Nats Chat

Mark Zuckerman & Al Galdi, Blue Wire

A Washington Nationals podcast offering recap and analysis after every game, plus all the breaking news throughout the year. Hosted by Mark Zuckerman of natsjournal.com & Al Galdi, host of "The Al Galdi Podcast". For sponsorship opportunities, contact Tim Shovers at natschatpodcast@gmail.com.

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979 episodes
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Episodes979

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May 25 · 39 min
Nats Win to Enter Memorial Day at .500
Sunday was a long one in Atlanta, but the Nats emerged with a hard fought 2-1 victory. Mark (From ATL) & Al open by noting that the Nationals are indeed .500 as they have concluded a third of the season. Washington stands at 27-27 and are in 2nd place in the NL East. (06:20) Foster Griffin bounced back from two not so good outings with six shutout frames on Sunday afternoon. Griffin struck out six and his ERA is down to 3.63 on the season. (11:20) Andrew Alvarez earned the Hold by recording
May 24 · 31 min
Irvin & 'Pen Toss 1-Hit Shutout
The Nats impressively blanked the Braves 2-0 on Saturday afternoon to even the weekend series. Mark (From Atlanta) & Al have a lot to discuss with Jake Irvin, as he threw five shutout innings, but exited early due to injury concerns and will get a MRI for his back/lat on Sunday morning. There was a forty minute rain delay after the 1st inning, but Irvin remained in the game through the delay. (07:00) Irvin struck out seven Braves and he has plenty of outings this season with at least five K
May 23 · 37 min
Unable to Close it Out in Rainy Extras
The Nats blew it in 10th and ended up losing 5-4 in 11 innings top to the Braves on Friday night. Mark (From Atlanta) & Al recap the narrow defeat that saw extra innings played in an active rain as Washington has lost by one run in two straight days. (05:10) CJ Abrams had two huge late hits as he homered in the 8th and tripled in the 10th. Abrams knocked in three runs to extend his lead across the sport in this category. (09:40) Curtis Mead homered for the first run of the night. Mead start
May 22 · 33 min
Cavalli Gets Little Help in Defeat
The Nats were on the losing end of Thursday afternoon's 2-1 loss against the Mets. Al & Tim start with Cade Cavalli, who struck out nine hitters in seven innings of work on just 84 pitches. Cavalli dipped his ERA down to 3.86 after this impressive outing despite being tagged with the loss. (09:30) Is Cade Cavalli the #1 individual bright spot so far this season? (13:10) Clayton Beeter and Orlando Ribalta each tossed a scoreless inning against New York. Ribalta escaped a bases loaded/ no outs
May 21 · 40 min
Young's Power Surge Continues in Win
The Nats are back at .500 after beating the Mets for the 2nd straight night. Mark & Al convene after the 8-4 victory on Wednesday night and put in perspective where this team stands after 50 games played. (09:00) Comparing this team to the 2005 Nationals, who had a surprisingly strong start. (13:20) CJ Abrams hit a 3-run homer in the bottom of the 1st to put Washington ahead right away. Abrams is in a four-way tie for most RBIs in all of Baseball (42). Abrams also had an impressive OPS (.928)
May 20 · 38 min
Wood's Inside-the-Park Grand Slam Sparks Comeback
The Nats trailed by five runs right away, but completely flipped the script on the Mets for a 9-6 win on Tuesday night. Al & Mark examine James Wood's Inside-the-Park Grand Slam in the bottom 2nd to cut the deficit to just one run. Wood has 13 homers this season, tied for 3rd most in the NL, but leads all of MLB in runs scored. (11:45) Paul Toboni met with the media on the same day that Dylan Crews joined the Big League Club. Toboni addressed what he has recently seen from Crews and why now
May 19 · 30 min
Crews Coming Up, House Going Down, & the Mets Dominate the 12th
Monday was a jam packed one for the Nats as lost 16-7 to the Mets in extras, with New York scoring 10 runs in the top of the 12th. Mark & Al begin with the report that Dylan Crews is getting called from AAA and that he will take the place of Brady House, who will be sent to Rochester. House has really struggled lately in the field and has committed eight errors already this season. Crews' OPS in Rochester was .777 with five homers during his month and a half stretch in AAA. (11:45) Seaver Ki
May 18 · 32 min
Orioles Get to Lovelady & Mikolas Right Away
The Nats did not sweep on Sunday and instead lost 7-3 to the visiting Orioles. Mark & Al open with Richard Lovelady, the Opener who gave up an upper deck solo homer in the top of the 1st hit to Gunnar Henderson. (04:00) Miles Mikolas allowed a 2-run HR vs. the initial batter that he faced in the top of the 2nd after taking over for Lovelady. Mikolas' ERA this season is a grisly 6.91. (09:00) Will Andrew Alvarez take Mikolas' spot in the rotation? (17:00) Jacob Young homered for the 5th time
May 17 · 36 min
Nats Reach .500!
The Nats have finally returned to the .500 mark and did so in emphatic fashion. Mark & Al dive into the Nationals 13-3 pummeling of the Orioles on Saturday afternoon in front of another sell out crowd in D.C. The fans were not only treated to a win, but also received Alex Ovechkin Bobbleheads. (08:00) Keibert Ruiz had a monster afternoon as he homered, knocked in five runs, stole a base, and even won an ABS challenge. Ruiz's OPS is up .715 and has climbed over .200 points in the month of May
May 16 · 31 min
Lile Stays Hot in Narrow Win
