Patrick Reddington: Morse is missed, but Krol and Cole are impressing

Patrick Reddington: Morse is missed, but Krol and Cole are impressing
Mike Rizzo reluctantly parted with 2010 fourth-round pick A.J. Cole in the December 2011 trade with the Oakland A's that brought Gio Gonzalez to the nation's capital in return for Cole, left-hander Tom Milone, right-hander Brad Peacock and catcher Derek Norris. Given a chance to reacquire Cole a year later when the Athletics got involved in three-team talks with the Nationals and Seattle Mariners, Rizzo pulled the trigger on a deal that brought the 21-year-old Cole back to the organization...

Patrick Reddington: What now for Jonathan Papelbon?

Patrick Reddington: What now for Jonathan Papelbon?
In five appearances out of Washington's bullpen, new closer Mark Melancon has thrown five scoreless innings, striking out seven and allowing just one hit from the 16 batters he's faced. Acquired from the Pittsburgh Pirates to take over as the Nationals closer, Melancon has provided exactly what he was expected to. "He's not doing anything different than he was before we got him," Dusty Baker told reporters earlier this week. "He doesn't give up a lot of hits... very few walks, and he has...

Patrick Reddington: All eyes again on Strasburg in Cleveland

Patrick Reddington: All eyes again on Strasburg in Cleveland
Stephen Strasburg's second major league start took place in Cleveland's Progressive Field on June 13, 2010. After a dazzling 14-strikeout major league debut at Nationals Park, the Nats and Strasburg took the show on the road. The game between a 31-33 Nationals team and a 25-37 Indians team was picked up on a national broadcast solely because Strasburg was going to be on the mound. In the first two games of that three-game weekend set, the Indians drew 22,041 Friday night and 19,484 Saturday...

Patrick Reddington: Looking at the Nats' new double play combination

Patrick Reddington: Looking at the Nats' new double play combination
Before the decision was made to place him on the disabled list, the questions about Danny Espinosa's injured wrist and shoulder and lack of production at the plate distracted from the fact that he wasn't the only Nationals middle infielder struggling offensively. Over at short, Ian Desmond, who started the month of May at .299/.315/.542 saw his line drop to .261/.295/.448 as a result of a .220/.273/.370 month of May in which he hit six doubles and three home runs while striking out 25 times...

Patrick Reddington: Mark Melancon credits cutter for his career success

Patrick Reddington: Mark Melancon credits cutter for his career success
With a scoreless ninth inning last night in Atlanta, new Washington Nationals closer Mark Melancon has retired 23 of the 27 batters he's faced since he was acquired from the Pittsburgh Pirates. When the 31-year-old right-hander has talked about the turning point for him in his career, he's pointed to the development of his cutter, as he did in an MLB Network Radio interview following the trade that brought him to the Nationals last month when he was asked what changed for him once he got to...

Patrick Reddington: New wave of arms looming in Nats' minor leagues

Patrick Reddington: New wave of arms looming in Nats' minor leagues
On Wednesday morning at McCormick Field in Asheville, N.C., 22-year-old 2011 third-round pick Matt Purke made his first start of the season for the low Single-A Hagerstown Suns. It was just the fourth professional start for the 6-foot-4 left-hander and one-time Texas Rangers first-round pick who failed to sign with Texas, went to college instead and suffered a shoulder injury, which caused his stock to drop and left him available for selection by the Nationals when the 96th pick of the 2011...

Patrick Reddington: Baker feels Nats are on verge of breaking out offensively

Patrick Reddington: Baker feels Nats are on verge of breaking out offensively
Stephen Strasburg in on the disabled list with right shoulder soreness. Joe Ross is still working his way back from shoulder inflammation, though there were positive reports on the right-hander on Thursday. Sammy Solis is on the DL with a left shoulder issue and likely a couple of weeks away from a return. Oliver Perez is dealing with back tightness, but reportedly available. Before beating the Orioles on Thursday, the Nationals had lost four straight and six of 10 games. Nationals skipper...

Patrick Reddington: Zimmermann right at home in nation's capital

Patrick Reddington: Zimmermann right at home in nation's capital
Nothing against Jordan Zimmermann's stats away from Nationals Park, but the starter from Auburndale, Wis., has been even more impressive in his adopted home in the nation's capital so far in 2013. The Nationals right-hander, who turned 27 yesterday, is 3-2 with a 1.91 ERA, four walks (0.96 BB/9) and 29 Ks (6.93 K/9) in five starts and 37 2/3 innings pitched away from the nation's capital early this season. Opponents have a .193/.225/.281 line against Zimmermann in his road starts. In D.C.,...

Patrick Reddington: Can Strasburg become Nationals' "Big Train"?

Patrick Reddington: Can Strasburg become Nationals' "Big Train"?
Walter Johnson was born in Humboldt, Kan., in November 1887. In 1905, the future Washington Senator and his family lived in southern California, where, as Los Angeles Times writer Chris Dufresne noted in a 2008 article, the Fullerton Union High Indians pitcher first made a name for himself. "Johnson attended Fullerton Union High long enough to have, in 1905, struck out 27 batters in a 15-inning game against Santa Ana High," Dufresne wrote. Two years later, after he'd moved to Idaho and been...

Patrick Reddington: Rizzo on the Schrock-Rzepczynski deal

Patrick Reddington: Rizzo on the Schrock-Rzepczynski deal
After drafting Max Schrock out of the University of South Carolina in the 13th round of the 2015 First-Year Player Draft, the Washington Nationals signed the infielder to a $500,000 bonus, which MLB.com's Jim Callis noted was the highest bonus after the 10th round to that point. In a 46-game stint with the New York/Penn League's Auburn Doubledays in 2015, the 20-going-on-21-year-old put up a .308/.355/.448 slash line with 10 doubles, four triples and two home runs in 186 plate appearances. At...

