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Nationals-Phillies lineups

James Wagner — Sat, 25 May 2013 19:39:24 GMT

As expected, the Nationals officially designated Yunesky Maya, the Cuban defector and right-hander who turned out to be an ill-fated $6-million signing in 2010, for assignment in order to make room for call-up infielder-outfielder Jeff Kobernus.

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Tyler Moore to get more chances to snap out of slump

James Wagner — Sat, 25 May 2013 15:53:10 GMT

With a soft groundball to third base that he beat out in the fifth inning of Friday's 5-2 win over the Philadelphia Phillies, Tyler Moore snapped a 23 at-bat hitless streak. He also reached on an error and drew a walk. It was the most the scuffling second-year player has reached base since April 15. His batting average sits at .130 in 69 at-bats and his slugging percentage at .232. Expected to make another leap after a promising 10-home run rookie season, Moore has struggled.

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Nationals designate Yunesky Maya for assignment, call up Jeff Kobernus

James Wagner — Sat, 25 May 2013 04:12:15 GMT

In order to make room on the 40-man roster for the call-up of infielder Jeff Kobernus from Class AAA Syracuse, the Nationals will designate right-handed pitcher Yunesky Maya for assignment, Manager Davey Johnson said following Friday's game. Kobernus will serve as insurance while Danny Espinosa rests his injured wrist.

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Nationals 5, Phillies 2: Jordan Zimmermann gets help from Washington’s offense to pick up eighth win

James Wagner — Sat, 25 May 2013 02:40:00 GMT

Throughout this season, these Washington Nationals have displayed a head-scratching inability to get runners home, often having a tough enough time simply getting them on base. For at least one inning on an unusually chilly May night, they exorcised their situational hitting demons. Scuffling bench players came to life. Runners weren’t stranded on base.

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Phillies at Nationals discussion thread: Game 48

James Wagner — Fri, 24 May 2013 22:55:11 GMT

The Phillies and Nationals (finally) meet for the first time this season. The Nationals return home from a 4-6 California road trip and send their best starter, Jordan Zimmermann (7-2, 1.62 ERA), to the mound against their division rival. Right-hander Kyle Kendrick (4-2, 2.82 ERA) faces the Nationals lineup without Danny Espionsa, who learned Friday he has been playing with a fractured right wrist. The lineups are here. As always, talk about the game here.

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Danny Espinosa has been playing with a fractured wrist (updated)

James Wagner — Fri, 24 May 2013 21:50:34 GMT

Danny Espinosa has been playing with a fractured right wrist since he was hit by a pitch April 14, a discomfort that lingered and never subsided. Espinosa, 26, will rest for two or three days and receive treatment, hoping to alleviate the swelling and pain with the hope that he can avoid the 15-day disabled list. The Nationals will likely call up infielder Jeff Kobernus, who was out of the lineup for Class AAA Syracuse on Friday night, before Saturday's game.

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Nationals-Phillies lineups

James Wagner — Fri, 24 May 2013 19:42:30 GMT

Before the game, first base coach Tony Tarasco, who coaches the outfield, watched as Tyler Moore and Bryce Harper caught flyballs at the warning track and wall in right. Denard Span joined in as well.

Danny Espinosa seemed to move in the right direction in the Nationals' West Coast finale, walking and smacking an opposite-field single. But the second baseman is out of the lineup today in favor of Steve Lombardozzi. Manager Davey Johnson also moved Kurt Suzuki up from the eight spot with Tyler Moore in left field.

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Updates on J.C. Romero, Bill Bray, as opt-out dates loom; Christian Garcia's progress

James Wagner — Fri, 24 May 2013 17:49:24 GMT

Two left-handed relievers the Nationals hoped would provide depth have both landed on the disabled list in the minors with shoulder injuries. J.C. Romero, the veteran left-hander, experienced shoulder stiffness earlier this month that the Nationals consider a minor issue. Bill Bray, the left-handed reliever the Nationals believed could compete for a bullpen spot entering spring training, also recently landed on the disabled list with a shoulder issue.

