The Nats and Orioles stunned the Baseball world on Monday morning by suddenly announcing that the never ending argument over MASN argument has been figured out. The Nationals now finally have autonomy over their broadcast rights and come 2026 they are a free agent on the airwaves. Al & Tim dive into what this means for the future of the franchise, the ownership situation, and what their next options might look like. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

(23:45) Robert Hassell III homered this week and has stood out so far in Grapefruit League play. Hassell was one of the highly touted prospects that was part of the Juan Soto trade, but has dealt with injuries and has yet to make it the Majors. Where does he fit into the crowded outfield?

(33:30) Mark's shares his observations from the team first four Spring Training games that included Jake Irvin tossing a scoreless inning in his first outing of 2025. This also includes a handicap of who will earn the 5th Starter's role for the beginning of the season.

(40:00) The Nats & Orioles announced they will conclude Spring Training against each other at Nationals Park on Monday March 24th at 1PM. This seems like a sign we are headed to an "Era of Good Feelings" between the two teams.

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The Nats were swept on Thursday afternoon by the Royals in a 7-4 loss. Al hosts solo to send off Patrick Corbin after his final start in a Washington uniform. Corbin gave up four runs, but did retire the final 10 batters he faced before Davey Martinez lifted him in the top of the 6th. The crowd applauded and Corbin tipped his cap back as a way to wrap up his six year tenure in D.C.

(16:00) Kyle Finnegan took the loss after allowing three runs in the top of the 9th. Al looks back at the recent decision to not trade Finnegan ahead of the MLB Trade Deadline.

(21:10) The scoreless inning streak immediately ended from a Juan Yepez RBI in the bottom of the 1st inning. The other batch of offense came off Luis Garcia Jr.'s 17th homer of the season, a 3-run shot.

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The Nats lost 7-2 in Detroit on Thursday afternoon to end their five game winning streak. Mark (From Comerica Park) & Al begin with the faltering bullpen as they allowed five runs in the bottom of the 7th. Derek Law and Robert Garcia combined to give up six runs while recording just four outs.

(12:00) Patrick Corbin had a no decision and was only charged with one run in just over five innings of work. This leads to a discussion on the rehab for both Josiah Gray and Cade Cavalli. Gray is taking the mound on Friday for AA-Harrisburg and Cavalli is currently on pause.

(17:00) The Nationals tied a franchise record with six sacrifice flies in a three game series. Ildemaro Vargas on Thursday had two of them, which were the only runs that the team scored in defeat.

(24:00) Lane Thomas was ejected in the middle of an at-bat and it seems like Thomas got a raw deal from the home plate umpire.

(30:00) All three Washington starting pitchers this weekend vs. Miami will be lefties.

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The Nats beat the Tigers 7-5 on Wednesday evening for their fifth win in a row, their longest win streak in three years. Washington is currently just one game back in a crowded NL wildcard race. Mark (From Detroit) & Al examine another solid outing by Jake Irvin as he only allowed one run in six innings of work.

(08:00) A hat tip to Keibert Ruiz for being part of the success of the pitching staff so far this season while serving as catcher.

(16:00) CJ Abrams doubled and homered in the victory. His OPS for the month of June is at .882, much higher than what he had in May (.520).

(19:00) Jesse Winker reached base four times and currently has the 11th highest on base percentage in all of baseball for this season.

(26:00) The Nationals tallied their 100th stolen base of the season as a team on Tuesday. Jacob Young currently leads the squad with 17 stolen bases and five players have reached double figures already.

(30:00) Joey Meneses started at 1B after Joey Gallo was moved to the IL. Trey Lipscomb was the player called up from AAA-Rochester to take Gallo's spot. This is Lipscomb's third stint at the majors this year and Al discusses why he hopes that he stays at this level for the rest of the season.

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The Nats won 5-4 in ten innings on Tuesday night in Detroit for their fourth consecutive victory. Mark (From Comerica Park) & Al begin with the clutch bullpen effort that combined for over five innings of shutout work. Hunter Harvey and Kyle Finnegan were responsible for the final nine outs.

(06:30) Mitchell Parker might have had his worst start yet as he was removed in the 5th inning. Parker did himself no favors as he committed a simple error that precipitated four unearned Tigers runs. Emblematic of Parker's difficult start was that his first "swing & miss" pitch did not come until the 4th inning.

(15:00) It was a quirky night for the offense as they scored five runs off just five hits, but went 0 for 5 with runners in scoring position. CJ Abrams tripled and then scored on a foul ball for a sacrifice fly, one of two sacrifice flies that Lane Thomas had on Tuesday night.

(19:00) Joey Gallo left the game early due to hurting his left hamstring. There is a good chance that he lands on the IL and an infielder might be called up from AAA-Rochester to take his roster spot.

(24:00) Joey Meneses has quietly not been in the lineup a lot lately and only started in three games during the homestand. Al points out his lower usage as the team figures out what to do with the Gallo injury at 1B.

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The Nats topped the Braves 8-5 on Sunday afternoon to end the weekend with three consecutive victories. Mark & Al discuss the Nationals second series win over Atlanta in just the past few weeks.

(05:00) Keibert Ruiz had a big day as he hit a 3 run homer and knocked in four runs. Ruiz's home run was part of a seven run inning for Washington in the bottom of the 4th while facing a rookie pitcher (Hurston Waldrep).

(16:00) DJ Herz had a short outing and Mark analyzes what he has seen from the lefty so far. Before the game it was announced that Patrick Corbin's next start was pushed back a few days and won't pitch in Detroit. Is this a sign that he is on way from being out of the rotation?

(23:00) Kyle Finnegan was unexpectedly needed to record the final three outs as Jordan Weems struggled with a six run lead in the final inning. Weems had a bad homestand and his ERA for the year is at 7.13.

(29:00) Sean Doolittle was elevated for the weekend as the pitching coach Jim Hickey was away. Will the positive press that Doolittle is garnering lead to him getting other job offers after the season?

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The Nats defeated the Braves 7-3 on Saturday afternoon in D.C. for their second straight win. Mark & Al have a dozen hits to sort through as the offense scored in five of the initial six frames on Saturday. It was the second time in the past few weeks that the Nationals handed a loss to Atlanta starter Charlie Morton.

