ATLANTA - The week began with a game in Philadelphia that had to be postponed not because it was raining but because it had rained and the infield couldn't be brought back to life in time. It continued with a makeup game in D.C. that the Cubs didn't want to play out of fear of Hurricane Florence (which at that point was centered more than 400 miles south of Washington). And now the week concludes with one more game at SunTrust Park, where the sun mostly shone Friday and Saturday but has now...
ATLANTA - Juan Soto has made a name for himself throughout the baseball world this season. For what he has done with his bat. Not his legs.
Until Saturday, when Soto showed off a part of his game few previously knew existed: his ability to run.
The Nationals' rookie phenom stole three bases in a 7-1 victory over the Braves, including third base on the front end of a double steal. He entered the day with only two stolen bases in the major leagues. He finished it with five.
"That feels pretty...
ATLANTA - Jeremy Hellickson wanted to get an opportunity to close out his season on a high note. That won't happen now after the right-hander re-injured his right wrist, not by pitching but by hitting in the top of the fourth this afternoon at SunTrust Park.
Disappointed as they were to see Hellickson go down again, though, the Nationals couldn't help but be encouraged by what they saw from Jefry Rodriguez, the right-hander who took over on the mound and made another strong case for inclusion...
ATLANTA - Jeremy Hellickson's return from a sprained right wrist lasted only three innings after the Nationals pitcher appeared to reinjure the wrist while batting.
Hellickson, making his return one month after he hurt himself bracing for a fall while covering the plate following a wild pitch, looked perfectly healthy on the mound during his three innings against the Braves. He allowed one unearned run (though that was a result of his own throwing error on a pickoff attempt) on two hits and...
ATLANTA - Not that he has needed any motivation to get himself excited for every game he's played this season, but Juan Soto couldn't help but notice the fellow phenom left fielder across the field from him Friday night and feel a little extra motivation.
"Yes," the Nationals 19-year-old said when asked about facing Braves 20-year-old Ronald Acuña Jr. "It feels pretty good. That's how you compare - you and me - and see who can do that there and who can do that, you know? I feel pretty...
ATLANTA - It's going to be another scorcher here today. We saw what the heat and humidity did to Max Scherzer's cap and jersey last night. Now imagine what it's going to do to Jeremy Hellickson's gear today in a 1:05 p.m. with sun covering the entire field. Hopefully clubhouse manager Mike Wallace has plenty of extra caps and jerseys at the ready.
Hellickson makes his return after a month on the disabled list with a sprained right wrist, suffered when he tried to break his fall while...
ATLANTA - Bryce Harper has made a concerted effort not to be ejected from a game this season, something that has happened at least once in each of his previous six big league seasons. And with only two weeks to go, he's been successful, though Laz Diaz certainly tested the slugger's newfound calm demeanor Friday night.
Harper and Diaz jawed back and forth multiple times during the Nationals' 10-5 loss to the Braves, though truth be told the plate umpire was the more animated of the two. And...
ATLANTA - It was muggy at SunTrust Park tonight, no question about that. Muggy enough to cause Max Scherzer to sweat straight through his jersey and cap in only two innings? Yes.
Still, the way he labored and looked as exhausted as he's ever going to look on a baseball diamond, it seemed fair to wonder if Scherzer was dealing with something else, if he simply wasn't feeling as well as he needed to feel to pitch in a big league game on a muggy Friday night.
"Just the conditions," Scherzer...
ATLANTA - Jeremy Hellickson said he only thinks of himself as a starter, not a reliever. And the Nationals will let the veteran right-hander do what he's always done - for at least the time being.
Hellickson will start Saturday afternoon's game against the Braves, his first game appearance since he sprained his right wrist exactly one month earlier.
Manager Davey Martinez had options for the rest of this weekend's series, but he chose Hellickson over rookie Jefry Rodriguez for Saturday's...
ATLANTA - Throughout the summer, the Nationals and Braves have known they'd be playing each other just once in September: this weekend at SunTrust Park. The way things were going, it had the potential to be a critical series in the National League East race. Emphasis on "had," not "has."
Yes, the Nats still technically are alive, and perhaps a weekend sweep would put some pressure on the Braves for the season's final two weeks. But here's the key fact: Every day since August 16, the...