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Biggest disappointments of 2013 MLB season so far

Barry Svrluga — Fri, 24 May 2013 17:17:13 GMT

In the offseason, the Toronto Blue Jays 20 years removed from their last playoff appearance, with just one finish higher than third since made perhaps the loudest pronouncements in baseball. They all but imported a new team, adding all-stars to the rotation (Mark Buehrle, Josh Johnson and reigning National League Cy Young winner R.A. Dickey) and the lineup (shortstop Jose Reyes). They quickly became a trendy pick not only to return to the postseason, but to appear in the World Series (including here).

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What if the Nationals had kept Michael Morse?

Adam Kilgore — Fri, 24 May 2013 16:13:31 GMT

In the winter, the logic of the Nationals signing Adam LaRoche, trading for Denard Span and dealing Michael Morse made perfect sense. They were keeping respected a left-handed bat for the middle of the order, adding an elite center fielder who provided top-of-the-order on-base and using an apparent roster redundancy to restock their minor league pitching depth.

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Ryan Zimmerman's 'A Night at the Park' raises more than $300k

Sarah Kogod — Fri, 24 May 2013 14:46:12 GMT

"A Night at the Park" is Ryan Zimmerman's annual event to benefit his foundation, the ziMS Foundation. The organization was created to raise money and awareness for Multiple Sclerosis, a disability his mother was diagnosed with in 1995.

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RGIII on his father's comments: 'I don't have a leash on my parents'

Sarah Kogod — Fri, 24 May 2013 13:23:10 GMT

On Wednesday, Robert Griffin III's father spoke out about how his son was used on the field last season.

"I just know that based on what I know Robert can do, he doesn't have to be a runner as much as I saw last year," Robert Griffin Jr. said. "To me, you're paying these [receivers] a lot of money to catch the football. I'm his dad — I want him throwing that football, a lot. A lot."

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Washington Nationals’ schedule is getting easier, giving reason for hope

Thomas Boswell — Fri, 24 May 2013 13:01:00 GMT

Baseball now has “advanced metrics” that illuminate the game for the addicted but obfuscate it for the casual fan. But there are basic analytical tools that apply just as well in 2013 as they did in 1913. They are simple, but they usually speak clearly.

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Here come the Phillies

James Wagner — Fri, 24 May 2013 12:03:14 GMT

Because of the quirks of this season's scheduling, the Philadelphia Phillies and the Washington Nationals will finally meet on the field this weekend, near the end of the second month of the season. The Nationals enter Friday's game 4.5 games behind the Atlanta Braves in the National League East standings and one game ahead of the Phillies.

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Adam Kilgore — Fri, 24 May 2013 00:40:18 GMT

The Washington Nationals entered the year with the unabashed expectation of being remembered. They would like to forget the completed portion of their schedule-- especially their just-finished, often-calamitous 10-game road trip — but through early underachieving they have not panicked. Their series at the San Francisco Giants, the defending champions, gave shortstop Ian Desmond a realization.

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Washington Nationals come home from West Coast trip looking to improve their play

Adam Kilgore — Fri, 24 May 2013 00:40:00 GMT

The Washington Nationals entered the year with the unabashed expectation of being remembered. They would like to forget the completed portion of their schedule — especially their just-finished, often-calamitous 10-game road trip — but through early underachieving they have not panicked. Their series at the San Francisco Giants, the defending champions, gave shortstop Ian Desmond a realization.

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Brandon Miller provides power in the middle of Hagerstown's lineup

Lacy Lusk — Thu, 23 May 2013 19:34:14 GMT

In low-Class A Hagerstown right fielder Brandon Miller's first full season of professional baseball, he's starting to show the same power that made him a Division I home run champion.

Miller, a fourth-round pick last June, has four home runs and 13 RBI in his past 10 games with the Suns, moving him into a tie with Class AAA Syracuse shortstop Zach Walters for the Nationals' organization lead with nine homers. A year after hitting 23 home runs in 246 at-bats as a senior at Samford, Miller is tied for fifth in the South Atlantic League in homers and tied for 11th with a .503 slugging percentage.

