Wire Taps: Washington Nationals And Stephen Strasburg Try For Seventh-Straight Win In Arizona.

• With a win tonight the Washington Nationals can top their season-high win streak. The Nats have now won six-straight games going back to the third game of four they played with the Miami Marlins in Nationals Park before heading out on the road to start the current 10-game road trip. It's the second time the Nationals have won six-in-a-row. From June 8th through 13th, the Nats swept the Boston Red Sox and Toronto Blue Jays in back-to-back series on the road then headed home for a big matchup with the New York Yankees in which they themselves were swept. The three-game series with Arizona begins with Stephen Strasburg on the mound against the D'Backs' Trevor Cahill. As Arizona Republic writer Nick Piecoro discovered, it's not the first time the two right-handers have faced off, though they were in high school the last time they met up (West Hills vs Vista: Stras lost, Cahill K'd 13). At 9:40 pm EDT tonight they face off again. Until then, you guessed it. Links and lots of them... starting RIGHT NOW!!!:

• THE BIG STORY!!!:

• "Before the interview ended, [Dave] Jageler asked [Jayson] Werth about his decision to come to Washington before the 2011 campaign." - "Jayson Werth says Nats are ‘starting something great’" - Dan Steinberg, DC Sports Bog - The Washington Post

• NATS BEAT:

• "Bryce Harper dressed quickly Wednesday night. His argument with home plate umpire Angel Hernandez was sure to get top billing on SportsCenter and MLBNetwork." - "Bryce Harper gets day off, reflects on strike-zone scuffles" - Amanda Comak, Washington Times

• "After posting a .282/.354/.472 batting line in the first half, [Bryce] Harper has hit .176/.276/.265 since the All-Star break." - "Harper not frustrated by recent hitting woes" - Adam Berry, nationals.com: News

• "[Bryce] Harper insisted that, no, he is not frustrated with his performance or statistics, only with the idea that his at-bats last night affected his teammates." - "Is Bryce Harper getting different treatment from umpires?" - Adam Kilgore, Nationals Journal - The Washington Post

• "'When they know they're going to get two, three inches off the plate it's good to pitch like that,' Harper said of pitchers not giving him much to hit." - "Bryce Harper talks about his argument with Angel Hernandez and more" - Amanda Comak, Washington Times

• "Jordan Zimmermann continues to develop not only into a front-line pitcher for the Nationals but into one of the best pitchers in the National League." - "Encouraging/discouraging" - Mark Zuckerman, NatsInsider.com

• "[Stephen] Strasburg, meanwhile, continues his creep toward an abbreviated end to his season." - "Washington Nationals at Arizona Diamondbacks - August 10, 2012" - Mike Fiammetta, MLB.com Preview

• "Astros’ loss to Nationals puts them on pace to hit 110 losses" - Zachary Levine, Ultimate Astros/Houston Chronicle

• "Regardless of the reason, it's about time those outside of the nation's capital start taking notice of what Jordan Zimmermann is doing this season." - "Nationals Pastime: Starting to really hit their stride"- Dan Kolko, MASNSports.com

• "Gio Gonzalez swung, and the ball took off toward the infamous Crawford Boxes at Minute Maid Park in Houston." - "Nationals' rotation getting in the swing of things" - Brian McNally, WashingtonExaminer.com

• "Over the course of the season’s first four-plus months, Nationals manager Davey Johnson has called Jordan Zimmermann a 'man out there,' 'a bulldog,' and, after his performance Thursday night, 'a bear.'" - "Nationals-Astros: Jordan Zimmermann building Cy Young-worthy resume" - Amanda Comak, Washington Times

• "Thursday night at Minute Maid Park, [Jordan] Zimmermann gashed through the Houston Astros, lifted the Washington Nationals to a 5-0 victory and added to his case as a potential Cy Young Award candidate." - "Nationals vs. Astros: Jordan Zimmermann, Michael Morse lead Washington to sixth straight win" - Adam Kilgore, The Washington Post

• "If Michael Morse was looking for a way to extend his hitting streak to 18 games, hitting a ball to Dallas probably will do." - "Nationals Pastime: Zimmermann back in the saddle again (Nats sweep Astros)" - Dan Kolko, MASNSports.com

• "[Jordan] Zimmermann gave up four earned runs in five innings his last time out, snapping an impressive run of dominant outings." - "Washington Nationals at Houston Astros - August 9, 2012" - Adam Berry, MLB.com WSH Recap

• "With 37 road wins, the Nationals have the most road victories of any major league team. Next closest? Try Baltimore and Atlanta, with 32 each." - "Nationals' schedule turns in their favor after San Francisco (with notes)" - Byron Kerr, MASNSports.com

• "Michael Morse homered twice, Jordan Zimmermann matched his career high with 11 strikeouts and the Washington Nationals completed a four-game sweep of the Houston Astros..." - "Nationals complete four-game sweep of Astros" - Kristie Rieken, WashingtonExaminer.com

• "VIDEO: LaRoche's present & future" - Mark Zuckerman, NatsInsider.com

• "The Nationals are a bully now, and over the past week they’ve acted like it." - "The Nationals are looking down on the rest of the majors" - Adam Kilgore, Nationals Journal - The Washington Post

• Your Daily Message From The Dalai Lama On Twitter (@DalaiLama): "When we develop a sense of concern for others' well-being then the very basis of anger is no longer there."

