KISSIMMEE, Fla. - Hello everybody, and a pleasant good morning to you from central Florida. Glad to be back down here - after a short break - for the duration of the spring. Thanks to Pete Kerzel for holding down the fort in my absence. When last we spoke, the Nationals were only 2 1/2 weeks into camp, having played only four Grapefruit League games. Since then, they have begun to trim their roster, stretch out their starting pitchers and worked everyone into the lineup (including guys like...

Who is the most feared team in the American League postseason? Kansas City is determined to return to a World Series for a second consecutive season, and this year, their run production is better but their rotation is less stable. The Yankees are a wild card team that hobbled to the finish line at the end of the regular season. The Astros, strong all season, stumbled in the first two weeks in September but played well in the final two weeks. The Blue Jays have unbelievable firepower, a deep...

Nationals principal owner Mark Lerner said before Friday's home opener against the Atlanta Braves that his team will not seek a temporary home for spring training while the club tries to work out a deal with the Houston Astros on a possible future joint facility in Florida. "No, I don't think that is the right move," Lerner said. "I think you do it, we do it, and we move on to our permanent spot. It seems painful to go through the last three years what we did to try to find it. The economy...

A couple of right-handers with a ton of experience are looking to break through and get the last one or two slots in the Nationals' bullpen this spring. Former UConn Husky Chad Durbin, who pitched with the Cleveland Indians in 2011, and spent the three previous seasons with the Philadelphia Phillies. He is off to a good start at camp with the Nationals. "(Durbin) looked outstanding, he looked like he had done it before," Menhart said. "He throws nothing straight. He can get that ball...

Nationals right fielder Jayson Werth had his best offensive game in almost a month in Wednesday's finale against the Houston Astros. Werth went 3-for-5 with two doubles and the Nats' only offense, a two-run homer, that erased an early deficit and got the team eventually to extra innings, before Houston won it, 3-2 in 11. Manager Davey Johnson said he believes Werth's aggressiveness has helped him start to get out of his recent struggles and it paid dividends in the rubber match at...

Nationals left-hander Ross Detwiler has had a productive offseason as he recovers from a nagging hip injury that slowed down his 2010 season. Due to the injury, Detwiler was limited to five starts in 2010, appearing in eight games with a 1-3 record and finishing with a 4.25 ERA in 29 2/3 innings. Detwiler has been working out in his native Missouri in the offseason under the direction of Nationals head athletic trainer Lee Kuntz and believes he will be ready to go for spring training. "It...