(07:00) Nick Senzel had a pair of doubles and hit a late homer to give Washington a comfortable lead. Al points out how Senzel's offensive production has floated below the radar this season.

(17:00) MacKenzie Gore earned the win but it was another inefficient outing in terms of pitches thrown. Gore was charged with two runs in five innings of work and was replaced after his 99th pitch in the top of the 6th. Mark explains whether or not Gore is on a pitch count for this season.

(24:00) Kyle Finnegan was not used and three relievers combined to record the final twelve outs. Dylan Floro threw a scoreless 8th and his ERA is at 1.15.

(29:45) The horse co owned by Jayson Werth won the Belmont Stakes on Saturday (Dornoch) despite being listed at 17-1 before the race.

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The Nats beat the Braves 2-1 on Friday to end their four game losing streak. Al & Tim recap Jake Irvin's six shutout innings that came on 96 pitches. Irvin's ERA is at 3.12 and he has put himself into contention to make next month's All Star game.

(10:00) The bullpen held onto the lead despite a few sloppy mistakes late in the game. Hunter Harvey returned to the mound just one day after giving up a trio of runs against Atlanta. Kyle Finnegan notched his 17th save of the season, which ranks fourth in MLB. Nick Senzel helped turn a pivotal double play to keep the lead intact for Finnegan in the final frame.

(17:00) Both of the Nationals runs came in the bottom of the 4th and it was propelled by the running game. That element was prevalent for Washington early in the season, but has tapered off in the past month, as evidenced by CJ Abrams getting his first stolen base on Friday night since May 4th.

(25:00) A wide angle lens view of the season so far that leads an examination of Keibert Ruiz's contract.

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The Nats scored first but ultimately fell 5-2 on Thursday night vs. the visiting Braves for their fourth straight defeat. Mark & Al have another mediocre showing from the offense to parse through as the only production came from Back to Back homers in the bottom of the 6th (CJ Abrams & Lane Thomas). Jesse Winker was the only member of the lineup to come through with multiple hits as the team collected just six in total.

(09:00) Jacob Young made a great sliding catch in the middle of the game. It was additionally noteworthy as Victor Robles dropped a routine fly ball in his second game with the Mariners on Thursday.

(14:00) Mitchell Parker was facing Atlanta for the second time this summer and had a no hitter going until the top of the 6th. Parker then gave up a pair of runs after Adam Duvall homered off of him to tie the game in the 7th. Parker has made ten starts so far this year and has not allowed more than three runs in any outing.

(19:00) The game was tied 2-2 after entering the top of the 8th and Hunter Harvey had a rare bad outing that let the Braves pull away. It is the first appearance that Harvey allowed multiple runs in since April 23rd.

(24:00) How much heat is there now on hitting coach Darnell Coles? The organization has not made a mid season change in that role since July of 2013 when Rick Eckstein was removed.

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The Nats were clobbered 9-1 on Wednesday afternoon for a third consecutive loss to the visiting Mets. Al & Mark begin with Davey Martinez being openly critical of CJ Abrams and his role as the team's leadoff hitter. Abrams went 1 for 7 this series and his OPS is .739 on the season. Abrams also denied the opportunity to speak with the media after the game.

(14:00) The offense was only able to muster one run and that came via "Small Ball" late in a rout. There were also two more outs made on the bases as Jesse Winker was caught stealing and Luis Garcia Jr. had bad luck on a hard liner.

(17:00) It was another bad Patrick Corbin outing as he was charged with six runs. What are the chances he loses his rotation spot this summer?

(27:00) No off day for Washington as the Braves come to town on Thursday for a four game set. They have not a day off since Thursday May 23rd and will have to wait for this upcoming Monday to rest.

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The Nats lost 6-3 to the Mets on Tuesday night in D.C. for their fourth loss in the past five game. Mark & Al evaluate the news that Trevor Williams is headed to the 15-day IL due to a right flexor muscle strain (same injury as Josiah Gray). Williams' ERA so far this season is just 2.22 in 11 starts.

(06:00) The nod instead went to DJ Herz, a lefty that was called up from AAA Rochester. Washington acquired Herz last summer as part of the Jeimer Candelario trade with the Cubs. Herz pitched into the the 5th and allowed four runs in his debut. The hosts look into why Herz is ahead of Jackson Rutledge in the pecking order.

(14:00) Quick update on Josiah Gray as he threw a simulated game on Tuesday. Gray has been on the IL since April 9th.

(17:00) Kyle Finnegan surprisingly pitched the top of the 9th as the Nationals were trailing 5-2 and allowed a run. Why did he appear in the game in that sort of situation as opposed to Tanner Rainey?

(21:00) CJ Abrams and Jacob Young were each back in the lineup on Tuesday evening. Young had a an excellent game at the plate as he reached base four times and knocked in a pair of runs. This segment leads to an extended conversation on the state of the team's offense.

(34:00) The Nats look to avoid getting swept on Wednesday afternoon as Patrick Corbin will take the mound, but there is rain the forecast.

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The Nats opened the homestand with a 8-7 loss on Monday night to the Mets. Al & Mark recap the game that felt like it was from Pre Pitch Clock era as it lasted almost three and a half hours. MacKenzie Gore's pitching didn't help as he allowed six runs in just over four innings of work. It was first the bad start that Gore has had since May 5th, when he also gave up six runs.

(09:00) The bullpen also struggled in the series opener as Dylan Floro and Jacob Barnes each gave up a run. Tanner Rainey pitched the 9th and it was his first appearance on the mound since May 21st.

(17:00) CJ Abrams and Jacob Young were both out of the lineup and at least one of them might have to head to the IL in the near future. The offense collected 11 hits without them and it included a Joey Gallo HR.

(20:00) Lane Thomas played CF again and had his fourth outfield assist of the season. Is he the best outfield arm that the franchise has ever had?

(27:00) Drew Millas got the start behind the plate but went 0 for 4 and made the final out in the process. Millas came to bat in the bottom of the 9th and strick out with the tying runner standing at 3B.

