Washington Nationals

After 44 games, the 23-21 Washington Nationals' pitchers, all of them, starters and relievers, have the 4th lowest ERA in the National League (3.43) tied with Atlanta behind Cincinnatti (3.37), Arizona and Pittsburgh (3.35) and St. Louis (3.18). They're 3rd in FIP (3.63) behind the D-Backs (3.56) and Cardinals (3.11), ninth in xFIP (3.89) and 4th in fWAR (+4.7) behind the Diamondbacks (+5.9), Rockies (+6.2) and Cards (+6.6). The Nats' starters, separately, have the 3rd lowest ERA in the NL (3.25), the 4th lowest FIP (3.67), 5th lowest xFIP (3.90) and 4th highest fWAR (+4.0) with the Cardinals' +6.2 the NL's best. The Nationals' relievers are less impressive, with a 3.87 ERA (9th in the NL), 3.52 FIP (5th), 3.89 xFIP (8th) and +0.8 fWAR (6th). The defense? The Nationals have committed more errors than anyone else in the National League. Their .977 fielding percentage is the NL's lowest. The 31 bases stolen on Nats' catchers (and pitchers in many cases) are the 4th highest. Their 4 CS are the 3rd lowest. "We like the bullpen as is," Mike Rizzo said, "And we like the way the 25-Man roster is constructed. If there was any deal to be had, as always, it would be some type of depth for us." - Nats' GM Mike Rizzo on MLB Network Radio The offense? It has some issues. The Nats' .230 AVG is the 14th out of 15 NL teams, ahead of only the Miami Marlins (.220). The Nationals' lamentable .292 OBP is 14th too, again, ahead of only the Marlins (.282). The .373 SLG is 13th of 15, ahead of the Dodgers (.361) and Fish (.317). The Nationals' 7% BB% is 9th overall amongst NL teams. Their 23.0% K% is second-highest behind only the free-swinging Braves from Atlanta (24.4% K%). The Nats' BABIP as a team (.278) is 13th out 15 NL teams, ahead of only the Mets (.274) and Marlins (.261). wRC+? 14th of 15. fWAR? 14th. The Nats' -17 run differential is 2nd in the NL East, behind the Braves +34. After Sunday's loss in San Diego, Davey Johnson told reporters he still has faith in his team and thinks it's just a matter of time before they get it together, after all, they are two games above .500 and 2.5 games out of first in the NL East in spite of the poor defensive and paltry offensive production. "You have to have a lot of patience sometimes in this job," the manager in his 17th MLB season on the bench said. "But the middle of the lineup is swinging that bat very good, and the other guys -- it looks like they're starting to come around. I like the way the pitching has been. Sometimes it just takes time to gel, to get it all together." "For me to go out and get a left-handed reliever, it would have to be an extremely talented left-handed reliever and a guy that we can control for a period of time..." - Nationals' GM Mike Rizzo on MLB Network Radio So if there was one thing they could change right now, a small move to address a weakness or "fill a void" as former Nationals' GM Jim Bowden asked recently, during an MLB Network Radio interview with Mike Rizzo last week, what would it be? "You know, I'm not sure," Rizzo said. "We like the team as is. Everyone looks at our bullpen situation and would like for us to have another left-handed relief pitcher in there. But for me to go out and get a left-handed reliever, it would have to be an extremely talented left-handed reliever and a guy that we can control for a period of time and can get left-handers and right-handers out. And those are few and far between." Mike Rizzo On MLB Network Radio On The 2013 MLB Draft; Danny Espinosa And More Photo © Brad Mills/USA Today Sports "We like the bullpen as is," Rizzo continued, "And we like the way the 25-Man roster is constructed. If there was any deal to be had, as always, it would be some type of depth for us, that would help us in case of an injury to one of our regulars." As for the non-regulars, or the bench players, Rizzo said that the Nationals like what they have and the guys on the bench are working hard to get goi

