Scherzer's chances of facing Braves dwindling (Nats win 11-4)

Scherzer's chances of facing Braves dwindling (Nats win 11-4)
Max Scherzer's chances of missing another start against the Braves appear to be growing, leaving the Nationals again facing the prospect of a critical series with the National League East leaders without the services of their ace. Scherzer, still dealing with a lingering upper back injury that has limited him to one start in the last three weeks, has not yet thrown a ball since receiving a stem cell injection Friday for what he described as a "mild strain" of the rhomboid muscle on top of...
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Game 105 lineups: Nats vs. Dodgers

Game 105 lineups: Nats vs. Dodgers
The Nationals haven't been in this position for a while, needing to win a series finale to avoid a sweep. It was an all-too-common scenario back in April and May, but they've usually found themselves in the polar opposite situation since. But after dropping their first two games to the Dodgers this weekend - not to mention after dropping Thursday's finale against the Rockies as well - they really need a win this afternoon. Stephen Strasburg's on the mound, and that's a good thing for the...
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Nationals left confused by ruling on play at plate

Nationals left confused by ruling on play at plate
The focus should have been on Adam Eaton, whose 11-pitch at-bat with the bases loaded in the bottom of the seventh Friday night might well have been his best of the season. After fouling off five straight pitches from Cy Young Award contender Hyun-Jin Ryu, the Nationals' scrappy No. 2 hitter lined a base hit over the shortstop's head, bringing the tying run home as a crowd of 37,491 roared with approval. But the focus instead wound up on what happened at the end of the dramatic play during...
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Nationals' fatal flaw on display in 4-2 loss to Dodgers (updated)

Nationals' fatal flaw on display in 4-2 loss to Dodgers (updated)
The pennant race tonight returned to South Capitol Street, where a crowd of 37,491 turned the ballpark as electric as it had been in at least a month, the last time the Nationals faced a fellow National League contender. The Nationals and Dodgers put on a show worthy of these kind of high stakes and gave a taste of what a potential five-game series might look and feel like should they meet again come October. Then again, during a 4-2 loss the Nats also offered up a painful look at the fatal...
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Muscle strain leaves Scherzer's status up in the air

Muscle strain leaves Scherzer's status up in the air
Though he felt fine in the immediate aftermath of Thursday's start against the Rockies, Max Scherzer cautioned all along he wouldn't know he was in the clear from his lingering back injury until he saw how he felt after he woke up today. So when Scherzer arose this morning and felt tightness in his upper back, he was frustrated but not surprised. And now the Nationals ace again faces uncertain status for his next start. Scherzer had an MRI taken earlier today, and that test revealed what he...
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Game 103 lineups: Nats vs. Dodgers

Game 103 lineups: Nats vs. Dodgers
And now begins the toughest portion of the Nationals' schedule. They've been able to feast on some struggling teams (Marlins, Tigers, Royals, Orioles, Rockies) in recent weeks, but now the Nats have back-to-back series against the National League's top two teams to date this season: the Dodgers and Braves. Next week's series vs. Atlanta means more in the grand scheme of things, but that doesn't mean the Nationals can gloss over this weekend set with the 30-games-over-.500 Dodgers, who have...
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Scherzer rusty, but healthy in return from injured list

Scherzer rusty, but healthy in return from injured list
Max Scherzer would've liked the outcome to be better. He would've liked to last more than five innings. He would've liked to give up fewer than three runs. He would've liked to not be pulled after only 86 pitches. But all of that from Thursday's start was secondary in Scherzer's mind to the more pressing takeaway: He felt healthy for the first time in three weeks. And as long as he still feels healthy when he gets up today and heads to Nationals Park to play catch, he'll be satisfied...
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After clutch hits, exhausted Nats bullpen takes loss (updated)

After clutch hits, exhausted Nats bullpen takes loss (updated)
After getting an abbreviated start from Max Scherzer, yet another clutch hit from Gerardo Parra, a tack-on homer from Matt Adams and six outs from Tanner Rainey, Tony Sipp and Wander Suero, Davey Martinez reached the top of the ninth this evening with the Nationals holding a one-run lead over the Rockies. But now the second-year manager had to answer the most pressing question of the day: Who was going to pitch the ninth? This isn't a difficult question the vast majority of the time. Sean...
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Soccer star Krieger celebrated before series finale (Nats lose 8-7)

Soccer star Krieger celebrated before series finale (Nats lose 8-7)
Growing up a baseball fan in Northern Virginia in the '90s, Ali Krieger was an Orioles fan. Given the fact there was no major league team in Washington at the time - not to mention the quirky fact her aunt grew up with and actually dated Cal Ripken Jr. way back when - this was understandable. Once baseball returned to town in 2005, Krieger was all-in on the Nationals. And that still holds true today, even as the soccer star travels the world winning World Cups and returns home now to Orlando,...
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Voth shut down with shoulder tendinitis

Voth shut down with shoulder tendinitis
The Nationals' fifth-starter carousel is going to be without one of its members for a while. Austin Voth, who was beginning to establish himself as a viable back-of-the-rotation option for manager Davey Martinez before landing on the injured list earlier this week, has been diagnosed with shoulder tendinitis and has been shut down from throwing. Voth was tentatively scheduled to start last Sunday in Atlanta, taking over with Max Scherzer not yet ready to return from his own injury. But the...
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Game 102 lineups: Nats vs. Rockies