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For the third straight game the Nationals couldn't plate a run in their 3-0 loss to Kansas City on Wednesday night. Mark & Al dive into the continuing offensive ineptitude as the team is now 8-14 in September.

(07:00) The lack of runs leads to re-visiting the conversation about the decision in August to bring back the entire coaching staff in 2025.

(14:10) DJ Herz only allowed one run in his start of the season. Herz was called up in early June to replace the injured Trevor Williams and ended the year with an ERA of 4.16

(22:45) Cade Cavalli was at the stadium on Wednesday and Mark gives an update after the right hander met with the media. How much was this missed season due a to "dead arm"?

(31:00) Thursday afternoon will be Patrick Corbin's final start in a Washington uniform and it will be interesting to see how the home crowd receives him when he exits the game.

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The Nats avoided the sweep with a 5-2 victory on Sunday afternoon in Cleveland to conclude a winning road trip. Mark (From Progressive Field) & Al have another very good Jake Irvin outing to discuss as the young right-hander lasted six innings and threw 98 pitches. Irvin has allowed three runs or fewer in six of his past seven starts.

(05:00) Mark gives the latest on CJ Abrams and Jacob Young, both of which did not play on Sunday. Abrams hurt his shoulder on Friday night and Young exited Saturday with a swollen hand after being hit by a pitch.

(12:00) The bullpen used three arms to finish off the win and the hosts note that there has less relief pitcher usage recently. This is a difficult stretch as the next scheduled off day is not until June 10th.

(16:00) The offense came through with an early four run in the top of the 2nd. Joey Meneses had a RBI double and Ildemaro Vargas, in the lineup for Abrams, collected a RBI single. Lane Thomas had a good afternoon while playing CF as he had two RBIs.

(20:00) Nick Senzel was picked off and the Nationals have now been picked off eight times in the past ten games!

(23:30) Drew Millas and Riley Adams swapped roster spots on Sunday. Adams had a bad game on Saturday behind the plate and the stated reason for the demotion is to get him more at bats and to get work at 1B.

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The Nats lost 3-2 on Saturday afternoon in Cleveland for their second straight defeat. Mark (From Ohio) and Al have plenty of sloppy Washington play to sort through, both defensively and on the bases. All of the Guardian runs came in quirky ways when facing Mitchell Parker, including Jose Ramirez scoring from second base on a wild pitch.

(14:00) This season has had plenty of instances of poor base running by the Nationals and Saturday was no different. There was a miscommunication involving the third base coach (Ricky Gutierrez) and yet another player was picked off. The team has been collectively picked off seven times in the past nine games.

(20:00) Jacob Young was hit by a pitch in the third inning and a lot ensued from there. Hear the complicated explanation that led to a Davey Martinez ejection and Young being removed from the game due to swelling in his hand.

(32:00) CJ Abrams was a late scratch from the lineup and Mark explains the situation surrounding that.

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The weary traveling Nats lost 7-1 on Friday night in Cleveland. Mark (From Progressive Field) & Al open with the crummy logistics that preceded the Nationals for this series opener as they did not make it to their hotel room until 5 AM after flying in from Atlanta. Davey Martinez gave the team off from "BP" for additional rest.

(06:00) Washington only collected four hits and Luis Garcia Jr. had three of them. Garcia cooled off a bit at the plate in May as opposed to April (.253 vs. .311).

(10:00) Keibert Ruiz missed a tag on a play at the plate that brought in an early Guardians run. This leads to extended discussion on Ruiz's defense so far this season.

(15:30) Not a banner night for the bullpen as they allowed five runs in just two innings of work. The bulk of trouble belonged to Jacob Barnes and he was responsible for three runs while only recording one out. Why didn't Tanner Rainey pitch the bottom of the 8th when the game was out of reach?

(25:30) Patrick Corbin struck out five and allowed a pair of runs in six innings of work. Corbin continues the team's stretch of solid starting pitching.

(28:00) An update on where things stand with Victor Robles and his recent "DFA".

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The Nats won 3-1 on Thursday night to take three out of four games this week in Atlanta. Al & Tim begin with what has become a familiar starting point for this podcast.... solid team pitching. Trevor Williams earned the victory as he lasted into the 6th and four relievers combined for a scoreless effort. The final six outs were recorded by the dynamic duo of Hunter Harvey & Kyle Finnegan.

(17:00) Joey Meneses had the hit of the night with a two run double in the top of the 3rd and came through with five hits during this series. Meneses is hitting .246 this month, which is much better than his April (.200).

(20:00) Jacob Young reached base multiple times and also stole his 17th base of the season. Young's speed created a lot of havoc on Thursday and led to a Braves throwing error.

(26:30) We read a pair of listener submitted email questions. Send us yours to natschatpodcast@gmail.com.

(33:00) As Josh Gibson's stats are very much in the sports news this week, we play a segment from our podcast's interview with Bob Kendrick in June of 2021 about Gibson. Kendrick is the President of the Negro Leagues Hall of Fame in Kansas City, MO.

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The Nats beat the Braves 7-2 on Wednesday night to move to 25-29 on the season, putting them on pace for 75 victories this season. Mark & Al have another solid starting pitching performance to discuss as MacKenzie Gore earned the win and did not issue a walk along the way. Gore's ERA so far this season is 2.91 through 11 starts.

(14:00) The bullpen threw nearly four innings, but didn't need to use Kyle Finnegan. Hunter Harvey recorded four outs and pushed his WHIP down to 0.92.

(17:00) Lane Thomas had a big game as he hit a 3 run HR, doubled, singled, stole a pair of bases, and drew a walk.

(24:30) Joey Gallo was in the news on Wednesday and also had a bunt single in the top of the 8th. (https://www.tmz.com/2024/05/28/hayden-hopkins-expecting-child-mlb-player-joey-gallo-not-mark-davis/)

(28:30) Major League Baseball has officially elevated Negro League statistics and the legendary Josh Gibson now owns multiple major records in baseball history. Gibson played a portion of his career in Washington D.C. while with Homestead Grays.

