Braves notch early rally against Strasburg (Nats fall 4-2)

Braves notch early rally against Strasburg (Nats fall 4-2)
ATLANTA - The Braves took advantage of some well-placed base hits and timely base running in the first off right-hander Stephen Strasburg. Ronald Acuña Jr. singled on a line drive to left field. The speedster moved to second base on a steal. Ozzie Albies then dropped in a perfectly placed bloop double into shallow left field to score Acuña with the first run of the game. Freddie Freeman singled to left field to score Albies and suddenly it was 2-0 Braves. Left-hander Max Fried's...

Soto powers offense early (Nats win 11-10)

Soto powers offense early (Nats win 11-10)
The Nationals jumped out in front against 2018 National League Cy Young award winner Jacob deGrom in the first inning. Asdrúbal Cabrera doubled with one out. One batter later, Juan Soto drilled a double to deep right-center field to score Cabrera. The Nats led 1-0 after one inning. Nationals starter Max Scherzer has struck out five over three innings without allowing a hit. In the bottom of the third, Trea Turner singled and stole second base. It was his 31st stolen base of the season....

Relentless hitting helps Sánchez early on (Nats win 7-6)

Relentless hitting helps Sánchez early on (Nats win 7-6)
The Nationals used methodical hitting to take the lead early on against the last-place Marlins. After Harold Ramirez smacked a solo shot off of Aníbal Sánchez in the first to give the Marlins the lead, the Nats retaliated with three singles in a row in the bottom of the first. Trea Turner, Gerardo Parra and Anthony Rendon singled off Marlins starter Elieser Herandez to tie the game at 1-1. RBI groundouts by Asdrúbal Cabrera and Turner made it 3-1 Nats. Victor Robles' double to lead...

Nats grab early lead, but lose Eaton to injury (Nats win 8-4)

Nats grab early lead, but lose Eaton to injury (Nats win 8-4)
The Nationals got off to the quick start manager Davey Martinez was hoping for tonight against the Orioles, grabbing a 5-0 lead in the first inning. With one out in the bottom of the first, Adam Eaton was hit by a pitch. Anthony Rendon doubled on a sharp line drive to center field. Eaton pulled up lame as he gingerly jogged into third base. He had to leave the game with what appeared to be an injury to his right leg. Gerardo Parra replaced him as a pinch-runner and took over in right...

Corbin down early, finishes seven innings (Nats trail 2-0)

Corbin down early, finishes seven innings  (Nats trail 2-0)
It seems that when Nationals left-hander Patrick Corbin ever gets into trouble, it happens early. The Orioles got to Corbin very early in Tuesday's series opener. Hanser Alberto singled on the game's first pitch. Corbin then hit Trey Mancini with a pitch. Anthony Santander doubled to deep left field to score Alberto and the Orioles led 1-0. One batter later, Jonathan Villar's line drive sacrifice fly to center field brought home Mancini to make it 2-0 Orioles. The Nationals looked like they...

Strasburg and Bauer trade blows early (Nats win 17-7)

Strasburg and Bauer trade blows early (Nats win 17-7)
In the bottom of the third, Victor Robles singled and stole second base against Reds starter Trevor Bauer. Nationals starter Stephen Strasburg sacrificed Robles to third base. Trea Turner smacked a sacrifice fly to deep left field that scored Robles with the first run of the game. Strasburg allowed only one hit in the first three innings. After three innings, the Nats lead the Reds 1-0. Update: In the top of the fourth, Eugenio Suárez and Josh VanMeter singled to start a Reds rally....

Soto and Dozier go yard (Nats win 3-1)

Soto and Dozier go yard (Nats win 3-1)
The Nationals scored first on an interesting double play to end the top of the first inning. With one out, Victor Robles doubled. Anthony Rendon singled with Robles taking third base. Juan Soto's hot shot was gloved by Joey Votto at first. Votto stepped on first to retire Soto, then threw to shortstop José Iglesias to tag Rendon out at second base. When Votto stepped on first base, that eliminated the force out. Robles crossed the plate before Rendon was tagged out at second base, so the...

