I got some more insight from Team USA hitting coach Mark Harris, who got to work with and watch Nationals prospects Michael Taylor and Lucas Giolito play Sunday in the All-Star Futures Game. Team USA beat team World 3-2 at Target Field in Minneapolis. Harris, the hitting coach at Double-A Harrisburg, had this to say about Taylor's season. Giolito did give up a home run in the game, but he also was able to work through his pitches, get his fastball to 97 mph and gain experience in a big game at...

Double-A Harrisburg Senators center fielder Michael Taylor has made big steps this season at the plate. Taylor is batting .323 through 88 games with 110 hits. Last season, he hit .263. He has 16 doubles, two triples, 18 homers, 27 stolen bases and 54 RBIs. Last season for high Single-A Potomac, he had 10 homers in 133 games. Harrisburg batting coach Mark Harris, who has worked with Taylor for a few seasons on his approach and swing, was the hitting coach for Team USA at the Futures Game on...

Team USA defeated Team World 3-2 on Rangers prospect Joey Gallo's two-run homer in the All-Star Futures Game from Target Field in Minneapolis on Sunday. Double-A Harrisburg center fielder Michael Taylor went 1-for-4 with a single and two strikeouts. Low Single-A Hagerstown right-hander Lucas Giolito surrendered a two-run shot to Puerto Rican shortstop Javier Baez, a top Cubs prospect, that gave the World team a 2-1 lead in the top of the sixth. But Gallo then connected on a dramatic two-run...

The Nationals will announce their 2013 minor league coaching staff and coordinators later today. A club source told MASNsports.com that the biggest changes are two managerial promotions at the Single-A level. Brian Daubach moves from low Single-A Hagerstown to high Single-A Potomac as manager, while Tripp Keister steps up from the Gulf Coast League Nationals to manage the Suns. Hitting coach Mark Harris has been promoted from Hagerstown to Potomac. Former Potomac manager Brian Rupp moves to...

The Nationals family lost a cherished former major league player and valued mentor this week. Boyd Gail Harris Jr., a left-handed hitting first baseman with the New York Giants and the Detroit Tigers from 1955-60, and father of Hagerstown Suns hitting coach Mark Harris, passed away in Gainesville, Va., on Nov. 14. He was 81. Gail Harris played in 437 games for the Giants and Tigers, hitting .240 with 38 doubles, 15 triples, 51 homers and 190 RBIs. In 1958, at the age of 26, Harris played in...

Nationals prospect Matt Skole was named the South Atlantic League Player of the Year today, after racking up 27 home runs and 92 RBIs for the low Single-A Hagerstown Suns this season. Skole told reporters in Zebulon, N.C., what an honor it was to receive the Most Valuable Player award. "I was really excited. It felt great," he said. "I was happy for myself and the way I played in that league. It is a very prestigious award." The 2011 fifth-round selection out of Georgia Tech played 101...

The high Single-A Potomac Nationals used the longball to trip up Salem 7-4 on Saturday. Kevin Keyes, Steven Souza Jr. and Jason Martinson connected on homers for the P-Nats, who have erupted for 32 hits in the past two games. Shortstop Martinson continued to add to his milestone of 100 runs and 100 RBIs in the same season, split between low Single-A Hagerstown and Potomac. With the home run Saturday, he now has reached 101 runs and 103 RBIs. He also has 22 homers and 30 stolen bases in 122...

The Single-A Hagerstown Suns put on another offensive show Saturday night with a 10-8 victory over the Lakewood Blueclaws. A big part of that power display was from outfielder Brian Goodwin, the 34th overall selection in 2011, who smashed two homers and drove in four runs. Goodwin has four homers in the past five games with nine RBIs. It was his first four-hit game of the season. Hagerstown pitching coach Mark Harris said the 21-year-old has made good progress at the plate since returning...

Low Single-A Hagerstown Suns will have four players and their manager represented at the 53rd annual South Atlantic League All-Star Game June 19 at Riley Park in Charleston, S.C. Infielder Matt Skole, catcher Adrian Nieto, outfielder Caleb Ramsey, pitcher Aaron Barrett and manager Brian Daubach have been elected to represent Hagerstown for the Northern Division squad. Skole has been hitting consistently throughout the season, batting .298 with 11 doubles, 12 homers and 53 RBIs in 56...

While in Hagerstown to see Stephen Strasburg rehab, one of the outfield stories that really caught my eye was the power displayed by Kevin Keyes. Keyes is continuing his season at the Nationals' instructional camp in Florida. Single-A Potomac Nationals hitting coach Mark Harris is one of the many coaches at instructs and likes what he sees from the former Texas Longhorn. "I think he opened some eyes with his production," Harris said. "A lot of coaches are anxious to see how he will do at...

The Nationals instructional league begins in late September and the coaching staff will get a chance to teach and mold top catching talent within the organization. Three of the players on this year's instructional roster finished the season with the Single-A Hagerstown Suns: David Freitas, Cole Leonida and Adrian Nieto. Freitas hit .288 with 13 homers, 73 RBIs in 123 games. Georgia Tech product Leonida battled through injuries to play 39 games with two homers and 16 RBIs. Instructional will...

Single-A Potomac Nationals left fielder Destin Hood has played well both offensively and defensively so far this season. His name is always mentioned when the conversation turns to the top prospects in the organization, and for good reason. Hood combines top speed and excellent hands with good contact at the plate. The P-Nats have started the second half with a nice run as they look to defend their Mills Cup title in September, and Hood has been a major part of that surge. Hood has made good...

Single-A Potomac Nationals outfielder J.P. Ramirez crushed his first career grand slam this week as he continues to swing a hot bat with the second half of the Carolina League season underway. You will remember this is the time of year the P-Nats got on an incredible roll last season en route to their second Mills Cup championship in three seasons. The team raced out to 7-6 start to begin the final three months of the season and Ramirez is one of the reasons for that success. The...

Single-A Potomac Nationals second baseman Jeff Kobernus has been named to the 2011 Carolina league All-Star team, replacing his teamate, outfielder Destin Hood. Hood was placed on the disabled list Wednesday with a knee injury. Hood has been recovering from a knee issue and needs some rest. Kobernus has gotten hot at the right time, batting .333 (37-for-111) with 18 runs and 12 steals in the last 28 games. He is batting .266 overall, with 13 doubles, two home runs and 24 RBIs. Kobernus leads...

Single-A Potomac Nationals outfielder Destin Hood has been named to the Carolina League All-Star team that will face the California League All-Stars on June 21 in Modesto, Calif. He is the only P-Nats player this season to garner such an honor. Hood has had a very consistent season at the plate, batting .276, including 13 hits in his last 10 games. Five times in that span, the Mobile, Ala., native, has had multi-hit games. Potomac Nationals hitting coach Mark Harris said, "For Hood to be...

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