All the ballplayers whose careers ended in D.C.

All the ballplayers whose careers ended in D.C.
A total of 370 players have appeared in at least one game for the Nationals since 2005. Some of them were longtime stalwarts who are forever associated fondly with this franchise. Some were only here for a year or two as part of successful careers with multiple clubs. And some of them played for a while in Washington and then never played in the big leagues again. Actually, more than some of them fit that last description. Would you believe at least 127 of the 370 players in Nationals history...

Strasburg on track, Rizzo on contract, Hellickson retires

Strasburg on track, Rizzo on contract, Hellickson retires
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - Like Max Scherzer the previous day, Stephen Strasburg threw 56 pitches during his bullpen session Friday morning. Like Scherzer, he felt perfectly normal. Like Scherzer, this winter and spring really won't be all that different from prior ones, despite all the extra pitches Strasburg threw last fall. "I mean, you try and take the same amount of time off, and then you get right back into it and treat it like another routine," the right-hander said. "So I got the...

Ross will start Tuesday's doubleheader opener

Ross will start Tuesday's doubleheader opener
Tuesday's doubleheader against the Phillies has loomed on the Nationals' schedule for three months now, and so too has the question of who would make a cameo appearance to start that game. The answer came today from bench coach Chip Hale, who revealed Joe Ross will get the ball for the 1:05 p.m. twinbill opener, with Max Scherzer making his regularly scheduled start in the 7:05 p.m. nightcap. Hale, subbing for Davey Martinez in meeting with reporters pregame while the manager had some...

Doolittle and Zimmerman return, but in lesser roles for now

Doolittle and Zimmerman return, but in lesser roles for now
The first wave of September call-ups for the Nationals includes four players returning from injury, three position players to provide some bench depth and zero traditional relievers. The Nats added seven players to the active roster before today's series finale against Marlins, activating Sean Doolittle, Ryan Zimmerman, Jeremy Hellickson and Austin Voth off the injured list and recalling infielder Adrián Sanchez and outfielder Andrew Stevenson from Double-A Harrisburg, plus catcher Raudy...

Decision looming for final spot in rotation (Nats trail 6-5)

Decision looming for final spot in rotation (Nats trail 6-5)
Rotation depth, such a problem area for the Nationals last season and early this season, hasn't been an issue over the last month. That's thanks to the lights-out performances of Erick Fedde and Joe Ross, who have allowed the Nats to continue to thrive even while Max Scherzer has been on the injured list. Now, though, the organization faces a surprisingly tricky decision with Scherzer close to returning from his back injury. And the potential return of two other right-handers from long-term...

Adams can pinch-hit, Zimmerman swings in cage (Nats fall 5-4 in 10)

Adams can pinch-hit, Zimmerman swings in cage (Nats fall 5-4 in 10)
Nationals manager Davey Martinez said injured right-hander Jeremy Hellickson is in West Palm Beach, Fla., conducting sim games this week as he recovers a right shoulder strain. He's been on the shelf for 61 games. "He's down in spring training (facility)," Martinez said. "Today was his day (for sim game). Today I think he threw a sim game. Then he's scheduled to throw another one possibly this weekend." Martinez believes there is a possibility that Hellickson's next step would be minor...

One more outing for Rosenthal before decision (Nats down 5-4)

One more outing for Rosenthal before decision (Nats down 5-4)
SAN DIEGO - It looks like the Nationals will send Trevor Rosenthal to the mound one more time for Harrisburg before making a final decision whether to bring the erratic reliever back to the majors or cut ties with him. Rosenthal pitched back-to-back games at Double-A on Tuesday and Wednesday, the first time he's done that since beginning a rehab assignment four weeks ago. Manager Davey Martinez said the right-hander will take a couple days off, then is scheduled to pitch again this...

Hellickson shut down with sore shoulder (Nats up 14-4)

Hellickson shut down with sore shoulder (Nats up 14-4)
ATLANTA - The Nationals have shut down Jeremy Hellickson from throwing after the right-hander was continuing to experience shoulder soreness while on the injured list. Hellickson, who went on the IL on May 21 with a strained right shoulder, was already throwing long toss that afternoon and believed he could keep himself sharp during what he hoped would be a brief stint off the active roster. But the right-hander wasn't responding to the throwing sessions as well as he wanted, so the club...

Hellickson lands on IL with shoulder strain (updated)

Hellickson lands on IL with shoulder strain (updated)
NEW YORK - Just as their lineup is returning to health, the Nationals rotation is losing pitchers to injury. Jeremy Hellickson became the latest Nats starter to land on the 10-day injured list this afternoon, sidelined with a strained right shoulder in a transaction that opens up a roster spot for newly acquired reliever Javy Guerra. Hellickson had not previously revealed any arm trouble to reporters, but the veteran right-hander said today he has been dealing with minor discomfort for several...

Hellickson believes mechanics to blame for choppy loss

Hellickson believes mechanics to blame for choppy loss
The night got off to a slow start for the Nationals and Jeremy Hellickson. Then the Nats rallied to make a game of it, but were unable to take that final step, and fell 6-5 to the Chicago Cubs in the series finale. Hellickson walked the first three batters he faced and struggled to get into a groove. The Cubs scored a run against him in each of his three innings, highlighted by Anthony Rizzo's homer and hits from Jason Heyward and Albert Almora Jr., plus a sacrifice fly for Kyle...

