Help On The Way: Injury Report

With the league gearing back up for an exciting second half of baseball, lets take a look at some injured Nats who hope to make an impact.

Back Soon:

• Xavier Nady: 15 day DL with wrist soreness.  Played in rehab game July 8.
• With Nady returning decisions have to be made about Moore's,or possibly another bench player's, place on the team.
• Drew Storen: 60 day DL with elbow bone chip.  Played in rehab game July 9.
• What will happen to T-clip and Burnett in the pen?  Storen will most likely slide into the set-up roll.
• Chad Tracy: 15 day DL with groin tear. Held out of rehab game July 7 with soreness. 
• After undergoing surgery on May 28, soreness is expected.  Ahead of schedule to return.  

Back Later:

• Chien-Ming Wang: 15 day DL with hip strain. Rehab game scheduled July 13.
• Despite struggles, Nats need Wang and Lannan in top form with a Strasburg shutdown looming.

Back Eventually:

• Jayson Werth: 60 day DL with broken wrist. Will start swing a bat again after All Star Break.
• When Werth returns Davey will have to adjust how he uses guys like Lombardozzi.

Nationals @ Braves: Game Preview (7/1)

Nationals vs Braves

1:35 PM Turner Field

MASN

Story Lines:

• Gio's Curveball.  He has had trouble throwing it in his last two starts and, therefore, looked human.
• Gio and Hudson are the best pitchers each team has going right now with Strasburg's struggles and Beachy's injury.
• It's going to be hot.  101 degree game time temp.

Pitching Match Ups:

• Gio Gonzalez
• 10-3 with a 2.78 ERA.
• Has given up 5 runs and recorded 15 K's in two starts against Atlanta this season.
• Has only given up 3 homers all season, two of them came in his last start in Colorado.

• Tim  Hudson
• 6-3 with a 3.58 ERA.
• Gave up 7 runs in 6.2 innings last time he faced the Nationals.
• Pitched 8 innings of 1 run baseball his start.

Who to Watch:

• Ryan Zimmerman
• Has faced Hudson 52 times, batting .200 with 5 RBIs.
• Yesterday broke a 6 game hitting streak he had going.
• Rocky Mtn air was good to him, he batted .380 with 2 homers against Colorado.

• Michael Bourn
• Batting .600 lifetime against Gio.
• Leads the team in stolen bases with 22.
• Walked 3 times last game, crossed the plate twice.

Keys to the Game:

1. Beat the Heat.  Safe to say the heat, and not the Braves, did Stras in yesterday.
2. Harper Gets On.  Went 0-5 yesterday.  Need him on base to create RBI chances.
3. No more Wang please.  Get this thing to the later innings and let the back end of the pen do what it does.     

 

Strasburg Hot, Davey Not

Braves 7, Nationals 5

As temperatures reached close to 120 degrees (on a dollar store wall clock thermometer), the Braves outplayed the Nationals to take the 7-5 win in Hot-Lanta on Saturday afternoon.  Strasburg started the game but had to leave due to the heat and the Braves took advantage of his replacement Chein-Ming Wang.

Strasburg only made it through 3 innings, giving up 3 runs in the 3rd inning.  After the inning was over, Davy Johnson decided that Strassy was sick and removing him would be the best move, and Chien-Ming Wang came into the game to give up 4 runs in 2 innings.

Strasburg's body language on the mound made him look tired and bothered by the heat.  After giving up runs his body language dropped even more, and Davy Johnson decided that Stephen's night was over.  A view from the dugout looked like Strassy didn't want to come out, but it was his own fault because he either was exhausted by the heat or was pretending that the heat was to blame for him giving up 3 runs.

Davy said his blood pressure was up, his face was white, he wasn't talking, he was dizzy, and he was extremely dehydrated, but should be fine.  Always seems to be a lot of excuses for Strasburg, this one however may be warranted.

With the Nationals mounting a comeback bringing the score to 7-4 in the 6th inning, Davy Johnson made the biggest mistake of the game.  With runners on 1st and 2nd with 0 outs, Johnson decided to let Ankiel pinch hit for Chien-Ming Wang.  Instad of having Ankiel (or someone better at bunting) bunt over the two runners, Davy let the .225 hitter swing away.  Ankiel proceeded to ground into a double play and the Nats couldn't get any more runs in the inning.

If you don't think that Ankiel can lay down the bunt you have an entire roster of players including pitchers that you could use in that position.  Runners on 2nd and 3rd with 1 out would have been huge in a 7-4 game.  Instead the score remained the same and the Nats ended up losing.

Other notes:  Bryce Harper has now gone 9 at bats without a hit...Morse picked up 2 more hits...

Nats look to salvage the series on Sunday afternoon at 1:35...

Player Pick 'em: Midweek Update

Halfway point for the week.  Who is leading the pack?  Is it me (Dru) going for his second straight win?  Is is Chris, trying to rebound from a terrible last week?  Or maybe it's Cammy who was forced to pick Wang this week (spoilers its NOT her).

