Winter ball updates on Robles and Barrera, plus other notes

Winter ball updates on Robles and Barrera, plus other notes
Center fielder Victor Robles is hitting well in the first week of Dominican Winter League play, slashing .316 with a .908 OPS. He has one homer, two RBIs and only three strikeouts in 19 at-bats over five games for Aguilas Cibaenas. Emilio Bonifacio is hitting .300 in three games and Wilmer Difo is hitting .250 over five games. Right-hander Paolo Espino did not allow a run for Toros del Este in his first appearance, with one hit, one walk and one strikeout. Espino made his major league debut for...

Nats DFA Bonifácio, option Bourque to get roster to 28

Nats DFA Bonifácio, option Bourque to get roster to 28
In order to get down to the league-mandated 28-man roster by noon ET today, the Nationals optioned right-hander James Bourque to their Fredericksburg site and designated for assignment veteran Emilio Bonifácio. With the return of Wander Suero, Bourque's appearances would have diminished. Bourque appeared in two games, most recently 1/3 of an inning July 28 against the Blue Jays in which he walked Teoscar Hernández and induced a groundout by Cavan Biggio to end the ninth inning. On July...

Nats trying to find the fun while snapping out of losing streak

Nats trying to find the fun while snapping out of losing streak
Ask anyone who was around the 2019 Nationals what turned their season around and you'll get two answers: They got healthy after a rash of injuries devastated the roster in April and early May, and they relaxed and started having fun on and off the field. Five games into the 2020 season, the Nationals are again dealing with the absence of several key players (Juan Soto, Stephen Strasburg, Ryan Zimmerman) for a variety of reasons. And they most certainly don't look like they're having fun on...

Nationals slog through another loss to Blue Jays (updated)

Nationals slog through another loss to Blue Jays (updated)
There's no delicate way to put this: The Nationals are a listless bunch on the baseball field right now. It's perfectly understandable, given the circumstances. They're trying to play through a pandemic. Their top slugger remains stuck in quarantine even though he's passed two official coronavirus tests and several more unofficial ones. Their World Series MVP is sidelined with a nerve injury in his hand. Their face of the franchise is sitting at home watching on TV after opting out of this...

Nats announce 2020 opening day 30-man roster

Nats announce 2020 opening day 30-man roster
The Nationals have announced their 30-man opening day roster for the 2020 regular season, which was overshadowed by the news that outfielder Juan Soto has tested positive for COVID-19 and is on the injured list to begin the season. Soto is not currently showing any symptoms. General manager Mike Rizzo confirmed that Soto is "asymptomatic." Austin Voth has been named the fifth starter to begin the season, while Erick Fedde will pitch out of the bullpen. "Austin Voth will definitely be our...

With 72 hours to go, Nats facing final roster decisions

With 72 hours to go, Nats facing final roster decisions
They've played only one exhibition game, but the Nationals have no choice but to start thinking seriously about finalizing their opening night roster, which must be submitted 72 hours from now. In some ways, this is a trickier proposition than it usually is, given the lack of time and lack of performance to make such player judgments. And yet in some ways it's also a simpler task than usual, because they're allowed to keep 30 players on the active roster for the season's first two...

Nats' 60-man player pool includes first-round picks Rutledge, Romero

Nats' 60-man player pool includes first-round picks Rutledge, Romero
The Nationals this afternoon announced their 60-man player pool for the 2020 season and it includes 2019 first-round pick Jackson Rutledge and 2017 top draft selection Seth Romero. Of the 60 players in the pool, 22 are non-roster invitees. While some teams like the Astros (56) and Red Sox (47) have opted to not announced full 60-man player pools, the Nats have exactly 60 on their roster. Opening night is expected to be July 23 against the Yankees with spring training 2.0 presumably beginning...

State of the Nats roster: Outfield

State of the Nats roster: Outfield
We continue today a periodic look at the state of the Nationals roster at the point spring training was suspended and project how things may look whenever baseball is played again. Up next is the outfield ... We don't know when the Nationals will take the field again as a team, but when that glorious day does arrive, we know exactly how they'll line up from left to right in the outfield. While other aspects of the roster underwent changes big and small over the winter, the outfield remained...

Union creates fund for non-roster players in big league camps

Union creates fund for non-roster players in big league camps
The agreement struck last week between Major League Baseball and the MLB Players Association ensured all players on 40-man rosters would be paid a partial salary even if there's no 2020 season. But what about longtime big league players who aren't currently on 40-man rosters? That group was taken care of Friday when the union voted to establish an assistance fund for players with major league experience who were in spring training as non-roster invitees. The fund will pay anywhere from $5,000...

