Nats Chat

The Nats were easily beaten by the Phillies 11-6 on Saturday afternoon in Navy Yard. Mark & Al spend plenty of time on the bullpen, which has performed poorly in both games so far this season. Jake Irvin departed a tied game after five innings and four relievers combined to give up nine runs following his exit. The 'pen is not only giving up a bunch of runs, but they are issuing a ton of walks alo...

The Nats bullpen let them down on their way to a season opening 7-3 loss in extra innings vs. the visiting Phillies. Mark & Al start with a major positive for Washington as MacKenzie Gore set a franchise Opening Day record with 13 strikeouts. Gore was fantastic as he did not issue any walks and only gave up one hit. (10:30) Keibert Ruiz homered off of Zack Wheeler and threw out a runner trying to...

The Nationals season begins on Thursday March 27th at 4:05PM vs. the visiting Phillies. Mark & Al get you set for the 21st season of Washington Nationals baseball. (00:00) Nats moved to town 20 years ago (10:00) Minor league prospects to monitor: Robert Hassell III & Brady House (14:10) Brad Lord surprisingly contending for a bullpen spot (17:45) Nationals return their Rule 5 Pick Evan Reifert bac...

Spring Training is currently in its "Dog Days" phase as Opening Day in Navy Yard  is two weeks away. Al & Mark open with a quick update on CJ Abrams, who exited Wednesday's game early due to cramping in both quads, but is expected in Thursday's lineup. (05:00) All signs pointing towards MacKenzie Gore to start on Opening Day vs. the Phillies. (12:30) DJ Herz, Mitchell Parker, & Shinnosuke Ogasawar...

March has arrived and Opening Day is just a few weeks away. Mark & Al focus on key parts of the roster in the lead to March 27th vs. the Phillies. Jacob Young is an odd spot in 2025 as even though he came within an eyelash of winning the Gold Glove last season, the crowded outfield depth is making it so that he has to prove himself again that he is worthy of being an everyday CFer. (10:00) Mike Ri...

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 optio...

(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...

Grapefruit League play has yet to start, but the Nats have been down in West Palm Beach for over a week. Mark (Live from Florida) & Al begin with the recent signing of veteran infielder Paul DeJong, who might end up being the team's Opening Day 3B. DeJong hit 24 homers last season while playing for both the White Sox & Royals. (14:00) Washington added right-handed relief pitcher Lucas Sims, who is...

The Nationals opened up camp this week in Florida as Davey Martinez begins his 8th season at the helm. Mark (Live from West Palm) & Al open with how 2025 might have elevated pressure for Martinez compared to recent seasons. (05:40) CJ Abrams reported early to camp after his 2024 ended on a very sour note. Abrams was demoted to AAA the final week of the season after being out late at a Chicago casi...

Al & Mark convene during the early January snow storm to discuss the roster moves that were made in late December. The Nationals recently acquired 1B Nathaniel Lowe from Texas in exchange for Robert Garcia and also signed Josh Bell. Will there be more moves to address offense for the 2025 season? Bell was previously with Washington and was part of the Juan Soto trade to San Diego in 2022. (14:50)...

The MLB Winter Meetings just wrapped up in Texas and the Nationals have not yet made an offseason splash. Mark & Al begin with the pleasant surprise that Washington won the lottery and will have the top pick in next summer's Draft. (05:30) Mike Rizzo said on TV that it is time "hit the gas" despite the team not signing anyone thus far. Is it too early to panic and think it will be another quiet wi...

The World Series is now behind us and Juan Soto's Free Agency has arrived. Mark & Al begin with a nod to Nationals October legend Daniel Hudson, who announced his retirement shortly after the Dodgers won the title, Hudson was warming up in the bullpen when Walker Buehler closed out Game 5. (05:00) Will the Nats be active on the Free Agency market for the first time in awhile? Will it be a Buyer's...

The Nats lost 6-3 on Sunday afternoon to the Phillies to finish the season at 71-91 overall. Mark & Al bridge the end of 2024 to the outlook of the 2025 season. (16:10) Dylan Crews closed out his season on a high note with a triple, two singles, and a stolen base. Crews ended up with 119 Big League at-bats after getting called up in late August. (19:30) Luis Garcia Jr. homered on Sunday to fitting...

The Nats topped the Phillies 6-3 on Saturday afternoon in front of a sellout crowd for their 71st victory; tying last year's total. Mark & Al recap MacKenzie Gore's stellar final outing of the season where he tossed six shutout frames. Gore's season ends with a 3.90 ERA, a stark improvement from where he began September (4.45). It is the best end of season ERA for a Nats starter with 20+ starts si...

The Nats clubbed the Phillies 9-1 on Friday night to end their four game skid. Mark & Al recap Stone Garrett's "too good to be true" evening as he fell a triple shy of the cycle in his first Big League game since August of last season. Garrett broke his leg last year and spent the bulk of this season with AAA-Rochester. (13:30) Trevor Williams tossed five shutout innings in his 2nd start since ret...

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 Fi...

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...

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...

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...

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...

The Nats lost their fifth in a row on Friday afternoon, but there were positive items to focus on amid defeat. Mark (From Chicago) & Al gather after the Nationals 3-1 loss at Wrigley Field that keeps the team stuck at 68 wins. Trevor Williams had a solid outing after returning from a long stint on the IL; he only allowed one run in five frames in his first appearance since May 30th. Williams has o...

The Nats lost 7-6 on Thursday night in Chicago for their 4th consecutive defeat. Mark (From Wrigley Field) & Al react to Washington falling to 17 games below .500 for the first time this season. (05:00) CJ Abrams had a magnificent game as he had four hits, two of which were doubles, and a pair of stolen bases. (12:45) Darren Baker got his first career start at a stadium that he grew up at and he r...

The Nats were pummeled 10-0 on Wednesday night to conclude the sweep at the hands of the Mets. Mark (From Citi Field) & Al convene after Washington finished a paltry 2-11 vs. New York this season and the Mets maintain a two game lead over the Braves from the NL's Wild Card spot. The Nationals remain stuck at 68 wins and need to go 4-6 the rest of the way to exceed last season's win total. (14:00)...

The Nats were blown out 10-1 on Tuesday night at the Mets. Mark (From NYC) & Al react to Mitchell Parker's rough outing, that saw him allow five runs in under four innings of work and make yet another mental error in the field. Parker did not properly cover 1st base on a grounder to the right side and Mark explains the severity of this deficiency for Parker's long term career outlook. Parker's ERA...

The Nats lost 2-1 at the Mets in ten innings on Monday evening to begin their final road trip of the season. Mark (From Citi Field) & Al react to the splendid start by Jake Irvin, who brought a shutout into the bottom of the 8th. Irvin made a spectacular defensive play to end the 4th inning and had a memorable reaction afterwards. (13:10) Kyle Finnegan was not used, but did warm up in the bullpen...