Marathon men

USA Today Sports Images

ATLANTA — Their starting pitcher had departed some 4 1/2 hours earlier, ejected after plunking a batter in the first inning and then losing all semblance of his command in the second. Their manager had been ejected, too, not to mention their left fielder later in the evening.

Eight relievers (one of them actually a starter) had cobbled together 14 innings of work, though the last six of those innings wouldn't have been necessary had their closer recorded one more out in the bottom of the ninth.

Their star 20-year-old, scratched from the lineup earlier in the day with a bruised left triceps muscle after getting drilled by a pitch the previous night, had been forced into action late.

Then again, pretty much everyone in uniform was forced into action for this 5-hour, 29-minute marathon, with 44 of the 50 active players on the two rosters appearing in the game.

So when it finally ended, when Adam LaRoche had homered in the top of the 15th and Dan Haren had pitched the bottom of the inning — in the rain — to earn the first save of his 11-year career, the Nationals could only sit back and enjoy the feeling that comes only after you pull off an 8-7 victory over your fiercest rivals.

"Golly," LaRoche sighed. "What a battle."
Read more

Game 121: Nats at Braves

Mark Zuckerman / NATS INSIDER

ATLANTA — Hello from Turner Field, where it's an unseasonably cool, 68 degrees, with a threat of rain throughout the weekend. Who would've thought the Nationals would need to break out their windbreakers for a mid-August series in Atlanta, but will be sweating next week in Chicago (where it's supposed to be humid and in the upper-80s)?

The Nats come to town having come THISCLOSE to a six-game winning streak at home, if not for Rafael Soriano's blown save yesterday evening. They face a much stiffer challenge this weekend, facing those powerhouse Braves, who have won 17 of their last 19 and opened up a commanding, 14 1/2-game lead in the NL East.

Speaking of Soriano, odds are he won't be available to pitch tonight after appearing in three straight games (and nearly suffering two straight blown saves). Tyler Clippard also has appeared the last three days, which could leave the recently recalled Drew Storen as Davey Johnson's closer tonight should the situation present itself.

First things first: The Nationals need a good start from Taylor Jordan, who could be making his final outing of the year before his team-imposed shutdown, and they need to score some runs off Atlanta rookie left-hander Alex Wood, before they can contemplate who is going to close tonight.

Updates to come, so please check back...

WASHINGTON NATIONALS at ATLANTA BRAVES
Where: Turner Field
Gametime: 7:35 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN, MLB.tv
Radio: WJFK (106.7 FM), WFED (1500), XM 186
Weather: Cloudy, 68 degrees, Wind 10 mph in from CF

NATIONALS (59-61)
CF Denard Span
3B Ryan Zimmerman
LF Bryce Harper
RF Jayson Werth

Soriano blows it in Nats' loss to Giants

Photo by USA Today

A night after being bailed out by his center fielder on a miraculous catch to end the game, Nationals closer Rafael Soriano once again made matters interesting in the ninth inning against the San Francisco Giants.  

But this time he wasn’t so lucky, as a pinch-hitting Hector Sanchez launched a towering three run homer to the upper deck in right field, putting the Giants up for good and ruining the Nats’ chances of a sixth consecutive win.

The final blow came in a 3-2 count with two outs, on a pitch Soriano didn’t think he would have to make. The previous pitch, at 2-2, Soriano fired a fastball that was up in the zone, just high enough to earn a ball from home plate umpire Jim Joyce. 

Soriano thought it was a strike and couldn’t recover after thinking the game was over.

“I don’t think it be a bad pitch at all. I think it be a strike. But I don’t make that decision,” he said. “I think the game [should have been] over. That pitch, to me, I think it be a strike. I think that was when the game changed.”

Sanchez even thought he was done.

“It was close you know, I thought he got me,” he said.

Soriano’s next delivery was slightly higher, but right where Sanchez was hoping it would be.

“I was looking high and I got that pitch,” he said.

The Nats had nursed a lead since the third inning, only to see it ripped away at the end in the 4-3 loss on Thursday. They struck early with three runs in the third and knocked Giants starter Ryan Vogelsong out of the game after just 3 2/3 innings. 

