June 19, 2013

Washington Nationals Game 68 Review: Indians shut out Nats in rubber game

June 16, 2013 by 2 Comments

In perhaps the Washington Nationals’ (34-34) most frustrating display of offensive insufficiency this season, the Cleveland Indians (34-34) took the interleague series rubber game 2-0 at Progressive Field Sunday afternoon.

Bypassing any minor league rehab assignments, Stephen Strasburg (L, 3-6) allowed just one run on one hit in his first appearance off the disabled list, showing no evidence of lingering back pain.

Strasburg’s sole run allowed came in the bottom of the fourth after Jason Kipnis drew a one-out walk and stole second, only to advance to third on a throwing error by Jhonatan Solano. In the next at-bat, Carlos Santana singled Kipnis home to position Strasburg for the not-so-deserved loss. [Read more...]

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Washington Nationals injury updates: Harper to see Dr. Andrews; Strasburg to D.L.

June 6, 2013 by Leave a Comment

Before Thursday’s game against the New York Mets, manager Davey Johnson gave a few updates on the Washington Nationals walking wounded.

– Bryce Harper experienced swelling in his knee after running in a pool earlier in the day and is scheduled to see Dr. James Andrews to get a further opinion on Monday.

– Danny Espinosa received a cortisone shot in his broken right wrist and is expected to start baseball activities in five days or so.

– Ross Detwiler will pitch in a rehab game at Potomac on June 8. He’ll throw about 50 pitches and is on target to return on June 13.

– Stephen Strasburg was officially placed on the 15-day D.L. and LHP Xavier Cedeno was recalled from AAA-Syracuse. It’s expected that RHP Ross Ohlendorf will be called up to start in Strasburg’s place Saturday.

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Washington Nationals Game 55 Review: Strasburg leaves after two innings; Stammen leads Nats to win over Braves

May 31, 2013 by

The Washington Nationals entered play Friday 5 1/2 games behind their hosts, the Atlanta Braves, for first place in the N.L. East. The Nats trimmed that total by one, defeating the Braves 3-2. But the topic foremost in everyone’s minds was the status of starting pitcher Stephen Strasburg, who left the game after the second inning, reportedly suffering from discomfort in his lower back, first experienced during warm-ups for the game.

After the game, Davey Johnson said Strasburg suffered a strained oblique muscle in his lower back and would head back to D.C. to be examined by team doctors.

Strasburg looked to continue his recent run of dominance and cruised through the first inning without incident. In the second inning, Strasburg gave up a long home run to Braves 1B Freddie Freeman to lead off the inning. Strasburg got Evan Gattis swinging on a changeup, but appeared to wince and experience discomfort on the mound. His velocity noticeably dropped to Brian McCann and Dan Uggla, but Strasburg was able to retire both of them.

Strasburg trudged to the dugout, where he conferenced with pitching coach Steve McCatty and head athletic trainer Lee Kuntz. At that point, Strasburg was lifted from the game after 37 pitches, 23 for strikes.

Craig Stammen entered for the third innings and was simply dominant. The right-handed long-man pitched four perfect innings of relief with three strikeouts.

The Nats got on the board quickly against Braves starter Julio Teheran. Denard Span laced the second pitch of the game into right field for his fourth triple of the season. Steve Lombardozzi followed with a sacrifice fly to plate Span and give the Nats a 1-0 lead. They got back to it in the second. Roger Bernadina hit a one-out single to right, took third on Danny Espinosa’s single, and scored on a fielder’s choice of the bat of Kurt Suzuki.

Washington added their third run in the sixth inning in the same manner as in the first. Span led off the inning with another triple to right field, and Lombardozzi lofted a fly ball deep enough to score Span from third.

Atlanta cut the lead to one in the seventh inning off Tyler Clippard. Ramiro Pena led off with a smash to first. Adam LaRoche knocked it down, but his feed to Clippard covering was high and Pena reached on what was scored as an infield single — but should have been an out. Clippard struck out Justin Upton with a high fastball for the first out, but on the ninth pitch of the at bat to Freeman, including a wild pitch that allowed Pena to move up 90 feet, the first baseman singled to right field to bring in Pena to make it 3-2.

