Washington Nationals outfielder Victor Robles has altered his batting stance after his hands ended up in a different spot over time and with bad habits. Hitting coach Darnell Coles has repositioned Robles' hands and made some additional adjustments to his stance. Robles hit .255 with 17 home runs and 65 RBI in his first full year in the majors in 2019, but he has struggled at the plate since, ultimately being sent to Triple-A Rochester late last year when his average dipped to .203. The 24-year-old has moved his hands back up, creating a quicker path to the baseball. Robles is also putting his foot down earlier and opening up his stance. He started the season 0-for-18 with seven strikeouts, but he has five hits in his last six games to raise his average to .150.

Washington Nationals outfielders Lane Thomas and Victor Robles are both out of the lineup for Friday's game against right-handed pitcher Max Scherzer and the New York Mets. Thomas and Robles are both right-handed hitters and manager Dave Martinez has chosen to go lefty-heavy with Friday's lineup. Left-hander Yadiel Hernandez is getting the start in left field while fellow lefty Dee Strange-Gordon is starting in center field. Thomas and Robles both started in Thursday's season opener, but they went a combined 0-for-5 with a walk and three strikeouts. We could see both players end up platooning a bit unless they can find some consistency at the plate.

The Washington Nationals and outfielder Victor Robles have agreed on a one-year, $1.65 million deal to avoid arbitration. The 24-year-old is coming off a rough season. Over 107 games with the Nationals, he slashed .203/.310/.295 with two home runs, eight stolen bases and 37 runs. He was demoted for a period last year and played 26 games between Double-A and Triple-A, slashing .306/.385/.576 across the stint. He's slated to be the Nationals' starting center fielder to open the 2022 campaign, but he's likely to hit at or near the bottom of the lineup. He doesn't offer any fantasy appeal at this point.

Washington Nationals outfielder Victor Robles was demoted to Triple-A Rochester prior to Tuesday's game against the Philadelphia Phillies. Outfielder Andrew Stevenson was recalled to take his place. Robles had struggled mightily this year, producing a .605 OPS with two homers and eight steals in 315 at-bats. Manager Davey Martinez said he expected Robles to return to the big leagues at some point, but it may not be this season. Fantasy managers should move on. This locks Lane Thomas into the center field and leadoff roles the rest of the way.

Washington Nationals outfielder Victor Robles is sitting Sunday because he's not feeling well, although the issue isn't related to COVID-19, according to the Washington Post. Lane Thomas is starting against the Milwaukee Brewers in center field, with right-hander Adrian Houser on the hill, and hitting leadoff again. The 24-year-old Robles is worth hanging onto in most fantasy formats, as he has good speed and may not miss much playing time. Thomas may be worth monitoring in deeper leagues but hasn't shown a lot of offense yet.

Washington Nationals outfielder Victor Robles has seemingly taken over the leadoff role for the team, and he went 2-for-5 with a double, a run scored, and an RBI Sunday against the Atlanta Braves. In his last three games, Robles has gone 5-for-14 with four runs and two RBI. He also has four multi-hit performances in his last eight games. While he only has put up a .624 OPS on the year, there's some value to be mined in the runs and steals departments in deep leagues going forward.

Washington Nationals outfielder Victor Robles got off to an auspicious start Wednesday knocking the first pitch he was over the fence for a leadoff home run against Chase Anderson and the Philadelphia Phillies. He also walked in four plate appearances. The homer was just his second of the season. Robles has taken over as the leadoff hitter of late, offering him some fantasy value despite a .619 OPS. He does have eight steals on the season, but his main offering is the potential for runs in front of Juan Soto and Josh Bell.

Washington Nationals outfielder Victor Robles is not in the starting lineup for Tuesday's game against Zack Wheeler and the Philadelphia Phillies. Andrew Stevenson is getting the start in center field and leading off in the game. Robles has had a tough year at the plate overall and has particularly struggled over the last month or so. He slashed just .130/.254/.185 in July and he's hitless over six at-bats so far in August. On the bright side, he made waves across the web through his newfound friendship with a praying mantis that landed on his hat during Monday's game. Perhaps the two will be spending more time together on Robles' day off, though we at RotoBaller have no trustworthy sources to indicate that this is the true reason for his day off.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Alcides Escobar homered in the eighth inning and hit a winning single in the ninth Sunday as the Washington Nationals wrapped up a disturbing weekend with an 8-7 win over the San Diego Padres. A day after the game was suspended in the sixth inning because of a shooting outside Nationals Park, the Padres completed a 10-4 victory. Washington then came back to end a six-game losing streak. Tres Barrera singled off Mark Melancon (2-2) with one out in the ninth and, after failing on a bunt attempt, Victor Robles was hit by pitch. Escobar hit a flyball that center fielder Trent Grisham couldn’t corral and Barrera scored. Brad Hand (5-2) earned the victory. Juan Soto joined Josh Harrison with three hits and added a two-run homer. Manny Machado, Eric Hosmer and Jackson Profar homered for the Padres. Nationals ace Max Scherzer allowed four runs on four hits in seven innings. He struck out eight. In the completion of Saturday's suspended game, Fernando Tatis Jr. had his third four-hit... [More]