The Nats edged the Orioles 3-2 on Friday night in front of a sold out crowd in Navy Yard. Al & Mark praise the nearly 39,000 fans in attendance who packed the house for the well received promotion of "Hot Dog Day". (08:00) Zack Littell tossed five shutout innings before handing the ball off to Andrew Alvarez. This was the first scoreless outing of the season for Littell in his 9th appearance. Blake Butera showed confidence in Littell in allowing him the opportunity to wriggle out of a jam in
May 15 · 26 min
Griffin Throws a Clunker in Blowout Loss
The Nats entered Thursday one game below .500 and for the 15th consecutive (15th!!!!) time they lost when trying to reach that level. Mark (From Cincinnati) & Al recap recap the 15-1 thrashing at the hands of the Reds. (04:15) Blake Butera is not hung up on necessarily reaching .500 right now. (07:00) Foster Griffin had by far his worst start of the season by allowing nine runs in under five innings of work. Griffin issued three walks and gave up a pair of homers against the Cincinnati offe
May 14 · 32 min
Lile's 10th Inning Blast Caps the Comeback
The Nats staged an impressive comeback in Wednesday night's 8-7 win in extras. Mark (From Cincinnati) & Al discuss how Washington found themselves in an early 5-0 hole, before the offense & bullpen teamed up to rally against the Reds. They are just one game below .500 through 43 games played. (05:45) Daylen "The Louisville Slugger" Lile hit his 3rd homer in the past two games in the top of the 10th. Lile had a very strong reaction after he went deep and shared the moment with family, friends,
May 13 · 31 min
Nats Launch 6 Homers in Rout of the Reds
The Nats blasted six homers on Tuesday night for a 9-2 win in Cincinnati. Mark (From Great American Ballpark) & Al start with the impressive offensive totals, that included a pair of homers from both Luis Garcia Jr. & Daylen Lile. (05:30) Luis Garcia Jr. has been on a hot streak after missing a few games due to a wrist issue. Garcia's OPS has now climbed up to .725 for the season. (07:00) Daylen Lile went deep twice in front of a throng of friends and family as he grew up in Louisville, whic
May 11 · 39 min
Marlins Pull Away in the 8th
The Nats dropped a second straight winnable game over the weekend in Miami. Mark & Al react to Washington's 5-2 loss in the rubber match of the three game series that came just before the Wizards were announced as the lottery winners for the NBA Draft. (05:30) The Nationals continued their pattern of sloppy play by making a pair of crucial outs on the bases. One of them was particularly painful because it came with James Wood in the batter's box and a runner already in scoring position. (1
May 10 · 35 min
Missed Opportunity to Reach .500
The Nats blew an early four run lead and ultimately lost 8-7 on Saturday afternoon in Miami. Al & Tim point out how this was a particular frustrating defeat as the Nationals drop to 19-21 overall through 40 games. (06:30) Washington staged a furious rally in the 9th that fell just short. They trailed 8-4 entering the frame, but Joey Wiemer made a crucial base running mistake that removed the tying run from scoring position. (14:00) Richard Lovelady was the surprise choice as the Opener and
May 9 · 31 min
Griffin Spins a Gem in Miami
The Nats edged the Marlins 3-2 on Friday night for their 3rd straight victory. Mark & Al discuss the road win where all of the scoring came in the 1st inning. (03:00) Foster Griffin was tremendous in striking out nine Marlins in seven innings of work. Griffin has pitched at least six frames in four consecutive starts. The lefty's ERA is a very impressive 2.12. (11:30) **Riding the wave while it lasts** - Is there any scenario where the Nationals would give Griffin an in-season multi-year ex
May 8 · 37 min
Ruiz Homers in Victorious Rubber Match
The Nats beat the Twins 7-5 on Thursday afternoon for their first home series victory of the series. Mark & Al have plenty of praise for Keibert Ruiz, who doubled twice and broke a late tie with a solo homer in the bottom of 7th. Ruiz's OPS rose an astonishing .127 points in single day. (10:30) Breaking down the Nationals catching situation after back to back days of rare offensive production from that position. (18:00) Curtis Mead knocked in a pair of runs while hitting 3rd in the lineup.
May 7 · 29 min
Mikolas & Lineup Blowout the Twins
The Nats crushed Minnesota 15-2 on Wednesday night; the most runs they've scored all season. Mark & Al open with the offensive performance where four homers were hit in the victory. (05:00) Another big night by CJ Abrams, highlighted by a late Grand Slam. Abrams roped a pair of doubles to give him eight total bases on Wednesday night. Abrams' OPS is at .960, tied for 7th best in the NL. (11:00) The other three Washington dingers came from Drew Millas, Brady House, and Jose Tena. This was M
May 6 · 36 min
Cavalli Only Lasts 4 Innings in Loss
The Nats were trounced 11-3 on Tuesday night against visiting Minnesota. Al & Mark examine Cade Cavalli's poor outing, where he allowed six runs in just four innings of work. Three of those were unearned, but Cavalli had a fielding error that contributed to the run total. Cavalli only threw two strikeouts after having registered double digits Ks in his previous two starts. (14:30) Andre Granillo struggled by giving up four late runs in two innings on the mound. Granilo afterwards was sent do
May 4 · 37 min
Good Pitching Leads to Elusive Home Win
The Nats won their first home game since April 21st on Sunday afternoon. Mark & Al discuss the 3-2 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers, where five Washington pitchers combined to take the mound. PJ Poulin lasted two innings for the first time as an Opener this season and he remains the only pitcher on the team to serve in that role. (05:45) Zack Littell only allowed one run in nearly four innings of work on 41 pitches. Littell's ERA remains high at 7.24 through seven outings. (15:25) Richard L