"5/23/13: The chitter-chatter of the Washinton Nationals has been Bryce Harper crashing into the score board while trying to catch a fly ball. He had 11 stitches just under his chin. He is certainly keeping his chin up as of tonight when he returns to the lineup tonight against the Giants. In less action packed news the Washington Nationals have not even discussed a new contract with Mike Rizzo. He is one of the lowest-paid GMs in the major leagues. Mike agreed to this in the start due to not having a lot of experience. Beware, though, he is represented by Scott Boras.
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5/16/13: Anyone who saw Nationals star outfielder Bryce Harper go headfirst into the scoreboard screen in right field at Dodger Stadium on Monday had to flinch. Harper stayed on the ground for a few minutes and left under his own power. His neck was bloodied and he was visibly shaken up. Harper's all out style is refreshing, but does he need to change his type of play? The kid has a lot of years of professional baseball ahead of him, and it is tough to watch such a great young talent hurt himself. He will bounce back from this injury, but hopefully will not have any more.

5/9/13: Congrats to Bryce Harper for continuing and building on his historic rookie season. Harper was obviously the Nat's MVP for April. The team is just above .500 right now, and would be a whole lot worse if not for the young outfielder. He finished April second in slugging (.740) and home runs (nine), and fourth in batting average (.344). He is maturing rapidly as a hitter, as both his walk and strikeout rates have improved over last season. This bodes well for the Nats for many years to come since Harper is not yet even 21.

5/2/13: Through one month of the season, the Nationals have not yet shown that they are near the team that many expected them to be. Washington was expected to coast through the regular season, putting up great stats and a lot of wins as they prepared for the playoffs in October. So far, however, they trail Atlanta Braves who have gotten off to a strong start behind the hottest player in the game, Justin Upton. The Nats have a few problems. Ryan Zimmerman has been on the DL and ace pitcher Steven Strasberg just has not shown the great form he had last season.

4/25/13: Take it easy, Nats fans, it is still early in the season. Washington is hovering just over .500 and 3.5 games behind the NL East leading Atlanta Braves. This team was expected to run away with the division like they did last year, but have only gotten mediocre returns so far. Ace pitcher Steven Strausberg has not been the same pitcher as last year and third baseman Ryan Zimmerman is a liability in the field - leading all third basemen in errors so far. But again, it is still early and there is plenty of time to right the ship.

4/4/13: The Nats dream season cam to a crashing halt last October when the St. Louis Cardinals beat them in the playoffs and advanced to the National League Championship Series. The Cardinals were the second wild card team last season and shocked everyone by taking down Washington with relative ease. The Nats are back and Bryce Harper started off with a bang. He homered in his first at bat. Then homered again in his second at bat. Both were solo shots, and provided enough offense as the Nats beat the Marlins on opening day 2-0 at home.

3/21/13: Great news for Washington Nationals fans who have been pining for baseball to return since the St. Louis Cardinals eliminated the team in National League Divisional Series last October. Bryce Harper is in mid season form. He is hitting .400 in spring training (20 for 40) with 12 RBIs. He had four RBIs today against the Miami Marlins, then promptly left the building. Literally. Harper and Jason Werth got in a private car and went back to the Nationals complex in Vero Beach. Yep, they are ready for the regular season and defend their NL East crown.

10/2/12 ? The Washington Nationals lost to the Philadelphia Phillies 2-0, but they were still celebrating in the locker room after the game. At the bottom of the ninth inning, in front of their home crowd, the game between Atlanta and the Pittsburgh Pirates flashed a 2-1 final score on the scoreboard in favor of the Pirates. This meant that the Washington Nationals are NL East Champions for the second time in franchise history. The last time they won the division crown was in 1981 as the Montreal Expos. Washington, in first place since May 22, awaits the winner of the Wild Card playoff game between the Atlanta Braves and St. Louis Cardinals.

9/20/12 ? Ross Detwiler threw six strong innings to send the Washington Nationals to the playoffs for their first postseason berth since moving from Montreal. For the city of Washington it will be their first chance to watch postseason baseball since 1933. With 30,359 fans on their feet, Drew Storen struck out Los Angeles infielder Hanley Ramirez to end the game. Detwiler struck out five and allowed one earned run and Nationals third baseman Ryan Zimmerman had an RBI double and scored on a wild pitch in the 4-1 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Nationals will have at least one of the two wild card spots in the National League. Washington?s magic number to win the NL East is now eight.