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Jake Irvin was excellent on Tuesday night in Atlanta, but the Nats were shutout 2-0. Mark & Al begin with Irvin who struck out a career high ten batters in six innings of work. This game continued a season long pattern of Irvin not getting a lot of support from his offense. Should he have returned to the mound for the 7th after he through 90 pitches?

(12:00) Max Fried was also superb as he tossed eight scoreless frames. The Nationals continued making costly outs on the bases, including CJ Abrams getting doubled off to stymie a 1st inning rally. Jesse Winker also was picked off and it seems to be a daily occurrence for the team.

(24:00) James Wood was placed on the 7-day IL due to right hamstring tightness. Wood has not played since he was lifted in the middle of Rochester's game on Thursday night. Will Wood make it to D.C. before the All Star Break?

(27:00) Victor Robles has not yet been claimed on waivers after being DFA'd by Washington on Monday. If someone else does pick him up, will it be in the minors?

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The Nats opened the road trip with an 8-4 Memorial Day victory in Atlanta. Al & Tim have a crowded box score to sort through as the team collected fifteen hits and six Nationals had a multi hit afternoon. Lane Thomas was one of them as he had a pair of hits in his first game since returning from the IL. Thomas had been out since April 24th due to a sprained left MCL.

(07:00) Keibert Ruiz had multiple hits for the fourth consecutive game and his batting average has shot up by 53 points since Friday afternoon (.210).

(11:00) Victor Robles was the odd man out after the return of Thomas. Robles was DFA'd and the man that was chosen over him (Jacob Young) had a trio of hits in the win. What exactly went wrong for Robles?

(21:00) Mitchell Parker had a shutout going until the bottom of the 7th. The hosts make the argument that he has been the most pleasant surprise so far in 2024.

(27:30) Derek Law was the only reliever to struggle, but did induce a rally ending double play in the bottom of the 7th. The final six outs were recorded by the dynamic duo of Hunter Harvey & Kyle Finnegan.

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The Nats led 5-4 entering the top of the 8th, but the Mariners jumped on the bullpen to hand Washington a 9-5 defeat on Sunday afternoon. Mark & Al have a different Dylan Floro conversation than the day before as he gave up a pair of runs and took the loss. It was the third consecutive day that Floro took the mound and it was his worst outing of the season.

(10:00) The offense came through with two homers as they came from Joey Gallo and CJ Abrams. It was the first homer for Abrams since April 29th.

(14:00) Keibert Ruiz had two hits on Sunday and had six hits in the weekend series as he is playing better as of late.

(16:30) Victor Robles started in CF and stole a base late in the game. Lane Thomas is expected to return from the IL on Monday and thus Sunday could have been Robles' final game with the franchise.

(20:00) Patrick Corbin and the Nationals fell behind 4-0 early and the lefty made it through six innings, which has become his norm this year.

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The Nats beat the Mariners 3-1 on Saturday afternoon in D.C. for their second consecutive victory. Al & Mark have another fine outing by Trevor Williams to recap as he only allowed one run in five innings of work. Williams gave up a solo homer to Julio Rodriguez and it is only the second home run hit off of him this season.

(9:00) The bullpen was nearly flawless as they only allowed one base runner in the final four frames. Dylan Floro earned the win after throwing a scoreless top of the 7th and his ERA is remarkably at 0.35 so for this season. Kyle Finnegan notched his 14th save of the year and the first for him since facing the White Sox on May 14th.

(17:30) Mark explains a stark moment where Davey Martinez out managed his Seattle counterpart Scott Servais and it involves Ildemaro Vargas.

(22:30) Keibert Ruiz had another multi hit day as he singled, doubled, and came through with a RBI sacrifice fly. Four of his past seven hits have been for extra bases in this recent stretch.

(28:00) Cade Cavalli had another rehab stint in West Palm Beach and struck out eight hitters in four innings of work.

(32:00) Mitchell Parker is getting an extra day of rest as the team is monitoring his workload. Are Jake Irvin and MacKeznie Gore under the same scrutiny?

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The Nats beat visiting Seattle 6-1 on Friday evening to open the three game series. Al & Tim begin with MacKenzie Gore who lasted seven frames for just the 2nd time in his career. Gore struck out eight Mariners and did so on just 98 pitches. He might be on the way to an All Star season as we approach Memorial Day.

(09:00) Hunter Harvey and Dylan Floro each threw scoreless innings to preserve the victory for Washington. Is this the best early season bullpen in team history?

(14:00) The offense came through with three home runs in the win. Luis Garcia Jr. hit a 3 run HR, Keibert Ruiz went deep for the third time this season, and Eddie Rosario's solo homer came at the expense of former Nats pitcher Austin Voth.

(26:00) James Wood was pulled in the middle of AAA-Rochester's game on Thursday and it fueled tons of speculation on social media. It turns out it was due to due to right hamstring tightness and Wood was not in the lineup on Friday.

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The Nats rough September continued on Tuesday night as they were blanked 1-0 by the visiting Royals in extra innings. Mark & Al convene after back to back shutout defeats and the team has now lost seven of their past eight games.

(07:10) Dylan Crews went 0 for 4 and struck out 3 times. Crews' average is now down to .196 after his first month in the majors.

(15:30) Stone Garrett was called up from Rochester to replace Andres Chaparro, who was placed on the Paternity List. Over a year ago Garrett had a gruesome leg injury at Yankee Stadium and has spent the bulk of this season in AAA.

(22:45) Mitchell Parker's final start of the season was a strong one as he did not allow a run and make an excellent defensive stab. Parker ended up making 29 starts with Washington after getting called up in mid April.

(30:00) The organization handed out its end of the year minor league awards and Elijah Green won Defensive player of the Year. Green played CF for the Fred Nats, but the former 1st Round pick (2022) has struggled mightily at the plate.

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The Nationals lost the series rubber match to the Twins 3-2 on Wednesday afternoon in D.C. Mark & Al run through another collectively dismal day for the team's offense. Joey Gallo made the final out and went hit-less in the loss. Gallo is hitting just .126 so far this season and 3 for 21 since returning from the IL.

(09:00) CJ Abrams has had a rough May and Davey Martinez criticized his current approach at the plate after the game. Abrams is hitting .205 this month after hitting .305 in April.