Cabrera gets big hit, but Soto leaves with injury (Nats lead 5-4)

Cabrera gets big hit, but Soto leaves with injury (Nats lead 5-4)
NEW YORK - The Nationals have had difficulty against Mets starter Jacob deGrom in the past. The right-hander is 8-4 with a 2.44 ERA in 17 starts against the Nats. Recently, he has gone 5-1 with a 1.50 ERA in his last eight starts against Washington. Nationals manager Davey Martinez believes their best chance against a pitcher the caliber of deGrom is to be just as aggressive as the hurler hopes to be. "We got to be aggressive," Martinez said. "He's going to attack the strike zone. So we got...

Strasburg sets all-time franchise strikeout record (Nats fall 7-6)

Strasburg sets all-time franchise strikeout record (Nats fall 7-6)
NEW YORK - April 7 was the last time the Nationals beat the Mets here at Citi Field. May 20-23, the Nats lost all four games. In that series, the Mets never scored more than six runs in a game. After that series, the Nats were 19-31. Nationals manager Davey Martinez said he made sure to keep his players upbeat during those trying times. The Nats have rebounded to win 42 games since that sweep. "Even when things were going bad I seem to always have fun," Martinez said. "I got to keep the boys...

Corbin taxed early but keeps score down (Nats win 2-0)

Corbin taxed early but keeps score down (Nats win 2-0)
Left-hander Patrick Corbin was wild to begin game two, having to labor to just get out of the first inning. The southpaw allowed a leadoff single to Charlie Blackmon and two walks in the first inning but escaped without allowing a run thanks to a big double play ignited by Anthony Rendon. However, Corbin was taxed for 27 pitches. Then Corbin fired three strikeouts in the second inning. In the third, the Rockies Trevor Story belted a one-out triple. But Corbin managed to wiggle out of trouble...

Strasburg homers, has five RBIs (Nats lead 10-1)

Strasburg homers, has five RBIs (Nats lead 10-1)
ATLANTA - Stephen Strasburg has become the latest Nationals hitter to go through the dugout dance line following a home run. Yes, you read that correctly. Strasburg launched a 420-foot laser over the left field bullpen at SunTrust Park, capping an eight-run top of the third for the Nationals, who have opened up a commanding lead over the Braves in the opener of this critical, four-game weekend series. The Nats had already plated five runs in the inning before Strasburg stepped to the plate. (He...

Scherzer off to quick start in Detroit (Nats win 2-1)

Scherzer off to quick start in Detroit (Nats win 2-1)
DETROIT - Nationals right-hander Max Scherzer has won five straight games. Manager Davey Martinez said one reason for the recent hot streak is Scherzer's pitch efficiency. "What stands out to me most is he's not doing it at 120 pitches," Martinez said. "He's getting through with hardly any high-leverage situations. Just kind of getting through the game and keeping his pitch count to about 105, 106 pitches, which is kind of nice." Scherzer has thrown 104 pitches or less in four of his...

Robles leaves game due to dehydration (Nats trail 12-9)

Robles leaves game due to dehydration (Nats trail 12-9)
Center fielder Victor Robles took a knee with one out in the top of the second during a Nick Markakis at-bat. With the count 2-0, Robles went down to one knee and the game was stopped. Following consultation for a couple of minutes with Nationals director of athletic training Paul Lessard and manager Davey Martinez, Robles left the game. Sitting on the field, the center fielder appeared dizzy and dazed as he spoke to Lessard. He was replaced by Michael A. Taylor. Gametime temperature was 81...