The Washington Nationals continued their strong season in impressive fashion on Monday night as they defeated the San Francisco Giants by the score of 14-2 at AT&T; Park. Gio Gonzalez got the start for Washington and pitched 6.2 strong innings, allowing two earned runs on six hits and two walks. He also added four strikeouts over the course of his 99 pitches en route to his 15th victory of the season. Offensively, Danny Espinosa blasted his 12th home run of the year in the fifth off Brady Penny, while Ryan Zimmerman, Adam Laroche, Michael Morse, Ronny Bernadina and Kurt Suzuki all drove in runs in the winning effort. Overall, the team was a very impressive 10-20 with runners in scoring position throughout the game.

Danny Espinosa got the big hit for the Nationals in extra innings as Washington defeated the Houston Astros by the score of 3-2 on Wednesday night. Ross Detwiler got the start for Washington and lasted seven strong innings, surrendering just two earned runs on three hits and two walks. He also added two strikeouts over the course of his 85 pitch outing. Offensively, Espinosa provided all of the hits, including a two-run home run in the second inning off Astros starter Jordan Lyles. While the team managed only six hits throughout the game, they were 1-3 with runners in scoring position, getting the big hit when it counted in the 12th inning.

Despite a strong season thus far, Gio Gonzalez struggled on Monday as the Washington Nationals dropped a high-scoring11-10 ball game to the Milwaukee Brewers. Gonzalez pitched six innings, allowing five earned runs on five hits and five walks. He also added four strikeouts over the course of his 98 pitch outing. Offensively, Stephen Lobmardozzi, Michael Morse and Roger Bernadina all went deep in the loss, with each of those hitters accounting for all of the runs batted in for their squad on the day. Overall, the Nationals hit 4-15 with runners in scoring position against the Brewers pitching staff. Stephen Strasburg will get the ball on Tuesday for Washington.

Jordan Zimmerman was outstanding on Monday and helped propel the Washington Nationals to an 8-2 victory against the New York Mets. Zimmerman pitched six strong innings, allowing four hits and zero walks over the course of his 89 pitch outing. He also struck out six batters, but unfortunately did not last long enough to earn the victory. The game went into extra innings, with Tom Gorzelanny pitching the final 1.2 frames to earn his third win of the year. Offensively, Bryce Harper and Michael Morse each went deep in the victory. Overall, the team was an impressive 4-7 with runners in scoring position.

The surging Washington Nationals now own the best record in the majors, after Thursday night's 8-2 win over the Milwaukee Brewers. Edwin Jackson threw 7 scoreless innings for the Nationals as they improved to 59-39, tied with the New York Yankees for the best mark in the league. Their record marks the first time in 79 years that a Washington-based team is at least 20 games over .500. The last time came in 1933 when the Washington Senators finished the regular season with a record of 99-53 and lost to the New York Giants in the World Series.

The Washington Nationals continued the NL East's dominance over the Tampa Bay Rays by taking two out of three from them this week. The Nationals' dominating one-two combo of Stephen Strasburg and Gio Gonzalez picked up the wins for Washington on Wednesday and Thursday, respectively. Strasburg's win pushed his record to 9-1, while Thursday's 5-2 victory pushed Gonzalez's record to 9-3, with a 2.55 ERA to go along with it. Although the Nationals said before the season that they would be shutting down Strasburg early to avoid reinjury to his arm, his 9-1 record may cause them to think twice about taking him out the rotation.

Two of the hottest teams in baseball will collide this weekend, as the Washington Nationals host the New York Yankees in a three-game Interleague set that can have major implications for both the NL East and AL East. With the Yankees winners of six games in a row and the Nationals also on their very own six-game winning streak, it will be an unstoppable force meeting an immovable object when the two division leaders meet this weekend. The 38-23 Nationals are beginning to put some distance in between themselves and the rest of the NL East, as they currently hold a 4.5 game lead over the second-place New York Mets.

The Washington Nationals had the chance to complete a three-game sweep of the New York Mets on Thursday afternoon, but were shut down by R.A. Dickey and fell 3-1, dropping their record to 32-23. The first-place Nationals lead the Atlanta Braves by one game in the NL East and will face the Boston Red Sox on Friday night at Fenway Park to begin a three-game interleague series against the Red Sox. The Nats will send 6-1 Stephen Strasburg to the mound in the series opener against Boston's Felix Doubront (6-2) who has been the Red Sox best pitcher over the last month.