• NATS MINORS:

• Class-A Short Season Auburn: "Auburn broke a 3-3 tie in the sixth when 3B Carlos Lopez leadoff the inning with a single to right." - "Doubledays trample Spikes, 5-3" - Eli Pearlstein, Auburn Doubledays News

• Class-A Short Season Auburn: "Although Doubledays starter Ivan Pineyro had trouble keeping his pitches down, he went six innings for his second win of the season." - "Relievers dominate: Henke, Self blank Spikes in final three frames to guide D-days to win" - Jeremy Houghtaling, The Auburn Citizen

• Class-A Hagerstown: RiverDogs 4, Suns 3 - Billy Burns 2 for 4, 1 R; Blake Schwartz - 5.0 IP, 7 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 4 BB, 3 K's - Hagerstown Suns Scoreboard

• Class-A Potomac: Pelicans 11, P-Nats 2 - Anthony Rendon 2 for 4, 1 3B; Robert Gilliam - 4.0 IP, 7 H, 10 R, 9 ER, 2 BB, 2 K's, 3 HR's - Potomac Nationals Scoreboard

• Double-A Harrisburg: Senators 1, Flying Squirrels 2 (13 Innings) - Tim Pahuta - 2 for 1, 1 2B, 3 BB; Trevor Holder 5.0 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 3 BB, 4 K's - Harrisburg Senators Scoreboard

• Triple-A Syracuse: The Syracuse Chiefs, the Triple-A affiliate of the Washington Nationals, won their third straight game with a 6-3 win over the Pawtucket Red Sox on Thursday afternoon." - "Five-run third leads Chiefs past Red Sox" - Syracuse Chiefs News

• Triple-A Syracuse: "Line of the Day: Carlos Rivero, 3B - 1-for-4, 2B, R, 2 RBI, K - Even though his average dipped down to .309, Rivero is tied for second in the International League in batting. He is 14 points behind Gwinett’s Jose Costanza." - "Another solid start, another Chiefs win (Perez held hitless, Rivero No. 2 in IL in batting)" - Ben Meyers, The Auburn Citizen

• "These next two months are critical to [Carlos] Rivero's career. Out of options and only 24 years old, Rivero is close to getting his shot, either with the Nationals or with another team next season." - "Syracuse's Rivero realizing the time is now, hits stride at plate" - Byron Kerr, MASNSports.com

• "Friday’s News & Notes" - Luke Erickson, NationalsProspects.com

• NATSTOWN:

• "Jordan-esque" - Nats Enquirer

• "A half-century before guiding the Nats to MLB’s best record, Johnson showed some high-school swag." - "Davey Johnson’s high school yearbook photo" - Dan Steinberg, DC Sports Bog - The Washington Post

• "August 10, 1901 - The Nationals and A’s divide an eventful doubleheader in Washington. In game one, a 9-4 Washington win, Win Mercer of the Nats becomes the first AL pitcher ever to steal home." - "This Date in Washington Senators History – Walter Johnson’s wild fastball knocks Ossie Vitt unconscious" - Art Audley, D.C. Baseball History

• "The Washington Nationals walked away with a four-game sweep of the Houston Astros on Thursday evening but shutting them out 5-0." - "Nats Sweep Series With Astros Behind More Great Pitching" - Joe Drugan, The Nats Blog

• "The kind of success the Nationals are seeing this year isn't even a once-in-a-generation thing. It's more like several generations." - "The last Washington pennant race in 1945" - Nationals Buzz: Marty Niland, MASNSports.com

• "The Nats lazily beat up on the poor Astros like a Top 5 NCAA basketball team winning a couple back to back 10 pt games vs small in-state colleges." - "Sweep! Now stop playing like that!" - Harper, Nationals Baseball

• "Last night, Shark was catching fire! In the series finale against the Houston Astros, The Shark gave Bryce Harper a rest and started in CF and batted 2nd." - "Shark Jumps, Hits, Steals, and Bunts Way to Victory" - Sharkadina

• "Happy Birthday, Wilson Ramos" - Cheryl Nichols, District Sports Page

• "While the Houston Astros are terrible, I still feel pretty good about the Washington Nationals sweep of them." - "Zimmermann, Morse lead Nats win to finish Astros sweep" - William F. Yurasko, William World News

• NL EAST UPDATES:

• Mets: "It’s a scene the Mets have become all too familiar with. They fall out of playoff contention in the second half and are left with trying to find other accomplishments." - "Dominant Dickey helps Mets snap nine-game Citi Field losing streak" - Dan Martin, NYPOST.com

• Braves: "Like most everything else in his life, Jason Heyward’s 23rd birthday celebration started a little early." - "Birthday boy Heyward growing from all his experiences" - Carroll Rogers, Atlanta Braves

• Phillies: "The Phillies, theoretically, have three lineup holes to fill for 2013." - "Amaro doesn't have many options at third for Phillies in 2013" - Matt Gelb, Philadelphia Inquirer

• Marlins: "R.A. Dickey did a number on Jose Reyes, not to mention the rest of the Miami Marlins." - "NEW YORK: Mets, R.A. Dickey stifle Miami Marlins 6-1; Jose Reyes’ streak ends" - Clark Spencer, MiamiHerald.com