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Wire Taps: Washington Nationals Head To Atlanta After Getting Shut Out In Baltimore

The Washington Nationals got shut out last night in Orioles Park at Camden Yards and now they travel to Atlanta to take on the Braves in a three-game weekend set in Turner Field. Stephen Strasburg vs Julio Teheran tonight in Hotlanta. So what kind of changes does Davey Johnson have in mind?

By Patrick Reddington

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USA TODAY Sports

The Washington Nationals could muster little offense against 36-year-old, 15-year veteran Freddy Garcia last night in OPACY. Tonight the Nats are in Atlanta where they'll take on 22-year-old, third-year major leaguer Julio Teheran for the third time this season. So far this year, the Nats have connected for 16 hits and scored six runs on Teheran in 11.1 IP against the right-hander, who's won two of his last four starts and held opposing hitters to a .231/.273/.356 line so far in 28.0 IP in May over which he's posted a 2.25 ERA and a 4.03 FIP. It's a big series for Washington in Turner Field this weekend, and everyone in the nation's capital is waiting to see just what kind of changes Davey Johnson has in store after telling reporters after last night's loss that there are likely changes to come. Nothing from the Nats yet today... until there is something new, there are links and lots of them, starting... RIGHT NOW!!!:

• THE BIG STORY!!!:

• "PECOTA, a Baseball Prospectus site, uses computer simulations to project performance. They think the Nats have a 41 percent chance to reach the playoffs and a 3.9 percent to win the Series (down from 11 percent preseason)." - "The Nationals-Orioles rivalry heats up, and fans are all in" - Thomas Boswell, The Washington Post

• NATS BEAT:

• "[Nate] Karns was well-known to scouts growing up in the Arlington, Texas high school ranks, but his college career was erratic due to command problems." - "Prospect of the Day: Nate Karns, RHP, Washington Nationals" - John Sickels, Minor League Ball

• via Twitter:

• "For the first time in four days, Bryce Harper came out to the field Thursday evening and took batting practice with his teammates." - "Bryce Harper, Nationals play a frustrating waiting game as his left knee remains an issue" - Amanda Comak, Washington Times

• "The Nats don't expect to be down two of their starting outfielders much longer, but there's still some uncertainty surrounding when both [Bryce] Harper and [Jayson] Werth will be able to return to action." - "Nationals Pastime: Harper could return tomorrow, Werth likely to miss Atlanta series" - Dan Kolko, MASNSports.com

• "'I think it's lessened enough to where he feels a lot better about it,' [Davey] Johnson said about [Bryce] Harper's knee. 'He says it doesn't bother him to hit, but we're not going to have a DH in Atlanta.'" - "Harper eyes return in series opener in Atlanta" - Tom Schad, nationals.com: News

• "Nationals Manager Davey Johnson said he was targeting a Friday return for Harper in Atlanta." - "Bryce Harper hits, tests knee; Davey Johnson targeting Friday return" - James Wagner, Washington Post

• "If the Nationals don't get healthy soon, and if their inconsistent players fail to improve, manager Davey Johnson might be forced to shake things up." - "Nationals fall to .500 with 2-0 loss to Orioles" - David Ginsburg, WTOP.com

• "Manager Davey Johnson said he wants to see how [Danny] Espinosa fares after resting the hand for a few days and then go from there." - "Davey on Espinosa and Lombo; injury updates" - Chase Hughes, Comcast SportsNet Washington

• "Here they are, after 54 games, precisely a third of the 2013 season, trying to figure out how they could be no better than a .500 team." - "Nationals suffer seventh shutout of season in loss to Orioles" - Amanda Comak, Washington Times

• "After signs of an offensive awakening the past four games, the Nationals were stifled by 36-year-old journeyman Freddy Garcia and his split-finger fastball for eight innings..." - "Orioles 2, Nationals 0: Veteran Freddy Garcia silences Washington bats" - James Wagner, The Washington Post

• "The Nationals are 27-27 after their first 54 games of the 2013 campaign. They just lost three of four to the Orioles, including a 2-0 defeat yesterday that marked their seventh shutout of the season." - "Nationals Pastime: Searching for change" - Dan Kolko, MASNSports.com

• "The hamstring has confounded the Nationals, as [Jayson] Werth suffered a set-back when playing a rehab game two weeks ago." - "Jayson Werth not expected to join team in Atlanta; Davey Johnson monitoring Danny Espinosa" - James Wagner, Washington Post

• via Twitter:

• "First-place Atlanta has dominated the season series thus far, taking five of the first seven meetings and outscoring Washington, 30-13." - "Washington Nationals at Atlanta Braves - May 31, 2013" - Joey Nowak, MLB.com Preview