The San Francisco Giants have struggled where normally they are strong. Their pitching has not been to the level they have needed it to be or it has been in the past and as a result have a very similar record to the Nationals. The Washington Nationals have had some push back from Adam LaRoche and Ryan Zimmerman but really feel the absence of Bryce Harper because of two major factors: Roger Bernadina and Tyler Moore struggling and Ian Desmond and Danny Espinosa really struggling lately. The combination of that and some mistakes on the mound and in the basepaths pretty much gave that split to the Padres. The Nationals get set to face the struggling and disappointing Los Angeles Dodgers for three games at Dodger Stadium. A pitcher's park isn't what the bats want to see, but they will have to get used to it for the next six games and then it's off to San Francisco which turns home runs away as well. Probable PitchersMonday, 10:15 p.m.WSH: Zach Duke (0-0, 8.40 ERA)SF: Ryan Vogelsong (1-4, 8.06 ERA) Tuesday, 10:15 p.m. WSH: Stephen Strasburg (2-5, 2.83 ERA)SF: Matt Cain (3-2, 5.43 ERA) Wednesday, 10:15 p.m.WSH: Gio Gonzalez (3-2, 4.01 ERA)SF: Madison Bumgarner (4-2, 3.09 ERA) Projected Giants Lineup (via MLB Depth Charts)CF Angel Pagan2B Marco Scutaro3B Pablo SandovalC Buster PoseyRF Hunter Pence1B Brandon BeltLF Gregor Blanco vs RHPSS Brandon Crawford BENCHC Guillermo QuirozIF Joaquin AriasIF Nick NoonanOF Andres Torres LF vs LHPBULLPENRHP Sergio RomoRHP Santiago CasillaLHP Jeremy AffeldtLHP Javier LopezRHP George KontosLHP Jose MijaresRHP Jean MachiRHP Chad Gaudin WASHINGTON NATIONALS Batting G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB K SB CS AVG OBP SLG Bryce Harper 38 128 26 38 6 1 11 22 21 25 1 2 .297 .393 .617 Ryan Zimmerman 30 107 14 30 4 2 3 22 15 29 3 0 .280 .371 .439 Ian Desmond 43 164 19 44 13 2 6 17 8 42 4 1 .268 .299 .482 Denard Span 41 159 17 42 6 2 0 11 16 25 5 2 .264 .335 .327 Jayson Werth 27 100 17 26 2 0 4 10 6 21 2 0 .260 .308 .400 Kurt Suzuki 31 94 8 24 5 1 2 9 11 14 2 0 .255 .336 .394 Wilson Ramos 14 48 4 12 3 0 2 6 4 8 0 1 .250 .308 .438 Anthony Rendon 8 25 2 6 1 0 0 1 5 7 0 0 .240 .367 .280 Steve Lombardozzi 35 86 7 20 4 1 0 6 3 11 0 2 .233 .258 .302 Adam LaRoche 41 140 17 32 3 0 7 20 17 47 1 0 .229 .310 .400 Chad Tracy 23 38 1 7 0 0 1 3 3 12 0 2 .184 .244 .263 Dan Haren 9 18 1 3 1 0 0 1 0 9 0 0 .167 .167 .222 Gio Gonzalez 9 12 1 2 0 0 1 1 1 3 0 0 .167 .231 .417 Jhonatan Solano 4 6 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 .167 .286 .167 Danny Espinosa 37 135 10 22 9 0 3 12 3 38 1 0 .163 .191 .296 Jordan Zimmermann 9 20 1 3 0 0 0 0 1 8 0 0 .150 .190 .150 Roger Bernadina 29 53 5 7 0 1 0 1 4 19 1 0 .132 .207 .170 Tyler Moore 26 63 4 8 4 0 1 8 2 27 0 0 .127 .152 .238 Stephen Strasburg 9 17 1 2 1 0 0 0 0 6 0 0 .118 .118 .176 Ross Detwiler 8 14 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 11 0 0 .000 .067 .000 Eury Perez 5 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 .000 .000 .000 Craig Stammen 11 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 .000 .000 Drew Storen 17 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 .000 .000 Ryan Mattheus 14 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 .000 .000 Tyler Clippard 17 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 .000 .000 Rafael Soriano 19 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 .000 .000 Henry Rodriguez 12 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 .000 .000 Zach Duke 9 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 .000 .000 Pitching W-L G GS CG SHO SV BS IP H R ER HR BB K ERA WHIP Jordan Zimmermann 7-2 9 9 3 1 0 0 66.2 49 13 12 3 9 45 1.62 .87 Rafael Soriano 1-1

