Nationals re-sign Stephen Drew

Nationals re-sign Stephen Drew
The Nationals bolstered their bench on Thursday, reportedly re-signing veteran infielder Stephen Drew to a one-year contract that could net him up to $4.7 million if he reaches certain incentives. Drew revived his career in 2015, becoming an integral bench piece in Dusty Baker's first year at the Nationals' helm, slashing .266/.339/.524 with eight homers and 21 RBIs in 70 games during a season interrupted by a bout with vertigo that sent him to the disabled list. He played second base,...

Playing the waiting game (Green signs minor league deal)

Playing the waiting game (Green signs minor league deal)
In baseball's olden days - like, maybe, a decade or so ago - we'd just now be hitting the winter doldrums. There used to be a significant number of free agent signings (read: most of them) by the time the calendar turned to a new year. Trades were made throughout the offseason, but most of the wheeling and dealing came in December, a nod to baseball's Winter Meetings and the fact that general managers and front office staff used to spend most of the end-of-year holidays enjoying family...

No. 4 Nats prospect: Wilmer Difo

No. 4 Nats prospect: Wilmer Difo
Shortstop Wilmer Difo was so critical to the Nationals' late-season push that he made the postseason roster and had the final at-bat in the National League Division Series. But he is still a young prospect, and is important to the Nats' infield depth. Baseball America's top 10 Nationals prospects list has him at No. 4. No. 4: SS Wilmer Difo I asked Baseball America national writer Teddy Cahill if they believe Difo is good enough to make the Nats' 25-man roster in 2017. "That is the key...

Murphy reportedly agrees to join Team USA for WBC

Murphy reportedly agrees to join Team USA for WBC
Nationals second baseman Daniel Murphy has reportedly agreed to join Team USA for the upcoming World Baseball Classic, making him the first of the team's position players to commit to the international tournament. Murphy would join right-hander Max Scherzer, who previously accepted an invitation from Team USA manager Jim Leyland, who managed him with the Tigers. The only other Nationals player committed to play in the WBC is left-handed reliever Oliver Perez, who will pitch for his native...

Bryce Harper can stamp his D.C. legacy by staying with Nats

Bryce Harper can stamp his D.C. legacy by staying with Nats
I get the questions a lot. And they center around Bryce Harper. Will he get half a billion dollars on his next deal? Will he stay in Washington and play for the Nationals after 2018? Those were questions posed to me and callers on Tuesday night's "Sportstalk" on NewsChannel 8, as a guest of ABC 7's Robert Burton for the half-hour show. Burton asked me the question on air. I told him I believe Harper would re-sign with the Nats in part because of the long standing relationship between...

Battle already brewing for Nats' final reserve outfield spot

Battle already brewing for Nats' final reserve outfield spot
One of the more interesting positional battles to watch when spring training convenes in six weeks at The Ballpark of the Palm Beaches in West Palm Beach, Fla., will be the second reserve outfielder's spot on the 25-man roster. Barring an injury, it's a pretty good bet that Chris Heisey will be on the roster as a pinch-hitter and a backup to left fielder Jayson Werth, center fielder Adam Eaton and right fielder Bryce Harper. The Nationals will also have shortstop Trea Turner available to play...

How do Nats prospects end up playing in winter leagues?

How do Nats prospects end up playing in winter leagues?
Each offseason, a handful of Nationals prospects get the opportunity to work on their skills and gain valuable playing time experience in winter league competition in the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, Mexico and Puerto Rico. Do the Nationals just send whichever players they want to these teams? Or does the player decide when and where he plays? There is a winter league agreement that's the governing document between Major League Baseball and the winter leagues that mandates how many of these...

Drew Ward continues to produce in first full season for AFL Glendale

Drew Ward continues to produce in first full season for AFL Glendale
Third baseman Drew Ward is tied for second in hitting for the Glendale Desert Dogs with a .333 average after 17 games. Ward and teammate Andrew Stevenson, alongside Garrett Stubbs and Carson Kelly, have played more games than any other D-Dogs. In 117 games this season, the soon-to-be 22-year-old Ward (Nov. 25) demonstrated his power capabilities with 23 doubles, 14 home runs and 56 RBIs for high Single-A Potomac and Double-A Harrisburg. Early in Arizona Fall League play, pitching coach Sam...

Difo makes roster, three lefties in 'pen, no Game 2 starter yet

Difo makes roster, three lefties in 'pen, no Game 2 starter yet
The Nationals' roster for the National League Division Series will include Wilmer Difo on the bench and three lefties in the bullpen. It probably won't include both Clint Robinson and Ben Revere, though, with room only for one of those reserves. Dusty Baker revealed some aspects of his club's roster for the NLDS against the Dodgers during today's news conference at Nationals Park, but the manager couldn't reveal everything. Baker also acknowledged some decisions have yet to be made,...

Werth out of lineup today for "precaution" (Nationals win 2-1)

Werth out of lineup today for "precaution" (Nationals win 2-1)
Jayson Werth insisted late Friday night he hadn't suffered any kind of significant injury when he departed the Nationals' game against the Marlins in the eighth inning with what the club termed "tightness in his back." Werth even went so far as to say: "If I'm not in there tomorrow, I'd be surprised." Well, he's not in there, but the Nationals are still insisting he's not significantly injured. "Jayson's OK," manager Dusty Baker said before today's game. "I think. He just came...