Riley gets to Strasburg early (Nats win 4-3)

Riley gets to Strasburg early (Nats win 4-3)
The Braves got on the board early against Nationals right-hander Stephen Strasburg. Josh Donaldson walked to lead off the second inning. With one out, Austin Riley belted a two-run homer over the left-center field to give Atlanta the lead. Riley connected on a 93.6 mph two-seam fastball for his 12th homer of the season. Braves left-hander Dallas Keuchel, making his 2019 debut, allowed leadoff singles to Trea Turner and Brian Dozier in the first and second innings, respectively, but no...

Soto and Suzuki lift Fedde early (Nationals win 7-4)

Soto and Suzuki lift Fedde early (Nationals win 7-4)
Following a 30-minute rain delay, the Nationals did a nice job of making Phillies right-hander Nick Pivetta work in the first two frames. Anthony Rendon and Juan Soto doubled in the first to make it 1-0. Soto was tagged out at third base when the ball got away momentarily on the relay in from left fielder Jay Bruce. Pivetta threw to Maikel Franco at third to tag out Soto. Following a Howie Kendrick single to lead off the bottom of the second inning, Kurt Suzuki lined a two-run shot over the...

Game 73 lineups: Nats vs. Phillies

Game 73 lineups: Nats vs. Phillies
They got through the opener of today's doubleheader without incident, the skies remaining clear and the field dry throughout the Nationals' 6-2 win over the Phillies. Now they're hoping for similar good fortune in the nightcap of this day-night doubleheader. The forecast has steadily improved throughout the day, though there does remain a chance of rain later tonight. The Nats are confident enough in the forecast to send Max Scherzer to the mound, broken nose, black eye and all. Talk about...

Corbin hopes for bounce back from rough patch (Nats win 6-2)

Corbin hopes for bounce back from rough patch (Nats win 6-2)
Nationals starter Patrick Corbin has been desperately looking for a solution for a recent rough patch. The left-hander has not won a game since May 25, looking to snap a three-game losing streak. Corbin was able to get started well, inducing a pair of flyouts to Jean Segura and Bryce Harper. But Scott Kingery got a hold of a 1-2 83 mph Corbin slider over the left field wall for his ninth homer of the season to give the Phillies a 1-0 lead. The Nats quickly tied the game up at 1-1 in the bottom...

Home run derby breaks out early (Nats fall 10-3)

Home run derby breaks out early (Nats fall 10-3)
It's been home run derby to begin Saturday's matchup between the Nationals and Diamondbacks. Arizona's Ketel Marte took the first pitch of the game from Stephen Strasburg over the left-center field wall for his 18th homer of the season. Later in the first inning, Adam Jones smacked his 13th of the season, a solo shot for a 2-0 lead. The Nationals quickly answered against D-backs starter and Broad Run (Va.) High School alum Taylor Clarke in the bottom of the first. Trea Turner legged out a...

White Sox hit Strasburg early for big inning (Nats win 9-5)

White Sox hit Strasburg early for big inning (Nats win 9-5)
Tuesday's series opener against the Chicago White Sox did not start off well in the first frame for Nationals right-hander Stephen Strasburg. The White Sox scored four runs by RBI singles from James McCann and Eloy Jiménez, and two-out, two-run single with the bases loaded by the No. 8 hitter Yolmer Sánchez. Strasburg finally got out of the inning, but the damage was done. As he walked off the mound, Strasburg let home plate umpire Mike Everitt know he did not appreciate some borderline...

Marlins see Scherzer well early on again (Nats fall 3-2)

Marlins see Scherzer well early on again (Nats fall 3-2)
The Marlins have been able to see Nationals right-handed starter Max Scherzer fairly well to begin, connecting on five hits in the first three frames, with at least one single in each inning. Miami did the same thing to Scherzer in the teams' first meeting April 20 at Marlins Park, scoring three runs on six hits in the first three frames. The Marlins won that game 9-3. On Memorial Day, Neil Walker was 2-for-2 with an RBI single to score Garrett Cooper in the top of the third. Scherzer has...