Nats rally late, then fall apart in ninth in dagger of loss

Nats rally late, then fall apart in ninth in dagger of loss
SAN DIEGO - They got the string of clutch hits they needed to tie the game in the seventh. They got a pair of scoreless innings of relief from the two righties who have shown signs of potential as reliable setup men. And then they got the go-ahead run in the top of the ninth with good execution and then a fortuitous wild pitch from the opposition. All the Nationals needed to pull off a solid win over the Padres tonight were three outs from Sean Doolittle. "You go into the bottom of the ninth...

Nats face daily bullpen dilemma: Who's available?

Nats face daily bullpen dilemma: Who's available?
SAN DIEGO - Just as he does after batting practice each evening, Davey Martinez planned to meet with each of his relievers and find how everyone's arm was feeling. Find out who's available to pitch in tonight's series opener against the Padres. And find out if anyone might be unavailable to pitch because of excessive usage the last few days. It's a daily routine, and there's always one or two guys whose status is up in the air, but it felt like there were even more question marks today,...

Doolittle ditches toe tap, returns to peak form

Doolittle ditches toe tap, returns to peak form
ATLANTA - The toe tap was gone. The results were back to normal. Sean Doolittle looked like his old self again Tuesday night during a scoreless bottom of the ninth that preserved the Nationals' 5-4 win over the Braves. He faced four batters, struck out three of them and emerged with his 10th save in a game his team desperately needed. And for the first time in 2019, he did it without his front foot touching dirt before taking his full stride toward the plate. That seemingly innocuous move...

Strasburg dominates for seven, Doolittle closes out Braves (updated)

Strasburg dominates for seven, Doolittle closes out Braves (updated)
ATLANTA - They got the dominant start they needed from Stephen Strasburg. They got both the power and the patience they needed from their lineup to give them a late lead. They got a near-disaster in the eighth inning from one of the usual suspects out of the bullpen. But when they got an overdue clean ninth inning from Sean Doolittle, the Nationals escaped SunTrust Park with a 5-4 victory over the Braves that felt as needed as any victory they've had in a while. "Gosh darn it, that was a...

Updates on Sánchez, Zimmerman, Doolittle and Rosenthal

Updates on Sánchez, Zimmerman, Doolittle and Rosenthal
One uncomfortable theme early in the season for the Nationals has been their inability to win when Max Scherzer starts, going 2-9 in those games. Scherzer has allowed two or fewer earned runs in six of those 11 starts, three or fewer earned runs in nine of those starts. In his first meeting with the Marlins April 20, Scherzer allowed a season-high seven runs (six earned) on 11 hits in a 9-3 loss. Manager Davey Martinez addressed the importance of playing well for Scherzer today as the club...

More on Sunday's win over the Marlins

More on Sunday's win over the Marlins
More on Sunday's 9-6 victory over the Marlins, which gave the Nationals their first three-game winning streak of the season ... * Howie Kendrick's value to this team can't be overstated. The veteran utility man has come through so many times for the Nationals when they've needed him to, and has proven to be so much more than a nice bat off the bench. Kendrick, who got things started Sunday with a solo homer in the bottom of the second and then drove in two more runs in the third, now has 28...

What else can Nats do to prevent ship from sinking?

What else can Nats do to prevent ship from sinking?
NEW YORK - On the heels of a crushing loss that saw their bullpen blow a late lead, the Nationals gathered everyone together inside the visitors' clubhouse at Citi Field and held a team meeting. The message was simple: Even during these trying times, everyone needs to stick together. No finger-pointing. Get through this as a collective unit, not as individuals. All of this happened before Wednesday's crushing loss to the Mets. The Nationals were responding to Tuesday's crushing loss to the...

Doolittle coughs up six runs in shocking loss to Mets (updated)

Doolittle coughs up six runs in shocking loss to Mets (updated)
NEW YORK - Davey Martinez got five outs from three relievers before deciding he couldn't take any more chances. He walked to the mound with two outs in the eighth, signaled for the only reliable arm he has in his bullpen and asked him to protect a one-run lead against the bottom of the Mets lineup. And Sean Doolittle couldn't do it. If the only member of the Nationals relief corps who has been remotely effective all season can't get the job done, what else can Martinez and Co. do? "I'm...

Despite late controversy, Nats pull off 5-2 win over Cubs

Despite late controversy, Nats pull off 5-2 win over Cubs
The Nationals secured a much-needed 5-2 win over the Chicago Cubs on Saturday night, thanks to Stephen Strasburg, big hits from the middle of their lineup and the undeterred Sean Doolittle. Strasburg pitched eight innings for the win. Brian Dozier hit his sixth homer. Juan Soto had two hits and three RBIs. Howie Kendrick also added a run-scoring double as Washington improved to 19-26 to even the series at one game apiece. Controversy slowed up the ending. With Doolittle on in the ninth, Cubs...

More from Barraclough on what's wrong with beleaguered bullpen

More from Barraclough on what's wrong with beleaguered bullpen
The Nationals bullpen has failed this season at times, but the way they gave up the game Friday night was pretty spectacular. When it counted most, the 'pen allowed a whopping nine runs on nine hits. Push back to the seventh inning, and the total rises to 11 runs on 12 hits. It was a miserable night after Max Scherzer had fought back from a slow start of his own to keep his team in the game. When he left, the Nats were down only 3-2. They lost 14-6. Justin Miller, Joe Ross, Kyle Barraclough,...