Associated PressJayson Werth and Bryce Harper haven't both been in the lineup since May 2.There are no shortage of reasons behind the Nationals' offensive struggles right now, but one reason stands above the rest: Injuries to Bryce Harper and Jayson Werth.Sure, Danny Espinosa's .488 OPS, a complete lack of production off the bench and way too many strikeouts aren't helping the cause. But those are secondary factors to the most significant one plaguing the Nationals. Simply put, they need to get their best players healthy and back in the lineup.Only once in their last 18 games have the Nationals had both Werth and Harper together on the lineup card. During that span, the club is batting a collective .216 with a .279 on-base percentage while averaging only 3.3 runs per game.Coincidence? Not at all. This is what happens when you don't haveRead more »

"That was real disappointing," Davey Johnson told reporters Sunday afternoon, after the Washington Nationals' 13-4 loss to the San Diego Padres. "That one, I hate to even talk about that one today," the Nats' 70-year-old skipper said, "We didn't pitch very well. We got back in the ballgame. [Dan] Haren obviously didn't have his good stuff, but got back in the ballgame and the reliable bullpen just didn't do it." The Nationals trailed 3-0 early, but made it close with Ryan Zimmerman's two-run blast in the top of the fourth. An inning later, after Zimmerman had grounded out in a two-on, two-out chance in the top of the fifth, the Padres scored four on a leadoff home run by Will Venable, RBI single by Jedd Gyorko and two-run home bomb by Kyle Blanks. Haren ended up surrendering nine hits and seven runs in his ninth start of the year. The middle of the Nats' lineup tried once more to get back in the game with Ryan Zimmerman and Adam LaRoche singling in runs in the top of the seventh, but by the time Ryan Mattheus got the third out of the San Diego seventh, the Padres had added five runs on four hits in what ended up a 13-4 loss in Petco Park. "You have to have a lot of patience sometimes in this job," Davey Johnson said, "But the middle of the lineup is swinging that bat very good, and the other guys -- it looks like they're starting to come around..." - Davey Johnson after loss to Padres "You have to have a lot of patience sometimes in this job," Johnson said, "But the middle of the lineup is swinging that bat very good, and the other guys -- it looks like they're starting to come around. I like the way the pitching has been. Sometimes it just takes time to gel, to get it all together." The middle of the Nationals' lineup, namely Ryan Zimmerman and Adam LaRoche, was a combined 3 for 8 with a run scored and four RBIs on Sunday. Zimmerman's 10 for 26 (.385/.448/.654) with a double and a home run seven games into the Nats' 10-game road trip. LaRoche's RBI single in the seventh extended his current hit-streak to 16 games, over which he's 21 for 55 (.382/.462/.636) with two doubles and four home runs. Danny Espinosa, on the other hand, continues to struggle at the plate. Nats' GM Mike Rizzo reiterated on Sunday, in a conversation with the Washington Post's Adam Kilgore, that the second baseman was the team's best option right now in spite of the fact that he's 1 for 24 with 12 Ks so far on the Nationals' trip out west, with a .163/.191/.296 line on the year after 37 games and 141 plate appearances. "Danny's been trying to get it together," Davey Johnson told a reporter who asked about his approach at the plate after Espinosa's 0 for 4 game in Sunday's loss. "He's been just struggling, everybody knows that," Johnson said, "He's probably sometimes his own worst enemy. But he's not alone, there's some other guys right there with him." "'Danny's been trying to get it together. He's been just struggling, everybody knows that,' Davey Johnson said." - Davey Johnson on Danny Espinosa The Nationals won't ever use it as an excuse since every team has to deal with injuries throughout the season, but they have been missing Wilson Ramos, Jayson Werth, Bryce Harper and pitcher Ross Detwiler, who would have started tonight if not for the oblique issue which has sidelined him. Zach Duke will start in Detwiler's place in San Francisco's AT&T Park. Werth's return has apparently been delayed by a flare-up of the hamstring issue which has him on the DL, but Harper, who's still recovering from the effects of his collision with Dodger Stadium's right field wall, could return as soon as tonight, bringing some pop back to the Nationals' lineup. "It's a tough situation with [Bryce Harper] out," Davey Johnson said, "He's getting better, he should be -- maybe he'll be okay for tomorrow." - Davey Johnson on Bryce Harper "It's a tough situation with [Bryce Harper] out," the Nationals' skipper said on Sunday night, "He's getting