Clippard then hit Gattis and McCann to load the bases with one out, but rebounded to strike out Dan Uggla and Chris Johnson to leave them stranded.

Drew Storen pitched a scoreless eighth and Rafael Soriano tossed a perfect ninth to earn his __ save of the season.

THE GOOD: Craig Stammen. He was sublime, recording 12 straight out against the Braves. If the Nats need a fill-in starter anytime soon, Stammen firmly threw his hat into the ring.

THE BAD: The Nats scored all three of their runs as the result of someone making an out.

THE UGLY: Strasburg. Here’s hoping it’s just a little muscle tightness and the big guy will be ready to take his start in five days.

THE STATS: 9 hits, 1 BB, 10 Ks. 0-for-5 with RISP, 5 LOB. No errors, 1 DP.

NEXT GAME: Saturday against the Braves at 7:15 pm. Gio Gonzalez (3-3, 3.90) faces Tim Hudson (4-4, 5.37).

 

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Strasburg leaves start against Atlanta with apparent injury

May 31, 2013 by

Washington Nationals ace Stephen Strasburg exited Friday night’s game against the Atlanta Braves after completing the second inning. He had thrown 37 pitches — 23 for strikes – at the time and led 2-1.

There seemed to be a precipitous drop in the radar gun readings from Turner Field as Strasburg progressed though the second inning, during which he game up a massive solo home run to Braves 1B Freddie Freeman. After the inning, Strasburg conferred with pitching coach Steve McCatty and head athletic trainer Lee Kuntz.

Strasburg was replaced by reliever Craig Stammen for the third inning.

The team has released no information at this point, but we’ll update as more information becomes available.

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Washington Nationals Game 50 Review: Strasburg sharp as Nats win series vs. Phillies

May 26, 2013 by

Stephen Strasburg (W, 3-5) was stellar Sunday afternoon as the Washington Nationals (26-24) emerged the victor of the rubber game against the Philadelphia Phillies (24-26) with a final score of 6-1.

Despite the fact that both Strasburg and his opponent, Cole Hamels (L, 1-8), have encountered their fair share of struggles early this season, the two aces carried out quite the pitcher’s duel through the stretch.

Through eight innings pitched, Strasburg allowed just five hits and one earned run in what was easily his best outing this season. He also struck out nine, including the side in both the fourth and sixth innings.

Hamels, in turn, provided Philly with six innings of shutout baseball before the Nats finally made their move. [Read more...]

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Washington Nationals Game 46 Review: Strasburg strong but bullpen collapses in 9th and 10th

May 22, 2013 by

The Washington Nationals received a strong start from their ace, but couldn’t tack on any insurance runs, blew a one-run save in the ninth, then blew the game in the tenth, as the resilient San Francisco Giants beat the Nats 4-2 in the tenth inning on the strength of a two-run homer by Pablo Sandoval, off just-recalled Yunesky Maya, that still might not have landed.

The Nats (23-23) got all their offense in the very first inning. Denard Span singled leading off the inning and Bryce Harper, hitting second for the first time this season, sacrificed Span to second. Ryan Zimmerman delivered with the runner in scoring position, ripping a double to center to score Span. After Adam LaRoche flew out to right, Ian Desmond came through, doubling to right field to plate Zimmerman.

Strasburg needed 31 pitches to get through the first inning, but he escaped unscathed, leaving the bases loaded. Strasburg was not as fortunate in the second inning. Gregor Blanco led off with a single to right field. After a fly out and sacrifice by Matt Cain, Angel Pagan singled to center, which scored Blanco from second base.

Strasburg gave up four hits and two walks in the first two innings, and the Nats looked to be in trouble, especially considering manager Davey Johnson was forced to use all three of his “long-men” in Monday night’s 8-0 loss to the Giants. But Strasburg settled down impressively after the second inning, and he cruised through the five next innings, facing just one batter over the minimum.

All told, Strasburg (2-5, 2.66) went seven innings and allowed one earned run on five hits and three walks, striking out seven. He threw 108 pitches, 62 of which were strikes.

