I've got more. Those of us who haven't played major league baseball don't know how it feels to win a big 13-inning game over a division opponent in the midst of a pennant race. We don't know how it feels to lose that type of game, either. So how dramatic is the swing of emotions from one end of the spectrum to the other? How much does it hurt to lose a...
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Dan Kolko

Digesting the details from last night

Digesting the details from last night
Remember that 11-inning game on July 20, in which the Nationals jumped on top of the Braves 9-0 only to blow the lead and fall in extras 11-10? Of course you do. How could you possibly wipe that disaster out of your memory bank? Is it possible last night's 5-4 13-inning Nationals win was even wackier? Thanks to my four hours of sleep, I'm too tired to really compare the two, but they're close. For whatever reason, these two teams love playing ridiculous extra-inning games which drain...
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Dan Kolko

Recapping Nationals' weird, wild 13-inning win

Recapping Nationals' weird, wild 13-inning win
The final play of tonight's (or should I say, last night's) ballgame epitomized how strange the contest was as a whole. We had a 56-minute rain delay. The Nationals scored four runs in the first inning, then didn't score again for another 12 frames. The major league leader in ERA, Jordan Zimmermann, had an outing which tied for the shortest of his season and in which he allowed tied for the most runs he's allowed all year. The Nats and Braves combined to go 5-for-25 with runners in scoring...
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Dan Kolko

Desmond's up there, ready to party (Nats win in 13th)

Desmond's up there, ready to party (Nats win in 13th)
Back in spring training, Ian Desmond was being interviewed during a game that was airing on MASN, and reporters were down in the clubhouse as Desmond was talking on air. The Nationals shortstop was asked about his tendency to swing at the first pitch of an at-bat, to which he replied, "Yeah, I'm just up there ready to party." That phrase can certainly apply to Desmond's first-inning at-bat tonight. With the Nats already up 2-1, and with Desmond stuck in an 0-for-11 stretch since coming...
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Dan Kolko

Rizzo discusses Lucas Giolito's latest setback (we're under way in D.C.)

Rizzo discusses Lucas Giolito's latest setback (we're under way in D.C.)
Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo confirmed that 2012 first-round pick Lucas Giolito will be heading to Los Angeles to see renowned orthopedist Dr. Lewis Yocum after suffering a setback in his return from an elbow injury. Giolito appeared in a game with the Gulf Coast League Nationals last Tuesday, his first outing in the Nats organization, allowing one run and two hits over two innings. After the outing, however, Giolito complained of some soreness in his throwing elbow. He was examined...
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Dan Kolko

Previewing the pitching (plus Giolito update and lineups)

Previewing the pitching (plus Giolito update and lineups)
I guess it's fitting that for a series which could play a major role in determining the National League East champion, we'll get three pretty strong pitching matchups. Tonight, Jordan Zimmermann (9-7, 2.38 ERA) and veteran Braves right-hander Tim Hudson (12-4, 3.59 ERA) will kick things off. Zimmermann hasn't faced the Braves yet this season, but he's 2-1 with a 3.09 ERA in three career starts against the boys from Atlanta. It's a small sample size, but only one of seven Braves hitters...
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