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Harry Reid draws analogy between Obama and Davey Johnson

Dan Steinberg — Thu, 23 May 2013 19:09:23 GMT

I normally think obsessive sports fandom is great, but I'm starting to worry a little bit about Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. Maybe he needs to chill on the Natitude for a few weeks. Read some Pynchon or something. Tune into the NBA playoffs. Dust off the grill. Just something else.

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The struggles of the Nationals bullpen

James Wagner — Thu, 23 May 2013 18:18:24 GMT

The struggles of the Nationals' bullpen reached a calamitous low this week, not all a result of their own doing. Ross Detwiler couldn't make his start Monday because of a slight oblique strain and left-handed long reliever Zach Duke took his place with Craig Stammen serving as his backup. Ryan Mattheus coughed up five runs on Sunday, punched a locker, broke his hand and landed on the disabled list. So after Monday's game, the Nationals' seven-man bullpen was down to four. During the 10-game West Coast road trip, the bullpen was handed a lead five times and squandered it three times.

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Bryce Harper writes 'Pray 4 OK' on his game cap

Sarah Kogod — Thu, 23 May 2013 13:16:12 GMT

After this week's devastating tornado in Oklahoma, Bryce Harper took to Twitter to urge fans to keep the area in their thoughts.

Prayers go out to all my friends and family in Oklahoma! May god be with you in these horrible times! Love you all! Be safe! #PrayForOK

— Bryce Harper (@Bharper3407) May 20, 2013

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Bryce Harper conquers the wall, at least for one day

Adam Kilgore — Thu, 23 May 2013 11:01:36 GMT

Bryce Harper admitted Tuesday night to a specific kind of vulnerability, and Wednesday afternoon another deep flyball and another looming wall tested it.

On Tuesday night, Gregor Blanco smashed a ball over his head that could have been the final out. As Harper leapt to catch it, he braced for the wall even though he had not yet reached the warning track. It fell for a game-tying triple. Afterward, Harper admitted his collision last week with the fence at Dodger Stadium remained on his mind. "I better figure it out soon," Harper said. If not, he said, "I'm going to be in Triple A."

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Nationals 2, Giants 1: Harper sends Nats home with a extra-inning victory

Adam Kilgore — Wed, 22 May 2013 23:57:00 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO — A helmet lay in Bryce Harper’s wake as he slid into home plate late Wednesday afternoon, discarded along with the oddity and injury of the Washington Nationals’ long, strange trip out West. He rose to his feet, spent and satisfied. He clapped once, loud and hard. The 10-day slog had been difficult, but Harper was ending it on his terms.

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Rafael Soriano explains comments to Bryce Harper as hitting the wall lingers

Adam Kilgore — Wed, 22 May 2013 20:21:12 GMT

This morning, Rafael Soriano strolled to the back corner of the Nationals clubhouse inside AT&T Park. Dressed in all black, he dropped a bag in his chair and removed silver headphones from ears, hanging them on a hook in his locker. Behind him, Bryce Harper sat facing his stall, pecking on his phone. Soriano turned, took three steps and tapped Harper on the shoulder. They walked together into a side room, away from the eyes of teammates and reporters.

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Gio Gonzalez models Steve McCatty Playgirl shirt

Sarah Kogod — Wed, 22 May 2013 20:09:08 GMT

Word traveled quickly that some of the Nats players had made T-shirts out of the Playgirl photo of pitching coach Steve McCatty.

"It's pretty incredible," Ryan Zimmerman said of the shirts. "It's a perfect T-shirt, and what a picture. It's one of the better T-shirts I've seen in the eight years I've seen them made."

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Nationals-Giants discussion thread: Game 47

James Wagner — Wed, 22 May 2013 19:26:20 GMT

The Nationals (23-23) are back at .500 after Tuesday's deflating loss and losers of four straight. They finish their 10-game West Coast trip on Wednesday afternoon against the Giants, already with a 3-6 record on this swing. Gio Gonzalez (3-2, 4.01 ERA) takes the mound against Madison Bumgarner (4-2, 3.09 ERA), who is off to a strong start. The lineups are here. As always, talk about the game here.

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