Nats find unconventional formula to beat Braves again

Nats find unconventional formula to beat Braves again
At this point, it's clear the Nationals aren't going to win ballgames in 2020 in the manner we've all been accustomed to for the better part of the last decade. This current team can't win on the broad shoulders of an elite rotation, nor does it currently have the power bats to outslug a lineup like the Braves possess. Tonight, the Nats proved they can do it differently. They can overcome another short and disappointing start. They can score 10 runs without benefit of a homer. And they can...
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Kieboom returns to play every day, Difo dropped from roster

Kieboom returns to play every day, Difo dropped from roster
Their lineup ravaged by a recent spate of injuries, the Nationals recalled Carter Kieboom from their alternate training camp today, plugged their struggling prospect into tonight's lineup against the Braves and declared him their starting third baseman for the rest of this abridged season. Kieboom, who had been optioned to the camp in Fredericksburg on Aug. 26, was already in Atlanta as part of the club's traveling taxi squad for this weekend's series at Truist Park. Team officials liked the...
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Game 38 lineups: Nats at Braves (Kieboom recalled)

Game 38 lineups: Nats at Braves (Kieboom recalled)
Friday's doubleheader took a lot out of the Nationals, who over the course of 14 innings of baseball used eight pitchers, gave up 16 runs on 18 hits and eight walks, allowed seven homers and threw 259 pitches. So, what do they have left in the tank for tonight's game in Atlanta? Well, they've got Erick Fedde starting, and they've got to hope he can provide some quality innings so Davey Martinez can hold off on his bullpen as long as possible. Fedde was pretty good in his first five starts,...
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Rizzo gets three-year extension to remain GM through 2023

Rizzo gets three-year extension to remain GM through 2023
As always, the Lerner family made Mike Rizzo wait. And as always, the Nationals owners ultimately kept their commitment to the man who built their baseball organization from laughingstock to World Series champion. The Nationals announced a contract extension with Rizzo today, locking up their president of baseball operations and general manager only a month before his current deal was set to expire. Terms were not publicly disclosed, but a source confirmed it is for three years, keeping Rizzo...
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Another Voth start, another loss for reeling Nats (updated)

Another Voth start, another loss for reeling Nats (updated)
Major League Baseball games are not supposed to be quite so predictable. But when you put Austin Voth on the mound against a tough Braves lineup, in the opener of a doubleheader in Atlanta 24 hours after the bullpen was burned up in an extra-inning game in Philadelphia, and then pull Juan Soto out of a Nationals lineup that simply can't afford to lose its best hitter right now, what could Davey Martinez reasonably have expected? The ensuing result at Truist Park - a 7-1 loss to kick off this...
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First step toward better outfield defense: Better first steps

First step toward better outfield defense: Better first steps
Defensive metrics always must be taken with a grain of salt, especially when using them to evaluate only 35 games. But even in small doses, they can shed some insight into a player and a team's performance in the field. The numbers right now say the Nationals have the worst defensive outfield in the majors, and it's across the board. Adam Eaton, with -4 Defensive Runs Saved, is tied for last among all right fielders. Victor Robles (-6) is tied for last among center fielders. And Juan Soto...
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Game 36 lineups: Nats at Braves (Soto scratched)

Game 36 lineups: Nats at Braves (Soto scratched)
If you thought the first two legs of the Nationals' road trip were tough, look at what they still must contend with now to wrap up this long and painful trek up and down the East Coast. After losing two of three in Boston and all four in Philadelphia, they now have four games in three days in Atlanta, starting with today's doubleheader at Truist Park. After needing 6 2/3 innings out of six relievers in Thursday's heartbreaking loss, Davey Martinez would love to be sending two starters to the...
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Rehashing a painful top of the 10th in Nats' latest loss

Rehashing a painful top of the 10th in Nats' latest loss
There's a lot to unpack from the Thursday's 6-5 loss in Philadelphia, and hopefully I touched on a lot of it in the game story. Byron Kerr also has much more on a mostly lights-out performance by the Nationals bullpen that somehow still included a blown save and a loss. But this morning I wanted to go back and re-examine the top of the 10th, because what happened during that half-inning said a whole lot about the current state of the team and raised some more questions about what exactly...
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Nats falter late, lose in extras to get swept in Philly (updated)

Nats falter late, lose in extras to get swept in Philly (updated)
A lot of things have to go right for the Nationals to win a ballgame right now. They need quality starting pitching and some timely hitting. And if they can't get the former, they need more of the latter. And then even if they do all that and take a lead into the late innings, they still need their bullpen to finish it off. That bullpen may be this team's biggest strength in this unusual season, but it's not perfect. And on a day when manager Davey Martinez got elite work out of the three...
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Voth, Crowe to start Friday's doubleheader in Atlanta

Voth, Crowe to start Friday's doubleheader in Atlanta
With a doubleheader on tap Friday in Atlanta and limited pitching options at his disposal, Nationals manager Davey Martinez plans to give Austin Voth another start. Voth will take the mound for the 4:05 p.m. opener of Friday's doubleheader against the Braves, said Martinez, who added right-hander Wil Crowe will be called up from the club's alternate training site in Fredericksburg to start the nightcap as the designated 29th man for the twinbill. With both games limited to seven scheduled...
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Game 35 lineups: Nats at Phillies

