• For A Pittsburgh Pirates Fan's Perspective, Check Out The SB Nation's Pirates Site: Bucs Dugout.

Continue reading this post »

According to reports out of Nationals Park this afternoon, 30-year-old Washington Nationals' slugger Michael Morse will be reporting to Viera, Florida tomorrow as he continues to prepare for his return from the DL. Morse had a career year in 2011, posting a .303/.360/.550 line with 36 doubles and 31 HR's in 146 games and 575 plate appearances over which he was worth +3.4 fWAR, but after signing a 2-year/$10.5M dollar extension this past winter, the veteran of seven MLB seasons suffered a lat strain/tear in Spring Training and has yet to take his first major league at bat in 2012. From what the Nationals said this afternoon before the second of two with the Pirates in D.C., Morse's days of shoving shaving cream pies in his teammates faces may soon be over. Or at least his days of doing so while on the DL:

• via the Washington Times' Amanda Comak:

The #nats are still targeting June 8 for Michael Morse's return, but he told Davey he'd be ready when they return home for 6/1 homestand

— Amanda Comak (@acomak) May 17, 2012

• MASNSports.com's Dan Kolko (@MASNKolko on Twitter) added that the Nationals, "will play things carefully with Morse to prevent another setback but there's a possibility he rejoins team as early as 6/1."

• Here's tonight's lineup for the second of two with the Pirates:

#Nats Lineup: @IanDesmond20 SS, Bernadina LF, Zim(n) 3B, LaRoche 1B, Harper RF, @DannyEspinosa18 2B, Ankiel CF, @JesusFloresN26 C, Zim(nn) P

— Washington Nationals (@Nationals) May 17, 2012

• Jordan Zimmermann's on the mound, making his eighth start of the year after a 7.0-inning outing in Cincinnati last week in which he allowed just one run on five hits, walking one and striking out seven. Game time 7:05 pm EDT.

Would Washington Nationals' skipper Davey Johnson have used Henry Rodriguez last night if it had been a one-run game as it was shaping up to be before the Nats added three runs in the bottom of the seventh? He said yes. The 69-year-old skipper told reporters before the game that he might give the right-handed reliever another night off after his recent struggles. We'll never know, of course, because Adam LaRoche's 1,000th career hit, a double, cleared the bases in the seventh and put the Nats up 7-3. Tyler Clippard gave up a run in the eighth to once again turn it into a save situation, and Davey Johnson brought Rodriguez out, but he also had Ryan Mattheus warming, for the Nats beat writer's sake he joked after last night's game, "... so you guys wouldn't get real nervous." The manager said he did get nervous though, turning serious for a moment, "When [Ian Desmond] booted that ball," on an error at short in the first at bat of the ninth. "My heart dropped a little bit," Johnson said. Check the Tweeter, Davey, all of NatsTown experienced the same sinking feeling...

Continue reading this post »

Gio Gonzalez's 10 K's last night gave the Washington Nationals' left-hander the NL lead in K's. He also gave up the first HR he's allowed this year. Adam LaRoche (3 for 4, 2B/HR) collected hit no. 1,000 of his career. Xavier Nady hit HR no.100 of his career. And the Nats' win set themselves up with yet another opportunity, their eighth this year, to sweep a series, even though it's only a two-game set with the visiting Pittsburgh Pirates. Michael Morse, who's working his way back, made news yesterday by interrupting Nady's post game interview, then he took to the airwaves this morning to dispute the stories that were going around yesterday claiming that Stephen Strasburg had gotten "Hot Stuff" in an uncomfortable place during his last start. I had always assumed Strasburg got it in his eyes... Was I missing the joke? One more with the Bucs tonight and then everyone gets to yell, "OOOO" during the national anthem for three days. Yeah!! Links and lots of them... RIGHT NOW!!!!:

• THE BIG STORY!!!:

• "The 25,942 stood and showered him with an ovation. LaRoche offered a small grin — that’s all he’s got in the grin department — and tipped his cap." - "Nationals vs. Pirates: Adam LaRoche stays hot in helping Gio Gonzalez to the win" - Adam Kilgore, The Washington Post

Continue reading this post »

• McCutchen vs Harper: Pittsburgh Pirates' center fielder Andrew McCutchen was 6 for 9 with two home runs and three walks in three games last week when the Washington Nationals visited PNC Park. The 25-year-old '05 1st Round pick waited on an 80 mph 0-1 curve in his first at bat tonight, and ripped a two-out single through short, but Nats' left-hander Gio Gonzalez struck Casey McGehee with a 94 mph 1-2 fastball outside to strand the Pirates' runner at first at the end of a 14-pitch opening inning in front of 25,942 on Military Appreciation Night in the nation's capital.

19-year-old Nats' outfielder Bryce Harper was 2 for 12 with a double in the series in Pittsburgh, and he made headlines for hurting himself when a bat bounced back off a wall he'd struck in frustration and caught him just above the left eye causing a cut which required 10 stitches. Harper's making news doing productive things with his bat these days, however, having homered in each of the last two games and he just missed hitting his third in three when he took an 88 mph 1-1 two-seamer to right and off the top of out-of-town scoreboard just feet from a home run in the Nats' 2010 no.1 overall pick's first at bat of the evening. A ground out to the right side of the infield off Ryan Zimmerman's bat brought Harper in from third, and Gio Gonzalez took the mound in the second with a 1-0 lead. 15 pitches and three K's later the Nats' lefty was through 2.0 scoreless innings on 29 pitches. 1-0 Nationals...

Continue reading this post »

Tonight's game story: ALR gets 1,000th hit in Nats win.

Via FanGraphs

• Minor Stumbles: Gio Gonzalez (+11.4%) goes 7IP with 10 Ks and 2 BBs, but the 3 ER makes it a shaky outing--for him, at least.
• Mr. One Thousand: Adam LaRoche (+28.0%) goes yard in the 6th (+14.9%) and hits a bases-clearing double in the 7th (+15.6%).
• Goon squad (x100): Xavier Nady (+7.1%) continues to defy me, walking and hitting his 100th career dinger (+7.1%).
• Power at the top: Ian Desmond (+4.6%) hits one out to pad the early lead (+10.3%).

• For A Pittsburgh Pirates Fan's Perspective, Check Out The SB Nation's Pirates Site: Bucs Dugout.

Continue reading this post »

The last time Washington Nationals' manager Davey Johnson went with a right-hand heavy lineup to face Pittsburgh Pirates' lefty Erik Bedard, a week ago today in PNC Park, the 33-year-old Bucs' starter left the game after an inning, and a parade of right-handed relievers took over and combined to hold the Nats' bats to two runs on five hits in a 4-2 Pirates' win. Bedard's expected to be back on the mound tonight in Nationals Park for the first game of a quick two-game set in the nation's capital and the Nats' 69-year-old skipper is going with essentially the same lineup he put out there last week, minus catcher Wilson Ramos, of course, who's replaced behind the plate and batting eighth by Jesus Flores.

• Here's tonight's starting lineup for the Washington Nationals:

#Nats Lineup, 5/16: Desmond SS, Harper CF, Zimmerman 3B, LaRoche 1B, Nady RF, Espinosa 2B, Moore LF, Flores C, Gonzalez LHP

— Washington Nationals (@Nationals) May 16, 2012

• There were also some injury updates today, from Nationals Park and from D.C. GM Mike Rizzo this morning on 106.7 the FAN in D.C.'s the Mike Rizzo Show...

Continue reading this post »