Patrick Reddington: The Nationals' next wave

Patrick Reddington: The Nationals' next wave
In explaining the Nationals' willingness in recent years to part with top pitching prospects like Tom Milone, Brad Peacock and A.J. Cole (who was eventually reacquired), Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo told reporters in early 2012 that there was enough pitching in the system for him to feel comfortable making the type of deal that brought then 26-year-old left-hander Gio Gonzalez back from the Oakland A's. "I like our depth," Rizzo said. "We've got another wave of prospects coming,...

Patrick Reddington: In Rizzo we trust

Patrick Reddington: In Rizzo we trust
Redundancy isn't always a bad thing in spite of the negative connotations often associated with the word. In the case of the Washington Nationals' roster, it's actually a key to the way Nats GM Mike Rizzo, and general managers league-wide admittedly, construct their teams. The defending NL East champs have multiple closers for example. If 33-year-old veteran Rafael Soriano has had too much work, the Nationals can turn to the likes of Drew Storen, their '09 first-round pick who saved 42...

Patrick Reddington: Strasburg's latest injury not the worst-case scenario

Patrick Reddington: Strasburg's latest injury not the worst-case scenario
Considering what the worst-case scenarios could have been, the diagnosis of a strained flexor mass for Stephen Strasburg was relatively "good" bad news. It's still a significant blow for the Washington Nationals and their 28-year-old starter, of course. "It's very good to know," Dusty Baker told reporters after the official announcement of the results of the MRI on Strasburg's elbow. "I met with our trainer Paul Lessard and we discussed it extensively and everybody was pretty satisfied...

Patrick Reddington: How I learned to stop worrying and love Henry Rodriguez

Patrick Reddington: How I learned to stop worrying and love Henry Rodriguez
From the start of spring training, Nationals manager Davey Johnson preached patience. Henry Rodriguez, who led the league in wild pitches in 2011 and managed to throw 10 in 29 1/3 innings of work in 2012, continued his wild ways this spring, but the Nats' 70-year-old skipper said it was just a matter of time before the right-handed reliever figured things out. Rodriguez's 2012 campaign saw him temporarily assume the closer's role and save nine games before flaming out rather quickly and...

Patrick Reddington: Long season taking a toll on Wilson Ramos

Patrick Reddington: Long season taking a toll on Wilson Ramos
Dusty Baker spent quite a bit of time before and after the first two games of the now-completed three-game set with the visiting Mets talking about the offensive struggles of Nationals catcher Wilson Ramos. Ramos, 29, was 4-for-28 (.143/.200/.179) over the first eight games in September, with a double, two runs batted in, two walks and nine strikeouts in 30 plate appearances. The rough stretch left the soon-to-be-free agent with a .259/.299/.414 line, six doubles, seven home runs, 25 RBIs, 10...

Patrick Reddington: Joe Ross takes a cautious first step

Patrick Reddington: Joe Ross takes a cautious first step
In spite of their needs in the rotation, with Stephen Strasburg currently unavailable, the Nationals resisted the urge to rush 23-year-old righty Joe Ross back. Dusty Baker was excited about the idea of adding Ross to the mix after he missed more than two months working his way back from right shoulder inflammation. "I've heard guys around the league tell me that when he's right, he's as nasty as any young pitcher in the big leagues," Baker said last week before Ross pitched in the majors...

Patrick Reddington: Severino thrust into different role with Ramos injury

Patrick Reddington: Severino thrust into different role with Ramos injury
Pedro Severino caught Max Scherzer for the first time on Aug. 3rd in Arizona's Chase Field. Scherzer talked after the outing, an eight-inning start in which he allowed four hits and three earned runs, striking out 11, about getting to know the 23-year-old rookie and getting comfortable with Severino behind the plate. "It was great," Scherzer told reporters. "He did a great job behind the plate of getting me in rhythm and trying to get on the page with me and get some sequences right. "When...

Throwback Thursday: Three home runs, one ballgame

Throwback Thursday: Three home runs, one ballgame
With six seasons of hitting 20 or more home runs and two Silver Slugger Awards, Ryan Zimmerman is no stranger when it comes to hitting balls out of the park. On a spring evening in Baltimore, Zimmerman proved just how powerful he is by crushing three different pitches to three different parts of the ballpark. Relive the excitement of Zimmerman's first career three-homer game in the video below. Your browser does not support iframes.

Throwback Thursday: A sendoff for a homegrown kid

Throwback Thursday: A sendoff for a homegrown kid
Earlier this week, the Nationals acquired right-hander Doug Fister from the Tigers in exchange for infielder Steve Lombardozzi, and left-handers Ian Krol and Robbie Ray. Despite the excitement surrounding Fister joining the Nats rotation, many D.C. fans were sad to see Lombardozzi go. The kid from Atholton High School always seemed to be a fan favorite around Nats Park. In honor of his time with the Nationals, we're throwin' it back to one of Lombo's memorable moments. In this highlight...

Throwback Thursday: A walk-off homer for Thanksgiving

Throwback Thursday: A walk-off homer for Thanksgiving
Everyone has Thanksgiving traditions, and for most families, those include sitting around the television watching football. On a day where football takes center stage, I thought we'd throw it back to a moment that reminds us of our love and passion for baseball. What better way to do so than with a walk-off home run? With the Nationals holding onto hope in the playoff race, Bryce Harper gave D.C. a reason to keep buzzing with a game-winning shot. Relive the excitement in the video below and...