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The weaknesses in the Washington Nationals offense is not limited to one player, or even a couple players. The majority of the Nats offense has been non-existent for significant stretches through the first quarter of the 2013 campaign, but Danny Espinosa is absolutely in the worst period of offensive stagnation. Espinosa, who got an MRI last September after feeling weakness in his shoulder, said that he felt much better this spring after rehabbing all offseason, and his spring training swings looked to show that. He was quick to the ball and was moving the bat through the zone well. As so often happens when spring training ends and the real season begins, things changed quickly. His swing went back to the loopy, uppercut swing that has a very low probability of making contact with the ball, and he struggled as he did last season, especially late in the year. Slumps can happen at any point in the season, but if a slump is all it is, it's lasted for more than 40 baseball games. It's probably time to consider one of two scenarios. Either Espinosa's shoulder isn't nearly as healthy as he said it was, or he's not as good as everyone hoped he would be. Espinosa's slash line this season is a staggeringly terrible .163/.191/.296. That OBP is the worst in all of baseball. He has the fourth-worst batting average, and his walk percentage is third-worst in baseball and worst in the National League, too. It's hard to avoid drawing parallels to Adam LaRoche's injury-shortened season in 2011, where he had shoulder surgery in June. LaRoche posted a bad, though not quite "Espinosa bad," .172/.288/.258 slash line before hitting the disabled list in May 2011. Only Espinosa can truly know if he's still hurting, but if he is, at some point he'll have to own up to his team and tell them. His defense is still among the best second basemen in baseball, but his defensive benefits are being outweighed by his current offensive incompetence. If Espinosa is healthy, then there are only two viable explanations. His mired in one of the worst and longest slumps ever, or he simply hasn't been able to meet the lofty expectations that people had of him when his career started. In his first two full seasons in 2011 and 2012, he posted .236/.323/.414 and .247/.315/.402 slash lines, respectively. These are obviously far superior to his 2013 numbers thus far, but they're certainly nothing special for a second baseman, or really for any other position. Espinosa also led the National League in strikeouts in 2012. GM Mike Rizzo told Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post just this weekend he thinks Espinosa is the team's "best option" at second base and that he is both "physically fine" and "mentally fine." It's hard for me to imagine how both of these statements can be true. If he is both physically and mentally fine and this is how he's performed through a quarter of the year, it's hard to see how he can possibly be the best option. Similarly, if he's either physically or mentally not fine, he certainly isn't the best option for the Nats right now. Though many people prosthelytize about the greatness of Steve Lombardozzi, it's hard to argue he'd be a better option than Espinosa, even through his significant slump. Espinosa provides significantly better defense than Lombardozzi with the threat of power, even if he hasn't been able to realize that threat much this year. Lombardozzi provides regularly weak contact that can provide value off the bench but not much as an every day starter. In the minors, though, the Nationals may have two viable options to replace Espinosa. Jeff Kobernus, a second baseman by trade, is putting up incredible numbers in Triple-A Syracuse early this season with a .348/.381/.437 slash line. The Hardball Times even predicted he had an excellent chance to make the Tigers 25-man roster as a Rule V draft pick this offseason before bein

