• Programming Note: The Washington Nationals have the day off.
• LINKS AND LINKS AND...
• Rare Footage: A newly unearthed 1924 instructional video including Babe Ruth, Ty Cobb, and Walter Johnson was acquired by MLB Productions - Baseball Video Highlights & Clips | MLB Productions' Ruth, Cobb and Johnson film archive - Video | MLB.com: Multimedia
• "This winter the Washington Nationals committed $126 million to right fielder Jayson Werth, but that was just one early step toward relevance for a team that's never had a winning season." - "Spring Training 2011 Question Of The Day: Washington Nationals" - Rob Neyer, SBNation.com
• Nats Beat:
• "'It wouldn’t have gotten as far as it did [with the Nationals] if it wasn’t appealing,' Greinke said." - "Desire to win now kept Greinke from joining Nationals" - Dave Sheinin, The Washington Post
• "'They kind of asked, 'What did you do with the slide step?' and they talked about how irritating it was to face that and how it annoyed the hitters. ... That's priceless feedback." - Storen on Werth and Stairs' advice. - "For Storen, a slide step in the right direction" - Pete Kerzel, MASN
• "'My opinion of our bullpen going into Opening Day hasn't changed a bit. I still feel that we're going to have a productive bullpen, and I like the guys we have.'" - Mike Rizzo on Nats' Bullpen - "Storen gets back on track" Mark Zuckerman, CSN Washington
• SharkNatsTown:
• "Shark Endorsed Products" - Sharkadina, Street Shark: Roger Bernadina's Unofficial Blog
• Your Daily Message from the Dalai Lama on Twitter (@DalaiLama): "Every individual is responsible to help guide our global family in the right direction."
• "A minor league official with knowledge of the situation is more specific about Harper's possible return, saying the Nats' top prospect is, "doing okay and should be back in four or five days." - "Source: Harper could be back on field within a week" - Byron Kerr, MASN
• Henry Rodriguez Project: "In the meantime, Rodriguez has only thrown bullpen sessions with pitching coach Steve McCatty, trying to improve his shaky control." - "Henry Rodriguez shelved to improve control" - Adam Kilgore, The Washington Post
• NatsTown: "Some Behind The Scenes Shots Of The Nats 30-in-30" - DangerNat, Nationals Inquisition
• "Although Ankiel was hitting .182 entering Tuesday's action, the Nationals love the way he plays defense and are willing to deal with his many strikeouts." - "Center-field job likely between Ankiel, Morgan" - Bill Ladson, MLB.com
• "You know, consistency is a key in this game. If I can stay consistent for long enough periods of time, that's what makes you stay even keel throughout the year so it's a good thing." - Michael Morse on consistency - "Lannan and Morse lead Nats over Astros" - Craig Heist, WTOP.com
• "The Day that Ramos is deemed ready to play regularly, that is the day Pudge should become a backup. "How will Pudge take it? Leyland was asking me the same thing yesterday." - "Ask Boswell" - Thomas Boswell Chat, The Washington Post
• NatsTown: Morgan vs Ankiel? "Center Field Battle of Attrition Down to Two?" - Dave Nichols, Nats News Network
• "To see a manager not only come out and protect his players and keep his players from being thrown out of the game, there was nothing fake about it. Jim was really angry." - LaRoche on Riggleman during near brawl with Cards - "LaRoche appreciates Riggleman's support" - Bill Ladson, MLB.com
• NL EAST Updates:
• Braves: "'In a perfect world, you'd like to name one guy, but I can't sit here and say May 15 is going to be the day or June 20.'" - Braves' Manager Fredi Gonzalez - "Braves to Use Venters, Kimbrel as Their Closers" - AP, NYTimes.com
• Mets: "With free agency looming after this season, Reyes clearly knows his best chance at a big payday is not only by staying healthy, but also by becoming a more complete hitter." - "Healthy Reyes says he'll be more patient" - Jim Baumbach - Newsday.com
• Phillies: "The Phillies have played before 123 straight sellout crowds at Citizens Bank Park. The fans' support is intense and electric. It inspires and motivates players. It literally lifts our teams." - "Counterpunching tired cliches about Philly sports fans" - Ed Rendell, Philadelphia Daily News
• Marlins: "Everyone, most of all the Marlins, figured he would have reached the majors long before now. Allison was their first-round pick in 2003, a can’t-miss prospect with a golden arm, Baseball America’s High School Player of the Year." - "Jeff Allison gets a day in the bigs with the Florida Marlins" - Clark Spencer, MiamiHerald.com
"Barry Bonds' former trainer, Greg Anderson, refused to testify as the first witnesses were called in Bonds' perjury trial, and Judge Susan Illston has remanded him to custody for contempt of court. Federal investigator Jeff Novitzky did take the stand on the trial's second day."