Adam LaRoche has been a surprise contributor so far this season for the surprising NL East-leading Washington Nationals. LaRoche has already appeared in more games for the Nationals this year (50) than he did all of last season (43). LaRoche's 39 RBIs are enough for fifth in the National League and his 29 walks are sixth best. Along with RBIs, LaRoche also leads the team in home runs (9) and OPS (.861). LaRoche is currently fifth in voting for National League first basmen for the 2012 MLB All-Star Game according to the first numbers that have been revealed by MLB.

Despite being towards the bottom of the league in runs and batting average, the Washington Nationals still find themselves at 29-21 and in first place in the NL East going into June. Beginning on Friday night, the Nationals will open up a weekend series with the division-rival Atlanta Braves and will put 5-1 Stephen Strasburg on the mound. Even with Strasburg's strong start though, the real surprise in the Nationals' rotation thus far has been Gio Gonzalez who has posted a 7-1 record and a stingy 2.04 ERA and has helped Washington to this strong start.

Despite being towards the bottom of the league in runs and batting average, the Washington Nationals still find themselves at 29-21 and in first place in the NL East going into June. Beginning on Friday night, the Nationals will open up a weekend series with the division-rival Atlanta Braves and will put 5-1 Stephen Strasburg on the mound. Even with Strasburg's strong start though, the real surprise in the Nationals' rotation thus far has been Gio Gonzalez who has posted a 7-1 record and a stingy 2.04 ERA and has helped Washington to this strong start. Adam LaRoche has been a surprise contributor so far this season for the surprising NL East-leading Washington Nationals. LaRoche has already appeared in more games for the Nationals this year (50) than he did all of last season (43). LaRoche's 39 RBIs are enough for fifth in the National League and his 29 walks are sixth best. Along with RBIs, LaRoche also leads the team in home runs (9) and OPS (.861). LaRoche is currently fifth in voting for National League first basmen for the 2012 MLB All-Star Game according to the first numbers that have been revealed by MLB. The Washington Nationals had the chance to complete a three-game sweep of the New York Mets on Thursday afternoon, but were shut down by R.A. Dickey and fell 3-1, dropping their record to 32-23. The first-place Nationals lead the Atlanta Braves by one game in the NL East and will face the Boston Red Sox on Friday night at Fenway Park to begin a three-game interleague series against the Red Sox. The Nats will send 6-1 Stephen Strasburg to the mound in the series opener against Boston's Felix Doubront (6-2) who has been the Red Sox best pitcher over the last month. Two of the hottest teams in baseball will collide this weekend, as the Washington Nationals host the New York Yankees in a three-game Interleague set that can have major implications for both the NL East and AL East. With the Yankees winners of six games in a row and the Nationals also on their very own six-game winning streak, it will be an unstoppable force meeting an immovable object when the two division leaders meet this weekend. The 38-23 Nationals are beginning to put some distance in between themselves and the rest of the NL East, as they currently hold a 4.5 game lead over the second-place New York Mets. The Washington Nationals continued the NL East's dominance over the Tampa Bay Rays by taking two out of three from them this week. The Nationals' dominating one-two combo of Stephen Strasburg and Gio Gonzalez picked up the wins for Washington on Wednesday and Thursday, respectively. Strasburg's win pushed his record to 9-1, while Thursday's 5-2 victory pushed Gonzalez's record to 9-3, with a 2.55 ERA to go along with it. Although the Nationals said before the season that they would be shutting down Strasburg early to avoid reinjury to his arm, his 9-1 record may cause them to think twice about taking him out the rotation.

5/31/12 - Tyler Clippard has appeared to take over as the Washington Nationals closer. Clippard was phenomenal as a set up man, recording 10 holds, and has found success in the closer role. Clippard has not allowed a run in his past five appearances, striking out eight in those 4 2/3 innings of work. Along with Henry Rodriguez and Sean Burnett, Clippard has led an outstanding back end of the bullpen. Adding the deep bullpen to a dominant starting rotation has kept opponents' scoring to a minimum and is a big reason the Nationals are sitting in first place of the NL East.

5/25/12 The Washington Nationals, at 26-18, are currently in first place in the NL East, one game ahead of the Atlanta Braves. Coming off of a series win over the division-rival Philadelphia Phillies this week, the Nationals will head into a grueling stretch of divisional games that will undoubtedly test their fortitude early on in this season. Coming up for the Nationals are series against the Miami Marlins and New York Mets, bookended by two series against the second-place Atlanta Braves. These next few weeks will be key in determining if the Nationals are here to stay atop the NL East and if they will be true contenders in the NL once September rolls around.