• "One night after dropping six runs on the Orioles, the Nats couldn't get anything going against 36-year-old Freddy Garcia." - "Instant Analysis: Orioles 2, Nats 0" - Chase Hughes, NatsInsider.com

• "If they lose to the Orioles in the series finale, it will be the seventh time this season they will have a .500 record. Last year, they had a .500 record only once — on April 9." - "When will the Nationals hit their hot streak?" - James Wagner, Washington Post

• "[Freddy] Garcia, whose best days in the majors are well behind him, morphed into a 2001 version of himself tonight, leaning heavily on his nasty splitter that kept the Nationals at bay through eight scoreless innings." - "Nationals Pastime: Nats fall back to .500, know 'it's time to turn it on'" - Dan Kolko, MASNSports.com

• "Nationals outfielder Jayson Werth has played nine innings in two nights on a rehab assignment with Class A Potomac, but manager Davey Johnson said that Werth still felt some tightness in his strained right hamstring." - "Tightness lingers for Werth on rehab assignment" - Tom Schad, nationals.com: News

• via Twitter:

• "[Freddy] Garcia used his split-finger fastball '60 percent of the time,' shortstop Ian Desmond estimated, and the pitcher was on target in beating the Nationals 2-0." - "Haren optimistic Nationals can still get going after hard-luck loss" - Byron Kerr, MASNSports.com

• "In his last three starts, [Stephen] Strasburg has allowed three earned runs and pitched 23 innings, twice pitching a career-high eight." - "Stephen Strasburg taking improved mental outlook into Braves showdown" - Adam Kilgore, Washington Post

• "[Freddy] Garcia had his way with most of the Nats’ lineup, but particularly the bottom of the order." - "Nats' offense shuts down in loss to O's" - Chase Hughes, NatsInsider.com

• "One potential change could be the insertion of utility player Steve Lombardozzi into the starting lineup at second base." - "Potential changes could come to spark Nats" - Tom Schad, nationals.com: News

• Your Daily Message From The Dalai Lama On Twitter (@DalaiLama):

• NATIONAL(S) BEAT:

• "The sweat was dripping off Freddy Garcia's size 54 jersey from the first inning through the eighth." - "Washington Nationals vs. Baltimore Orioles - Recap - May 30, 2013" - AP/ESPN

• "The Washington Nationals would be well-served to forget their disastrous two-game series at Camden Yards that concluded Thursday night." - "Nationals flop against O's, but more telling series awaits" - Matt Slovin, USA TODAY Sports

• "We can't watch Washington Nationals outfielder Bryce Harper for an entire game without comparing him to Los Angeles Angels outfielder Mike Trout." - "Stop comparing Machado, Harper and Trout" - Bob Nightengale, USA TODAY Sports

• "When addressing the media’s questions regarding the hitters he faced, Haren made it a point to say that 'one through nine, anybody can get you,' referring to the scoring ability of the Orioles lineup." - "Dan Haren Says Orioles Have An 'Exhausting Lineup'" - Avi Miller, Baltimore Sports Report

• "Tom Boswell's latest column has a bit in it about the Nationals and Orioles' chances of reaching the playoffs, as calculated by ESPN and Baseball Prospectus." - "Ryan Zimmerman thinks "nerds" should not do playoff projections" Craig Calcaterra, HardballTalk

• "At 27-27, Washington is five games behind last year’s pace that ultimately provided a major league-leading 98 victories and the NL East title." - "Nats May Need Divine Intervention To Prove 2012 Was No Fluke" - David Elfin, CBS DC

• "I’m not a big fan of this whole 'regional rivalry' stuff, because I think it’s a creation and not reality. Good teams battling for supremacy is what builds rivalries." - "Orioles notes and observations (Garcia, team record, Nats rivalry, loving baseball)" - Dan Connolly, baltimoresun.com

• "Freddy Garcia — yes, that Freddy Garcia — dominates the Nats, pitching eight innings, striking out six and giving up only three hits." - "The Juice: The Pirates win another 1-0 game; Mets complete four-game sweep of Yankees" - Mike Oz, Big League Stew - Yahoo! Sports

• NATS MINORS:

• Class-A Hagerstown: Legends 5; Suns 2 - Dixon Anderson - 6.2 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 8 Ks - Hagerstown Suns Scoreboard

• Class-A Potomac: "Potomac RHP Blake Schwartz was effective and came up one out shy of a quality start after tossing 5.2 innings and allowing three earned runs on seven hits with two walks and two strikeouts." - "P-Nats Hammer Red Sox with Assist from Werth" - Potomac Nationals News

