Even with Sunday’s extra-inning loss to Philadelphia, courtesy of a blown save by Jonathan Papelbon, the Nationals are still doing quite well, thanks. At 9-2 and four games ahead of Philadelphia, they have the best record and biggest division lead in all of baseball. That seems light years ahead of last season, when they struggled …
Category: Washington Nationals (Current Franchise)
Washington Nationals (Current Franchise)
Apr 04
Five questions the Nationals need to answer this season
Many Nationals fans are still feeling the sting of disappointment from 2015, when preseason World Series predictions dissolved in a cloud of injuries, disappointing performances and clubhouse dissension. The Nats finished out of the postseason and watched as the NL East rival New York Mets stole their division, playoff and pennant dreams. For all but …
Sep 28
Nationals’ season sinks to unthinkable low
How did it come to this? Six months after after Bryce Harper essentially called out a World Series championship in the preseason, the Washington Nationals were eliminated from postseason contention with more than a week to play. Despite Harper’s MVP-caliber season and Max Scherzer‘s Cy Young-caliber first half, the defending National League East champions haven’t …
Sep 14
Nats won’t be judged by 2015 failure, but how they respond
It seems like a natural instinct to judge based on failure, especially in baseball. So it might be easy to label the Nationals as a failure for falling short of their own expectations and those of many fans in the 2015 season. But it’s often in failure where success is born, and that’s how the …
Sep 07
With the season on the line, who would you rather be?
For baseball fans, the season’s final weeks can be a manic-depressive time when fortunes turn on a dime. At least that’s how it’s been for followers of the Washington Nationals. We’ve gone from hope to despair and back so many times in the past few weeks, it’s hard to count. Remember that awful Western road …
Aug 31
Nats get most from Werth in the leadoff spot
When the Nationals learned Friday that leadoff man Denard San would have hip surgery and miss the rest of the season, it was certainly discouraging news. Without Span’s .365 OPB and base-stealing potential atop the lineup, the team’s offense takes a severe hit, and with it their chances to catch the New York Mets in …
Aug 24
Encouraging signs spark memories of Nats’ 2014 run
Funny how quickly your outlook can change. A week ago, many Nationals fans were calling for manager Matt Williams’ head, for the team to cut bait on Jayson Werth and the $42 million the team still owes him through 2017, and for the benching of Anthony Rendon, who had gone more than two weeks without …
Aug 17
Just like 2013, Nats falling short, but they’re not out of it
Nationals fans across the internet seem to be in full panic mode after a four-game sweep at the hands of the San Francisco Giants. The team fell below .500 for the first time since May, and failed to gain ground on the NL East-leading New York Mets, who were swept at home by Pittsburgh. Among …
Aug 10
Zimmerman’s big weekend, and memories of Frank Howard
If there was a silver lining in last weekend’s series loss to the Colorado Rockies, it’s that Ryan Zimmerman appears to have fully recovered from the plantar fasciitis that has sidelined him for much of this season. The Nationals first baseman has hit safely in four straight games and seven of his last nine, and …
Aug 03
Crazy deadline day for ex-Nat Morse
Baseball fans love the thrill of the trade deadline as players move from one team to another, sometimes in head-spinning fashion. One guy whose head may still be spinning from the flurry of deadline deals is former National Michael Morse, who was a member of three different teams, and went from East Coast, to West …