5/2/12 - After coming back from Tommy John Surgery late last year, the former number one overall pick was looking for a dominating year. He's off to a good start. Strasburg was voted the National League Pitcher of the Month for April. Strasburg went 2-0 with a 1.13 ERA with 34 strikeouts in 32 innings over 5 starts. This is the first of many monthly awards of Strasburg's career. Led by Strasburg, the Nationals' pitching staff is the best in the Majors with an ERA of 2.40. Strasburg's April has led the Nationals to a 15-9 record and has them in first place in the National League East.

4/28/12 - As a 16 year old he was dubbed "Baseball's Chosen One" by Sports Illustrated. In 2010 he was the Number 1 pick in the MLB Draft. Two years later, the Washington Nationals top prospect, Bryce Harper, made his major league debut. At the age of 19, Harper was called up from Triple-A Syracuse because of an injury to Ryan Zimmerman. Never has there been a player with as much hype surrounding him as Harper. On Saturday April 28, 2012, he made his debut batting 7th and starting in left field. Harper got his first major league hit in the seventh, lining a double to centerfield. He also gave the Nationals the lead with a sacrifice fly in the ninth inning for his first career RBI. The Nationals ended up losing the game 4-3, but even with the loss, Nationals fans and other baseball fans were excited about the potential career Harper could have.

While the team has only played .500 baseball through its last 10 games, the Washington Nationals remain atop the National League East, tied with the Atlanta Braves with a 14-8 record before their final April game on Monday. Stephen Strasburg has bounded back strongly from surgery last season and has put together a 1.13 ERA through his first five starts, as well as 34 strikeouts in 32 innings pitched. Called up this past weekend for his first stint in the big leagues, rookie phenom Bryce Harper went 2-6 with a double, walk and a sacrifice fly. The Nationals hope that Harper can provide them with an added boost to keep themselves at the top of the division.

Perhaps the biggest surprise of the young 2012 Major League season is that of the Washington Nationals. The team is currently 12-4 and in first place of the highly competitive National League East. Outfielder Jayson Werth has led the offensive fight with a .322 batting average, while the pitching staff has been paced with strong starts from Stephen Strasburg and Jordan Zimmerman. Strasburg is 2-0 with a 1.08 earned run average and 25 strikeouts, while Zimmerman boasts a 1.29 ERA and a 0.71 WHIP through three starts. The team will have a big series against the NL West-leading Dodgers this weekend.

The Washington Nationals have high hopes for the 2012 season after a speedy recovery from young phenom Stephen Strasburg has invigorated the young team to a 3-2 start on the season. After completing his rehab from Tommy John surgery, Strasburg went 7 innings on Opening Day, allowing only one run and striking out five through 82 pitches. Offensively, the team has been paced by first basemen Adam LaRoche, who has hit 2 home runs and driven in 6 runs through the team's first five games. The Nationals begin series against the New York Mets and Cincinnati Reds this week, looking to improve upon their good start.

Washington Nationals Tickets - Team History

Washington Nationals Tickets allow fans the unique opportunity to experience history in the making. After the team was relocated to the District from Montreal, the team found a temporary home in nearby RFK Stadium. The club has since made the move to Nationals Park, a ballpark that carries the distinction of being the first LEED-certified green major professional sports stadium in the United States. Although the Nationals only celebrated their first season in Washington a short five seasons ago, the club has already made strides towards becoming a perennial divisional contender. Watch as the Washington Nationals build their legacy in the Nation's Capital.

Washington Nationals Tickets - Season Info

It's been tough sledding during the Washington Nationals early years, but the team looks to take big steps forward in the NL East in 2011. Back-to-back No. 1 overall picks and future stars Stephen Strasburg and Bryce Harper compliment All Stars Jayson Werth and Ryan Zimmerman. Werth and the Nationals agreed to a seven year deal worth $126 million in December, bolstering a line up that saw slugger Adam Dunn leave in free agency. Solid contributions from these much improved pitching and hitting lineups could be just what the Nats need to move into contention.

Washington Nationals Tickets - Ticket Information

Washington Nationals tickets ensure that fans see the Nationals playing top contenders throughout the entire MLB season. The Nationals have their work cut out for them in a tough National League East. With matchups with great teams like the Atlanta Braves and Philadelphia Phillies and non-divisional meetings with the San Francisco Giants and St. Louis Cardinals early in the 2011 season, the Nationals will need a strong start. Be a part of Nats Town and don't miss the action!

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