MIAMI - When Daniel Murphy, originally listed in the Nationals lineup for tonight's series opener against the Marlins, was scratched about 3 1/2 hours before first pitch, it was only natural for conspiracy theorists out there to wonder if the veteran second baseman had just become the first victim of an unexpected late-July fire sale.
Rest assured, the Nationals didn't trade Murphy, nor have they made any decisions to become surprise sellers in advance of Tuesday's trade deadline. Not yet,...
MIAMI - Stephen Strasburg, despite a poor pitching line, didn't report any physical issues following his start Friday night against the Braves, his first outing following a six-week stint on the disabled list with a shoulder injury. Strasburg also didn't report any problems after he threw off the bullpen mound in Milwaukee on Monday.
But when the right-hander returned to the clubhouse Wednesday morning after playing catch at Miller Park, he informed manager Davey Martinez something was wrong...
MIAMI - So the tone of this weekend's series at Marlins Park has changed just a bit, even in the last 24 hours, huh? The immediate issue: Stephen Strasburg isn't pitching tonight as planned. He's back on the disabled list with a neck injury, only one start after he returned from his shoulder injury. So in his place is Tommy Milone, promoted from Triple-A Syracuse to make an emergency start tonight.
Milone, you'll remember made his major league debut for the Nationals way back in 2011 (and...
Trea Turner was named the Nationals' 2018 recipient of the Heart and Hustle Award, a deserving honor for the talented and giving shortstop, though the timing of the announcement was less than ideal on the day his manager suggested he'll likely be benched for failing to run out a bunt during Monday night's loss in Milwaukee.
The Heart and Hustle Award is handed out annually by the Major League Baseball Players Alumni Association, which seeks to recognize one player from each club who...
More from Sunday's twice-delayed, 6-2 victory over the Braves ...
* Davey Martinez managed this game like it was being played in September or October. Which, to be honest, is probably how he needs to manage just about every game the rest of the way, certainly those against the Braves and Phillies.
The difference was most noticeable following the second rain delay, at which point the rookie manager had to try to piece together three innings from a bullpen that was without Sean Doolittle (on the...
Whether it came via a Max Scherzer gem, an offensive explosion, a grind-it-out nailbiter or even a rain-shortened affair, the Nationals knew only one thing when they took the field today: They needed to win this game against the Braves, one way or another.
They got their wish, but it didn't come easily to a team that sure could've used a relaxing day at the park. Instead, a combination of clutch hits, a gutsy performance from a less-than-perfect Scherzer, some outstanding defense, two rain...
The Nationals knew they couldn't stick with a six-man bullpen for long. They just needed to figure out how to clear a roster spot to address that need.
They found a way today, trading outfielder Brian Goodwin to the Royals for minor league pitcher Jacob Condra-Bogan, then recalling left-hander Sammy SolÃs from Triple-A Syracuse to give themselves a full relief corps again.
Goodwin, a member of the Nationals since they used a first-round pick on him in 2011 and a key member of last season's...
The Nationals are going to be without their All-Star closer a while longer than they initially expected.
Sean Doolittle, who hoped the injury to his left foot that sidelined him for the first week before the All-Star break and then prevented him from pitching in the Midsummer Classic at Nationals Park, learned this weekend he'll be out several more weeks after a follow-up MRI revealed a "stress reaction" in the bridge of the foot.
The injury, which is not as severe as a stress fracture, is...
The sun is out on South Capitol Street. At least, it is at the moment I'm typing this. It's probably not going to stay that way through the afternoon, with more rain forecast to sweep through the region on the heels of Saturday's deluge. The Nationals aren't calling the series finale against the Braves off just yet, and my hunch is they'll be more willing to wait around a bit today to try to get this one in, given the fact they already have to squeeze one makeup game into Atlanta's next...
The Nationals are going to have to wait a while longer to try to get over Friday night's loss to the Braves and everything else that accompanied it.
Tonight's game at Nationals Park was postponed a full five hours before scheduled first pitch, with heavy rain dousing the area all morning and expected to continue straight through the evening.
No makeup plans were immediately announced, but a Sunday doubleheader doesn't appear to be a viable option because the forecast remains lousy and the...