The Nats missed several opportunities to extend their lead, but couldn’t come through in the clutch. They loaded the bases with one out in the fourth, but Kurt Suzuki grounded into a force and Strasburg struck out swinging on three pitches. In the eighth, they had first-and-third with one out, but LaRoche struck out and Desmond grounded to the pitcher to end the threat.

Tyler Clippard pitched a scoreless eighth and handed things over to closer Rafael Soriano. Buster Poset led off with a comebacker, but Soriano couldn’t field it and was safe at first. Andres Torres pinch-ran for the catcher, and Soriano got the next two batters on fly balls. With two down, slap-hitting outfielder Gregor Blanco drove a ball to the right field wall. It looked like Harper might have had a play on the ball, but he tread gingerly as he approached the wall, no doubt still thinking about the collision he had in Los Angeles.

The ball carried over Harper’s head and off the wall in right. The run scored easily and Blanco ended up at third base with a game-tying triple. It was the third blown save of the season for Soriano, all coming on the road.

After the Nats went 1-2-3 in the top of the tenth, Davey Johnson called upon Yunesky Maya, just called up from Triple-A Syracuse (where he had a 5.07 ERA in eight starts) to pitch the tenth, instead of Drew Storen, presumably so Storen could be available for a save opportunity later. There would be no later, as Maya allowed a one-out single to Marco Scutaro, then grooved a batting practice fastball to Pablo Sandoval, who crushed it half-way up the large grandstand in center field to give the Giants their league-leading sixth walk-off win of the season.

THE GOOD: Once he got past the second inning, Strasburg was dominant. If they can ever figure out why he’s been struggling in the early innings…

THE BAD: Blame Soriano or Maya all you want — and they certainly deserve their share of the blame – but the Nats lost this one in the fifth and eighth innings, when twice they had a runner at third with one out and failed to score the run.

Honorable mention: the Nats offense is so bad lately, Bryce Harper felt compelled to sacrifice bunt…twice. Disgraceful.

THE UGLY: There’s no way to sugar coat this: Yunesky Maya does not have Major League caliber talent and has no business on a big league roster.

THE STATS: 5 hits, 3 BBs, 9 Ks. 2-for-8 with RISP, 6 LOB. No errors, 2 DPs.

NEXT GAME: Wednesday at 3:45 pm ET against the Giants to avoid the sweep. Gio Gonzalez (3-2, 4.01) faces Madison Bumgarner (4-2, 3.09).

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Washington Nationals Game 41 Review: Strasburg pitches gem in native San Diego

May 17, 2013 by

Righty phenom Stephen Strasburg (W, 2-5) allowed just three hits over a career-high eight innings in the Washington Nationals’ 6-2 win over the San Diego Padres (18-22) at Petco Park Thursday night.

Perhaps, the secret to returning Strasburg to true form was to allow him the opportunity to return home.

In front of 50 members of his family who attended the ballgame, Strasburg took command of his pitching arsenal in his native San Diego. He powered through 117 pitches, 68 of which were strikes, and allowed only one earned run and two walks to cap off his personal losing streak at five games.

Perhaps more importantly, the Nationals’ batting order finally provided Strasburg with run support. [Read more...]

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Washington Nationals Game 36 Review: Strasburg unravels after Zimmerman error in Nats’ loss to Cubs

May 11, 2013 by

The Washington Nationals (20-16) were reminded once more what a difference an error can make as they fell 8-2 to the Chicago Cubs (14-22) Saturday afternoon at Nationals Park.

Stephen Strasburg (L, 1-5) looked the best he’s been all season to start the game, retiring the first 11 batters he faced in a row before giving up a single to Anthony Rizzo in the fourth. [Read more...]

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Washington Nationals Game 31 Review: Nats strand 11 but score one late to beat Bucs 5-4

May 4, 2013 by

It’s been a struggle to score runs for the Washington Nationals thus far in 2013. They entered play Saturday against the Pittsburg Pirates third to last in the Majors in runs per game. They continued to struggle to come up with the big hits, going 1-for-10 with runners in scoring position which stranded 11 runners, but found a way to push a run across late, earning a 5-4 win before 29,975 at PNC Park.

