Results tagged ‘ Nationals ’
Nats’ Harper ejected in first inning
Nationals left fielder Bryce Harper was ejected in the first inning after striking out against the Pirates at PNC Park on Sunday afternoon.
With two outs, Harper worked the count to 2-2 against left-hander Wandy Rodriguez, who threw a curveball to Harper. It looked like Harper didn’t swing at the pitch, but third-base umpire John Hirschbeck ruled that he did to end the inning. A few second later, Harper was ejected from the game. Harper then slammed his bat to te ground and left the game without incident. Roger Bernadina replaced Harper in the game.
It marked Harper’s second career ejection. The first one came on Aug. 29, 2012 against the Marlins after he slammed his helmet to the ground while trying to beat out a ground ball.
Friday’s starting lineup for Nationals
Denard Span — CF
Ian Desmond — SS,
Bryce Harper — LF
Ryan Zimmerman — 3B
Adam LaRoche — 1B
Tyler Moore — RF
Danny Espinosa — 2b
Kurt Suzuki — C
Ross Detwiler — P
Thursday’s starting lineup for Nats
Denard Span – CF
Steve Lombardozzi — 3B
Bryce Harper — lF
Jayson Werth — RF
Adam LaRoche — 1B
Ian Desmond – SS
Danny Espinosa — 2B
Kurt Suzuki — C
Gio Gonzalez — P
Rival Q&A: Braves Center Fielder B.J. Upton
After eight years with the Rays, outfielder B.J. Upton signed a five-year, $75 million deal with the Braves this past offseason. So far, Upton is off to a slow start, going 3-for-29 with just an RBI entering Friday’s action. However, his teammate, brother Justin Upton, is red hot, hitting .353 with a league-leading six home runs.
MLB.com caught up with B.J. on Friday to talk about the Braves, Justin and the Nationals.
MLB.com: How good are the Braves this year?
B.J. Upton: We can be very good. We have all the right pieces. We have the pitching, we have the bullpen. We have the lineup to do it. We have the bench players to do it. We have to keep doing what we are doing. The biggest thing for us: we are playing well, but we haven’t clicked on all cylinders yet.
MLB.com: How do you explain the fast start? The Braves lost only one game.
Upton: I don’t know. We are getting timely hits. Our pitching has been keeping us in ballgames. We are just hitting the ball when we need to right now. Obviously, we would like to do it a little bit more consistently, but it’s still early. We have a lot of season left.
MLB.com: How good is it to see your brother, Justin, get off to a hot start?
Upton: It’s something that is pretty cool to watch. Obviously, what happened during the offseason and the rumors that were rumbling around, it could have affected him. [Those rumors] haven’t affected him. For the most part, he has been carrying us. He has been doing pretty well right now.
MLB.com: How much has your presence helped him?
Upton: I don’t know. I can’t say he wouldn’t be doing this without me here. I’ve seen him do it in the past. … He is a strong-minded guy, he works hard and he strives for perfection. Obviously, you are not going to be perfect in this game. If you expect that out of yourself, you are going to get the results that you want.
MLB.com: What do you think of the Nationals? How much of a factor will they be in the National League East race?
Upton: They are a great team. Obviously, they showed it last year. They didn’t lose anybody and they have some guys back healthy. Like I said, they are a great ballclub and we know they are going to be around all season.
MLB.com: I know you are from Virginia. After you became a free agent, did you think about playing for the Nationals?
Upton: That was always a possibility. It didn’t work out that way. I’m an Atlanta Brave. I’m looking forward to playing baseball with these guys.
MLB.com: Did you ever think about playing on the same big-league team as Ryan Zimmerman?
Upton: We would like to do it. But sometimes, things don’t work out. We are always going to support each other. Maybe not as much in the series when we play each other. But we are always going to support each other. I wish him the best. We’ve always been good friends. We get together during the offseason as much as we can. I know he comes to Florida every once in a while. We get out and have some dinner. I’m always supporting him and he is always supporting me.
MLB.com: You spent most of your career with the Rays. Do you miss them?
Upton: Obviously, being with them for 10 years, there are some things that I miss, but it’s baseball. Obviously, there are some guys who stay with one franchise their entire careers. But I think to be at one place for 10 years is pretty good. I will always have a place in my heart for them and I’m always rooting for those guys because they gave me an opportunity to be where I am today. I wish them nothing but the best.
MLB.com: What do you miss about the city of Tampa?
Upton: I still live there during the offseason. I can’t really say I miss it because I’m there all the time. When I’m not in Atlanta, I’ll be in Tampa. The people and the city of Tampa, it’s a great place to live. They are friendly people, it’s a great place to start a family. For me, I like to play golf. It’s a great place to play golf. It such a great place to be. The weather is beautiful all year round. I feel comfortable there. I lived there the last eight years. Obviously home is Virginia, but if there is a home away from home, Tampa is it. I plan on settling there.