(18:45) Lane Thomas will be back in Washington in the near future and the hosts discuss whether this could mean a "DFA" is coming for Victor Robles.

(20:30) Jake Irvin had a solid outing as he only allowed a pair of runs in 6 IP. Irvin has made ten starts this season and his ERA is currently below 4.00.

(28:00) The Nats are off on Thursday and open a home series on Friday night vs. Seattle. Will James Wood get called up before then?

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The Nats were shutout 10-0 on Tuesday night by visiting Minnesota and it is the 3rd time in the past week that they didn't score a run in defeat. Al & Mark begin with a familiar refrain, the one where they recap terrible start by Patrick Corbin. He allowed eight runs and his ERA is now at 6.29. Mark does explain though why he feels Corbin's time might actually be running out in the starting rotation.

(10:00) A look at where both Josiah Gray and Cade Cavalli are in their rehabs.

(15:00) Tanner Rainey did not give up a run in the top of the 9th, but he did hit two batters.

(17:00) The offense only gathered three hits and Jacob Young had two of them. CJ Abrams went 0 for 3 and he is hitting .263 so far this season.

(21:30) The latest on all of the top Nationals prospects including Dylan Crews, Brady House, and James Wood. Will Wood get called up to Washington before the calendar hits June 1st? Crews is hitting .315 in the month of May and House hit his 9th homer of the season on Tuesday.

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The Nats routed the Twins 12-3 on Monday night in Navy Yard to end their five game losing streak. Mark & Al have a lot of positive offensive statistics to sift through for a change as they collected fourteen hits and hit a pair of homers (Luis Garcia Jr. & Jesse Winker).

(04:30) Eddie Rosario continued his hot May as he had two hits, scored three runs, stole a base, and scored all the way from 1B on an errant throw to the outfield.

(10:30) Keibert Ruiz singled and doubled in the victory while hitting in the bottom part of the order. He now has four hits in the past four games despite hitting just .165 on the season.

(18:20) Mitchell Parker earned the win as he struck out seven Twins in six innings of work. Parker ended the outing on a good note as he wriggled out of a jam shortly after allowing a two run home run to Carlos Correa.

(27:00) Dylan Floro threw a scoreless top of the 9th and his ERA is a jaw dropping 0.38 on the season.

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The Nats lost 11-5 on Sunday afternoon in Philadelphia for their fifth consecutive defeat. Mark (From Philly) & Al discuss the Nationals being on the wrong end of a sweep and a disappointing 2-7 road trip.

(05:00) One positive of the day was that the offense ended their almost week long homer drought as Eddie Rosario and Jesse Winker each cleared the fences. The team has left the yard very few times in the past couple of weeks, but Rosario has nonetheless done so five times.

(12:00) Lane Thomas was seen running the bases in pregame workouts as he has been on the IL since April 24th due to a sprained left MCL.

(17:00) Trevor Williams had his worst outing of the season as he did not last five innings. Williams was not pitch efficient as he needed 97 pitches to get through just 4.1 IP.

(21:00) Tanner Rainey took the mound for the first time since May 4th and did not have a good outing as it included allowing three runs, issuing back to back walks, and giving up a homer to Alec Bohm. Was this his final ever appearance in a Nationals uniform?

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The Nats led 3-2 in the bottom of the 9th but ultimately lost 4-3 in ten innings in Philadelphia on Saturday evening. Mark (From Philly) & Al examine the final two frames that saw Kyle Finnegan blow the save in the 9th and take the loss in the 10th. Finnegan retired the first two batters in the bottom of the 9th, but then gave up a game tying solo homer to Kody Clemens (yes, he is Roger Clemens' son).

(07:00) The game ended on a Bryce Harper sacrifice fly in the bottom of the 10th . There were runners on 2nd and 3rd and Al asks Mark if Davey Martinez should have intentionally walked Harper and faced Alec Bohm instead.

(16:00) MacKenzie Gore pitched very well and went into the bottom of the 7th. He did not reach 100 pitches in the outing, which is an improvement from a pitch efficiency standpoint. He has not yet given up more than three earned runs in any start so far this season.

(22:00) The offense collected 11 hits, but still only came through with three runs. The team has now gone five consecutive games without hitting a homer. CJ Abrams & Ildemaro Vargas each had a trio of hits on Saturday and Vargas' average is at .320 for the year.

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The Nats fell 4-2 in Philadelphia on Friday night and have dropped three straight games on the road trip. Mark (From Citizen's Bank Park) & Al yet again go over a struggling offense that only collected four hits. Oddly enough, all four hits were doubles. One of them came from Joey Gallo, who was just called up from AAA following his rehab stint.

(12:30) Trey Lipscomb was the player sent down to AAA make room for Gallo on Friday afternoon. It is the second time this season that Lipscomb has demoted from Washington. Should Joey Meneses have been the player sent to Rochester instead?

(23:00) Jake Irvin took the loss after giving up four runs in five innings of work. He threw a wild pitch and also hit two Phillies batters during the start. Mark notes how Irvin was profusely sweating during the outing.

(29:00) Cade Cavalli will soon open his rehab window down in Florida. Mark explains what this means and when he might return to the mound in D.C.

(32:00) An update on Josiah Gray who has been on the IL for over a month.

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The Nats dropped the rubber match in Chicago as they were shutout for the second straight game in a 2-0 defeat on Wednesday afternoon. Mark (From the South Side) & Al discuss the batting order, which did not include many regulars and had Ildemaro Vargas hitting 3rd. Among those not in the starting lineup were CJ Abrams, Jesse Winker, Luis Garcia Jr., and Eddie Rosario.

(06:00) Keibert Ruiz went 0 for 4 and struck three times. This season has been a rough one for Ruiz and his OPS is at a startling .393.

(13:00) Mark gives an update on Lane Thomas after watching him run the bases during pregame warmups. He has been out three weeks with a sprained knee.

(17:20) Patrick Corbin was dealt the loss as he gave up a pair of runs off of six hits in 5.2 IP. Three bullpen arms behind arm did record the final eight outs without ceding a run.

