The Home for Washington Nationals Game Talk

Photo by Marlene Koenig for TalkNats

The Washington Nationals start their first road trip of the 2019 season in CitiField against the Mets who have their home opener today. Both teams have last Saturday’s starters on the mound today in Noah Syndergaard and Stephen Strasburg who both sport identical 6.00 ERAs. The difference between the two pitchers is Strasburg was victimized by some shaky defense including a couple of misreads in centerfield while Syndergaard if anything was helped by his defense or his numbers could have been worse. For those who remember Saturday’s debacle, the Nats tied the game 4-4 in the 6th inning only to watch their first bullpen implosion in the 8th inning as the Mets scored 4 runs. The Nats battled back but fell short 11-8 in that one. Continue reading →

Last night was a disaster — literally. Trea Turner broke the index finger on his right hand, and Matt Adams hurt his back as he flipped over the railing into the MGM seats. Add that to a lethargic Nationals effort in the game that ended in an 8-2 loss, and the Nats enter today’s game with a 1-3 record. The decision to pitch Max Scherzer into the 8th inning on Opening Day and 110 pitches when he had been pitching on a 6-day schedule and switch him last night to pitch on a 5-day schedule was not effective. Yes, Max only gave up one earned run, but he lasted only 5 innings and 96 pitches. Sure, the former Cy Young pitched well enough to win, but the Nats bullpen once again imploded. Tell us where you have heard that before. But it was the use of the bullpen that got manager Dave Martinez in hot water again, and Davey and general manager Mike Rizzo should get heat for the flawed strategy with pushing ace Max Scherzer so hard so early in the season. Continue reading →

Adam Eaton is stirring it up; Photo by Marlene Koenig for TalkNats

If you are a baseball fan who hasn’t been hibernating under a rock, you know Bryce Harper is back in Washington D.C. as a visitor tonight. The Nationals have decided to shake-up their early season rotation and pitch Max Scherzer tonight to set the tone for his team against the stacked lineup of the Phillies. This is a postseason type of move by general manager Mike Rizzo and manager Dave Martinez. Generally early in the season you go with the starting rotation 1-2-3-4 and use the off-days to skip your 5th starter, but the Nationals who pitched Max Scherzer on Opening Day last Thursday to 110 pitches have dispensed with conventional wisdom while the Phillies will pitch their #4 pitcher Zach Eflin today and their ace, Aaron Nola, tomorrow as planned. For what it’s worth, the Phillies enter this game with a 3-0 record as they took it to the Braves to open the season. With the crisp weather in D.C. tonight it might feel like an October playoff game, and the hope is Scherzer can prove that great pitching beats good hitting. Continue reading →

Photo by Navy Yard Nats for TalkNats

When a team has already lost all of their games in a series, the final game in that series is known as a salvage game. That is the case today for the Washington Nationals after they have dropped the first two games in this three game series. The Nationals will pin their hopes on the left arm of Patrick Corbin, and the bats that emerge from his dugout. This is Corbin’s Nationals debut after he signed the largest pitcher’s free agent deal of the off-season at 6 years for $140 million. Continue reading →

An outfielders meeting — Photo by Marlene Koenig for TalkNats

The Washington Nationals are back to work after one of their early season scheduled off-days. The best remedy for the Nats players is to get a win today after the disappointing loss on Opening Day. Today’s matchup on the mound is between Stephen Strasburg and Noah Syndergaard in this afternoon showdown. These are two of the biggest names in baseball. Both have been cover boys on Sports Illustrated — or rather Syndergaard has been a cover boy on Sports Illustrated for Kids.  Continue reading →