Clippard struggles with his command

VIERA, Fla. — Tyler Clippard doesn’t possess the kind of raw “stuff” that dazzles scouts and general managers. The Washington Nationals right-hander instead has relied on pinpoint control to reach the big leagues, and he needs to maintain that reputation in order to stay in the majors.

So when Clippard opened his Nationals career yesterday by falling behind three of the first four batters he faced, he knew he was walking a fine line.

“Absolutely. I’ve said it many times: I’m not a guy that’s going to blow a lot of people away,” he said. “I need to rely on my command, especially my fastball. Once that falls into place, hitters have a hard time.”

Yesterday, the Florida Marlins took advantage of Clippard’s lack of control, though the 23-year-old managed to escape without suffering too much damage. He surrendered a leadoff home run to Alejandro De Aza on a 2-0 fastball, then later issued a four-pitch, two-out walk to Mike Jacobs.

“It’s early in spring,” Clippard said. “My command’s not where I want it to be yet, but I felt good, which is the most important thing at this point in time. Obviously there’s still some work to be done.”

Acquired from the New York Yankees over the winter for reliever Jonathan Albaladejo, Clippard is one of several young starters trying to force his way into the Washington rotation.

Nationals manager Manny Acta was curious to see how Clippard’s deceptive motion translated to the mound yesterday.

“There’s only so much you can see in the bullpen with a guy that has some deception,” Acta said. “You need to see him on the field. Is he really deceiving people with his delivery and all that? Deception in the bullpen takes you nowhere. We have to see him in the game.”

Mackowiak scare

Utilityman Rob Mackowiak had a brief scare during the sixth inning of yesterday’s game when his legs gave out while rounding first base, causing him to collapse in a heap.

Mackowiak limped off the field but was relieved to learn he likely only broke some scar tissue in his abdomen left over from his October surgery to repair a sports hernia.

“I feel OK,” he said. “You can tell it’s sore already after an hour or so. We’ll just see how it feels tomorrow and go from there. I don’t feel like I did before I had surgery, so I’m not ’hurt’ hurt. I think I just aggravated something.”

Mackowiak’s status is day-to-day.

“You look like an idiot when you come around the base like that,” he said. “Maybe my pride is hurt just as much as the surgery area was.”

Extra bases

The Mid-Atlantic Sports Network announced yesterday it will televise Tuesday afternoon’s exhibition game against the Dodgers.

That 1 o’clock game in Viera will mark the first of three Nationals exhibitions aired by MASN, which will also show the March 16 game against the Baltimore Orioles in Fort Lauderdale and the March 29 game between those clubs (the first big league matchup at Nationals Park).

Both the Nationals and Orioles will appear 96 times on MASN this season and 65 times on MASN2. Thirty more games will air on Channel 20 in the District.

MASN already had announced that 40 Nationals games will be broadcast in high definition for the first time this season, including all six interleague games against the Orioles. …

The Nationals formally announced that George Washington will play against Saint Joseph’s at Nationals Park at 1:05 p.m. on March 22 in the first game at the stadium. Tickets will not be available to the public, though a limited number will be available to people affiliated with GW.