New Potomac manager Matt LeCroy was introduced and Washington Nationals assistant general manager Bryan Minniti served as the keynote speaker at the 16th annual Potomac Nationals Hot Stove Banquet at the Hilton in Springfield, Va., on Sunday night. LeCroy was promoted in the offseason after guiding Single-A Hagerstown last year. A lot of those prospects will again be under his tutelage now at Single-A Potomac of the Carolina League. "It is a challenging league," LeCroy noted. "I...

Potomac defeats Winston-Salem 2-1 to win Carolina League championship series 3-1 from Pfitzner Stadium in Woodbridge. Bill Rhinehart and Tyler Moore with RBIs and Marcos Frias didn't allow an earned run as the P-Nats stunned the Dash, a team that had won 12 out of 20 meetings between the clubs during the regular season. Frias went five innings, allowing just four hits and one run with no walks and four punch outs. Joe Testa pitched two and two-thirds innings not allowing a base hit for...

Bill Rhinehart and Jose Lozada slammed home runs and Jimmy Barthmaier escaped two jams to lift Potomac to a 10-2 dismantling of Winston-Salem in Game Three of the Carolina League Championship Series at Pfitzner Stadium in Woodbridge. The Nationals lead the series 2-1 with Game Four Friday night at 7:03pm. The P-Nats need one victory to secure their second Mills Cup title in the past three seasons. Rhinehart smacked his round tripper in the 1st inning and added a two-run double. Lozada...

The Potomac Nationals face off against Winston-Salem tonight in a critical Game Three of the Carolina League Championship from Pfitzner Stadium in Woodbridge, VA. The Nationals got back in the best-of-five Mills Cup with a 5-3 win Tuesday in Winston-Salem to even the series at 1-1. Nationals right-hander Jimmy Barthmaier takes on Winston-Salem right-hander Terry Doyle, with first pitch at 7:03 p.m. Barthmaier won his last four decisions to end the regular season for the P-Nats, going 4-1...

July 20 was not a day that Jamar Walton likes to remember. It was the day the Kansas City Royals released the outfielder from Advanced-A Wilmington. The former fourth-round selection had struggled to a .200 batting average in 59 games with the Blue Rocks. Then in mid-August the Nationals were in need of outfield depth. Chris Curran, Nick Moresi and Edgardo Baez had all helped out in the outfield. Walton added another clutch bat and strong defense to keep the P-Nats rolling. The 6'4",...

The Potomac Nationals have advanced to the Carolina League championship series which begins tomorrow in Winston-Salem. It is the second time in the past three seasons the team have reached the Mills Cup Championship. The franchise is going for their fourth league title. The P-Nats defeated Frederick 10-3 in Woodbridge to win the series 3-1. Bill Rhinehart went 2-for-4 with a double and 3 RBI, while Nick Moresi, Chris Curran and Tyler Moore each added a pair of RBI and Marcos Frias went five...

Potomac Nationals first baseman Tyler Moore continues to have a career year with 28 homers and 102 RBI, guiding the P-Nats to challenge for the Northern Division title in the second half of the season. The franchise record for RBI is 113 by Troy Farnsworth in 2000. Moore has 16 games remaining to break that record. It is hard to believe this is the same guy that was hitting .195 almost three months into the season. Since then, he has hit 18 homers and won the Carolina Player of the Week...

Potomac Nationals catcher Derek Norris joined us on the set of MASN's Nats Xtra to talk baseball Sunday and said he welcomes the challenge of recent acquisition Wilson Ramos. "You are going to face competition somewhere along the line at every level," the 21-year-old said. But he's not down about the trade as it pertains to his future with the Nats. The Wichita, KS product has been hitting the ball very well since recovering from a couple of injuries earlier in the season. He is batting...

Potomac Nationals pitcher A.J. Morris has recovered from getting hit by a line drive and pitched well in late July. Now, the talented young hurler will skip a start because of a high inning count. Morris has been placed on the seven-day disabled list. Morris was supposed to start tonight but will be replaced by Adrian Alaniz in the rotation. In three starts since July 15, the 23-year-old right-hander has gone 2-0 with a 1.29 ERA, allowing only two earned runs over 14 innings, seven hits,...

Many question the depth the Washington Nationals have in their minor league system for field players. Names such as Chris Marrero, Danny Espinosa and Michael Burgess are usually mentioned. It might be time to add first baseman Tyler Moore to that list. The 2008 draftee out of Mississippi State has been scorching it at the plate. As one coach told me, Moore is "locked in right now." The 23-year-old first baseman from Brandon, Mississippi went 21-39 (.538) with nine doubles, seven...

This Potomac Nationals third baseman wears #11, and his dad is a General in the United States Air Force, but 25-year-old Robby Jacobsen is making a name for himself in Woodbridge with his outstanding play. Jacobsen is truly a homegrown talent. The 6'1", 205-pounder was drafted by the Nats in 2006 and went to school, played baseball and is now an offseason volunteer coach at George Mason University. Robby's father, Kevin J. Jacobsen, is a general in the United States Air Force and in...

Potomac Nationals left handed pitcher Evan Bronson is coming off one of his best starts of the year Thursday against Lynchburg. Bronson went 5.1 innings, scattering five hits, allowing no runs, no walks and striking out three batters. 23-year old Bronson is a 6-3 195-pound lefthander out of Trinity College was selected in the 29th round of the 2009 draft. Last season, Bronson was 3-0 with an 0.55 ERA for Vermont and was named a mid-season All-Star. I caught up with the Midlothian, VA...

WOODBRIDGE, Va. --- Potomac Nationals 21-year-old catcher Derek Norris is gradually recovering and feeling better after getting hit in the head by a 95 mile per hour fastball Friday during a game in Salem, Virginia. Norris was taken to the hospital Friday after being hit on the batting helmet by a pitch, according to a release from Potomac. Norris lay motionless on the field for nearly 10 minutes after he was hit. By the end of the night, Norris was conscious and moving his extremities at the...

The rough early season for the Harrisburg Senators offense is starting to show with the moves the team is making. Unfortunately, the Nats have given up on outfielder Michael Daniel. Daniel batted only .182 with no homers and just 2 RBI in 19 games. The University of North Carolina product was a seventh round selection in the 2005 first year player draft. Bill Rhinehart has been transferred to Potomac after batting .196 in 28 games. Pedro Lopez has been promoted to Syracuse, but he is...