Read more >>

Nats who's hot/who's not - 7/24

Photo by USA Today

By Michael Huberman

CSNwashington.com

Record: 0-5

Team slash: .212/.266/.345

Team ERA: 4.89

Runs per game: 2.2

Opponent runs per game: 5.2

Opponent slash: .280/.333/.451

HOT:

Jayson Werth, OF – 5-17/4 HR/6 RBI/.400 OBP/1.000 SLG

After homering twice in the Nationals’ 9-2 loss to the Dodgers on Sunday, Werth added two more, a pair of two-run shots, Monday night against the Pirates. Werth’s been the team’s best hitter in July, posting a slash of .369/.449/.667, with at least one hit in 14 of 19 games played. Now if only his teammates could come around and join him.

Gio Gonzalez, SP – 0-0/0.00/6 IP/2 H/11 SO

Since allowing five earned runs in four innings of work against Atlanta on April 30, Gonzalez has submitted quality starts in 13 of 14 appearances, with 89 strikeouts to 31 walks. After that April 30 start, Gonzalez was 2-2 with a 5.34 ERA, but when he starts Thursday against the Pirates he’ll be 7-3 with a sterling 2.89 ERA.

New day, same result

They took four days off to catch their collective breath, take their minds off baseball and let their bodies heal. And when they took the field Friday on a sweltering night in the District, the Nationals wanted to believe things would be different, that they would start producing clutch hits and get big outs when they needed them and win tight ballgames.

Three sweaty hours later, they trudged off that field after a 3-2 loss to the Dodgers, feeling like they had just played a carbon-copy ballgame that resembled so many that came over the season's first 3 1/2 months.

"Everybody's here to watch us score runs and win baseball games, and there's no excuse to it," Chad Tracy said. "We just can't get the rhythm. We had opportunities tonight against quality pitching. We just didn't get it done."

Tracy could have uttered those lines after the vast majority of the Nationals' 48 losses this season. This game could have been played on April 13 or May 12 or June 14 or July 19. Ignore the calendar, and you couldn't differentiate this one from any other.

Stephen Strasburg pitched well and deserved the win but was saddled with no decision. The Nationals lineup squandered golden opportunities against a laboring opponent. And a tie ballgame late turned on one big swing against a member of the Nats bullpen.

Wash. Rinse. Repeat.
Read more

Late heroics give Nats 3rd straight win

Associated Press

The day began with Bryce Harper talking his way into the lineup, telling his manager via text message to either "play me or trade me." It ended with Harper earning his second straight All-Star berth and driving in three runs, then watching from left field as his Nationals teammates hung on for dear life to pull off a 5-4 win over the Padres that catapulted this improving ballclub to new heights.

Just another afternoon at Nationals Park, where a sunburned crowd of 33,314 experienced the full range of emotions on Saturday, ultimately cheering along with the home team after Rafael Soriano closed out a nip-and-tick victory.

"We're starting to play better baseball," third baseman Ryan Zimmerman said. "We're coming together. We're getting a little lucky."

Perhaps there were a few fortunate bounces in this game, but the Nationals also made their own luck. They delivered several hits in the clutch. They got a dominant relief performance from Drew Storen. And then they flashed some serious leather in the ninth inning to clinch their third straight win — their eighth in 12 games — and raise their record to 45-42.
Read more

Zimmermann, Harper are All-Stars

USA Today Sports Images

Updated at 8:50 p.m.

Bryce Harper has been elected by fans as an All-Star Game starter for the first time in his career, and teammate Jordan Zimmermann has been selected by fellow NL players to make his first career appearance in the Midsummer Classic.

Ian Desmond, meanwhile, will have to wait a bit longer to learn his All-Star fate. The shortstop is one of five NL players in the "Final Vote" competition and will need to beat out a star-studded group that includes Dodgers rookie Yasiel Puig, Braves first baseman Freddie Freeman, Dodgers first baseman Adrian Gonzalez and Giants outfielder Hunter Pence in online balloting to earn his second straight All-Star selection.

While Zimmermann's selection seemed a foregone conclusion — he entered the day with an NL-leading 12 wins and a 2.46 ERA — Harper needed a late surge in fan voting to earn the starting nod for the July 16 game at New York's Citi Field.