• "Playing for the high Single-A Potomac Nationals for the second straight night, [Jayson] Werth went 2-for-3 with two singles, one RBI and one run scored in a 7-3 win over the Salem Red Sox." - "Werth plays into sixth with Single-A Potomac as rehab for sore hamstring continues" - Byron Kerr, MASNSports.com

• Double-A Harrisburg: "Matt Swynenberg pitched five shutout innings in relief for the Senators, throwing 69 pitches, but Harrisburg couldn't push anything across." - "Souza Homers Again But Sens Fall 3-2 in 15" - Marshall Kelner, Harrisburg Senators News

• "A long, frustrating night at Canal Park ended in defeat for the Harrisburg Senators in the 15th inning Thursday..." - "Harrisburg Senators drop 15-inning game in Akron to the Aeros" - Dave Sottile, PennLive.com

• Triple-A Syracuse: "The Chiefs scored four runs in the first three innings, backing a stellar pitching performance by Ross Ohlendorf." - "Ohlendorf, Chiefs shut out Braves" - Syracuse Chiefs News

• "Ross Ohlendorf went seven innings, striking out 11 for the second-straight start, as he allowed just four hits for Syracuse." - "Good things the Chiefs are headed to the road...I might not be allowed in the stadium" - Ben Meyers, The Auburn Citizen

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

• NATSTOWN:

• "The Washington Nationals have asked Brevard County for approval to break their lease at Space Coast Stadium in Viera as early as November 2014." - "Nationals want to break part of Space Coast Stadium lease" - Dave Berman, FLORIDA TODAY | floridatoday.com

• "The Washington Nationals announced that the June 5 game against the New York Mets is being turned into something of a congressional social." - "Nationals Offer Ballpark Venue for Bipartisan Bonhomie" - David Hawkings, Roll Call

• "Davey Johnson, with goatee, looking sad" - Dan Steinberg, D.C. Sports Bog

• "Freddy Garcia — yes, that Freddy Garcia — dominates the Nats, pitching eight innings, striking out six and giving up only three hits." - "The Juice: The Pirates win another 1-0 game; Mets complete four-game sweep of Yankees" - Mike Oz, Big League Stew - Yahoo! Sports

• "Watch Danny and the Shark make a mess of this pop up" - Nats Enquirer

• "After starting 14-4 the Nats went 39-35 in their next 74 games, that's an 85 win pace over almost half a season. Why didn't we quite recognize that?" - "Of streaks" - Harper, Nationals Baseball

• "Week 9 Game 54 Nats @ Orioles" - Lady and the Nats

• "Remembering 1924 – Senators 12, Boston Red Sox 0" - Mark Hornbaker, D.C. Baseball History

• "The Nationals’ lineup was so futile against the O’s two pitchers, only three hitters earned a fourth at bat in the evening. Washington had exactly two innings where more than three hitters came to bat." - "Washington Nationals Game 54 Review: Nats offense hits new low in shutout to Garcia" - Dave Nichols, District Sports Page

• "Jayson Werth P-Nats Photo Buffet" - Dr. W, Nationals Inquisition

• "Matt's Bats Chat with Frankie, the 'Miami Cub Reporter'" - Matt's Bats

• "Welp. That’s pretty much all Washington Nationals fans are left to say." - "Welp is spelled with a curly W" - William F. Yurasko, William World News

• NL EAST UPDATES:

• Mets: "Four Subway Series spring evenings spent beating the reeling Yankees ended in a 3-1 victory last night in front of an announced Stadium crowd of 44,207." - "Nightmare for the Yankees as Mets complete shocking sweep" - George A. King III, NYPOST.com

• Phillies: "The Phillies have chased mediocrity for a third of this uninspiring season, and a 9-2 defeat to Boston in 3 hours, 15 minutes Thursday epitomized 54 games' worth of frustration." - "Phillies foiled again in bid to reach .500" - Matt Gelb, Philadelphia Inquirer

• Marlins: "Odds are that sooner or later Ricky Nolasco is going to get some run support." - "Lack of run support sinks Ricky Nolasco again in Miami Marlins’ loss to Rays" - Manny Navarro, MiamiHerald.com

• Braves: "[Alex] Wood seemed a bit dazed after the final out. Braves first baseman Freddie Freeman had to get his attention to flip him the ball as a keepsake from his first major-league game." - "Big night in Braves debut for ex-UGA pitcher Alex Wood" - Michael Cunningham, www.ajc.com

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