The Morning Briefing: 3 Days till Opening Night!

Washington Nationals and Major League Baseball headlines, news and the latest news coming out of Washington Nationals Spring Training for Monday, March 29

by Richard Wachtel

Updated March 29, 2021

Good Monday Morning, Washington Nationals Fans! Thank you for starting the week with us! We are in the home stretch with only a couple of more days till Opening Night!

Today's Game Time Weather via National Weather Service:

Partly sunny, with a high near 83. Light and variable wind becoming northeast 5 to 10 mph in the afternoon.

Upcoming Games:

3/29/2021 — Astros @ Nationals 1:05 pm EST
4/1/2021 - Mets v. Nationals 7:00 pm EST ESPN (Opening Night)

Make sure to follow The Nats Report on Twitter for updates on the Washington Nationals and Major League Baseball during the day!

Countdown Clock: Opening Day: 3 Days

Today’s Morning Briefing was written by Richard and edited by Jonathan.

Today's Top Story: Only three days until Opening Night

Well, Washington Nationals fans, we have made it through the long offseason and we are just days away from Opening Night. We can't wait to welcome the Washington Nationals back to Washington D.C.! While we aren't going to be at the game, it will be great to see the team in their only scheduled appearance on ESPN in 2021.

Thank YOU, READERS!

I want to thank everyone for reading all of our coverage of 2021 Washington Nationals Spring Training. It was a lot of fun covering the team during the offseason. From free agency to pitchers and catchers reporting, til the end of Spring Training, it has been a crazy couple of months, and I can't wait for Opening Night!

Don't forget to subscribe to GameNotes, where I will get you ready for every Washington Nationals Game during the season. GameNotes gets sent out two-three hours before a Washington Nationals game and has the latest injury updates, lineups, and storylines to focus on during the upcoming game, delivered right to your inbox!

Spring Training Game Recap: Final Tune-ups before Opening Night

Over the weekend, the Nationals played two of their three final 2021 Spring Training games before they headed up north to Washington D.C. On Friday, the Nationals beat the New York Mets 7-3. Luis Garcia had two RBIs, Josh Harrison, Josh Bell, Andrew Stevenson, and Yaidel Hernandez, all contributed to the Nationals win over the Mets. The Nationals pitching staff was pretty impressive on the mound, allowing only three runs on 12 hits. Pitchers Daniel Hudson, Kyle McGowin, Javy Guerra, Paolo Espino, Auston Voth, and Todd Peterson pitched during the game.

On Sunday, the Nationals sent out LHP Jon Lester for his last Spring Training start. The Nationals won the game 11-3 against the St. Louis Cardinals. Here are some notes from the game:

Lester threw a total of 75 pitches over 4 1/3 innings. He had a total of 49 strikes, hit a batter, and only gave up two runs in his outing. Mark Zuckerman of MASN Sports Washington reported that: "Lester expects to meet with Davey Martinez and Jim Hickey tomorrow to map out the plan from here" and that the team might want "to find a way for him to throw one more tune-up before his regular-season debut." Lester missed some of Spring Training after undergoing surgery to removed his thyroid gland earlier in March.

In his final Spring Training appearance, Patrick Corbin looked very sharp while pitching four scoreless innings to finish the game. Corbin only allowed a pair of baserunners over that stretch, issuing a walk and surrendering an infield hit to Scott Hurst in the seventh that could have easily been ruled an error by Josh Harrison.

Alex Avila hit a solo homer in the seventh inning to even the score, 3-3, and the Nats scored eight runs in the bottom of the eighth inning to put the game away. Ryan Zimmerman got the scoring going back in the second inning with his sixth home run of Spring Training and added an RBI single in the third. Victor Robles tightened his hold on the leadoff spot with another strong performance. Robles finished 3-for-5 with a pair of runs scored, an RBI and his fifth stolen base this Spring. Also, checking in with hits for the Nats were Andrew Stevenson, Hernan Perez, Alex Avila, Jordy Mercer, Trea Turner, and Kyle Schwarber.

Today, the Nationals will finish Spring Training when they play against the Houston Astros with the first pitch at 1:05 pm EST.

Is Carter Kieboom's time with the Nationals coming to an end?

With Kieboom not making the Opening Day Roster, is the Washington Prospect's time in D.C. coming to an end? I take a closer look at what the Nationals should do at third base, and the Washington Nationals prospect's future.

Click here to read the article.

Perspective: Looking ahead to 2021: What does Nationals success look like?

With the 2021 Spring Training coming to an end, Brandon looks at what success looks like for the Washington Nationals in 2021!

Click here to read the full article.

In the coming days, Brandon will take a look at some of the highs and lows of this year's Spring Training as we inch closer to Opening Night.

Welcome to Washington D.C., Smash Brothers

Can a Combination of Zimmerman and Bell Power the Nats to a Division Title? I take a close look at the success that the Nationals saw during Spring Training with Ryan Zimmerman and Josh Bell, making a positive impact on the team. One question remains, can this success translate into the regular season!

Click here to read the full article.

Podcast Alert: In the Clubhouse with the Nats Report

In my latest episode of "In the Clubhouse with the Nats Report," I sit down with Eric Brodkowitz, one of the pitchers for Israel's Olympic Baseball Team. We talk about what it is like to represent Israel in the upcoming Olympics in Japan during the episode.

Apple: https://apple.co/2QOMdAw
Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3szKf4S
Megaphone: https://traffic.megaphone.fm/AMPM1144756049.mp3?updated=1616427067

I will have a special Opening Day episode mid-week. I will be sitting down with Byron Kerr, and we will get you ready for Opening Night. Don't forget to subscribe to the Podcast on your favorite podcasting platform.