When the most recent balloting totals were released by MLB on Tuesday, Harper found himself in fourth place among NL outfielders, trailing Atlanta's Justin Upton by about 15,000 votes. But perhaps bolstered by his return from the disabled list and the home run he hit on his first swing in five weeks, Harper made up the difference and in the process made some history.
Read more

Who deserves All-Star nod?

We're now about 24 hours from the announcement of this year's All-Star Game rosters, with the online voting window officially closed. So it's too late to make a last-minute push for anybody, lest they end up in the "Final Man" vote next week.

Last year, it was pretty obvious which members of the Nationals deserved to go to Kansas City, and Stephen Strasburg, Gio Gonzalez, Ian Desmond and Bryce Harper all were selected (with Desmond forced to miss the festivities due to an oblique strain that later landed him on the DL).

This year? Well, it's not quite as clear-cut. There's one, maybe two, slam-dunk choices, then several more than could go either way. Let's run through them all...

JORDAN ZIMMERMANN
The case for: Tops in the NL with 12 wins, sixth with a 2.46 ERA, third with a 0.945 WHIP, fifth with 120 2/3 innings pitched. He's

VIDEOS: This week's Baseball Show

With the Nationals returning from a lengthy west coast trip ready to take on the Phillies, there are plenty of storylines to discuss involving the team. Mark, Rob Carlin, and Jim Duquette covered all things Nats on last night's Baseball Show, including what the team should do at second base and whether the comments of Rafael Soriano are a concern long term. We also have a clip from Ryan Zimmerman's 'A Night At The Park' which was another huge success.

Soriano blames Harper after loss

Photo by USA Today

Nats closer Rafael Soriano was one strike away from the save on Tuesday night before a Gregor Blanco triple sailed over the head of Bryce Harper in right field, sending the game into extra innings and setting up a walkoff win for San Francisco. Soriano took the blown save, his second in as many outings, but afterwards decided he wouldn’t take full ownership of what happened.

Soriano instead cited Harper’s mistake, saying the young outfielder should have been in position to make the play. Harper flinched and held up right before the wall, an apparent reaction stemming from his collision with the wall at Dodger Stadium last week.

Here is what Soriano told USA Today about Harper’s misplay in the outfield: 

"With two outs and the tying run at first, you have to play the outfield so the ball doesn't go over your head,” he said.

Late collapse spoils Strasburg's gem

Associated Press

Davey Johnson's club lost its fourth straight and is now .500 for the season.

By Steve Roney
CSNwashington.com

SAN FRANCISCO — Stephen Strasburg and Matt Cain each put up seven strikeouts over seven innings, but Pablo Sandoval smacked a walk-off, two-run home run against over-matched reliever Yunesky Maya to give the Giants a 4-2, 10-inning win last night over a shell-shocked Nationals club.

The anticipated duel between aces seemed at first to be a letdown, as the Nationals jumped all over Cain in the top of the first to score two quick runs.

Denard Span singled just past the diving glove of Brandon Crawford to lead off the game, and came around to score standing up on Ryan Zimmerman's one-out double. Zimmerman himself scored one out later, as shortstop Ian Desmond laced a line drive towards the right field foul line.

The Giants cut the deficit to one run the next inning with a classic piece of National League run manufacturing, as No. 7 hitter Gregor Blanco singled on a ground ball, moved to second on Cain's one-out sacrifice, and scored from there on Angel Pagan's single up the

Nats quarterly report-5/18

Photo by USA Today

A baseball season can’t be broken into perfect fourths due to a total of 162 games, but the Nats basically entered the second quarter of their season on Thursday in playing their 41^st game. Here is a look at the team through roughly one-fourth of the year and how they compare to last season, plus some predictions for the next 41 games.

Lineup

Aside from Bryce Harper, Ian Desmond, and Denard Span, everyone else in the Nats’ lineup hasn’t been playing up to their capabilities. Injuries have been a significant factor, but that excuse doesn’t apply to everybody. Danny Espinosa has simply struggled, and Adam LaRoche is still recovering from his forgettable April. As a whole they don’t get on base, strike out too much, and don’t make the most of opportunities.

