By Elaine Donnelly
Extending sexual misconduct to combat units
Tuesday's loss was Washington's fifth straight at home and the team that started the season 7-2 is now 10-10. Yes, indeed, it remains very early in the season. But early is about half done and the Nats are in a funk.
It takes talent to win a World Series, of course, but luck and timing also are huge factors. As the Washington Nationals aspire to a championship in 2013, here's a look at how the past five World Series winners reached the top.
Adam Wainwright and the St. Louis Cardinals have put contract talks on hold, though neither side expects many obstacles to a long-term deal.
Adam Wainwright looked like an ace again and some of the St. Louis Cardinals' top hitters rediscovered their strokes.
Just ask the Oakland Athletics and Washington Nationals how much momentum means in the postseason.
The scene in the visitors' clubhouse early Saturday morning was what could have been for the Washington Nationals.
The St. Louis Cardinals are what the Washington Nationals want to be. If we've learned anything from the first three games of this playoff series, we've learned that. Forget regular-season records. The Cardinals win when they need to win.
Stephen Strasburg knows these playoffs are different for him. He knows that his face shows up during the telecasts of the Washington Nationals' games and that his absence, one of baseball's biggest storylines, is a part of the Nationals' story, regardless of how the end is written.
Under a cloudless sky that whipped cold wind into a sea of red, the end arrived at 2:08 p.m. local time.
The 2012 season represented uncharted territory for the Washington Nationals, as the vast majority of players had never experienced the pressure of pennant races or the joy of first-place finishes.
When a pitcher's control deserts him, the 18-foot diameter of the mound transforms into a lonely island. Gio Gonzalez understands the feeling.
Bryce Harper stood reluctantly at his locker before a battery of cameras and microphones, doing his best to try and convince the world – and perhaps himself – that the biggest game of his life was no big deal.
Stephen Strasburg went through the Washington Nationals' workout Saturday afternoon much the way he has every day since Sept. 8. He was a part of it, but on the periphery. He is not on the Nationals' NLDS roster. He will not pitch for them in the playoffs.
Back on June 1, the AP unveiled a list of 10 players who were off to slow starts but were likely to bounce back quickly _ some thinly veiled advice for fantasy players, if you will.
The minute Gio Gonzalez's left foot hit the dirt on his way out of the dugout for the ninth inning Friday night, the cheers began. They cascaded down on him. Nearly 30,000 people on their feet at Nationals Park chanting his name.
"I felt good early, and I tried to command what I was doing," Wainwright said.
