Patrick Reddington: Wilson Ramos is still the future behind the plate

Patrick Reddington: Wilson Ramos is still the future behind the plate
The plan at the start of the season was for Kurt Suzuki and Wilson Ramos to split the catching duties while Ramos recovered from the devastating knee injury that brought an abrupt end to his 2012 campaign. Ramos was 25 games into his second full season with Washington after the Nationals acquired the highly regarded backstop from the Minnesota Twins in a deadline deal in July 2010 when he went down with the injury. Coming off a .267/.334/.445 season in his first full year in the majors in...

Long rehab behind him, Ramos eager to get back to work

Long rehab behind him, Ramos eager to get back to work
Catching a new pitcher for the first time might seem like a challenge. For Nationals catcher Wilson Ramos, who returned from the disabled list today to form a battery with rookie right-hander Taylor Jordan, the new alignment might help keep his mind off the left hamstring injury that kept him out of the lineup since May 15. "It was a long rehab for me. ... I'm excited to be back," Ramos said Thursday morning in the Nats clubhouse. "For me, I feel like I can help the team a little bit. I...

Strasburg on lack of run support, Harper on the drop

Strasburg on lack of run support, Harper on the drop
Stephen Strasburg has gotten the lowest run support of any starter in the major leagues this season, at 2.44 runs per game. The Nationals have scored more than three runs in just three of his 16 starts, including tonight's 4-0 loss to the Brewers. Strasburg has now allowed two earned runs or fewer in last eight starts (and one earned run or fewer in seven of those eight), but it hasn't mattered. Still, despite having just four wins to go along with his 2.24 ERA - a mark that's sixth-best...

Storen will focus on holding runners, controlling pitches after loss

Storen will focus on holding runners, controlling pitches after loss
A lot happened to Nationals reliever Drew Storen to make everything unravel in Tuesday's four-run eighth inning for Milwaukee. On paper, it was a pair of doubles, and a pair of singles that did him in, as Milwaukee turned a tight pitchers' duel into a 4-0 victory. But it was how quickly it all changed for Storen and how Milwaukee attacked his delivery to the plate - to gain extra bases - that was so shocking. Brewers outfielder Logan Schafer led off with a single and then stole second...

Hearing from Gonzalez, Suzuki and LaRoche

Hearing from Gonzalez, Suzuki and LaRoche
NEW YORK - The roller-coaster season continues. A big win Friday, a downer of a game Saturday in which the Nationals scored just one run and a dominating showing in a 13-2 victory today. The Nats' pitching has been pretty consistent the last couple months, but the offense sure hasn't. Today, the Nats exploded offensively, to the point that the Mets ended up sending catcher Anthony Recker to the mound in the ninth, looking for someone to just eat an inning and save their bullpen in what they...

Injury updates for Wilson Ramos and Ryan Mattheus

Injury updates for Wilson Ramos and Ryan Mattheus
Manager Davey Johnson had injury updates for catcher Wilson Ramos and right-handed pitcher Ryan Mattheus. Ramos has been on the disabled list since May 16 with a hamstring injury. He had a setback last week running the bases but Johnson said the catcher is making better progress this week. "I keep reading the reports every day that he is catching bullpens, taking batting practice, he is running the bases," Johnson said. "We are just being very cautious because he was injured a second time...

Plenty of postgame notes and quotes after Nats' 6-2, 11-inning win

Plenty of postgame notes and quotes after Nats' 6-2, 11-inning win
PHILADELPHIA - Had the Nationals not rallied from a run down in the top of the ninth inning, had Jayson Werth not tied the game against Jonathan Papelbon with two outs, the bus ride from Philly back to D.C. would've been a quiet and long one. With a loss tonight, the Nats would have fallen three games below .500 for the first time this season. They would've dropped eight games behind the Braves. They would've finished their road trip 3-6, including losses in each of their last four...

A big-time defensive play (Nats lose 4-2)

A big-time defensive play (Nats lose 4-2)
PHILADELPHIA - Denard Span's offensive numbers this season certainly aren't where he'd like them. Span's .256/.312/.349 slash line entering tonight's game is well below his career line of .281/.353/.385 across the board. But even though he's had his issues offensively and has battled a bruised foot for much of the last six weeks, Span hasn't let his defense suffer. The Nationals center fielder again showed what he brings to the table defensively in the fifth inning tonight, charging a...

A deeper look into the offensive offense

A deeper look into the offensive offense
The Nationals have certainly faced their share of tough pitchers this season. They got beat by Johnny Cueto, who had a 2.17 ERA prior to landing on the DL. They suffered losses at the hands of Adam Wainwright and Shelby Miller, two insanely talented Cardinals hurlers. Mets righty Matt Harvey pushed the Nats around in New York, and they got dominated by Clayton Kershaw out in Los Angeles. No shame in that. Plenty of teams have been there. But what's a bit troubling so far this season - in...

Leftovers from last night, plus roster and rotation speculation

Leftovers from last night, plus roster and rotation speculation
ATLANTA - For those who might've been out enjoying their Friday night and didn't catch yesterday's series opener between the Nationals and Braves, you missed quite a bit of action at Turner Field. As we await the details of a roster move that will bring right-handed reliever Erik Davis to the big leagues for the first time in his career and likely force either Bryce Harper or Stephen Strasburg to the disabled list, I've got some bonus quotes from an upbeat Nats clubhouse last night. Craig...

