SAN FRANCISCO – Not that their offensive issues could be whittled down to one thing, but the Nationals hadn’t exactly been a patient bunch through the season’s first nine games. Too often, Davey Martinez found himself lamenting the fact an opposing starter had made it through the fifth inning on 60-some pitches, thanks to an overaggressive lineup t

SAN FRANCISCO – CJ Abrams is out of the lineup for the third straight day, but the Nationals shortstop appears to be progressing from an injured finger well enough to think he will be ready to return Tuesday night. Abrams, who suffered a bone bruise in his left pinky sliding into second base Friday night, was due to take a full round of batting pra

SAN FRANCISCO – Unfortunately, there were no eclipse sightings here on the West Coast today. Fortunately, the view at Oracle Park is awe-inspiring enough, despite the absence of any celestial bodies. The Nationals open a nine-game West Coast trip tonight, the first six of which take place in the Bay Area, with a nicely scheduled San Francisco-Oakla

The Orioles can use today’s off day to regroup a bit after two straight walk-off losses at Pittsburgh. They lose their first series of the year but were so close to a sweep and a 7-2 record.  As they wake up today, they are 5-4 and looking up in the standings at the New York Yankees (8-2) and Boston Red Sox (7-3). That makes the series that starts

After a long delay while working out the financial details of his contract, Stephen Strasburg’s retirement became official Saturday night per the Nationals’ official transactions page, with the right-hander and the team releasing statements Sunday morning. Although this announcement has been a long time coming, the finality of the official release

Anthony Santander sprinted into right-center field to run down a fly ball in the first inning of last Monday night’s game and made a diving catch in the fifth to again turn back the Royals and bring the Camden Yards crowd to its feet. His run-scoring single in the fourth that proceeded Ryan Mountcastle’s game-tying home run was more easily forgotte

The Nationals were in search of two things Sunday afternoon: The first quality start by a starting pitcher and a win to avoid their first series sweep of the season. They barely missed out on the first despite a strong performance by MacKenzie Gore, but did just enough to squeak out a 3-2 victory and salvage this three-game set against the Phillies

PITTSBURGH – To awaken the Orioles' offense this afternoon, Ryan Mountcastle took the logical route and made loud noises. It worked for a brief spell, but he couldn’t prevent another slumber. And it killed the series for the Orioles. Yennier Cano handled closing duties with Craig Kimbrel unavailable and didn't protect a one-run lead. Ke'Bryan Hayes

For the second straight series, the Orioles will play an opponent in a rubber match game after splitting the first two games of a series. They play in Pittsburgh to decide this series after winning 5-2 Friday and losing 5-4 yesterday in 11 innings. The Orioles, 5-3 overall, are 1-1 on the road and 1-0 in rubber match games. They split two games wit

For the second straight day, CJ Abrams remains out of the Nationals lineup for this afternoon’s series finale against the Phillies. The young shortstop was a late scratch from the lineup yesterday with a bone bruise in his left pinky finger suffered while sliding into second base Friday night. “He's still a bit sore. So it's still going to be day-t