Stephen Strasburg continued his erratic 2013, giving up two two-run home runs, but otherwise limiting the damage to keep the Nats in the game until the late innings. Strasburg allowed four earned runs on five hits and one walk, striking out eight. He hardly looked in control much of the game, missing his target often and even hitting two batters, but the big righty found a way to wiggle out of most of his jams.

The Nats (16-15) got on the board first against Jeff Locke in the third inning. Roger Bernadina got on base the hard way — he was hit by a pitch. He went to third on an error by Pirates shortstop Clint Barmes, which allowed Strasburg to reach first. Danny Espinosa was called out on strikes, but Ian Desmond hit a fly ball to center that looked like it might go, but the wind knocked it down and resulted in a sacrifice fly to score the run.

The Pirates (17-13) answered in the bottom half. Clint Barmes lifted a ball to right field leading off, but Tyler Moore misplayed the ball and it fell in front of him for a single. Locke sacrificed Barmes up 90 feet, but that didn’t matter, as Starling Marte jumped all over Strasburg’s first-pitch fastball, drilling it to right center for a two-run home run that should have been a solo shot.

Barmes got to Strasburg again in the fifth. After a leadoff single by Jordy Mercer, Barmes ripped a 1-0 fastball through the breeze into the home team bullpen — which is behind the visitor’s pen in right center – to put the Pirates up 4-2.

The Nats tied the game in the sixth inning. Bryce Harper led off with a soft single to center, and Ryan Zimmerman drew a walk against Locke. Pirates manager Clint Hurdle asked for lefty reliever Justin Wilson to face Adam LaRoche. Wilson walked LaRoche on a 3-2 count to load the bases. After a Tyler Moore strikeout, Wilson Ramos laced a single up the middle — to break an 0-for-16 streak – and both Harper and Zimmerman scored to even the game. Unfortunately the rally ended as Roger Bernadina struck out on three pitches and Strasburg K’d as well.

The Nats loaded the bases again in the seventh, but Moore struck out to end the inning. Moore stranded six runners in consecutive innings without putting the ball in play.

The Nationals — and Moore — finally broke through in the ninth inning. Harper struck out leading off, but Pirates reliever Tony Watson hit Zimmerman on the front leg on a 2-2 count. LaRoche singled to move Zimmerman up, then two of the slower Nats base runners pulled off a double steal with Moore up to bat. After a foul ball, Moore lifted a fly ball to deep right, and Zimmerman raced home ahead of the throw.

Rafael Soriano earned his 10th save of the season to make the one-run lead stand up. He was helped by Roger Bernadina, who threw out Russell Martin trying to stretch a single into a double on his leadoff hit. Tyler Clippard was awarded the win with a scoreless eighth inning, where he made a nifty snare of a soft line drive to start a double play.

THE GOOD: Adam LaRoche. The first baseman is off to a rough start this season, but he was on base four times with a single and three walks. He must be seeing the ball better and that should start to lead to better contact.

THE BAD: Ian Desmond. 0-for-4, 2 Ks, 3 LOB. Desmond really expanded his strike zone for a down offensive day.

THE UGLY: Strasburg gutted out seven innings, but Clint Barmes has no business making solid contact against Strasburg, let alone clubbing a homer into the second bullpen in left center.

THE STATS: 6 hits, 6 BBs, 8 Ks. 1-for-10 with RISP, 11 LOB. E: Ramos (3, throw). 2 DPs.

NEXT GAME: Sunday at 1:35 pm against the Pirates. Gio Gonzalez (2-2, 5.34) faces Wandy Rodriguez (2-1, 3.91).

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Washington Nationals Game 26 Review: Nats waste chances in 3-2 loss to Braves

April 29, 2013 by

STRASBURG EXAMINED BY DOCTORS FOR “FOREARM TIGHTNESS” AFTER THE GAME

Stephen Strasburg wasn’t himself yet again, giving up 10 base runners in six innings. There were several close or missed calls by the umpires on the bases. And Tyler Clippard couldn’t hold a tie game in the seventh.