WASHINGTON (AP) — Alcides Escobar homered in the eighth inning and hit a winning single in the ninth Sunday as the Washington Nationals wrapped up a disturbing weekend with an 8-7 win over the San Diego Padres. A day after the game was suspended in the sixth inning because of a shooting outside Nationals Park, the Padres completed a 10-4 victory. Washington then came back to end a six-game losing streak. Tres Barrera singled off Mark Melancon (2-2) with one out in the ninth and, after failing on a bunt attempt, Victor Robles was hit by pitch. Escobar hit a flyball that center fielder Trent Grisham couldn’t corral and Barrera scored. Brad Hand (5-2) earned the victory. Juan Soto joined Josh Harrison with three hits and added a two-run homer. Manny Machado, Eric Hosmer and Jackson Profar homered for the Padres. Nationals ace Max Scherzer allowed four runs on four hits in seven innings. He struck out eight. In the completion of Saturday's suspended game, Fernando Tatis Jr. had his third four-hit... [More]

WASHINGTON (AP) — Washington center fielder Victor Robles left the Nationals game against the San Diego Padres in the second inning on Friday night. During a Washington pitching change, left fielder Josh Harrison and right fielder Juan Soto went over to Robles and soon escorted him to the infield. Manager Dave Martinez came out and walked Robles to the dugout. There was no immediate word on why Robles left the game. Gerardo Parra replaced Robles in center. The 24-year-old Robles is batting .209 with 46 hits, a homer and 11 RBIs this season. The game-time temperature at Nationals Park was 92 degrees.

Washington’s Kyle Schwarber led off the first inning against Tampa Bay on Tuesday night with his 12th home run in 10 games, tying Albert Belle in 1995 for the most over that span since at least 1901. Schwarber drove Rich Hill’s first pitch, an 83 mph fastball, 434 feet off the upper-deck facade in right for his major league-leading seventh leadoff home run — all in June. Schwarber’s 16 home runs this month are the second-most in any June behind Sammy Sosa’s 20 in 1998. He has 16 home runs in 18 games since being moved into the leadoff spot in the Nationals’ batting order on June 8. Schwarber has 25 home runs overall, tied with San Diego’s Fernando Tatis Jr., three shy of the major league-leading total of the Los Angeles Angels’ Shohei Ohtani and one back of Toronto’s Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Juan Soto followed two batters later with a two-run drive, and Victor Robles added a solo homer in the second for a 4-0 lead. Schwarber grounded into a double play in the second inning. The 28-year-old became a free agent Dec. 2 when the Chicago Cubs failed to offer a 2021 contract. He agreed in January to a $10 million, one-year contract with the Nationals calling for a $7 million salary, a deal that includes an $11.5 million mutual option for 2022 with a $3 million buyout. ___ More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

MIAMI (AP) — This time, Max Scherzer didn’t come unbuckled. The Nationals' ace allowed one run in six innings and passed two umpire inspections without a fuss, helping Washington beat the Miami Marlins 5-1 on Sunday to earn a split of their four-game series. Scherzer (7-4) struck out seven and lowered his ERA to 2.14. The three-time Cy Young Award winner, who threatened to disrobe when baseball began its crackdown on sticky substances, underwent two brief examinations at the end of innings and didn't complain — at least not to the ump. “He checked my hat, checked my glove, checked my belt,” Scherzer said with a frown. “Whatever. Whatever.” Scherzer has said the MLB crackdown has made it more difficult to grip and control pitches. “Everybody is getting used to it,” he said. “Everybody is having to deal with it. I'm not going to sit here and make excuses about it. Everybody has to play under these rules now.” Helping Scherzer's mood were opposite-field two-run homers by Trea Turner and Josh... [More]