After ranking among the top ten teams in the majors in team batting average, runs scored, and home runs in 2012, the Nats are among the ten worst teams in each of those categories this season. Their team OPS is second worst only to the Marlins and their batting average is third worst. Espinosa is the posterboy for these struggles, but he’s not the only one at fault. Harper and Desmond are the only members of the Opening Day lineup that aren’t hitting below their career batting averages. That applies to Kurt Suzuki as well.

Confidence builder

Associated Press

Dan Haren allowed just one run and four hits in eight stellar innings.

ATLANTA — As dominant and as efficient as he'd been all night, Dan Haren was showing some signs of fatigue in the bottom of the eighth inning Thursday night. Despite having allowed only one run and four hits to the Braves, the veteran right-hander was suddenly in a spot where one bad pitch could result in a game-tying homer.

So as Davey Johnson made the slow walk from the Nationals' dugout to the mound, Haren (like everyone else at Turner Field) knew what was next.

"He was gonna take the ball from me," the right-hander said.

Not so fast. Johnson's intention may have been to signal for Drew Storen out of the bullpen, but first he needed the answer to one question.

"Heck of a ballgame. How you feeling?" Johnson asked.

"I feel great," Haren replied.

"Good," Johnson fired back. "I'm out of here."

Having just been given a resounding vote of confidence, Haren promptly rewarded his manager for the decision. He struck out Chris Johnson to end the eighth and pumped his fist as he skipped off the mound, having laid the groundwork for a 3-1 victory, the Nationals' second straight over a Braves club that had looked unbeatable to that point.
Read more

How the Nats ranked in April

USA Today Sports Images

Bryce Harper and the Nats are hitting a collective .234, 13th in the NL.

ATLANTA — A disappointing April for the Nationals is now over, and not a moment too soon for a club that just wants to get itself on track and forget about the erratic month of baseball it just played.

But before we completely turn our attention to May, let's take one last look back at April. Specifically, how the Nationals fared in relation to the rest of the National League in a host of statistical categories.

A quick glance at these rankings suggests the Nats haven't been especially good at any one thing (though the fact their rotation ranks fourth in quality starts is a bit surprising given the overall numbers). What is striking is how much the lineup has struggled, and (even more shocking) how atrocious the defense has been. (Even though the club's Ultimate Zone Rating is strong.)

Let's break down the numbers after one month of play...

Soriano likely unavailable tonight

USA Today Sports Images

Rafael Soriano has appeared in three straight games.

Though they acquired Rafael Soriano specifically to take over closer duties, the Nationals knew all along Drew Storen would still get opportunities to close games. And that first opportunity could come tonight in the opener of a big series against the Braves.

Soriano pitched each of the last three nights, saving every game of the Nationals' sweep of the White Sox, and that leaves his availability for tonight's game against Atlanta up in the air.

Davey Johnson said this afternoon he hadn't yet had a chance to check with Soriano, but the manager suggested he would give the veteran the night off and instead go with Storen should the Nationals hold a slim lead in the ninth inning.

"I think [Storen] probably had a feeling last night he might have been called on, because Soriano has pitched a lot," Johnson said. "I hope we have that problem. I hope we get to a point where it's a decision I have to make."
Read more

Haren gets win as Nats sweep White Sox

Photo by USA Today

Nationals starter Dan Haren may not have looked much sharper in his second start with the team than he did in his first, but the result was certainly better. The 11-year veteran took the victory in the Nats’ 7-4 win over the Chicago White Sox despite throwing 101 pitches through five innings and allowing three earned runs off ten hits. It wasn’t pretty, but he got the job done.

“Today I took a few steps forward,” Haren said. “I think I threw the ball better than maybe the line score would dictate, but the conditions weren’t great out there. The most important thing is that we won the game. Obviously I did a little better than last time, but I still haven’t been at my best yet.”

Haren fared better than his woeful six-earned run outing in Cincinnati last weekend, but he was nowhere near his best in front of the 24,785 fans at Nationals Park on Thursday night. Haren’s ten hits allowed made him the first Washington pitcher since the Senators’ Casey Cox in 1970 to give up at least nine in their first two games of the season.