Hearing from Johnson, Stammen and Suzuki after Nats' thrilling 3-2 win

Hearing from Johnson, Stammen and Suzuki after Nats' thrilling 3-2 win
ATLANTA - This is why sports are so great. You look at the line score from tonight's game and see that the Nationals won 3-2 and might assume that it was a nice, quiet, uneventful ballgame. Uh, not exactly. The Nationals lost their ace to an injury after two innings; they had a reliever retire all 12 batters he faced; they had their leadoff hitter smack two triples; they had another reliever hit two batters in an inning; they had their catcher feel like he might have broken his collarbone...

Karns wouldn't let rain delay deter his focus in debut

Karns wouldn't let rain delay deter his focus in debut
The best news of Nathan Karns' young career got even better following his major league debut. After tossing 4 1/3 innings in which he scattered five hits and allowed the hot-hitting Orioles attack only three runs, Karns found out he will get another start for the Nationals on Sunday in Atlanta. "I got the first one out of the way," Karns said. "I am just going to go back to work tomorrow. And do what I do to get back to my next start and go from there." His first major league start was...

Hearing from Johnson, Gonzalez, Suzuki and Zimmerman after Nats loss

Hearing from Johnson, Gonzalez, Suzuki and Zimmerman after Nats loss
It's tough to win games when you score two runs and go 2-for-11 with runners in scoring position. Yet again, the Nationals' offense was unable to get the job done, failing to capitalize on their eight hits (four of which were for extra bases) in today's 6-2 loss to the Orioles. "That's been kinda our M.O.," manager Davey Johnson said. "But we're showing signs of coming out of it, hopefully." Those signs were evident yesterday, when the Nats put up 10 hits on the Phillies, scored six...

Zimmerman and Suzuki on arrival of Nathan Karns

Zimmerman and Suzuki on arrival of Nathan Karns
The Nationals were desperate to get something out of the fifth starter slot this week following the news left-hander Ross Detwiler has been placed on the disabled list with a right oblique strain. The franchise has decided to reach into their system and select Baseball America's No. 5 Nationals prospect to get a shot in the bigs. Manager Davey Johnson revealed after Monday's game that the 2012 Nationals minor league Pitcher of the Year, right-hander Nathan Karns, will be called up from...

Haren strike outs out 10, but two homers are what he remembers against Phillies

Haren strike outs out 10, but two homers are what he remembers against Phillies
As a starting pitcher, when you have a season-high strikeout total and allow just four hits, you have a good chance of winning a game. Unfortunately for the Nationals, Saturday night was not one of those games. Nationals starter Dan Haren struck out 10 batters, but two of the four hits he allowed were back-to-back-homers in the second inning that set the tone for the Phillies. Haren did manage to keep his team in the game. The Nationals were able to come back and tie the game, 3-3, but...

Harper returns, Espinosa, Suzuki sit (with Giants lineup)

Harper returns, Espinosa, Suzuki sit (with Giants lineup)
Tonight's Nationals lineup will feature Bryce Harper. It will not feature Danny Espinosa or Kurt Suzuki. Harper returns to the Nats lineup after missing the last two games with a sore left knee, an injury suffered during his collision with the right field wall in Dodger Stadium a week ago. The 20-year-old will return to his normal No. 3 spot in the order and will play right field. Steve Lombardozzi will hit in front of Harper and will play second base. Lombardozzi will replace Danny...

Deciding on Duke (plus some interesting catching numbers)

Deciding on Duke (plus some interesting catching numbers)
I came across

David Huzzard: Advanced metrics hint that Suzuki would flourish in two-hole

David Huzzard: Advanced metrics hint that Suzuki would flourish in two-hole
Danny Espinosa, Steve Lombardozzi and Roger Bernadina all have something in common - and they shouldn't. Each and every one of them has an under-.300 on-base percentage and all of them have batted second. Overall, Nationals No. 2 hitters are hitting .176/.216/.275. That isn't just bad production, that is horrid. The plan for the Nationals was to have career .267/.361/.460 hitter Jayson Werth in that spot, but that hasn't worked out as Werth moved down in the order when Ryan Zimmerman was...

Suzuki on rough ninth-inning throwing error and subsequent ejection

Suzuki on rough ninth-inning throwing error and subsequent ejection
The last inning was not exactly how catcher Kurt Suzuki wanted it to go. A double steal attempt by the Cubs was set up Alfonso Soriano racing to third base in the top of the ninth of a 1-1 game. Suzuki's throw to third base hit Welington Castillo's bat. The ball rolled into foul territory, which allowed Soriano to score the go-ahead run. Later, a called third strike and subsequent argument with home plate umpire John Tumpane got him tossed. Who could have thought the Nationals appeared...

Suzuki getting the job done on both sides of the ball (Nats break it open)

Suzuki getting the job done on both sides of the ball (Nats break it open)
Kurt Suzuki gave the Nationals the lead in the bottom of the second and then made a tremendous play a half-inning later to ensure the Cubs didn't grab the lead right back. Up with two on and two outs in the second, Suzuki smoked a Jeff Samardzija fastball off the right-center field wall. Ian Desmond and Danny Espinosa both came around to score, giving the Nationals a 2-1 lead over the Cubs. This marks Suzuki's first two-RBI game since April 17. The Cubs came right back with back-to-back...