Lombardozzi playing second, Suzuki hitting sixth

Lombardozzi playing second, Suzuki hitting sixth
Steve Lombardozzi is playing second and hitting eighth for the Nationals today in their series opener against the Phillies, as Danny Espinosa gets a day off. Kurt Suzuki, who normally hits eighth for the Nats, has been bumped up to the No. 6 spot in the order, with the struggling Tyler Moore hitting seventh. The Nats will face right-hander Kyle Kendrick today, he of the 4-2 record and 2.82 ERA. Jordan Zimmermann gets the start for the Nats, looking to improve upon his 7-2 mark and 1.62 ERA...

Desmond hitting cleanup in West Coast finale

Desmond hitting cleanup in West Coast finale
The Nationals will happily put a cap on their rocky 10-game West Coast road trip today when they face the Giants in the finale of this three-game set. Manager Davey Johnson has tweaked his lineup again, moving Ian Desmond into the cleanup spot and bumping Adam LaRoche down to the No. 5 hole in the order against Giants left-hander Madison Bumgarner. Tyler Moore will play left field and hit sixth today. Bumgarner is coming off the worst start of his career; he allowed nine runs his last...

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...

Harper, Desmond out of Nats lineup

Harper, Desmond out of Nats lineup
After a couple days out of town, I'm back in action. Who missed me? Thanks to the MASNsports.com crew for filling in for me recently. Looks like I missed a couple impressive pitching performances. Anyway, enough about me and on to the stuff that matters. Bryce Harper is out of the Nationals lineup again today, missing his second straight contest with a bruised left knee. Ian Desmond will also sit out today, but his absence is merely due to a scheduled day off. This will be the first game...

Jurrjens making O's debut, Arrieta back in Baltimore (with notes)

Jurrjens making O's debut, Arrieta back in Baltimore (with notes)
Jair Jurrjens is set to make his Orioles debut for today's 4:05 p.m. start vs. the Rays. After hitting a three-run home run in last night's game, Chris Dickerson will get another start. He'll DH, batting eighth. Yamaico Navarro will get his second consecutive start at second, batting ninth. He went 2-4 with a triple and a run yesterday. For the Rays Desmond Jennings CF Matt Joyce RF Ben Zobrist 2B Evan Longoria 3B James Loney 1B Luke Scott DH Kelly Johnson LF Jose Molina C Yunel Escobar...

Harper out of Nats lineup again

Harper out of Nats lineup again
The Nationals will have to play another day without Bryce Harper. Harper, the Nats' leader in pretty much every major offensive statistical category, is out of the lineup for the second straight day after colliding with the right field wall Monday night. The collision left Harper with a bruised knee and shoulder, and he'll get another day to rest those - among other - ailments. Denard Span is back in Davey Johnson's lineup tonight after getting most of last night's game off. Steve...

Harper out of Nats' lineup after yesterday's wall collision (Span out, too)

Harper out of Nats' lineup after yesterday's wall collision (Span out, too)
Not surprisingly, Bryce Harper is out of the Nationals' lineup the day after crashing face-first into the right field wall at Dodger Stadium, a collision that left him with a bruised knee and shoulder, as well as 11 stitches in his chin. Harper will miss his third game in the last five days. He sat out last Friday and Saturday's games against the Cubs after having surgery to remove an ingrown toenail. That procedure surely hurt (I had an ingrown toenail removed a handful of years ago, and...

Harper returns to Nats lineup, Lombardozzi playing left

Harper returns to Nats lineup, Lombardozzi playing left
After two days out of the Nationals lineup, Bryce Harper is back in there today, playing right field and hitting third. Harper had a minor surgical procedure Thursday night to remove an ingrown toenail on his left big toe, and he missed the Nats' last two games as he recovered from the operation. He returns for the finale of the Nats' three-game series with the Cubs. Steve Lombardozzi will get his first start in the outfield this season. He'll play left field, replacing Tyler Moore, who...

Harper out of Nats lineup for second straight day

Harper out of Nats lineup for second straight day
The Nationals had hoped that Bryce Harper would be able to return to the lineup today after having minor surgery on Thursday night to remove an ingrown toenail. Instead, Harper is out of the Nats' lineup for the second straight game. Manager Davey Johnson said this afternoon that Harper's big toe is still sore after having an ingrown portion of the nail removed two days ago. "Harp's still a little tender," Johnson said. "He wanted to wait until he hit on the field, and if it's that...

Werth to miss fifth straight game, Bernadina in left (updated)

Werth to miss fifth straight game, Bernadina in left (updated)
Jayson Werth is out of the Nationals' lineup for a fifth straight game with a tight right hamstring. Bryce Harper will play right field again in Werth's absence, and Roger Bernadina will man left field this afternoon against the Tigers. Nationals manager Davey Johnson said that an MRI on Werth's hamstring looked good upon first glance, but team medical director Dr. Wiemi Douoguih will give the test results a more careful examination later today. Werth has been put on antibiotics to try and...

Orioles lineup vs. Royals (plus Gonzalez note)

Orioles lineup vs. Royals (plus Gonzalez note)
Providing the rain now pelting Camden Yards lets up - and there's always a window, as we know - here is the Orioles lineup for tonight's opener of a three-game series against the Kansas City Royals. Nate McLouth LF Manny Machado 3B Nick Markakis RF Adam Jones CF Chris Davis 1B Matt Wieters C J.J. Hardy SS Ryan Flaherty 2B Nolan Reimold DH RHP Wei-Yin Chen Also, Miguel Gonzalez reports that the blister on his right thumb that forced him out of Friday's game after only six innings has...