But the bottom line in the Washington Nationals 3-2 loss to the Atlanta Braves — the Nats eighth loss in a row to their division opponent — was repeated missed opportunities with runners on base, as the Nats had seven hits in the first six outs and managed to score just twice against Braves rookie starter Julio Teheran.

Denard Span was picked off after singling in the first inning. In the second, a strikeout trying to sacrifice bunt turned into a double play when the runner off second strayed too far.  A hard hop turned into a 3-6 double play in the third. Two one-out singles in the fourth died on the vine. Two no-out runners in the sixth did the same. The Nats repeatedly put runners on base against the Braves and either ran into outs or couldn’t cash them in.

Add it all up, and the Nats (13-13) fall back to .500, 3 1/2 games behind the Braves in the N.L. East.

Adding injury to insult, after the game Strasburg complained of forearm tightness and was being examined by the Nationals medical staff.

Strasburg struck out eight in six innings, allowing two earned runs on six hits and a wildly uncharacteristic four walks. Several times in the first inning he missed so badly with fastballs that Kurt Suzuki couldn’t handle that went all the way to the backstop. He struggled with his fastball command all evening long, and often was seen shaking out his arm, lifting it above his head trying to keep it loose. On one visit to the mound by pitching coach Steve McCatty, Strasburg seemed visibly agitated, and had a look of exasperation on his face all evening long.

That he did battle through it and keep his team in the game was a testament to his tenacity and talent, but we’ll have to wait and see on the doctor’s review for any long-term prognosis.

Strasburg’s first inning struggles this season continued against the Braves, and he was lucky to escape the first with just one run against. He walked the leadoff batter, Jordan Schafer, on a 3-2 after missing wildly with several fastballs. Andrelton Simmons struck out, but Schafer stole second on the swinging strike three. Justin Upton, leading the N.L. in home runs this season, singled to right to score Schafer, and it was 1-0 after three batters.

First baseman Freddie Freeman followed with a single and Upton went to third, but Freeman took a wide turn at first and Ian Desmond threw behind the runner to nab him at first – in a very close play — to limit the damage against Strasburg.

The Nats jumped all over Braves starter Julio Teheran in the second and scored twice, but could have had so much more. The Nats hit four consecutive singles, from Adam LaRoche, Desmond, Chad Tracy and Kurt Suzuki, to take a 2-1 lead. Strasburg tried to sacrifice but could not get the job done. When he bunted through strike three, Tracy led too far off second and was thrown out by catcher Gerald Laird for a killer double play.

Strasburg continued to labor inning after inning, but kept the Braves off the board until the fourth. Again, a leadoff walk came back to hurt Strasburg, as Freeman drew a base on balls leading off. Dan Uggla’s one-out single moved Freeman up a base, but Strasburg got B.J. Upton swinging for the second out and looked like he might escape. But Laird took an o-1 fastball to center on a line to bring Freeman home. The Nats cut the ball and threw to get Uggla out at third and the replay showed they got the out before the run crossed, but home plate umpire Laz Diaz upheld the run scoring.

Strasburg performed better as the night went on, and struck out the side in the sixth to end his outing, punctuated by a 98-MPH fastball to finish off B.J. Upton.

The Braves took the lead against Tyler Clippard in the seventh. Again, the Nats pitchers allowed a leadoff walk, and again it came around to score. Laird walked on five pitches to start the inning, went to second on a sacrifice, took third on a single by Schafer and scored on Simmons’ sacrifice line drive to Jayson Werth in right.

THE GOOD: Ian Desmond. 2-for-4, run scored.

THE BAD: Tyler Clippard. Took the loss and didn’t look sharp.

THE UGLY: Stephen Strasburg. In previous games, he’d been able to right the ship after his first inning struggles. But in this one, he never really did find his rhythm, despite making some big pitches. But his health is the main concern now.

THE STATS: 10 hits, 1 BB, 11 ks. 2-for-9 with RISP, 6 LOB. No errors, 1 DP.

NEXT GAME: Tuesday at 7:10 pm at Atlanta. Gio Gonzalez (2-1, 4.50) faces Tim Hudson (2-1, 4.50).

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