Michael Morse News

Washington Nationals starting pitcher Ross Detwiler works in the first inning of baseball game against the Atlanta Braves Friday, May 25, 2012 in Atlanta.

May 7, 2012; Minneapolis, MN, USA: Minnesota Twins left fielder Erik Komatsu hits a single in the fifth inning against the Los Angeles Angels at Target Field.

For the third straight game against a right-handed starting pitcher, Steve Lombardozzi will play left field and Bernadina will begin the game on the bench.

Morse has been sidelined all season with a strained lat muscle, but the Nationals' projected cleanup hitter, a slugger who hit 31 homers last season, is nearing his season debut.

It was Brown's third home run off a left-hander this year, and his 3 for 5 night left the former Oklahoma State outfielder and second-year Nats' prospect with a .270/.426/.514 line against lefties and a .294/.399/.561 line overall on the year.

First place in the tight National League East will be on the line tonight, as the Atlanta Braves return home to open a three-game series versus the Washington Nationals at Turner Field.

"They made plays we didn't," Davey Johnson told reporters after last night's loss to the Philadephia Phillies.

Progressing towards his eventual return to the Washington lineup, Michael Morse A appears set to see live game action starting on Friday.

Steve Lombardozzi has made Davey Johnson the envy of Major League Baseball. The Washington Nationals manager now has three high-quality middle infielders to choose from.

The Washington Nationals have been plagued by injuries all season long, but remain in first place in the NL East.

The Nationals and Phillies have given one another plenty to think about between now and July 31, the next time they face each other.

Morse, who reported to Viera, Fla., last week, will play in an extended spring training game Friday and could begin a minor league rehab assignment by next week.

Nats' skipper Davey Johnson told reporters last night that Washington Nationals ' third baseman Ryan Zimmermann just had a "little bit of soreness" in his right shoulder yesterday, so the manager made the decision to have him sit for the second game of two with Philadelphia in Citizens Bank so he could come back for the series finale and then take ... (more)

Ken Rosenthal has been the senior baseball writer for FOXSports.com since August 2005.

We're 41 games into the season, Nats fans, a quarter of the way through this year's 162.

You can take away Jayson Werth . You can deal with a nagging injury to slugger Michael Morse .

Any progress for the Nationals' best player would have to wait until a full recovery.

While everyone connected to and rooting for the Nationals has Henry Rodriguez 's meltdowns and the rash of injuries on the brain, perhaps it's time to take a look at the development of the second player Washington acquired from the Oakland Athletics in exchange for outfielder Josh Willingham : Syracuse Chiefs outfielder Corey Brown .

Initial reports on Michael Morse suggested that he would be able to return some time in June, while the slugger's own comments suggest that he'll be ready to go by June 1 . If he's healthy, then the Washington Nationals need to get him back on June 1. The offense has been struggling mightily lately, and the pop that he'll be able to provide will ... (more)

Even more surprising than the sudden relevance of this weekend's "Battle of the Beltways" is the fact that both upstart teams are thriving at the season's quarter pole despite glaring flaws.