The Washington Nationals found themselves in a familiar position Sunday afternoon. After dropping their first two games against the Pittsburgh Pirates, the Nats again were trailing in the third and final game of the series. Down 3-1 in the seventh, and in danger of being swept for the fourth time in a month's time, the Nationals turned to pinch-hitter Alex Escobar. With Jose Guillen on board with a walk, Escobar drilled a shot over... more ›

The Washington Nationals arrived at this year's All-Star Break in ignominious fashion, suffering their fifth sweep of the season at RFK. This time, the Nats were victimized by the San Diego Padres. After a successful series against Florida earlier this week, the Nats could smell second place in the NL East. They now find themselves amid the musky odor of the division's basement. That they played the Padres so closely only adds to the... more ›

Just a speed bump on the road back to a competitive season? Or a return to earth for a team playing way beyond its ability for nearly a month? In either case, the Nats did not look good in dropping the first two of a four-game set with Colorado on Monday and Tuesday. The Nats began the week having won six of their last seven series, winning at a .696 clip during that span.... more ›

Livan Hernandez finally managed to stay out of early trouble last night, but his teammates couldn't cause any of their own against Carlos Zambrano. The 24-year-old right hander spread four harmless singles over eight innings to shut out the Nats 4-0 in Chicago and pick up his second win. No National had more than one hit. Alfonso Soriano struck out three times on the same day the Post commended him for not letting his... more ›

"People keep asking me, 'What's wrong?' I'm going to have my numbers. People shouldn't worry about Jose Guillen." more ›

May 4 may well be remembered as the happiest day in D.C. Mayor Anthony Williams' political career. It is today, at 10 a.m., that Williams and new Nationals owner Ted Lerner will come together to break ground on the new $611 million stadium in Southeast. The Nats may have come back to Washington in September 2004, but their longevity in the city was consistently tested by bruising battles over stadium financing and team ownership,... more ›

This post was written by DCist contributor Jeff Beam. The announcement of a new owner can’t come soon enough for the reeling Nats, who lost 5-0 Wednesday afternoon to the Reds, completing the series sweep and dropping them seven games below .500 (7-14) on the young season. The Nats put themselves in early holes in all three games, and have not led since surrendering a 3-run homer in the 8th against Atlanta on Sunday –... more ›

This entry was written by DCist contributor Benjamin Kabak. more ›

This entry was written by DCist contributor Jeff Beam. This is not how the Nats wanted to start things. After losing five of seven in New York and Houston to start the season, the Nats returned home to RFK for a mid-week tilt with the Mets. After last week’s parade of hit batsmen and subsequent suspensions, tension built between the teams to the point of a warning from the league extending the rest of the... more ›

This entry was written by DCist contributor Ben Kabak. more ›

One of the joys of Spring Training is supposed to be taking a break from the icy darkness of wherever you're from to head south and dream of the warm summer nights that must be around the corner if baseball's begun. This winter, of course, we've all been able to keep our tans, and the kids never had to quit their stickballing in the alley, but it's still pretty exciting to think that it's nearly... more ›

After a promising start to the weekend (a 4-1 win on Friday night), the Nationals dropped back-to-back games to the Cardinals in all too familiar fashion: Back-to-back 6-0 losses to the best team in baseball, and consecutive no-shows by the Nats' bats. Saturday, the Nats had no answer for the previously struggling Jason Marquis, managing just two hits. Yesterday they collected just four hits and two walks. It all adds up to another series' loss... more ›

Last Friday, the television behind the bar at Bar Pilar was switched from a tie ball game between the Nationals, who were then a half game off the wild card, and their division rivals the New York Mets to a preseason Redskins game. On Saturday night (or perhaps Friday, as well; we can't be sure how quickly these things turn around) a measure of karmic retribution was exacted, as the Nats erased an eight... more ›

The Nationals missed an opportunity to overtake the Astros in the wild card chase, dropping a tough 4-3 decision against the Phillies last night. Esteban Loaiza coughed up four earned runs on 10 hits and a walk in 5.2 innings. Bright spots for the Nats included Vinny Castilla's 3rd inning homerun, and Luis Ayala, Joey Eischen, and Gary Majewski combining for 2+ innings of scoreless, hitless relief. The Nats managed to cut the Phillies'... more ›

Glass. Half. Full. more ›

>> They can have all the closed door clubhouse meetings they want, but after being swept by the Padres over the weekend, our beloved Nationals have lost 22 of their last 30 games. Ouch. Nats manager Frank Robinson tried to shuffle the line up yesterday to no avail, and if this keeps up, he's running out of time to try any other tricks he has up his sleeve. The Nats are off today as... more ›