Span back in Nats lineup, Ramos starts again

Span back in Nats lineup, Ramos starts again
PITTSBURGH - After missing yesterday's game with a sore right ankle/foot, Denard Span has returned to the Nationals lineup for this afternoon's series finale at PNC Park. Span nearly fell to the ground when he woke up yesterday morning, the pain in his lower ankle area having intensified overnight. He got a day of rest yesterday and woke up this morning feeling much better. He'll return to the leadoff spot and play center field. Jayson Werth will miss his third straight game with left...

Still waiting on Nats' lineup

Still waiting on Nats' lineup
ATLANTA - We're still waiting to see whether Bryce Harper and Jayson Werth will find their way into the Nationals' lineup for tonight's series finale against the Braves. The lineup has not yet been posted, likely because team trainers are evaluating one or both of the Nats' ailing outfielders. Harper left last night's game following a check swing in a sixth-inning at-bat. He was diagnosed with a bad bruise on his left side. The Nationals' leader in nearly every offensive category had...

Ramos activated, Suzuki behind the plate again (with lineups)

Ramos activated, Suzuki behind the plate again (with lineups)
ATLANTA - The Nationals have activated Wilson Ramos from the 15-day disabled list, but Ramos is not in today's lineup against the Braves. Kurt Suzuki will start again behind the plate, marking the 15th time in a 16-game span that Suzuki has gotten the nod. He's played every inning of those 15 games. Ramos was sidelined the last 15 days with a left hamstring strain. Jhonatan Solano was optioned back to Triple-A Syracuse to make room for Ramos on the 25-man roster. Solano appeared in three...

LaRoche dropped to sixth in Nats' order

LaRoche dropped to sixth in Nats' order
Mired in an 0-for-22 slump, Adam LaRoche has been dropped to sixth in the Nationals' batting order. In an attempt to get his first baseman going, manager Davey Johnson has bumped LaRoche down a spot in the lineup and moved Ian Desmond up to the five-hole. This is the first time LaRoche has hit as low as sixth in the order since April 11 of last year. Typically a slow starter (he's just a .215 career hitter in March/April), LaRoche is really off to a rough 2013, batting just .143 through 21...

Rendon out of Nats lineup for second straight day

Rendon out of Nats lineup for second straight day
The Nationals are sticking with the lineup that was so effective last night, the one that put up eight runs on 12 hits. Can't really blame them for that. The one guy left on the outside looking in, however, is Anthony Rendon, the Nats' top prospect, who was called up to the majors on Sunday to make his big league debut. The Nationals' initial idea had been to have Rendon in the lineup every day. There was no point in calling Rendon up to the big leagues, they believed, if he was just...

Burnett in the clubhouse (Arrieta sent down)

Burnett in the clubhouse (Arrieta sent down)
Alex Burnett is in the Orioles clubhouse and Jake Arrieta just left Orioles manager Buck Showalter's office. Draw your own conclusions. We were waiting for a roster move, and that could be it. Nothing official yet, but it looks like there is a No. 68 jersey waiting for Burnett. Burnett is a 25-year-old right-hander who was claimed off waivers from the Blue Jays on April 12. Ironically, tonight's opponent is the Blue Jays. He's 8-11 with a 4.61 ERA in 174 career major league games with the...

Zimmerman still missing from Nats lineup, but Espinosa returns (updated)

Zimmerman still missing from Nats lineup, but Espinosa returns (updated)
Ryan Zimmerman's sore left hamstring remains an issue, and the third baseman is again out of the lineup for today's 3:05 p.m. game against the Mets at Citi Field. The game will air nationally on FOX. Zimmerman has not played since being removed from Wednesday's game against the Marlins in Miami, and Chad Tracy is again at third base in his place today. The Nationals, however, get second baseman Danny Espinosa back for today's game. Espinosa missed four games after being struck in the...

Orioles-Dodgers lineups for Friday night

Orioles-Dodgers lineups for Friday night
Left-hander Hyun-Jin Ryu will oppose Orioles right-hander Jason Hammel in tonight's opener of a three-game interleague series at Camden Yards. It's the Dodgers' first visit to Baltimore since 2002 and the Orioles' first series against a National League club this season. Here are tonight's lineups: For the Orioles Nick Markakis RF Manny Machado 3B Adam Jones CF Matt Wieters C Chris Davis 1B J.J. Hardy SS Steve Pearce DH Nolan Reimold LF Alexi Casilla 2B Jason Hammel RHP For the...

Harper returns to Nats lineup; Span, Espinosa still out

Harper returns to Nats lineup; Span, Espinosa still out
The Nationals get the reigning National League Rookie of the Year back in their lineup, but their leadoff hitter and starting second baseman are still sidelined. Bryce Harper returns to the Nationals lineup tonight after missing yesterday's game with flu-like symptoms. Center fielder Denard Span (flu-like symptoms) and second baseman Danny Espinosa (right wrist) will not start tonight's series finale against the Marlins, however. This will be the third straight game that Espinosa has missed...