(27:00) GM Mike Rizzo was on 106.7 The Fan and was not shy about the defense's recent struggles. Vargas committed an error on Wednesday and this came a day after the team made three in the same inning.

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The Nats and White Sox split their doubleheader on Tuesday in Chicago. Mark (From the South Side) & Al begin with Game 2, where former National Erick Fedde threw seven scoreless innings in the 4-0 shutout vs. his old team. Fedde pitched in South Korea in 2023 and was non tendered by Washington in November of 2022.

(07:00) The Nats registered ten hits in their 6-3 victory in Game 1 as Joey Meneses had four of them. The last time he had that many hits in a game was September 1st, 2022 when he hit a walk-off homer vs. Oakland.

(11:00) Trey Lipscomb had a trio of hits in the win and stole a pair of bases. He did however commit his seventh error of the season as he did not play well defensively at 3B.

(18:30) Eddie Rosario won NL Player of the Week and followed that up with a hit in each game on Tuesday.

(20:00) Trevor Williams gave up his first homer of the season and had a no decision in his Game 1 outing as he did not have the benefit of good defense behind him. Mitchell Parker took the loss in Game 2 as he ceded three runs in five frames.

(33:00) Al was mystified at how empty Guaranteed Rate Field was during Game 1. Mark gives a firsthand account of just how few people were in the stands.

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The Nats lost 3-2 in Boston on Sunday afternoon to lose the weekend series. Al & Tim scratch their heads at the mistakes made by Victor Robles as he dropped a routine fly ball and the next inning had inexplicable base running that led to a crucial out. Davey Martinez noted afterwards that he considered removing Robles from the game.

(13:00) Robles was not the only cuprit on the bases as the Nats made multiple outs that way on Sunday. Nick Senzel was picked off in the top of 7th and Jacob Young was thrown out trying to steal 2nd for the final out of the game.

(16:00) Eddie Rosario homered again as he continued his red hot start to the month of May. He is 10 for his last 22 with four homers mixed in there.

(22:00) MacKenzie Gore struck out nine hitters and overall pitched well despite the loss. All of the runs he gave up came in the wacky of the bottom of the 2nd. Gore tossed a career high 111 pitches on in six frames.

(30:00) The Nationals move their road trip to the White Sox for a three game series. Chicago is in last place, but recently won four straight.

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The Nats lost 4-2 in Boston on Saturday afternoon to return to .500 through 38 games. Al begins with Davey Martinez's decision to pitch Robert Garcia for the entirety of the bottom 8th as a tied game became 4-2 before the end of the frame.

(05:00) Jake Irvin lasted a career high seven innings and exited the game when it was tied 2-2. Irvin struck out six and threw 103 pitches in the outing. Al notes how big it is that it seems that Irvin can be a long term rotation piece as it shows the improvement in the franchise's player development.

(09:30) How much credit should we give Sean Doolittle for the pitching staff's performance thus far? He was hired in the off season as a "Pitching strategist".

(14:00) The offense had just two solo homers and only once had a runner in scoring position. Eddie Rosario homered for the third time in May and he is hitting .409 this month after hitting .053 in April.

(20:00) James Wood homered twice in Game 1 of a doubleheader on Saturday. Wood has seven homers on the season and five of them have come this week.

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Following a two hour rain delay, the Nats were blanked 5-0 on Sunday afternoon in Chicago. Before we get into the show, we are excited to announce that WE WILL BE RETURNING FOR A 5TH SEASON AT NATS CHAT in 2025.

(06:00) Jake Irvin allowed a trio of early Cubs homers and he has now given up 29 of them this season. Irvin is now at 10-13 with an ERA at 4.22 and afterwards was critical of how mentally handled the delay start to the game.

(16:30) The offense outhit Chicago, but yet again did not score due to the lack of homers. Dylan Crews snapped an 0-19 slump and only had one hit in the final five games of the road trip. Crews is at 98 at bats since being called up and his OPS is now down to .599.

(22:00) Washington has six games remaining all home at this upcoming week. They host Kansas City and Philadelphia for 3 games apiece and both teams still have October implications. It has been a rough September for the Nationals as they are 8-12 this month.

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The Nats are back above .500 as they began their road trip with a 5-1 victory in Boston on Friday night. Al & Mark have a Patrick Corbin vwon to open with as he only allowed one run five innings of work. Corbin gave up seven hits, but was the beneficiary of great defense by Victor Robles early in the affair.

(10:00) It was another busy night for the bullpen as five arms came on in relief to toss four shutout frames. Harvey made his 19th appearance of the season, which is more than half of the team's games thus far.

(17:00) All of the Nationals runs came with two outs against them. Leading the charge was "Mr. May" AKA Eddie Rosario as he continued his total reversal from April. He had a pair of hits, stole a base, and scored two runs with some heads-up base running.

(21:00) Robles had two hits and had a stolen base. Robles played RF in his first game back since landing on the IL early in the season as Jacob Young was in CF.

(30:00) Jake Irvin takes the mound on Saturday afternoon and the Nats currently are in 3rd place all by themselves in the NL East.

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The Nats rallied in the bottom of the 9th and 11th, but came up short on Wednesday night in a 7-6 loss to the Orioles in 12 innings. Al & Mark catch their breath after one of the best ever "Battle of the Beltways" as the Nationals held their own this week against the top record in the American League.

(08:00) Eddie Rosario homered in the 9th and had two hits in the loss. Rosario only had three hits in all of April, but already has six hits thus far in May.

(16:00) Keibert Ruiz has been scuffling big time lately, but came through with two hits on Wednesday. It was his first multi hit game since March 30th in Cincinnati.

(18:00) Mitchell Parker allowed a pair of runs in 5.2 IP in his 5th MLB start. The best part of his stat line was that 53 of his 77 pitches were for strikes.

(21:20) A staggering seven relievers were used as a day off awaits Washington on Thursday. Every available arm in the bullpen was used except for Tanner Rainey.

(27:00) James Wood homered twice on Wednesday in Scranton and Davey Martinez reiterated that the organization will be patient before calling up the team's top ranked prospect.

