Game #18 Nats trying to piece together wins

Posted on April 16, 2025 by Stephen G. "Ghost" Mears
Photo credit: depositphotos.com

The Washington Nationals won last night in a 3-0 shutout that saw starter Jake Irvin efficiently go 7.0 full innings for the win on just 87 pitches, of which 58 were strikes. And the leadoff homer by James Wood along with the 2-RBI single from Nasim Nunez was plenty in this Nats victory.

While PNC Park is beautiful, the stands were empty last night by an actual head count that had to be fewer than 1,500 fans in seats. The paid attendance was 8,340 which is horrific, and a few in attendance wore paper grocery bags over their heads — and not to stay warm in the 46 degree weather at first pitch.

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Game #17 Nationals need to get in the W column!

Posted on April 15, 2025 by Stephen G. "Ghost" Mears
Photo credit: depositphotos.com

The Washington Nationals and the Pittsburgh Pirates as well as all of baseball will be wearing jersey No. 42 tonight for Jackie Robinson Day. Today commemorates the 78th anniversary of Robinson’s debut with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947. This day celebrates his historic achievement of breaking the color barrier in Major League Baseball, his achievements to the game and as a leader in civil rights. 

The Nats were in a 3-3 tie yesterday in the middle innings, and had a chance to win a game started by Pirates’ ace Paul Skenes. In an instant, the wheels came off and the Pirates added seven runs to stretch their lead to 10-3. In the postgame, manager Dave Martinez did not hold back on the criticism of his bullpen, and one play that was not made on what appeared to be an easy popup just beyond the infield dirt. When that play happened, the game was tied, and that would have been the second out in the inning.

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Game #16 Nats are in PNC Park

Posted on April 14, 2025 by Stan4Nats
PNC Park Photo credit: depositphotos.com

The Washington Nationals blew golden opportunities to sweep the Marlins in Miami, and instead limped away with only winning one of the three games in the series, and losing their starting shortstop, CJ Abrams, in the process. On top of that, Orlando Ribalta went on the 15-day IL retroactive to April 10, 2025 with a biceps strain. Up are Nasim Nunez and Cole Henry to take their places.

For Henry, he has a legitimate opportunity of staying if he can keep replicating that 1.0 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 K performance. He threw strikes at a 78.6 percent efficient clip that got him his 3-outs on just 14 pitches.

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Shoutouts Attached to Swag Make for Good Vibes

Posted on April 13, 2025 by Warning Track Power
YBA staff Charlie Sperduto and Janay Morant with swag donated by the TalkNats community

While baseball is traditionally played from Spring to Fall, the Washington Nationals Youth Baseball Academy in Southeast, DC, is open year-round. As a volunteer coach and mentor for the past eight years, it has been a pleasure to interact with these upstanding young women and men, as well as their families.

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Game #15 Rubber game in Miami series finale

Posted on April 13, 2025 by Andrew Lang
Photo by Sol Tucker for TalkNats

The Washington Nationals had several opportunities to take the lead yesterday in Miami. It wasn’t an issue with the Nats scoring runs, it was more of a problem of the Nats’ pitching that allowed the Marlins to score their season-high of seven runs. It was another one-run loss for the Nationals. This goes back to our previous articles on the value of one singular run.

Today’s series finale will send the Nationals to Pittsburgh either one game under .500 or three games under .500. On the mound for the Nationals will be their Opening Day starter, MacKenzie Gore, as the Marlins go with RHP Cal Quantrill.

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Game #14 Winning is fun!

Posted on April 12, 2025 by Stan4Nats
Photo by Bailey Accorto for TalkNats

The Washington Nationals started the season at 1-6. Teams will have those stretches in a long season. But when you start your season that way, negativity will creep into your fan base. As bad as that start was, the Nats can completely turn around that record to 6-1 with a win today. These Nats are on a 5-1 hot streak capped off by a Nathaniel Lowe hit reminiscent of Michael Jordan meets Jayson Werth moment if they did a collaboration of the flu game and Werth’s epic 13-pitch at-bat in the 2012 NLDS.

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Game #13 Nats are in Miami this weekend

Posted on April 11, 2025 by Stan4Nats
Photo by Sol Tucker for TalkNats

From a scheduling nightmare in the first dozen games of the season, the Washington Nationals had to face in NL succession the past three NL World Series teams plus the tough Toronto team in their home stadium. The Nats finished at 5-7 to take us to this 10 day road trip in Miami.

The team arrived Wednesday night just before midnight from their American Airlines AA9721 charter jet, and the players bonded over day-off activities and a dinner with teammates. This is a work trip, and the work begins today.

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One day can change everything in baseball

Posted on April 10, 2025 by Andrew Lang
Dylan Crews has had a sluggish start to his 2025 season.
Photo by Bailey Accorto for TalkNats

Let’s get philosophical. Time changes all. The difference a day makes. The difference a week makes. A week ago, the Washington Nationals were 1-6, and the fans were getting restless early. We warned that manager Dave Martinez‘s Washington Nationals teams during his previous 7-years have always started slow. One day can change everything in baseball, and now the Nationals are on a 4-1 hot streak heading to play a weekend series against the Marlins.

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Rob Manfred Interview: The ABS and More

Posted on April 10, 2025 by DonH

Recently, The Athletic had a Q&A with Rob Manfred, M.L.B.’s Commissioner, on the Future of Baseball that was published in the New York Times on April 6. The link is gifted and so it is not paywalled. I would encourage you to consider reading it. He addressed a wide range of topics including expansion, the ABS, the future of streaming, pace of play and more.

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2025 Season Predictions: Can the Nationals Surpass Last Year’s 71 Wins?

Posted on April 9, 2025 by Stan4Nats
Photo by Andrew Lang for TalkNats

The Washington Nationals are looking poised to make waves in the 2025 season, aiming to surpass their 71-win benchmark from last year. While the team continues its planned rebuild, the addition of seasoned hitters like Josh Bell and Nathaniel Lowe provided much-needed stability to their lineup. However, the true excitement lies with rising stars James Wood and Dylan Crews, who are expected to play pivotal roles in shaping the franchise’s future.

Despite their potential, the Nationals face a tough challenge competing in the stacked NL East. With a mix of veteran presence and emerging talent, the question remains: can these elements propel Washington forward and redefine their trajectory?

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