More on Friday night's 8-5 loss to the Braves that was not related to the Stephen Strasburg-Max Scherzer dugout dustup ...
* Davey Martinez's most delicate lineup decisions as the second half of the season opens is at first base, with Ryan Zimmerman back off the disabled list but Matt Adams remaining one of the team's most productive hitters.
Martinez didn't hesitate to start Adams on Friday night, opting to go with the hot-hitting lefty slugger against Braves right-hander Anibal Sanchez....
The Nationals' 8-5 loss to the Braves had ended only minutes earlier when Davey Martinez summoned Stephen Strasburg and Max Scherzer to his office and closed the door. It would be roughly 15 minutes before that door reopened, and though no one was revealing the precise details of what was said during that meeting, it was clear the session was necessary after what transpired in the dugout during the top of the fifth.
Strasburg, who had just been removed by Martinez after allowing six runs in 4...
They said and did all the right things before the game. They went through a spirited afternoon workout that included a focus on defense and baserunning. They all wore customized shirseys with their regular numbers on the back but the world "NATIONALS" replacing their last names. They spoke of the need to play as one and to treat every remaining series on the schedule as critical.
Then the Nationals took the field and opened the second half of their season with an 8-5 loss to the Braves that...
The Nationals got two of their key injured players - Stephen Strasburg and Ryan Zimmerman - back from the disabled list today. They'll have to wait a bit longer for Sean Doolittle to join them on the active roster.
Doolittle, eligible to come off the 10-day disabled list today, has made significant progress in his recovery from a pinched nerve in his left foot, but he said he's not quite ready yet.
"Today was a good day," the Nats closer said. "I did some light jogging, and it was the...
And away we go again. The second half of the season commences tonight, with the Nationals hosting the Braves for a big three-game series. Then again, every series is going to be big the rest of the way, with the Nats needing to make up a 5 1/2-game deficit and catch both the Braves and Phillies in the National League East.
As expected, the Nationals will open the second half with two key figures returning from the disabled list: Stephen Strasburg and Ryan Zimmerman. Strasburg makes the start...
The challenge facing the Nationals over the final 66 games of the season is significant. They not only have to make up a 5 1/2-game deficit to win their third consecutive National League East title, they have to leapfrog over two division rivals to do it. Which means there's little margin for error, beginning with this weekend's three-game series against the second-place Braves.
Thing is, Davey Martinez has been a part of something like this before. Only one year ago.
The Cubs came out of the...
Whew, have you recovered from All-Star Week in D.C. yet? Honestly, I haven't. That was both an exhilarating and an exhausting few days.
Fortunately, we all still get a condensed All-Star break before the Nationals return to action Friday night for their second-half opener and the opener of a big series with the Braves. We'll look ahead to all that Friday morning, but today let's take one look back at the now-completed first half of the season. (Yeah, technically they've already played 60...
They came to watch Max Scherzer and Bryce Harper compete on the big stage against baseball's best, to watch American League stars rarely seen in these parts like Aaron Judge and Mike Trout do their thing, to withstand brutal D.C. July humidity and dodge a few raindrops and to perhaps watch the National League actually win a 21st century All-Star Game for a change.
What local baseball fans got in the first Midsummer Classic in the District of Columbia in 49 years was a reminder of what Major...
Tonight's All-Star Game - in which he's serving as a member of Dave Roberts' National League coaching staff - is first and foremost on his mind, but Nationals manager Davey Martinez can't help but start thinking ahead to the resumption of the season Friday night. Especially the key players he expects to have back on his active roster for that series opener against the Braves.
Stephen Strasburg has been cleared to come off the disabled list and will start Friday night, Martinez revealed this...
Monday night's Home Run Derby, with Nationals slugger Bryce Harper front and center in his home ballpark, was a rousing success. On that point, Rob Manfred and Tony Clark are in complete agreement.
"Bryce Harper put on one unbelievable show," Manfred said today in the Major League Baseball commissioner's annual Q&A session with members of the Baseball Writers' Association of America. "Amazing how he engaged the fans here in his hometown."
"Last night was phenomenal," Clark, head of...