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For the first time in almost three years, the Nationals are over .500 on the season as they now are 18-17 after shutting out the visiting Orioles 3-0 on Tuesday night. Mark & Al put in perspective just how long it has been since the team has had a winning record, which is all the way back in early July 2021.

(05:10) Trevor Williams continued his excellent start to the season as he struck out eight O's in his 5 IP. His ERA is 1.96 after seven starts in 2024 and Williams has not surrendered a homer.

(12:45) Four relievers combined to only give up one hit in the final four frames of the victory. Robert Garcia, fresh off the IL, threw a 1-2-3 top of the 6th. Kyle Finnegan notched his 12th save of the season, which leads all of baseball.

(18:00) The Nats drew six walks and collected six hits in the victory. What stood out the most on Tuesday was that they stole four bases and three of them came against Baltimore starter Corbin Burnes.

(24:10) Victor Robles returned to the active roster, but Jacob Young got the start in CF. Davey Martinez mentioned that Robles might see action in RF as Young has played well this season.

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The Nats beat the Blue Jays 11-8 in a wild affair to capture the weekend series on a Sunday afternoon in Navy Yard after trailing 6-1 early in the game. Mark & Al have a lot to get to, but begin with Luis Garcia who had three crucial hits and knocked in four runs. Garcia homered twice in the series and is now hitting .337 so far this season.

(12:00) Jesse Winker slugged a 3 run HR to put Washington ahead 7-6 in the bottom of the 4th. Winker also doubled on Sunday for his first multi hit game since April 27th.

(15:00) Eddie Rosario had his biggest hit yet since joining the team as he clubbed a 2 run HR to break the 8-8 tie and put the Nationals up for good. Rosario's averaged is now .117 and raised 34 points over the weekend series.

(22:00) Davey Martinez used six relievers on Sunday as the team finally have an off day coming up. The final seven outs came from the trusty duo of Hunter Harvey and Kyle Finnegan.

(25:00) MacKenzie Gore only lasted three innings and committed one of the three errors charged to the team. Gore needed 76 pitches to get his nine outs as he gave up six runs, including a grand slam to Vladimir Guerrero Jr.

(33:00) The Orioles come to D.C. on Tuesday for a quick two game series. Baltimore has the AL's best record and the Nats will have another opportunity to get back over .500.

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The Nats lost 6-3 to visiting Toronto on a soggy Saturday afternoon. Al recaps the defeat as the Nationals yet again miss an opportunity to move above .500. The defense was bad as they committed four errors and all four runs that Jake Irvin allowed were unearned. Nick Senzel had two throwing errors in the loss and Trey Lipscomb also struggled at 1B.

(10:00) Tanner Rainey tossed a scoreless top of the 9th inning. It ends a string of three consecutive outings of giving up at least one run.

(13:10) A consolation prize for the offense on Saturday was that they drew five walks. Al notes the increase in walk percentage for this franchise this season.

(16:00) Eddie Rosario earned his first hit at Nationals Park this season and his batting average is now up to .096.

(19:00) MacKenzie Gore takes the mound on Sunday afternoon in the series rubber match, weather permitting.

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The Nats beat the visiting Blue Jays 9-3 on Friday night after initially trailing 3-0 in the 2nd inning. Al & Mark begin with Luis Garcia Jr., who did not start but flipped the game with a pinch hit 3 run HR in the bottom of the 7th to grab the lead. Garcia has been platooned as of late, but he is hitting .300 on the season.

(13:30) Jacob Young exited the evening early due to back spasms. Young hit lead-off as Davey Martinez decided to tinker the lineup after the series loss in Texas.

(18:45) CJ Abrams had an excellent game in the field as he made multiple highlight plays. Mark notes his defensive progress over the past year.

(27:45) Hunter Harvey tossed a scoreless top of the 8th and Al points out that it is already his 15th appearance of the season as the Nationals have only played 32 games.

(33:00) Weather permitting, Washington on Saturday afternoon will attempt to go over .500 for the first time since July 1st, 2021. Jake Irvin is slated to oppose fellow right hander Kevin Gausman.

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The Nats were shutout 6-0 in Thursday afternoon's rubber match in Arlington to return to a game under .500. Mark (From Texas) & Al discuss the Nationals bats staying cold as they only scored two runs in the entire series. The offense collected just four hits in the loss and Eddie Rosario (.086) was one of the starters that did not get one.

(17:00) Mitchell Parker took his first MLB loss as he gave up three runs off of six hits in 5.1 IP. Mark explains that Parker did not get all the help possible from his defense early on in the outing.

(21:00) The game was 3-0 until the bottom of the 8th when Matt Barnes allowed three runs and his ERA currently sits at 6.75.

(24:30) Victor Robles has played CF in AAA-Rochester for the past few days and tripled. Might he be called up for this weekend vs. Toronto?

(25:30) This week the Nats faced Wyatt Langford, who the Rangers selected one pick after Dylan Crews last summer. This leads to a discussion about Crews' MLB timetable as he has been OK so far this season with AA-Harrisburg.

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The Nats blanked the Rangers 1-0 on Tuesday night to return to .500 through 30 games. Mark (Live from Texas) & Al start with Trevor Williams, who is now 3-0 on the season in six outings. Williams lasted 5 IP and did not allow a run despite loading the bases in multiple innings.

(12:30) The bullpen tossed four scoreless innings and it included Dylan Floro taking the mound in the 7th. Is he the new 7th inning guy in the "A Bullpen?". Kyle Finnegan notched his tenth save of the season, which is tied for the MLB lead.

(16:30) Alex Call had the game's lone RBI and it was his first in the majors this season. The offense had five hits on the night and has not yet drawn a walk in this series.

(19:30) Jacob Young was barely thrown out trying to steal 2nd and it ends his streak of 25 consecutive successful stolen bases to begin his career.

(25:40) It is the Nationals first 1-0 victory on the road since.... 2017!

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The Nats four game win streak came to a halt on Tuesday night in Arlington as they fell 7-1 at the Rangers. Mark (From Texas) & Al begin with the slumping Eddie Rosario, who went 0 for 3 in the loss and is hitting just .088 so far this season. Rosario was signed during Spring Training to a minor league deal after playing the past few years in Atlanta.