What yesterday's events mean for tonight's game

What yesterday's events mean for tonight's game
A lot happened Thursday before, during and after the Nationals' 7-6 victory over the Mets. And a lot of it matters heading into this weekend's series against the Cubs, then into next week's road trip to New York. So let's run through several key developments and what it means tonight and beyond ... * Trea Turner is probably coming back tonight. Though Davey Martinez was noncommittal Thursday about the possibility of Turner coming off the injured list, it already seemed likely before the...

Soto takes full BP; Doolittle can handle workload (Nats fall 5-0)

Soto takes full BP; Doolittle can handle workload (Nats fall 5-0)
LOS ANGELES - It looked like normal pregame preparation for left fielder Juan Soto on Friday night, prior to the second game of the Nationals' series versus the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium. That is a very good sign for Nationals manager Davey Martinez and Soto. The slugger is on course to be activated Saturday. He has been on the injured list since May 1 with back spasms. "He's doing good," Martinez said. "He's going to do full activity today. Ground balls, fly balls, hit, on...

Depleted, dejected Nationals pull off dramatic win (updated)

Depleted, dejected Nationals pull off dramatic win (updated)
PHILADELPHIA - They are underachieving, there is no question of that. Their bullpen remains a mess, and their lineup is now in shambles, with regulars dropping like flies and even their backups falling victim to injury. They have dug themselves into a hole in the highly competitive National League East, and they're going to face a devil of a time trying to climb their way out of it, given the state of the roster and the daunting schedule that awaits them. But let's pause for just a moment and...

Soto has MRI for back spasms, results negative

Soto has MRI for back spasms, results negative
The Nationals get ready for a three-game set against the first-place Phillies tonight at Citizens Bank Park, hoping one of their most important hitters can return to the lineup. Left fielder Juan Soto has been a late scratch each of the last two games against the Cardinals. After the Nats' 2-1 win Thursday night, manager Davey Martinez said the team sent Soto for an MRI to see what is going on with his back, worried that it might be an oblique injury. "We definitely wanted (to do further...

Strasburg and Doolittle weave pitching gem in 2-1 win over Cards

Strasburg and Doolittle weave pitching gem in 2-1 win over Cards
Seven starts into the 2019 season, Stephen Strasburg has been the most consistent starter for the Nationals. His last three outings have been exceptional, allowing only three runs in 21 2/3 innings. Strasburg put together another gem Thursday night against the Cardinals, winning 2-1 after both teams waited through a rain delay lasting 2 hours, 32 minutes. He struck out nine to reach 29 punchouts in his last three starts. The right-hander has struck out nine or more batters in four starts this...

On the bullpen's three-game turnaround and Ross' role in it

On the bullpen's three-game turnaround and Ross' role in it
OK, it's only three games on the heels of 25 games with decidedly worse results. It's going to take much more time for the Nationals bullpen to be considered fixed after a disastrous opening month to the season. But that doesn't mean the last three days can't be viewed with optimism, because it's been a night-and-day performance for this beleaguered group. Beginning with Erick Fedde's four-inning appearance Sunday in relief of Jeremy Hellickson, the Nationals bullpen has turned itself...

Grace believes slight adjustment in delivery has led to recent groove

Grace believes slight adjustment in delivery has led to recent groove
Left-hander Matt Grace has been the go-to middle-relief choice by manager Davey Martinez. Grace had some outings that didn't go as well as he would have liked to begin the season, but now is on a streak of no runs allowed in six of his last seven appearances, including three in a row. The only thing about the appearances he would change is the four walks allowed. Grace said he made a couple of tweaks to his delivery that seemed to have helped. He has whittled his ERA down from 20.25 to...

Rare blast off Doolittle spoils Kieboom's debut (updated)

Rare blast off Doolittle spoils Kieboom's debut (updated)
With Max Scherzer dealing and notching his 2,500th career strikeout and Carter Kieboom providing the highlight home run in his major league debut, the Nationals should have had all kinds of reason to celebrate tonight. Even though their bullpen had surrendered another eighth-inning run in agonizing fashion, they still had Sean Doolittle on the mound in the ninth inning of a tie game. How could that scenario possibly turn sour? Welcome to 2019, folks, because it somehow did. Hunter Renfroe's...

Asked to hold slim lead at Coors, Nats bullpen delivers (updated)

Asked to hold slim lead at Coors, Nats bullpen delivers (updated)
DENVER - The Nationals seemed determined to make the four early runs they scored tonight hold up through an entire ballgame. At Coors Field. With the majors' least effective bullpen. A bold strategy, to say the least. And yet somehow they pulled it off. (With a little help from two long-awaited insurance runs via ineffective relief from the opposition.) Behind three scoreless innings from four relievers - some of them used in unfamiliar fashion - the Nationals survived the harrowing late...

Ross big find for bullpen, Dozier connects

Ross big find for bullpen, Dozier connects
MIAMI - Right-hander Joe Ross arrived in a high-leverage situation out of the bullpen Friday night. He threw 96 mph and he threw strikes to get outs. Where have you been this whole season? The Nationals didn't use Ross for 10 days because maybe manager Davey Martinez was waiting for a long-man role for the youngster to materialize, or he wanted to get Trevor Rosenthal on track? But in Friday's 3-2 loss to the Marlins, Davey found out what Ross can do: a lot. Ross ended the Marlins' chances...