Memorial Day. Memorial Day. Memorial Day.What's that? Memorial Day is next week? Flag Day. Flag Day. Flag Day.The Nats are a .500 team. That's what the record says. But beyond that the Nats are playing like a .500 team. Losing 2 of 3 on the road to the Dodgers and splitting with the Padres? That's what I'd expect from a .500 team. Things have shaken out enough to tell that it is primarily (only?) an offensive issue. Ok, well the fielding could be better, but it's not the pitching staff's fault, yesterday excluded. We've lambasted the bench several times ("Fun fact" : since saying that Tyler Moore should be sent down on the morning of the 8th he's actually hit MUCH worse. 1 hit in 24 ABs with 9 Ks, for a line of .042 / .042 / .042. If you are hoping they'll pull the trigger on DLing Espinosa consider that they still haven't touched this guy.) but they are still just the bench. Let's take a look at how the offensive players ranked at their position in OPS and WAR (bWAR for those that care about such things), as of last night. This is based on 100 ABs by they way. Suzuki : OPS : 8th of 13WAR : 8th of 138th is a little unfair to Suzuki they way the numbers break. In reality he's a pretty average catcher, which means he can't hit and is not much of a fielder. But it could be worse right?LaRoche :OPS : 11th of 14WAR : 9th of 14Sorry, Adam. April counts. Last year Adam rose to the top in part because everyone else sunk. This year Votto is healthy, Rizzo and Alonso are rising, Gonzo is NL full-time. Say goodbye to "one of the best first baseman in the league" LaRoche and welcome back "average hitting, good fielding" LaRoche. Espinosa :OPS : 14th of 14WAR : 12th of 14Why is Espy still around? Despite being possibly the worst everyday offensive player his D ranks highly enough he's not the worst 2nd baseman in the NL. While the rest of the infield has is either regressing or not shining defensively he's still right in that department. However, man is he bad at the plate. Given his history (minor and major) it screams injury which we all in fact know he has, so he's still here because Rizzo really thinks any guy he can bring up won't match Espy in his combination of skills. Scary thought. Desmond :OPS : 4th of 14WAR : 6th of 14Bet you thought he was higher. To be fair to Ian there's a big drop offensively after him. Then again Tulo and Jean Segura as a clear step above offensively. He's not the huge plus he was last year especially since his 2012 fine fielding stats look flukish now, but he's the 2nd best guy on the team right now. Zimmerman :OPS : 6th of 14WAR : 8th of 14I mean, it's fine and all but this isn't what he's getting paid the big bucks for. Plus everything is saying the GG days are behind Ryan Zimmerman, even at this young age. He hasn't had superior range since 2010. Bryce :OPS : 1st of 13WAR : 3rd of 13A legitimitely great all-around player. Span :OPS : 9th of 13WAR : 7th of 13The guy can field, I'll give him that. Can't hit though. He's right behind Ruggiano and Pollock who are really fill-in players. For those thinking he'll get better take another look. 2010, 2011 and 2 months of 2013 tell you one thing. 2012 tells you another (and all that is telling you is that he's average). A couple more XBH maybe but this is Span. Werth :OPS : 15th of 16WAR : 14th of 16Just as bad as Espy? No. The numbers are unkind to Werth as he's probably a good week from being 10th. And RF hit much better than 2B. So it's a soft 15th, I guess. Still you'd want more for your cash and the future's so dim, you have to wear a miner's helmet. He's 34 (today! Happy Birthday you cash-sucking, half-time playing, one big HR hitting son of a bitch!) and getting paid 16 million dollars. Next year he'll get paid 20. Then 21 the year after that. Then 21 the year after that. Did I get them all? Nope. Then 21 the year after that.What's it all end up saying? Yes the bench is failing miserably and Espy is hitting like he's part of that bench, but vir

Photo by USA TodayTeam Record: 23-21 (8-8)N.L. East StandingsOffensive Game of the Week: Adam LaRoche 5/17 vs. Padres – 2-for-4, 2 HR, 2 R, 4 RBIPitching Line of the Week: Stephen Strasburg 5/16 vs. Padres – 8 IP, ER, 3 H, 3 BB, 4 SO, 117 pitches (68 strikes)Read more »

R.A. Dickey and his knuckleball were on 60 minutes last month. Photo via wiki/flickr user dbking R.A. Dickey and his knuckleball were featured on 60 Minutes Sports last month and we just got around to watching it off the DVR.  If you missed it, the full segment is available online at cbsnews.com via this link. Now, we’re not talking very in-depth reporting here (Lesley Stahl is the reporter, not exactly known for doing heavy hitting pieces), but the parts about Dickey and the physics of the knuckleball are fun.  They talk about Dickey’s “dark past” in the intro but I don’t recall them going into it (you can read his wiki page for a quick summary).  They interview a couple of university researchers who specialize in physics and engineering and demonstrate some cool stuff about the knuckler.  They interview Phil Neikro.  And of course Dickey himself is a good interview, though they don’t really go that deep into his life or his pursuits. One funny bit that I learned from the piece: Dickey wouldn’t even join the team when they went to Colorado because he knew the thinner air there destroyed his knuckler.  Makes sense to me; when you see the knuckler in the wind-tunnel on the piece, its fascinating to see how the air particles move around the ball.  Also funny was the time that Dickey had to run across the street from Shea stadium to get a “korean nail salon” to work on his hand after he tore/broke a nail on the mound; he apparently literally ran over there in full uniform straight out of the stadium. Anyway; good quick watch.

Last year for the Nationals, injuries revealed talent. This year, despite largely the same cast, their poor health has only exposed weakness. Tyler Moore, Steve Lombardozzi and Roger Bernadina all flourished in fill-in starting roles last season. This year, even … Continue reading →