Baseball America Nats No. 1 prospect: 3B Carter Kieboom

Baseball America Nats No. 1 prospect: 3B Carter Kieboom
No. 1 Carter Kieboom With All-Star Anthony Rendon moving on to the Angels this offseason, top Nationals prospect Carter Kieboom has an opportunity to take over at third base in 2020. Baseball America Nats correspondent Lacy Lusk said prior to spring training that Kieboom has demonstrated he is worth the risk at that important spot. "I think he's certainly worth giving a chance," Lusk said. "But it's good to have that buffer with Asdrúbal Cabrera, sharing time at third. If that's the...

Wrapping up a 3-2 victory

Wrapping up a 3-2 victory
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - Joe Ross knows he's immersed in a battle to be the Nationals' fifth starter. A few more outings like he had Monday in a 3-2 victory over the Marlins and the right-hander might just lock up the spot he covets. Emilio Bonifacio played the hero's role, though it got a little sticky in the bottom of the ninth with the teams knotted at 2-2. Cody Wilson broke for home on what was supposed to be a safety squeeze with Bonifacio batting and was easily tagged out. But Bonifacio...

Versatile Bonifacio has utility role down to a science

Versatile Bonifacio has utility role down to a science
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - Astute fans might recall Emilio Bonifacio's first tour of duty with the Nationals. He played the second half of the 2008 season in D.C., coming over from the Diamondbacks in exchange for reliever Jon Rauch in July and being sent to the Marlins as part of the deal that netted pitcher Scott Olsen and outfielder Josh Willingham about four months later. What does Bonifacio remember about his time as a National on that 59-102 team? "Not much," he laughed. "Wally and...

Nats could go many different ways with 26th roster spot

Nats could go many different ways with 26th roster spot
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - The most significant of Major League Baseball's rule changes for the upcoming season is the three-batter minimum that will now be required for every reliever that enters a game. (With an exception granted for anyone who finishes an inning, even if it's only one batter.) Less discussed but not necessarily less significant is the addition of a 26th man to the active roster. For as far back as any of us can remember, a baseball roster consisted of 25 players. "We're...

Nats invite 22 non-roster players to big league camp

Nats invite 22 non-roster players to big league camp
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - The Nationals have invited 22 non-roster players to participate in big league camp, a group that includes a host of veterans with major league experience and a handful of prospects who aren't yet on the organization's 40-man roster. Among the veterans who signed minor league contracts and were extended big league invitations are: * Javy Guerra, who made 40 relief appearances for the Nationals last season with a 4.86 ERA and 1.248 WHIP and then pitched in a pair of...

Zimmerman speaks out against Astros, Nats sign Bonifacio

Zimmerman speaks out against Astros, Nats sign Bonifacio
The Nationals beat the Astros in the 2019 World Series, and because that is true they will never have to look back at those nine days in late October with any sense of anger or feelings of "What if?" the way members of the 2017 and 2018 Dodgers will for the rest of their lives. Dodgers players and executives have been careful with their public statements in the two weeks since Major League Baseball punished the Astros for electronically stealing signs during their 2017 championship run and...

Is Bonifacio a fit for Orioles?

Is Bonifacio a fit for Orioles?
The Orioles maintain interest in veteran utility player Emilio Bonifacio, but not at his current price. Bonifacio becomes a free agent at 2 p.m. Wednesday if he clears waivers, and teams seem reluctant to pick up his $3.5 million contract. The Orioles won't touch it, according to sources, but he's long been a favorite of manager Buck Showalter and there's definite interest in him. The Yankees are among the other teams with interest in Bonifacio, 28, a switch-hitter who batted a combined...

Clippard's epic battle with Bonifacio signature moment in shutout win

Clippard's epic battle with Bonifacio signature moment in shutout win
Right-hander Tyler Clippard remembered an at-bat like the 14-pitch marathon he endured versus former Nationals infielder Emilio Bonifacio on Friday night. It wasn't last year or when he was starter with the Yankees in 2007. It was this season: the second game at Wrigley Field against the Chicago Cubs. In the eighth inning on April 7, Clippard squared off against outfielder Reed Johnson. The 11-pitch battle ended with a foul tip strikeout to end the frame. On Friday, also in the eighth...