PHILADELPHIA - Some might see the radar gun, with a fastball velocity in the 92-94 mph range, and wonder what's wrong with Stephen Strasburg. Davey Martinez sees it as an opportunity for the veteran right-hander to show off his skills that don't require velocity.
"He's pitching now," Martinez said after Strasburg tossed seven innings of one-run ball to beat the Phillies on Wednesday. "He's mixing all of his pitches in and attacking the strike zone. He fell behind a couple times and got...
PHILADELPHIA - The Nationals know the math. They've reached a point in the season where it would take a miracle - or, at least, something historic - to catch the Braves and win the National League East title.
But perhaps those miniscule odds are actually helping contribute to this sudden surge by one of the majors' most disappointing teams in 2018. When they were still facing real pressure to turn their season around, the Nationals caved. Now that the pressure is off, they're playing a...
PHILADELPHIA - Jeremy Hellickson is off the disabled list and back on the Nationals pitching staff. How the veteran right-hander fits into that pitching staff over the season's final 2 1/2 weeks remains undecided.
Hellickson, who hasn't pitched since Aug. 15 due to a sprained right wrist, was activated today and is willing to be available out of the bullpen for tonight's series finale against the Phillies if needed.
But beyond that, the 31-year-old made it clear he believes he deserves to...
PHILADELPHIA - Well, we've reached the final day and game of this wacky series. And for now, the Nationals and Phillies are on schedule and set to wrap things up tonight as planned (though there is a slight chance of rain this evening). The forecast also looks decent for Thursday's makeup game against the Cubs in D.C., and for probably Friday and Saturday's games in Atlanta. Sunday ... that could be a different story, especially if Hurricane Florence indeed turns south as is now being...
PHILADELPHIA - Greg Holland had done it before, pitched both ends of a doubleheader. But as he pointed out, "I was younger when I did it."
Yes, it had been five years since Holland last pitched twice on the same day. He actually did it twice for the Royals in 2013, recording two saves a piece on April 21 against the Red Sox and Aug. 16 against the Tigers.
Holland was 27 at the time. He's 32 now, trying to turn around what, for him, has been an admittedly disastrous season. And he's managing...
PHILADELPHIA - Through a set of circumstances none of them would ever want to endure again, the Nationals found themselves taking the field in the ninth inning tonight having not lost a baseball game since Thursday.
Their winning streak was only three games, but add three postponements to the mix and you've got a team that hadn't known what a loss felt like in a while.
Down three runs and having shown few signs of life at the plate since the early innings, there was reason to believe the Nats...
PHILADELPHIA - Juan Soto keeps climbing up the Major League Baseball teenage ladder.
Soto launched a two-run homer off Jake Arrieta in the top of the fourth tonight, his 17th home run of the season, which leaves him in some exclusive company.
The Nationals rookie outfielder, who won't turn 20 until October 25, is now fourth all-time in major league homers by a teenager, having passed Ken Griffey Jr. tonight. The only players ahead of him: Tony Conigliaro (24 in 1964), teammate Bryce Harper (22...
PHILADELPHIA - We're back for the nightcap of today's doubleheader. The field has held up, and most importantly the rain has held off all day. Now the Nationals look to sweep their second doubleheader in four days and move to within 1 1/2 games of the second-place Phillies, who are in serious trouble right now.
The challenge for the Nats will be tougher tonight, with Jake Arrieta getting the start. Davey Martinez is using the same top five guys in his lineup, with changes only to the bottom...
PHILADELPHIA - The infield was playable. The rain held off. Gabe Kapler used 23 of his 39 available players. Erick Fedde put forth the best start of his young career. Spencer Kieboom lost a tooth and then hit his first career home run.
And there's still another game to be played tonight at Citizens Bank Park.
Who knows what the nightcap of this doubleheader has in store, but the Nationals certainly can't complain about what took place during their 3-1 victory over the Phillies in the...
PHILADELPHIA - The Nationals are preparing to play two games today at Citizens Bank Park. They have no way of knowing if they'll actually be able to play two games, but they have no choice but to prepare and hope the hours of work the Phillies grounds crew put in to dry out and smooth a rain-soaked infield did the trick.
"It's better," manager Davey Martinez said at 1:30 p.m., roughly 90 minutes before scheduled first pitch of the doubleheader. "It's better than yesterday. We'll see....