Game 46 lineups: Nats vs. Cubs

Game 46 lineups: Nats vs. Cubs
Even with losing the series opener to the Cubs, the Nationals have once again put themselves in position to win a series. Early in the week against the Mets, the Nats lost the lidlifter, then roared back for two wins in a row. On Friday, they lost to Chicago to begin the series, but won 5-2 on Saturday. Right-hander Stephen Strasburg had a calming influence on the Nats pitching staff with one of his best starts of the season: eight innings, allowing four hits, two runs (one earned) with no...

First-inning mistakes doom Nats in loss to Mets (updated)

First-inning mistakes doom Nats in loss to Mets (updated)
It takes an awful lot for the Nationals to win a baseball game these days. It takes excellent starting pitching. It takes timely hitting from a lineup that seems to only score in one inning per contest. It takes effective work from the majors' least effective bullpen. And it takes clean defense, an occurrence most clubs can assume will be on display most nights but for this team represents the clear outlier. The Nats pretty much can't afford for any one of those four things to go wrong in...

Mistake in field sets up Ramos' grand slam (Nats down 5-2)

Mistake in field sets up Ramos' grand slam (Nats down 5-2)
The Nationals opened a key homestand this evening needing to play clean baseball and get things off on the right foot. Three batters into their series opener against the Mets, they couldn't turn a routine double play. And three batters after that, they gave up a grand slam to a former teammate and fan favorite. Yep, things are going swimmingly so far tonight on South Capitol Street. Wilson Ramos' grand slam off Jeremy Hellickson gave the Mets a 4-0 lead before many in the crowd had even...

Game 41 lineups: Nats vs. Mets

Game 41 lineups: Nats vs. Mets
There's a ballgame being played tonight in Washington, and that in and of itself is good news for the local club, which last set foot on the turf here 12 days ago. The Nationals have a six-game homestand against the Mets and Cubs, and they'll try to get things off on the right foot tonight against a New York team that has lost 10 of its last 16 and is facing an important week itself. The Nationals lineup is healthier than it was the last time they played here, with Anthony Rendon and Juan...

Nats not afraid to increase Fedde's workload in new role

Nats not afraid to increase Fedde's workload in new role
LOS ANGELES - Right-hander Erick Fedde is adjusting to his new role with the Nationals after being a starter for most of his first four-plus seasons in pro ball. Fedde, 26, started 67 of the 85 appearances he has made with the Nats in their minor league system since 2015. The 2014 first-round selection from Nevada-Las Vegas rehabbed from Tommy John surgery to get back to a regular starting role in 2016. After building through the minors, Fedde made three starts for the Nats in 2017, and then 11...

Lifeless Nats fall into early hole, get swept for first time (updated)

Lifeless Nats fall into early hole, get swept for first time (updated)
MILWAUKEE - No matter how agonizing the losses have been up to this point, the Nationals have been able to legitimately say they played hard and walked off the field at the end of the day confident that a lack of effort was not the issue. They had to answer that question, though, after today's 7-3 loss to the Brewers, even after a last-ditch rally in which they brought the tying run to the plate in the ninth inning. The outcome of the game was understandable, but the manner in which they came...

Game 36 lineups: Nats at Brewers

Game 36 lineups: Nats at Brewers
MILWAUKEE - The Nationals haven't been swept in any of the 11 series they've played to date. For all their woes, they've managed to go 8-3 in series finales and 5-0 when facing a potential sweep. So that's what's at stake this afternoon at Miller Park, where the Nats have dropped two in a row despite getting dominant starts from Max Scherzer and Stephen Strasburg. Obviously, they could use a quality start out of Jeremy Hellickson today. But as we've seen, that's not enough. They have to...

Critical pitching decision backfires in Nats' 4-2 loss (updated)

Critical pitching decision backfires in Nats' 4-2 loss (updated)
PHILADELPHIA - It doesn't happen every single night, but on occasion a major league manager faces a critical pitching decision in the latter innings of a tight ballgame, one that is likely to impact the outcome of the contest. Sometimes the pitchers involved get the job done and reward the manager for his decision-making process. Sometimes they fail and the manager is left to explain why he did what he did. Tonight, in the aftermath of an agonizing, 4-2 loss to the Phillies, Davey Martinez had...

Game 31 lineups: Nats at Phillies

Game 31 lineups: Nats at Phillies
PHILADELPHIA - We're only five weeks into the season, but the Nationals already are making their second trip to Citizens Bank Park. In something of a scheduling quirk, they'll have faced the Phillies eight times before they ever see the Braves for the first time in 2019. This is also the start of an odd but difficult road trip that also features stops in Milwaukee and Los Angeles before the Nats come home. Suffice it to say, this is going to be a challenge. As you know, the Nationals are...

Adams' titanic blast in 11th caps Nats' big comeback (updated)

Adams' titanic blast in 11th caps Nats' big comeback (updated)
It took just about every ounce of intestinal fortitude the Nationals had in them just to get into position to win this afternoon, whether overcoming an early six-run deficit, asking their three youngest players to ignite a rally with a historic trio of homers or asking a couple of longtime rotation prospects to deliver a bunch of scoreless innings out of the bullpen. It was an impressive display of gumption on the Nationals' part. But it still left them in an uncomfortably familiar position:...