Friday’s starting lineups for Braves, Nationals
Braves
Andrelton Simmons–SS
Jason Heyward–RF
Justin Upton — RF
Evan Gattis — 1B
B.J. Upton– CF
Dan Uggla–2B
Chris Johnson — 3B
Gerald Laird–C
Julio Teheran — P
Nationals
Denard Span–CF
Jayson Werth–RF
Bryce Harper–LF
Ryan Zimmerman– 3B
Adam LaRoche–1B
Ian Desmond–SS
Danny Espinosa– 2B,
Kurt Suzuki–C
Ross Detwiler— P
Thursday’s starting lineup for White Sox, Nationals
White Sox
Alejandro De Aza — CF
Jeff Keppinger — 2B
Alex Rios — RF
Adam Dunn — LF
Paul Kornerko — 1B
Alexei Ramirez — SS
Conor Gillaspie — 3B
Tyler Flowers — C
Dylan Alexlrod –P
Nationals
Denard Span — CF
Jayson Werth — RF
Bryce Harper — LF
Ryan Zimmerman — 3B
Adam LaRoche — 1B
Ian Desmond — SS
Danny Espinosa — 2B
Wilson Ramos — C
Dan Haren — P
Nats’ McCatty not worried about bullpen
The Nationals’ relievers are off to a slow start, allowing 20 runs in 21 2/3 innings entering Wednesday action against the White Sox. Ryan Mattheus and Drew Storen are the only pitchers in the bullpen with an ERA of 3.00 or lower. After seven games last year, the relievers allowed just six runs in 20 1/3 innings.
As recently as Tuesday night, the Nats’ bullpen allowed six runs to the White Sox. The big blows came when Paul Konerko hit a three-run homer off Tyler Clippard, while Rafael Soriano allowed a two-run homer to Alex Rios.
But pitching coach Steve McCatty isn’t worried about the bullpen and feels it will get its act together soon. All that matters to McCatty is that the Nationals are winning. The team is 5-2 entering Wednesday’s action.
“Yesterday was two mistakes and we didn’t hit our spots – fastball in and a slider away,” said McCatty who was referring to Clippard and Soriano. “Do I have any concerns? No. Could they do better? Sure. But it’s still early. Clip didn’t give up a run all spring, so something is going to happen. Sori has a little tweak in his leg and that is not an excuse, but it was a pitch we knew you can’t throw that kind of mistake — breaking ball that spins over the plate. He left it in there.
“Everybody is looking at the first seven games that we are playing. Could we be sharper? Sure. Is there a reason to doubt it? No. There is going to be stretches during the season, where everybody is going to have their moments where everything is clicking together. But fortunately, the offense has been good enough that we are still able to get the wins.”
McCatty said he doesn’t have any concerns about anyone in the bullpen, including Henry Rodriguez, who is coming off elbow problems.
“Henry has done better. His arm is feeling fine,” McCatty said. “With him, every once in a while, he has a tendency to overthrow. We know that. But the next time out [against the Reds] he threw nine pitches. So it’s an on-going thing with him. He is still a young kid and learning what he needs to do every time. Am I concern about him? No. He has unbelievable stuff. He has to learn how to harness it.”
Wednesday’s starting lineups for White Sox, Nationals
White Sox
Alejandro De Aza — CF
Jeff Keppinger — 2B
Alex Rios — RF
Adam Dunn –LF
Paul Konerko — 1B
Alexei Ramirez — SS
Conor Gillaspie — 3B
Tyler Flowers — C
Gavin Floyd — P
Nationals
Denard Span — CF
Jayson Werth — RF
Bryce Harper — LF
Ryan Zimmerman — 3B
Adam LaRoche — 1B
Ian Desmond — SS
Danny Espinosa — 2B
Kurt Suzuki — C
Jordan Zimmermann — P
White Sox’s Dunn happy to be back in Washington
On Tuesday afternoon, White Sox first baseman Adam Dunn was back at Nats Park for the first time since Sept. 29, 2010, when he was a member of the Nationals.
At first glance, Dunn looks comfortable in familiar surroundings, messing with his chewing tobacco and talking to the media about his time with the Nationals. He played for Washington for two years and was one of their best hitters, hitting .264 while averaging 38 home runs and 104 RBIs.
“It’s great to be back. I love the ballpark, I love the city , I love the fans. I have a lot of really good friends on the team, so it’s good to see those guys,” Dunn said. “I loved every single day that I was here. This is a great place to play, from the front office to the clubhouse guys. I haven’t seen a lot of these guys in a long time.”
Before taking batting practice, Dunn was seen having pleasant conversations with principal owner Mark Lerner, general manager Mike Rizzo and third baseman Ryan Zimmerman.
When Dunn was with Washington, the Nationals were one of the worst teams in basebal, but within two years they became National League East champions.
“It didn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that the team was going to be pretty good in the near future,” Dunn said. “You just didn’t know it was the very, very, very near future. It was a matter of time. The talent speaks for itself. The Nationals had a plan, they stuck with the plan. Everything has worked out pretty much like it should have. That’s a complement to Rizzo with the way he has handled everything.”
Dunn became a free agent after the ’10 season. The Nationals had a three-year offer on the table for months, but Dunn did not accept. He wanted a four-year deal and was able to get one with the White Sox. The Nationals replaced Dunn with Adam LaRoche, who was the Nationals’ MVP last year.
“It wasn’t my choice. I didn’t leave. I had to move on. I think it worked out pretty good for both sides,” Dunn said.
Dunn has a .185 career average with the White Sox. His worst year was .2011, when he hit .159 with just 11 home runs. He declined to say what wrong that year, but he sees a difference between the American League and the National League.
“Pitching is pretty good in the American League, from top to bottom. When you get into the bullpen in the American League, that’s where I see the big difference,” he said.
The Rocket
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