Luke Erickson: The season-ticket holder experience in the minors

Luke Erickson: The season-ticket holder experience in the minors
For the past several years of writing online about the Nationals minor leaguers, I've had to make the disclosure that I'm a season-ticket holder to Washington's high Single-A affiliate in Potomac. Well, maybe not "had to," but I've felt the need to as a matter of integrity and my experience as a newspaperman (I'm old enough to have actually cut and paste with an X-acto knife and a wax machine). It's also because the inference that I might be a "homer" because I root for many of these...

Tracking down former Nats position players

Tracking down former Nats position players
Baseball rosters are a constantly changing entity. Teams make moves throughout a season and offseason, calling up this player, sending another player down, trading this one away, signing this one off the open market. In the process, a lot of players who become well-known and popular among fans, teammates and media alike disappear, never to be heard from again in these parts. The Nationals, like every other team in baseball, have parted ways with plenty of once-popular players over the years....

Nats trade Moore to Braves for fellow first baseman Freiman

Nats trade Moore to Braves for fellow first baseman Freiman
VIERA, Fla. - Tyler Moore's time in the Nationals organization officially ended today when the recently demoted first baseman was traded to the Braves for fellow 29-year-old minor leaguer Nate Freiman. Moore had been outrighted to minor league camp Friday evening after clearing waivers, a transaction that kept him in the organization but removed him from the 40-man roster. Two days later, the Nationals and Braves found common ground on a trade for two players with similar traits. Freiman...

Tyler Moore clears waivers, outrighted to Triple-A Syracuse

Tyler Moore clears waivers, outrighted to Triple-A Syracuse
JUPITER, Fla. - Tyler Moore cleared waivers and has been outrighted to Triple-A Syracuse, the Nationals announced this evening. The transaction removes Moore from the club's 40-man roster, though it does keep him in the organization. He also continues to earn his $900,000 major league salary. Moore, 29, has spent parts of the last four seasons playing for the Nationals, appearing in 277 total big league games. He also shuttled back and forth between Washington and Syracuse on a regular basis,...

Nats head south to Jupiter for back-to-back games

Nats head south to Jupiter for back-to-back games
JUPITER, Fla. - The Nationals face a rarity over the next 24 hours: back-to-back road games at Roger Dean Stadium against two different teams. The club isn't staying over, though some have chosen to do so on their own, so the vast majority of guys are either playing one game or the other. One guy who is scheduled to play in both games is Tyler Moore, who for now remains a member of the organization but who might well be claimed off waivers by another club or outrighted to the minors. Moore is...

Morning leftovers on Burnett, Murphy, Moore and Sizemore

Morning leftovers on Burnett, Murphy, Moore and Sizemore
VIERA, Fla. - Some morning leftovers to chew on as the Nationals make the drive down to Jupiter for today's game against the Marlins ... * He's been under the radar a bit, but Sean Burnett continues to impress this spring and is making a serious case for himself three years after he last pitched out of the Nationals bullpen. Burnett tossed a scoreless inning yesterday in Kissimmee, his fourth scoreless appearance of the spring. He has faced 12 total batters, retiring 10 of them. And the only...

At career crossroads, Moore needs to come through in a pinch

At career crossroads, Moore needs to come through in a pinch
VIERA, Fla. - There are certain givens each spring training. A major accident will clog up Interstate 95 when you're trying to pick up the north/south thoroughfare for a road game. A new chain restaurant will open at The Avenue at Viera. The Internet at Space Coast Stadium will fade in and out, usually at the most inopportune time. And Tyler Moore will face uphill odds to make the Nationals' 25-man roster out of camp. This time around, however, Moore has an even more daunting task. He's out...

Observations and quotes from Saturday's workout (with videos)

Observations and quotes from Saturday's workout (with videos)
VIERA, Fla. - Some observations, notes and quotes about today's full-squad workout, the final one before intrasquad games start up Sunday ... * The session opened with a lengthy baserunning clinic run by Davey Lopes. I'll have a full post on this later, but just know the session lasted about 45 minutes and literally covered every base. Lopes started with everyone at the plate, then moved to first base, second base and third base. It was as comprehensive a clinic as I can remember seeing on...

A deep bench is imperative for Dusty Baker

A deep bench is imperative for Dusty Baker
In a week filled with playoff hype for the Redskins, the Nationals will take a slice of the attention today with a press conference - carried live at noon on MASN and MASNsports.com - introducing new second baseman Daniel Murphy. While Murphy, the reigning National League Championship Series Most Valuable Player, represents the biggest offseason acquisition so far, general manager Mike Rizzo has also been busy assembling a new bullpen and adding veteran role players for depth. Besides...

den Dekker hopes for expanded role with Nats in 2016

den Dekker hopes for expanded role with Nats in 2016
Outfielder Matt den Dekker ended the 2015 season on a hot streak at the plate. In the last 26 games (eight starts) he played in September and October, den Dekker hit .298 with five doubles, three homers and seven RBIs. He ended up playing a career high 55 games in 2015, and hit .253 for the season with a career-high OPS of .800. "Personally, for me, I felt good about the end of the season," den Dekker said at Winterfest. "I finished strong, got comfortable in my role I was in, so just...