Haren began the first inning on a good note with a 19 pitch scoreless frame.  He gave up a run in the second on a Tyler Flowers sacrifice fly and then two in the fourth inning off back-to-back RBI singles. Haren didn’t allow any home runs this time, he just wasn’t hitting his spots.

Nationals: Who's hot/who's not

Photo by USA Today

By Michael Huberman
CSNwashington.com

Entering Thursday’s game against the Chicago White Sox, the Nationals stand at 6-2, a game and a half behind the scorching hot Atlanta Braves. When a team wins six of eight, chances are a number of players put up some impressive stats. Each week, we’ll look at five players who were hot, and five players who were not so hot.

HOT:

Bryce Harper, OF – 13-33/4 HR/6 RBI/1.182 OPS

Harper’s first eight games served as an excellent start to his campaign for NL MVP. After hitting home runs in his first two at-bats on Opening Day against the Miami Marlins, Harper hasn’t let up, hitting .394 with 4 homers and 6 RBIs. After eight games Harper is 7th in slugging percentage and tied for third in the league with his four home runs.

Wilson Ramos, C – 6-13/2 HR/3 RBI/1.486 OPS

It was an emotional week for Ramos, as he made his return to Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati, the sight of his unfortunate ACL injury last May. It was clear Ramos wasn’t fazed, as he tore through Reds pitching, going 4-9 with two home runs, including an insurance homer in the Nationals' 7-6 extra-innings victory on Saturday.

Soriano shows what he can do

USA Today Sports Images

After a dominant afternoon by Stephen Strasburg, a two-homer day by Bryce Harper, and a scoreless eighth inning by Tyler Clippard, it was time for prized free agent closer Rafael Soriano to take the mound and do what the Nationals paid him all that money for.

Soriano entered Monday’s game with a two-run lead in the ninth and the Marlins’ top of the order on deck. And despite a rough spring that may have raised questions, he emerged with the save after just 11 pitches, a closeout as textbook as they come.

Soriano allowed six earned runs in 6 2/3 innings during spring training, but as far as the Nats are concerned, that’s in the past.

“Obviously, spring training’s overrated,” manager Davey Johnson said. “He certainly turned it up a notch. Made nothing but quality pitches. He did outstanding.”

Stars shine on Opening Day

USA Today Sports Images

Bryce Harper got a curtain call after hitting his second homer.

They have become the two most prominent faces of the Nationals, and really, two of the most prominent faces of baseball despite the fact each is in his young 20s and combined they've only played 184 games in the major leagues.

On a team loaded with talent and expected by everyone to do great things this year, Bryce Harper and Stephen Strasburg still manage to stand out above the rest. They alone can't -- and won't -- lead the Nationals to October glory. But they're certainly capable of taking over any given ballgame and leading their team to victory.

And when the stage is brighter than normal, as it was on Opening Day on South Capitol Street, they sure do have a knack for rising to the occasion.

"Even though they're young guys, they have experience at the big-league level," reliever Tyler Clippard said. "With those two things in combination with their ability, it gives us as a team a lot of confidence that they're putting the 'W' up on their backs and not any other uniforms. I'm glad they're on our team."

So were the 45,274 fans who crammed themselves into Nationals Park this afternoon and witnessed the closest thing to Opening Day perfection they're likely to ever see in person. Strasburg: Seven scoreless innings. Harper: Two home runs. The Nationals: A convincing, 2-0 victory over the Marlins to get perhaps the most-anticipated season in Washington baseball history off to a flying start.
Read more

Soriano has root canal

USA Today Sports Images

Rafael Soriano should be able to pitch tomorrow as scheduled.

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. -- Nationals closer Rafael Soriano had root canal this afternoon to take care of an infected tooth, but manager Davey Johnson said he expects the veteran reliever to pitch as scheduled Friday against the Tigers.

"A toothache never hurt anybody from pitching, as far as I know," Johnson said prior to the Nationals' exhibition game against the Braves. "I'm sure he's probably fine."

Johnson wasn't sure yet of the extent of Soriano's procedure but doesn't believe it was serious.

"He should be fine," the manager said. "I think it was just in the early stages and they were worried about it becoming an abscess or something during the year. So they nipped it in the bud."