First Place:  Ian Desmond (Dru)

• 3-10 against Tampa, 3 RBIs and a run scored.

In the Hunt:  Adam LaRoche (Chris)

• 0-8 against Tampa, 0 RBIs, 1 BB, and a run scored.

In Trouble:  Chien-Ming Wang (Cammy)

•  3.1 innings pitched, 5 ER, 7 H and 3 BB given up, moved out of the rotation.

Seriously people, we aren't that great a picking these guys.  Why not try your luck next week and show us how it's done?


Standings:
Chris: 1
Dru: 1
Cammy: 0

Detwiler In, Wang Pulled Out

The latest tweet from Mark Zuckerman lets us know that Wang & Detwiler have been flip-flopped for the 2nd time this season.  Wang & Detwiler.  Detwiler & Wang.  wait... WANG IS DETWILER, DETWILER IS WANG ... cries in the shower...

Wang has been flacid all year.  The opposing batters were stroking Wang for base hits all game long.  Wang just couldn't come through in the clutch.  Davey J says he knows how good Wang can be...but he knew he had to yank Wang from the rotation after sticking Wang In and pulling Wang out just a few weeks ago.

In 5 appearances, Wang has a 6.10 ERA.  Detwiler who was pulled earlier for having a rising ERA seems to have settled down a bit (although it might have to do with pitching in the bullpen).  His ERA is down to around 3.34.  Meanwhile Lannan is in the minors pitching good games then awful games.

Does management need to make a move?  Do we have someone on the farm that will be ready in September?  We will find out soon enough.

Glove-Gate! Nats Lose 4th Straight

Rays 5, Nationals 4

Well things are starting to turn the other way for the Nationals.  After winning all 6 games of a road trip against the AL East they have now lost 4 straight at home to teams from the same division.  The Rays beat the Nats 5-4 on Tuesday night behind David Price and not his best stuff after Chien-Ming Wang put up another dud effort (3 1/3 innings, 7 hits, 5 runs).

I was playing the Baseball Drinking Game so I may have dreamed the following:

A Rays pitcher, former National Joel Peralta, was ejected because Davy Johnson and the whole team knew that he used pine tar to give him advantage in the past, and the Nats manager had the umps check.  Sure enough, a foreign substance...

The umps came out, and they confiscated the glove.  The player was not allowed to pitch.  So of course the next inning Joe Maddon had the umps check the Nats reliever's glove.  Guess what ... NADA!

In his post-game presser reporters tried to get Davy Johnson to name names.  He said it was a rumor and tried to dodge questions. Finally he just said that the pitcher was once on the team, he talked to some players before the game, and the rumor was discussed.

Holy Cow, It's the WMD's that Drew Brees Was Looking For!

As for the Nats pitchers, Wang should most likely be finished as a starter.  Detwiler came in to relieve Wang and went 3 2/3 innings of hitless baseball with 3 K's.  Neither guy is the greatest option for 5th starter but Detwiler is the superior choice.  The Nats may look to add a guy in a trade or move up John Lannan, especially since Strasburg will be gone as well eventually.

Meanwhile, back at the baseball game, Zimmerman picked up his first hit in forever and Michael Morse (barely) jacked his first homer of the season.The umps took 2 minutes to review the play, came back out, the correct call was made, and life was back to normal.  See how easy that is?  Why is it not at plays at home plate yet?

Ian Desmond hit his 11th homer of the season, a career high...and we aren't even at the break.  This scares me considering my favorite player was Mark McGwire.

The Rays scored all their runs on Wang...

At one point in the game the umps stopped everything and made the Nats cover up this billboard.  Not sure if it was an ump decision or a Joe Maddon decision.

Very interesting night of managing...Let's see what happens in the next 2 games, should be some good stuff...

Player Pick 'em

Last weeks winner is: DRU with Danny Espinosa.

It was a close contest between Espinosa and Flores who each put up similar offensive numbers.  However, Flores sat out a game during each series and Espinosa pulled ahead with his play in the field.  Ryan Zimmerman finished 3/26 with zero RBIs.  Not a good week for him.

• Dru: Ian Desmond-->  Going with Mr. Clutch this week.  Whenever the Nat's need a big two out hit, this is the guy I count on to deliver.  I think he will have a okay series against the Rays, but really will break out during the three game stretch in Baltimore.   
  
• Chris:  Adam LaRoche--> After picking the worst hitter on the team last week, Ryan Zimmerman, I'm going with a guy who can at least hit a HR or two.
  
• Cammy:  Camilla is grounded, so I am picking for her.  And I choose...blindfolded...finger pointing...touch screen.  Chien-Ming Wang.  He gets 2 starts this week which could be good, but will most likely end in failure.