Tyler Moore working on defense, mental side of game

Tyler Moore working on defense, mental side of game
Tyler Moore signed a one-year deal worth $900,000 to stay with the Nationals through 2016. Meeting with the media at Winterfest this weekend, he was pleased to be back with the team and is eager to contribute. "Feels good to be back," Moore said. "Didn't know if I was going to be with all the changes and stuff. Obviously, it feels great to be back. Didn't know if I was going to be. Just ready to get going and spring will be here before you know it." Before the season starts, the...

#TBT: Tyler Moore takes mound, escapes inning unscathed

#TBT: Tyler Moore takes mound, escapes inning unscathed
The non-tender deadline has come and gone, and seven of eight arbitration-eligible players were tendered contracts. The first to reach an agreement? First baseman/outfielder Tyler Moore. While the 28-year-old saw much of his playing time cut this season, he was part of one of my favorite things in baseball: a position player pitching. As you can probably imagine, I watch a lot of baseball games, which means I see a lot of odd things throughout the course of a season. However, a position player...

Nationals avoid arbitration with Moore, Lobaton (Stammen is lone non-tender)

Nationals avoid arbitration with Moore, Lobaton (Stammen is lone non-tender)
The Nationals have agreed to a one-year, $900,000 deal with first baseman/outfielder Tyler Moore, reaching a pact ahead of tonight's 11:59 p.m. Eastern time deadline to tender contracts to unsigned players. Moore was the first of eight arbitration-eligible Nationals to sign. CBSSports.com was first to report the agreement. The 28-year-old Moore has seen his statistical output and playing time fall over the past few seasons, and he has been unable to replicate the .263/.327/.513 slash line with...

Will the Nationals non-tender any arbitration-eligible players?

Will the Nationals non-tender any arbitration-eligible players?
Tomorrow is another one of those important housekeeping dates on the Major League Baseball offseason calendar. By 11:59 p.m. Eastern time on Wednesday, teams must offer their arbitration-eligible players contracts or non-tender those whose services they're no longer interested in. While some Nationals players have multi-year contracts - think Max Scherzer, Jayson Werth, Ryan Zimmerman, Bryce Harper and other guys who helped push the team's 2015 opening day payroll north of $162 million -...

Matt den Dekker's recent hot streak good sign for 2016

Matt den Dekker's recent hot streak good sign for 2016
It is never easy to jump from the minor leagues straight into the major league fray and exceed. It usually takes a few at-bats, even a few games to get into a groove. But for Matt den Dekker, he smashed that preconception upon his return to the active roster in late August. In two of his first three games back, he notched base hits on a single and a double. Despite an 0-for-4 Tuesday, he has eight hits in his last four games. During that three-game stretch, den Dekker went 8-for-13 with three...

Scherzer's no-hit bid broken up in eighth (Nats win 5-1)

Scherzer's no-hit bid broken up in eighth (Nats win 5-1)
Right-hander Max Scherzer off to a good start against the Reds. Through four innings he has not allowed a hit. Scherzer has struck out five, with at least one strikeout in every inning but the third. He has walked two batters. Tyler Moore made a diving catch on a liner off the bat of Reds left fielder Skip Schumaker in the third. Reds left-hander Brandon Finnegan did well to keep the Nationals off the board until the fourth. Moore singled with one out. Matt den Dekker then lined a double over...

Are Nationals looking to build another home run bat in their system?

Are Nationals looking to build another home run bat in their system?
Since 2010, the Nationals enjoyed a solid run from Tyler Moore, Steven Souza Jr. and Michael A. Taylor, who displayed home run power at the minor league level. Moore hit 107 homers and drove in 435 RBIs in the minors. Souza crushed 93 homers and had 421 RBIs. Taylor launched 51 homers and had 273 RBIs in the minors. Souza is now with the Tampa Bay Rays after a trade that brought starter Joe Ross and shortstop Trea Turner to the Nationals. Moore has been a solid bench bat for a few seasons now...

More Tyler Moore means more runs for Nationals

More Tyler Moore means more runs for Nationals
It hasn't been easy for first baseman Tyler Moore to get a ton of starts or extended playing time this season. But in the final two games of the series against the Marlins, he showed what he can do when he gets consistent at-bats. Moore slammed a three-run shot in the sixth inning, giving him six homers on the season. He also hit a homer Saturday. In his three starts in the series, Moore hit .375 (3-for-8) with a double, two homers, a walk, two runs scored and four RBIs. Manager Matt Williams...

Nats and Orioles set for Beltway Series with slim playoff hopes alive

Nats and Orioles set for Beltway Series with slim playoff hopes alive
The Nationals and Orioles enter their Beltway Series clinging to slim playoff hopes. Baltimore is coming off a crushing 7-6 loss at Tampa Bay where closer Zach Britton blew a save by surrendering two runs in the bottom of the ninth. The Orioles are 5 1/2 games back of the Astros for the second Wild Card spot with 13 games remaining, but they must also leapfrog three teams - the Angels, Twins and Indians - to get there. Meanwhile, the Mets dropped two of three in their Subway Series to the...

10 more strikeouts for Stephen Strasburg in Nats' 13-3 win

10 more strikeouts for Stephen Strasburg in Nats' 13-3 win
Widespread injuries are the main culprit for why the Nationals find themselves on the outside looking in to the playoffs with under two weeks remaining in the regular season. They also account for the primary reasons why Stephen Strasburg won't be mentioned in the Cy Young Award voting despite the dominant form the right-hander has displayed over the past three months. Strasburg's blazing fastball, nasty curveball and baffling changeup handcuffed the Marlins this afternoon. He fanned 10...