The New York Times Magazine featured, this past Sunday, the work of former Expos and current Mets General Manager Omar Minaya, whose work in Flushing has concentrated on attracting Latinos, both to the stands and the playing fields of Shea. Mentioned in the piece is the stellar work Minaya did with Les Expos, bringing in Latino talents such as current Nationals All-Star pitcher Livan Hernandez and second baseman Jose Vidro, in keeping the troubled... more ›

Hot town, summer in the city...and the Nationals continue to tumble, dropping three of four to the Astros. It appeared that the Nats had hit bottom and there was nowhere to go but up after being outclassed by Roger Clemens and nearly pounded back to Montreal 14-1 on Friday night, especially after a 4-2 win and superb performance by Tony Armas (7IP, 1H, 2ER) on Saturday evening. But apparently there was a little more... more ›

After dropping three of four in Milwaukee over the weekend, the Nationals hit the reset button and return home for a seven game homestand, welcoming NL West bottom-feeder Colorado to DC for a three game series that begins tonight. The Nats lead the NL East by 1.5 games over the Atlanta Braves, who split a four game series with the NY Mets over the weekend. The good news is that the Nats have played lights-out at home (best home record in baseball). The bad news is that the Nats' offense continues to sputter. The good news is that the Rockies have lost four in a row and share the dubious distinction of owning the lowest win total in the majors (31) with the lowly Tampa Bay Devil Rays; mere percentage points separate the Rockies from the worst record in baseball. The bad news, again, is that the Nats' offense continues to sputter. In theory, the series against Colorado should be a good opportunity for the Nats to beat up on a bad team. more ›

(Entry written by DCist contributor Chris Kelly) So it's a fact that the banged-up Nationals need a breather, after playing .500 ball over their last 10 games leading up to the all-star break and losing 2 in a row. And it's a fact that at 52-36, tied for the 3rd best record in the majors, the Nationals are the best story of the 2005 season (so far), improbably leading the NL East by 2.5 games... more ›

(Entry written by DCist contributor Chris Kelly) The Nationals head up I-95 to Philly for a 3-game tilt before they hit the All-Star break, following yesterday's 3-2, 11 inning loss and a 3-1 series loss against the Mets (first home series loss since April). Nats blew a chance to win it in the 9th yesterday with two men on and one out, but neither Jose Guillen nor Brad Wilkerson could get the job done. For... more ›

Despite losing to the Mets yesterday at home, the long weekend was very good the Washington Nationals. They swept the Cubs over the weekend, drew their largest DC crowd ever yesterday and even got some front page love from the folks over at ESPN.com. Oh, and lest we forget that we have not one, but two All Stars on our roster. Livan Hernandez and Chad Cordero will both be making the trip to Detroit next week. That's the first time the Nats/Expos franchise has had multiple All Stars since 2002. more ›

With their 5-4 win last night in Pittsburgh, your Washington Nationals took the series against the Pirates two games to one and notched their second series win in three tries on their latest road trip. Staying with the formula that got them into first place, last night's win was a total team effort. After giving up two home runs early, starter John Patterson, settled down in the third. "After the second inning, I could've gone... more ›

(Entry written by DCist contributor Chris Kelly) more ›

The Nats didn't play last night, but that's fine: They -- and we -- needed a breather after their heartstopping 1-0 win on Wednesday, their final game against the Angels and their fifth straight series victory. Starting pitcher Ryan Drese, released by the Texas Rangers just last week, was flawless on the mound through eight innings. With one run on the up on board, Nats closer Chad Cordero just had to make it official. Instead,... more ›

Mike Scioscia's tragic illness might have made us smile when he appeared on The Simpsons a decade ago, but around these parts there are no warm feelings toward him anymore. Least of all Nationals manager Frank Robinson, whom the W. Post quotes: "I lost a lot of respect for Mike tonight, as a person and as a manager. There's nothing he can say to me now. Nothing. I don't even want him to approach me.... more ›

Spring may not have arrived in the mid-Atlantic region just yet, but down in Viera, Fla. -- where the Nationals have been training for the past few weeks -- it's practically summer. Good thing, because the ex-Expos play their first game with an interlocking D.C. on their uniforms there tomorrow, against the New York Metropolitans (but against Tom Glavine, not Pedro). Game time is 1:05 p.m. Weather should be 62 degrees and partly cloudy. If... more ›

Yesterday's announcement that the L.A. Dodgers will re-sign lefty Odalis Perez for $24 million over three years effectively ends the Nats' offseason moves. more ›