Game 102 lineups: Nats vs. Rockies
The last time Max Scherzer was on the mound for the Nationals, he was wearing an Expos uniform. And he was on fire. With seven scoreless innings of 11-strikeout ball against the Royals, Scherzer had capped off a brilliant seven-start stretch that included a 7-0 record, 0.87 ERA, 0.67 WHIP and 79-to-6 strikeout-to-walk ratio. Scherzer, of course, hasn't pitched since then because of a back injury, finally diagnosed as an inflamed bursa sac underneath his right shoulder blade. He's back at last...
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Nationals' 50-game turnaround has been historic

Nationals' 50-game turnaround has been historic
When the Nationals hit their low point back on May 24, more than a few publications wrote off their chances of winning in 2019. Why, a certain longtime beat writer declared it would be "nearly impossible to turn the entire season around." Ha ha ha. What a moron. Guess what the Nationals proceeded to do. They turned their entire season around. There's still a long way to go, and they haven't clinched anything yet. But what the Nats have done just to this point to get back into the thick of...
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Nationals do enough right to win opener (updated)

Nationals do enough right to win opener (updated)
The stands were mostly empty, the prospect of a long day and night of baseball was looming and the Nationals and Rockies had to conjure up the energy to get through today's doubleheader opener on their own. That made for what at times was a sleepy afternoon of baseball on South Capitol Street. In the end, the Nationals managed to engage themselves just enough at the right moments to walk away with a 3-2 victory and give themselves an opportunity to sweep the doubleheader when Patrick Corbin...
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Adams back in spotlight with Zimmerman on IL (Nats up 2-1)

Adams back in spotlight with Zimmerman on IL (Nats up 2-1)
Matt Adams has been in this position before. It happened last year. It happened earlier this year. Adams has known throughout his tenure with the Nationals that his playing time would be limited when Ryan Zimmerman was healthy. But he's also known he would need to step in and become a regular if and when Zimmerman suffered injury, an all-too-frequent occurrence in recent years. So when Zimmerman went down Sunday night with a recurrence of the plantar fasciitis that sidelined him two months...
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Game 100 lineups: Nats vs. Rockies

Game 100 lineups: Nats vs. Rockies
After a thrilling Tuesday night at the ballpark - thrilling, at least, once Trea Turner completed his second career cycle in the bottom of the seventh - the Nationals are right back at the park this morning for what promises to be a long day and night of baseball. Monday's rainout - did it ever actually rain during the evening hours? - forced them to schedule a day-night doubleheader today. The good news: The Nats were able to avoid burning up their bullpen during an 11-1 win over the Rockies....
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Turner hits for second career cycle in Nats' romp (updated)

Turner hits for second career cycle in Nats' romp (updated)
The first time he did it - on a frigid, 43-degree Denver night in April 2017 - Trea Turner's accomplishment could perhaps be chalked up in part to the conditions. Yes, he hit for the cycle, but he did it at Coors Field, where nine different major leaguers have done it in the ballpark's 25-year history. "For me, it's hard to get that triple," he said. "And at Coors Field, it's a little bit easier." This time, however, Turner did it on a comfortable, 77-degree July evening at Nationals...
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Scherzer set to return Thursday (and face Braves three times)

Scherzer set to return Thursday (and face Braves three times)
Barring any setbacks in the next 48 hours, the Nationals plan to activate Max Scherzer off the injured list for Thursday's series finale against the Rockies, a decision they are admittedly making in part because it would then line him up for several key starts the rest of the season ... including a potential wild card game in October. Yep, they've extrapolated the schedule out that far, just to make sure. More on that in a moment. Of more immediate consequence, Scherzer continues to pass...
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Game 99 lineups: Nats vs. Rockies

Game 99 lineups: Nats vs. Rockies
And we're back. The Nationals got an unexpected (but probably needed) night off with Monday's postponement (rain optional) so now they're rested and refreshed for tonight's delayed start of a four-game series with the Rockies. They better have caught up on their sleep, though, because they've now got to play four games in the span of about 51 hours. It begins tonight with Stephen Strasburg (tonight's originally scheduled starter for the Nationals) against Peter Lambert (Monday's...
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Nats facing major obstacles as trade deadline approaches

Nats facing major obstacles as trade deadline approaches
ATLANTA - As he tries to navigate his way through these final days before the July 31 trade deadline, Mike Rizzo has to cope with the following realties: * The Nationals need bullpen help. * Their list of desirable prospects isn't nearly as long as it has been in the past. * They can't afford to take on much more salary without surpassing the league's luxury tax threshold, something the organization is openly saying it won't do. * Almost every contending team is also in the market for...
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Nationals' streaks end in lopsided loss to Braves

Nationals' streaks end in lopsided loss to Braves
ATLANTA - If the streak was going to end, this probably felt like the night it would happen, with the backup to the backup starter on the mound. If a member of the Nationals rotation was going to take a loss for the first time in 28 games, Joe Ross was a good candidate. And yet tonight's 7-1 loss to the Braves can't really be pinned on Ross, who did all the Nats could have asked of him under the circumstances. He gave them a chance to win. "He looked good," manager Davey Martinez said. "He...
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