Standings:
Chris: 1
Dru: 1
Camilla: 0

Nats Can't Stop the Sweep

Nationals 3, Marlins 5

Chien-Ming Wang got the start tonight to and went out to stop the Nats from getting swept.   Unfortunately, he seemed to be fighting with himself to get the ball over the plate all night, an issue that eventually got the better of him in the 4th inning where he allowed the fish to tie to game up.  Then in the 5th inning, Wang put two men on base and Detwiler had to come in to work out of the jam, but Miami would take the lead on a Zimmerman throwing error.

Washington had the lead early thanks to RBIs from Espinosa and Bernadina, but the bats fell silent as the game went on.  Bryce Harper, in particular, had a rough night at the plate going 0-4.    The Nats hit several balls that probably would of been home runs in any other ball park, but not in the cavernous Miami stadium.  In the 7th inning, Stanton slammed a homer to left field and Miami laughed to themselves knowing that they have the only guy who can regularly knock a ball over the outfield fences in South Beach.

Heath Bell came into get the save in the 9th and made things interesting.  LaRoche hit a double and was moved over to third by Desmond on a ground out.  Espinosa struck out (surprise, surpise), but Bernadina worked a walk.  Ankiel came into pinch hit, but got himself called out on strikes to end the game.  As the dust settled, the Nats found themselves only .5 games ahead of Miami for 1st place in the NL East.  

FP quote of the night:

"Hanley Rameriez has the quickest bat...    Wow that's a pretty bold statement.

...on a 2 seem fastball...   Oh well that's a little less bold.

...down and in...   Uhh okay.

...in the national league."   Riiiight.

Nats get an off day tomorrow before they start a home series against the Braves.  You can be sure the Braves will be looking for a little revenge after getting swept by us at home, so it should be an interesting series.

Those Injury Blues

If you were watching Saturday's game (May 12th) than you probably saw National's catcher Wilson Ramos crumple to the ground while chasing a ball that got away from him behind the plate.  If you were watching the Capitals game 7 playoff game maybe you haven't heard about it.  Here is a brief look at the injuries the Nat's are dealing with and when they will be back (hopefully!):

 Late May:

• Chien-Ming Wang: strained hamstring. Our starters have been good, but with Wang we could toy with having a 6-man rotation to preserve Starsburg this season (innings limit).

 June:

• Mark Derosa: oblique strain.  Was suppose to give Zimmerman some days off at 3B.
• Brad Lidge: abdominal strain.  Do we want him back closing? Some nights H-rod makes us.
• Mike Morse: lat strain.  Probably a quick fix for our slumping offense.  We hope.
• Drew Storen: bone chips in elbow.  The debate over Lidge and H-rod closing gets solved when he comes back.

July:

• Cole Kimball: shoulder surgery. Had a 1.93 through 12 games last season out of the bullpen.
• Chris Marrero: torn hamstring/messed up shoulder. Decent young player. Gives us options at 1B.

August:

• Jayson Werth: broken wrist. Fixing the struggles at the plate aren't going to come easy without this guy in the lineup.  Plus we need his beard.

Out for the Season:

• Wilson Ramos: torn ACL.  Not good.  Ramos is a good hitting catcher and a steady presence behind home for our pitchers.   The Nat's still have Flores and the minor leagues to fill the spot, but personally I would feel a lot better if the team signed a veteran option to be the backup.  Bring back Pudge! 

If you missed how Ramos went down because of the Caps game here is a link to the MASN video of the injury: OUCH

Some Early Injury Concerns For The Nats

The regular season is fast approaching and some key Nationals players are having some injury problems.

Chien-Ming Wang (Hamstring):  Could miss up to a month (Adam Kilgore)

Michael Morse (Shoulder/Lat):  Could miss opening day (Adam Kilgore)

Drew Storen (Left Arm):  Could miss some games (Adam Kilgore-same)

Adam LaRoche (Ankle):  Should be ready to go (Dan Kolko)

Bryce Harper (Not Chosen Enough):  Yeah, not injured, but will be in minors on opening day

John Lannan (Odd Man Out):  Could he be traded?  Rizzo says no, other teams say they want him.

As my high school football coach would say, "Just Put Some Goldbond On It!"...

Chien-Ming Wang Injured

Chien-Ming Wang left Thursday's Spring Training game with a strained hamstring after his leg almost snapped in half when he was running to first base.  I've walked down the street and my ankle has given out and I've fallen on the ground, so I can't really talk, but I'm not sure how you fall down like Wang did when simply running.  (Video)

There were some reports on Twitter the other day that the Nats were "shopping" John Lannan (which Mike Rizzo denied).  Now, Lannan may have to step in as the 5th man in the rotation if Wang's injury is bad, and it looked pretty bad.  When you can hear everyone in the crowd groaning at the same time, it isn't good.

Will Wang every play for the Nats?  The guy can not stay on the field and even gets hurt when he is running.