(9:30) Keibert Ruiz also went 0 for 3 and is hitting .143 so far. Ruiz does not have a hit since returning the lineup last Thursday vs. the Dodgers.

(14:00) MacKenzie Gore gave up two runs in 5 IP and struck out seven Rangers. Gore has only allowed two runs or fewer in four of his six starts so far this season.

(20:00) Tanner Rainey really struggled again as he gave up three runs in the bottom of the 8th. His ERA is at 9.32 and his velocity is noticeably lower than it used to be. As hard as it is to say to this 2019 contributor, will he be DFA'd soon?

(25:00) April is over and the Nationals came very close to finishing over .500 as they sit at 14-15. Mark gives his observations from the opening month of the season.

(30:00) Owen Ranger, who covers the Harrisburg Senators for "Nats Report", gives an update on the team's prospects in AA.

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The Nats beat the Marlins 7-2 on Monday night to complete the four game sweep on the road and they are now exactly at .500 for the season. Mark and Al begin with CJ Abrams who slugged his 7th homer of the year, rare territory for this franchise. This leads to a conversation on whether or not a long term extension with the shortstop is in the works.

(15:30) The Nats had a trio of doubles and Nick Senzel was one of them as he continued his scorching stretch. He came very close to going deep again and his slugging percentage is at .641.

(18:15) Jacob Young had an incredible series as he scored nine runs and stole six bases in Miami. He is the first player to accomplish that feat in over 100 years!

(22:45) Jake Irvin earned the win as he pitched six frames and only allowed a pair of runs. This was nice bounce back outing for Irvin after he gave up a dozen hits to the Dodgers last week.

(30:30) Washington moves their road trip to Texas as they face the defending World Series champions. A victory on Tuesday would give the Nats their first winning April in the Davey Martinez Era.

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The Nats ended their five game skid on Saturday afternoon, but the major news of the day came beforehand. Mark (From Wrigley Field) & Al dive into the shocking news that CJ Abrams was optioned to the minors and will not play the rest of the season. There were reports that Abrams was out at a Chicago casino until 8AM on Friday morning, just a handful hours prior to 1st Pitch. Abrams will spend the next week at the team's facility in West Palm Beach since AAA-Rochester's season ends on Sunday.

(24:00) Almost lost in the shuffle from the busy Saturday, MacKenzie Gore took a no hitter into the bottom of the 7th. Gore struck out nine Cubs and navigated through a trio of walks issued. His ERA is at 4.04 and he has one start remaining next week in D.C.

(30:00) Five Washington hitters had multiple hits in the win. Joey Gallo hit his second HR of the series and he now is up to nine on the season, a far cry from last season's 23 homers with the Twins.

(34:00) Kyle Finnegan pitched the 9th and it was his first appearance in a week. The Nats are at 69 victories and need to go 3-4 down the stretch to exceed last season's win total.

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The Nats beat the Marlins 12-9 on Sunday afternoon after falling behind 6-0 in the 1st inning. Al & Tim recap the big comeback on what is fittingly the ninth anniversary of the famous "Dan Uggla Game", one of the more memorable rallies in team history. It was the Nationals third straight victory and they go for the sweep on Monday night.

(05:00) The scoring for Washington began in the 4th and that is when Nick Senzel hit the first of his two homers in the game. Senzel has homered four times in the team's past four games.

(08:00) Jacob Young had another excellent game as he had three hits, stole two bases, and scored two runs while playing CF.

(16:30) Alex Call had another a very impactful game just one day after getting promoted from Rochester. Call scored three times and had an outfield assist. Hear why Tim refers to him as a "AAAAA Player".

(19:30) Patrick Corbin allowed seven runs and saw Miami bat around in the opening inning. Will this be the season that he loses his spot in the rotation?

(28:00) Hunter Harvey recorded a five out hold and Kyle Finnegan notched his 9th save of the season. Derek Law struck out three Marlins in two innings of work.

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The Nats trounced Miami 11-4 on Saturday afternoon for their second consecutive win over the Marlins. Al recaps the easy road victory as the offense totaled 11 hits and slugged a trio of homers.

(03:00) Jesse Winker hit a grand slam that gave Washington a 6-1 edge in the middle of the game. He also had an infield single that brought in Jacob Young, who scored four runs on Saturday while also stealing a pair of bases.

(11:00) Mitchell Parker had a short outing as he only lasted four frames. He gave up six hits, but only allowed one run that came in on a wild pitch. He threw 82 pitches in the afternoon, which is the most he's thrown yet with the Nationals in three starts.

(14:00) The bullpen initially combined for four scoreless frames, but the bottom of the 9th did not go well for Tanner Rainey in mop up duty. He gave up three runs and has struggled mightily this season.

(15:30) Joey Gallo was placed on the IL due to a AC sprain in his left shoulder. Alex Call takes his roster spot and it was another time that the franchise decided not to bring up James Wood.

(22:00) Tim is joined by the President of "Expos Fest", Perry Giannias for an explanation of what the annual event is as they held it last weekend. Many Expos alumni were in attendance including Pedro Martinez and Moises Alou. Expos Fest supports a wonderful charitable cause and and one can visit exposfest.com to learn more information.

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The Nats beat the Marlins 3-1 on Friday night in Miami to end their three game skid. Al & Mark have another episode of praise for Trevor Williams as he only allowed one run in five innings of work. He has not had a bad outing in his five starts so far this season.

(11:40) The bullpen used three pitchers and threw four shutout frames while issuing zero walks. Derek Law did the bulk of the work as he tossed a pair of innings and came away with the win.

(15:45) All eight of the Nationals hits were singles and the biggest came from Joey Meneses as his 2 run single in the top of the 8th broke the tie. Meneses has eleven hits in the last week an his average has gone from .192 up to .256.

(22:00) Joey Gallo struck out three times and has done so in three consecutive games. He leads MLB in strikeouts and only has three homers on the season.

(27:15) Cade Cavalli drove to Miami from his rehab in West Palm and revealed that he is hoping to return to the mound in mid May in the minor leagues. He has been out since Spring Training last year after undergoing Tommy John Surgery.

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