The Nationals' 5-1 victory Tuesday night in Miami was never seriously in doubt, but there was perhaps one moment late when it appeared things might tighten up. With two outs and two on in the seventh, rookie reliever Andres Machado had to face Marlins leadoff hitter Miguel Rojas. As any Nats fan who has paid scant attention over the years knows, Rojas is as tough an out as this team ever seems to face. He works long at-bats, gets the bat on the ball, and usually finds empty space to deposit...

Two days after adding two fresh arms to their bullpen, the Nationals added two more, continuing an ongoing attempt to find the right combination of youthful relievers to get them through the remainder of the season. Today's additions: Sam Clay and Patrick Murphy, each promoted from Triple-A Rochester. They replace Gabe Klobosits, who was optioned to Rochester, and Jefry Rodriguez, who was designated for assignment. Clay is no stranger to the Nationals bullpen, having spent the first four...

An inexperienced pitching staff is going to make mistakes. Davey Martinez understands and accepts that. What the Nationals manager has a harder time accepting is a pitching staff that is killing itself not by getting hit by more accomplished hitters, but by handing them free bases over and over and over. It happened during Saturday's loss in Milwaukee, and it happened in even more mind-numbing fashion during today's 7-3 loss to the Brewers. Five Nationals pitchers combined to issue 11 walks...

The Nationals have 40 games remaining in the 2021 season, starting with this afternoon's series finale in Milwaukee. It's hard to believe that we're already this close to the end of the baseball season. Fall is right around the corner. On this week's episode of the "MASN All Access Podcast," Amy Jennings and I set goals for a handful of Nationals players to reach before season's end. I wanted to expand on a couple of those goals and bring up some new ones as things to look out for over...

It was only a matter of time. The Nationals bullpen flirted with danger too often this afternoon against the Brewers and it finally cost them in the eighth inning of a 9-6 loss. Looking for their first four-game winning streak since June 27-30, the Nationals couldn't get pitchers to make pitches when they needed them the most. After a strong showing by starter Paolo Espino, the bullpen arms gave the Brewers two leads in the second half of the game, struggling to protect their own lead or to...

Two weeks ago, if the Nationals held a 7-5 lead heading to the seventh inning, Davey Martinez wouldn't have needed to think too hard about his upcoming pitching decisions. Provided everyone was available, he would've had Kyle Finnegan pitch the seventh, then Daniel Hudson the eighth and Brad Hand the ninth. It wouldn't always have worked, and certainly during those final days before the trade deadline Hand was anything but a sure thing. But the decision-making process that resulted in those...

The Nationals are going to have a say in the outcome of the National League East race this season. Not because they're likely to climb back into contention after trading away eight veterans for 12 prospects two weeks ago. But because the final two months of this season will see them face the three teams still angling for what could be an ugly division title a bunch, and the outcome of those games is going to have a real impact on how everyone finishes in the standings. Just in the last...

The reboot of the Washington Nationals began tonight with a 34-year-old journeyman on the mound, a 22-year-old superstar batting third, a major-league cleanup hitter batting behind him, and a bunch of other assorted parts surrounding them. Some are potential parts of the franchise's future, some are not. It may have left a majority in the crowd of 33,882 sad, angry, intrigued, maybe even excited for the possibilities in a few cases. But this is the new reality for an organization that won its...

Hey, don't forget: There's still a baseball game to be played tonight! After the Nationals made six franchise-altering trades over the last 24 hours that netted them 12 new prospects for eight veterans, manager Davey Martinez's new-look team now has to turn its attention to a three-game series against the Cubs, who will also have a new-look roster. Originally, it appeared that Jon Lester was tonight's scheduled starter, but since he was traded to the Cardinals at the last minute, Paolo...

On Wednesday evening, I made the drive to Wilmington, Del., in order to get my first look at the 2018 Potomac Nationals. In spite of the drizzle and cold temperatures, I came away quite impressed with the collection of talent the Nationals have assembled at their high Single-A affiliate, not to mention the beginnings of a head cold. Right-hander Wil Crowe, Washington's second-round pick last summer and a top 10 prospect, started Wednesday's contest and pitched well despite the conditions,...

Left-hander Ben Braymer made the move from short-season Single-A Auburn to low Single-A Hagerstown in 2017 and got to work a simulated game against Nationals hitters prior to the National League Division Series versus the Cubs at Nationals Park The Auburn product went 5-2 with 3.99 ERA in 65 1/3 innings over 13 games. Braymer, 23, struck out 76 batters and walked only 21 on the season. He surrendered only four homers. I spoke with his teammate, right-hander Gabe Klobosits, about the experience,...

On a scheduled off-day during the Nationals' National League Division Series matchup against the Cubs in early October, a few of the Nats' young pitching prospects got to pitch batting practice at the club's top hitters. One of those prospects was right-hander Gabe Klobosits out of Auburn University. A 2017 36th-round selection, Klobosits, 22, is a big dude, standing 6-foot-7 and weighing 270 lbs. In his first pro season by way of Katy, Texas, he went an impressive 1-0 with a 1.47 ERA in 20...