Game 35 lineups: Nats at Phillies
If you thought this road trip was brutal enough already for the fading Nationals, consider what still awaits: four games in three days against the Braves, starting with Friday's doubleheader in unincorporated Atlanta. So given what's still to come, today's series finale in Philadelphia would sure be a nice game to win, wouldn't it? It's going to take a complete reversal of recent events for the Nationals to do it. They've got to string together hits, especially early, against Zach Eflin....
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Nationals shut out again, lose fifth straight (updated)

Nationals shut out again, lose fifth straight (updated)
The Nationals knew their 2020 lineup wasn't going to resemble their 2019 championship bunch. Not with Anthony Rendon moving to Anaheim and Ryan Zimmerman watching this season at home with his growing family. But Davey Martinez and Mike Rizzo firmly believed this lineup was capable of producing in different ways. They would be able to manufacture runs. Make contact. Run a bit. Drive in teammates with two outs. Thirty-four games into this abridged 60-game season, that's just not proving true....
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Strasburg rehabbing at home, Guerra lands on IL

Strasburg rehabbing at home, Guerra lands on IL
Stephen Strasburg is rehabbing at his Virginia home one week following carpal tunnel surgery on his right wrist, but the Nationals right-hander won't be cleared to throw "for a while," according to manager Davey Martinez. Strasburg had surgery last Wednesday in Baltimore to repair the carpal tunnel neuritis that had developed in his throwing hand. Though club officials never officially declared him out for the season, he was transferred to the 60-day injured list once it was determined he...
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Game 34 lineups: Nats at Phillies

Game 34 lineups: Nats at Phillies
Another day, another chance for the Nationals to flip the script and beat the Phillies, something they've been unable to do in four tries so far this season. None of those previous four games, however, had Max Scherzer on the mound. Tonight's does. Scherzer gets the ball on the heels of a dominant outing at Fenway Park last Friday, when he allowed one run over six innings, striking out 11 without issuing a walk. He will need to be at his best tonight to hold down the Phillies lineup and give...
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Same old, same old for Nats in 6-0 loss to Phillies (updated)

Same old, same old for Nats in 6-0 loss to Phillies (updated)
It would be one thing if the Nationals were engaged in nip-and-tuck, well-played ballgames every night and just couldn't find a way to emerge on top. That's not what's happening right now. The Nats aren't even giving themselves a reasonable chance, digging themselves into insurmountable holes and not possessing the kind of lineup capable of making that much ground back up. Add tonight's 6-0 thumping at the hands of the Phillies to the growing list. For a while, this contest looked like it...
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Can the Nats better maximize Turner and Soto's production?

Can the Nats better maximize Turner and Soto's production?
Trea Turner and Juan Soto are hitting as well as humanly possible right now. Of that, there's no debate. They enter tonight's game against the Phillies ranking first and second in the majors in batting average, first and fourth in OPS. They're also hitting first and second in the Nationals lineup, a decision manager Davey Martinez made recently to give Soto as many plate appearances as possible and help give both guys as many pitches to hit as possible. So how come the Nats aren't scoring...
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Game 33 lineups: Nats at Phillies

Game 33 lineups: Nats at Phillies
As we've seen, there are two major issues plaguing the Nationals right now: starting pitchers who dig them into early holes and a lineup that isn't consistently producing beyond Trea Turner and Juan Soto. Tonight, we'll find out if they can reverse both trends and emerge victorious in Philadelphia. The good news: Patrick Corbin has been pitching well, and he pitched well against these same Phillies last week in D.C. For six innings, the left-hander allowed only a solo homer to Rhys Hoskins....
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With two positive steps forward, Doolittle can smile again

With two positive steps forward, Doolittle can smile again
If you're looking for silver linings from Nationals losses - and lord knows that's fast becoming a nightly pursuit - Sean Doolittle is your man. The left-hander's return from a two-week stint in Fredericksburg to rehab his knee and get his mechanics back in order has gotten off to an especially encouraging start. Sunday's relief appearance in Boston - four batters faced, two outs recorded, two weakly hit singles allowed - was a nice step in the right direction. Monday's 1-2-3 bottom of the...
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Familiar pattern in Nationals' 8-6 loss to Phillies (updated)

Familiar pattern in Nationals' 8-6 loss to Phillies (updated)
If Mike Rizzo's message in standing pat at this afternoon's trade deadline was to let his Nationals players know he still believes this group is capable of a second-half push into a pennant race, the message they sent back to their general manager tonight in Philadelphia was that nothing has changed on the field. This 8-6 loss to the Phillies bore far too much resemblance to so many losses that have preceded it this season. The starting pitcher, Erick Fedde, again dug his team into a sizeable...
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Nationals stand pat at deadline, stick with roster (updated)

Nationals stand pat at deadline, stick with roster (updated)
What does a defending champion sitting seven games under .500 in the strangest season in baseball history do at the trade deadline? Nothing. The Nationals did not make any deals before today's 4 p.m. deadline, opting instead to stick with the roster as currently constructed and hope it can turn things around over the final month of this 60-game season. "If there's something out there that we could've gotten, they would've gotten it to help us," manager Davey Martinez said from...
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