Ross and Lopez demonstrate ability to sustain innings in win

Ross and Lopez demonstrate ability to sustain innings in win
Right-handers Joe Ross and Reynaldo Lopez provided answers to their ability to handle heavy workloads, which could be extrememly beneficial in next week's opening round of the postseason, helping the Nationals past the Diamondbacks 5-3. Ross and Lopez combined to throw 7 2/3 innings, holding the D-backs to three runs. Pedro Severino and Wilmer Difo homered and Michael A. Taylor had three hits and two RBIs as the Nationals earned their 93rd win of the season. The Nationals' magic number to...

Steve Mears: "Next man up" and the postseason roster

Steve Mears: "Next man up" and the postseason roster
The Nationals have been holding tryouts for the postseason roster, and last night, Dusty Baker made some calculated moves, some interesting moves and some moves out of necessity. The moves out of necessity were to replace Bryce Harper and Daniel Murphy, as both are nursing injuries. Then Baker had to replace Wilson Ramos, who left the game with an apparent right knee injury. Baker went to Pedro Severino over Jose Lobaton in what Baker described after the game as "next man up." While you...

Split-second plays go against the Nats in 4-3 loss at Miami

Split-second plays go against the Nats in 4-3 loss at Miami
MIAMI - The Nationals and Marlins went back and forth Monday night, but in the end, Miami delivered the final punch in a 4-3 comeback win. The game turned on a couple of key plays, a hot shot right at center fielder Trea Turner and a baserunning mistake by Michael A. Taylor. Trailing 3-2 in the sixth, the Marlins answered with a double from pinch-hitter Derek Dietrich on a ball that was hit well but appeared Turner might have a chance to catch. Turner was unable to make the play on the hot shot...

Baker, Nats try to process emotional swings after late drama

Baker, Nats try to process emotional swings after late drama
There were no shortage of emotional reactions the Nationals could have tonight in the wake of their wild 4-3, 10-inning loss to the Mets. The final 30 minutes of this game alone ran the full gamut, from despair to hope to flat-out belief to confusion to despair again to hope again to exhaustion in the end. From Dusty Baker's standpoint, the most important reaction to this game was an upbeat one, with reason to think the manner in which his team rallied to tie the game in the bottom of the...

Nationals still mum on Wednesday night's starter

Nationals still mum on Wednesday night's starter
The Nationals are remaining mum about the identity of Wednesday night's starting pitcher, though Dusty Baker hasn't ruled out the possibility of Stephen Strasburg coming off the disabled list to face the Braves. Strasburg appeared lined up to make that start, his first since landing on the DL with a sore elbow on Aug. 21. But the right-hander threw off the bullpen mound at Nationals Park this afternoon, and that's not typically what a pitcher would do the day before he starts. Baker didn't...

Baker on resting five regulars, plus updates on Drew, Solis and Ross

Baker on resting five regulars, plus updates on Drew, Solis and Ross
After a 5-1 loss at the New York Mets last night and an early-morning arrival back in D.C. today, Nationals manager Dusty Baker decided to give five regulars the day off. Baker said he wanted to rest six players today but couldn't because of the depth problem at third base. "Well, five regulars out, I'd have Anthony Rendon out, too, if I had a guy that could play third," Baker said. "Because of ESPN, who I like a lot, that game last night messed us up today because it was already scheduled...

Game 123 lineups: Nats at Braves

Game 123 lineups: Nats at Braves
ATLANTA - It's another steamy day at Turner Field, with (of course) a chance for rain this afternoon as the Nationals and Braves wrap up their four-game series. The Nats, who are already 11-1 against Atlanta this season, are going for a rare, four-game sweep. Anthony Rendon and Jayson Werth are getting the day off. For Rendon, it's his first since July 19. He had started 28 consecutive games at third base. That was necessary in part because Stephen Drew has been on the disabled list, and...

Game 114 lineups: Nats vs. Braves

Game 114 lineups: Nats vs. Braves
It's now Day 6 of the Bryce Harper Stiff Neck Watch, and the end result is the same: He's not in the lineup. You've got to think the Nationals are reaching a critical point in this process. If they can't be certain Harper is on the verge of returning, they're going to have to consider the disabled list. Tonight's series opener against the Braves features Stephen Strasburg on the mound, seeking his 16th victory. He'll be attempting to do that in some of the most extreme weather conditions...

District 34 podcast: Nationals' youth movement and another Giants showdown

District 34 podcast: Nationals' youth movement and another Giants showdown
This week's episode of the District 34 podcast is full of good vibes. The Nationals are coming off a 6-3 road trip that included stops in Cleveland, San Francisco and Arizona. While they split the series against the fellow division-leading Indians and Giants, they took care of business in Phoenix by sweeping the last-place Diamondbacks. The Nats finally had a successful West Coast swing, and it could not have come at a better time entering the dog days of August. They now stand 20 games above...

Rookies Turner, Difo step in and make big contributions in win

Rookies Turner, Difo step in and make big contributions in win
PHOENIX - When the Nationals took the field for batting practice Tuesday afternoon, Trea Turner was expecting to take grounders at second base, where he was scheduled to start. Wilmer Difo was already preparing mentally to come off the bench, perhaps in a key pinch-hitting situation or a double-switch. Then manager Dusty Baker passed along word that Bryce Harper was sick, battling a stomach virus that required IV fluids. So Turner was going to need to play center field, with Difo getting the...