MIAMI (AP) — Max Scherzer allowed one run in six innings and passed two umpire inspections without a fuss, helping the Washington Nationals beat the Miami Marlins 5-1 on Sunday to earn a split of their four-game series. Trea Turner and Josh Bell each hit a two-run homer in the sixth against Sandy Alcantara to break the game open. Scherzer (7-4) struck out seven and lowered his ERA to 2.14. The three-time Cy Young Award winner, who has been animated in his unhappiness about baseball’s recent crackdown on sticky substances, underwent two brief checks at the end of innings with no complaint. Scherzer has more wins versus the Marlins than against any other team, with a 15-5 record in 26 starts, including 2-0 in two starts this year. The score was 1-all in the sixth when Alcantara (4-7) unraveled. He walked Kyle Schwarber on four pitches to lead off, and Turner hit his 12th homer. Juan Soto reached on an infield hit, and Bell hit his 11th homer. Alcantara allowed five runs in 5 1/3 innings.... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Zach Davies and three Chicago Cubs relievers combined for the seventh no-hitter in the majors this year, blanking the Los Angeles Dodgers 4-0 Thursday night and tying the record for most in a single baseball season since 1900. The Dodgers drew eight walks, getting at least one from each Cubs pitcher, but managed no other baserunners. Davies (5-4) issued five walks and used 94 pitches to get through six innings against the defending World Series champions in the 16th start of his first season with the Cubs. Ryan Tepera and Andrew Chafin each went one inning. Craig Kimbrel then walked Chris Taylor leading off the ninth, but the closer struck out Cody Bellinger, Albert Pujols and pinch-hitter Will Smith to finish the 17th no-hitter in Cubs history — the team’s first combined effort. Javier Báez homered in the first inning and Willson Contreras added a two-run shot in the sixth for the Cubs, who happily celebrated the franchise’s first no-hitter since last Sept. 13, when... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Aaron Judge homered for the first of his three hits, Gary Sánchez connected for the second straight game and the New York Yankees beat the Kansas City Royals 8-1 Thursday for their first blowout victory in a month. Judge hit a solo shot in the first, Luke Voit had another in the third off Brad Keller (6-8) and Sánchez blew open the game with a three-run drive in the sixth. Jameson Taillon (2-4) ended an eight-start winless streak, allowing a run, five hits and two walks in 6 1/3 innings. New York has won seven of nine. RAYS 1, RED SOX 0 ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Kevin Kiermaier broke up a combined no-hit bid by Boston with a one-out double in the eighth inning and Manuel Margot scored on a wild pitch in the ninth for Tampa Bay. Margot got Tampa Bay’s second hit, a two-out single in the ninth off Matt Barnes (3-2). He stole second and went to third on a throwing error by catcher Christian Vázquez. J.P. Feyereisen (4-1) worked the ninth inning of a four-hitter. Boston dropped... [More]

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Washington Nationals placed outfielder Victor Robles on the 10-day injured list on Sunday with a sprained right ankle. The move is retroactive to Wednesday. Robles is hitting .246 with five RBIs in 39 games. The team did not announce a corresponding move. Washington also placed right-handed pitcher Will Harris on the 10-day injured list with right hand inflammation. Harris is 0-1 with a 9.00 ERA in eight appearances this season. The Nationals recalled right-hander Kyle McGowin from Triple-A Rochester to take Harris’ place on the roster. ___ More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

May 19 1910 — Cy Young won the 500th game of his career as the Cleveland Indians beat the Washington Senators, 5-4, in 11 innings. 1910 — Boston beat the Pirates 6-3 for the first time in 26 tries. 1942 — Paul Waner of the Boston Braves got his 3,000th career hit off Pittsburgh’s Rip Sewell in a 7-6, 11-inning loss to the Pirates. 1956 — Pittsburgh’s Dale Long hit a ninth-inning homer against the Chicago Cubs. It was Long’s first of eight straight games with a homer. 1962 — Stan Musial of St. Louis became the NL career hits leader. The 41-year-old got a ninth inning single for his 3,431st hit and moved past Honus Wagner. The Cardinals beat the Los Angeles Dodgers, 8-1. 1968 — After hitting 10 home runs in six games, Frank Howard of the Washington Senators was stopped by pitcher Earl Wilson of Detroit, which won the game 5-4. 1981 — Pittsburgh’s Jim Bibby gave up a leadoff single to Terry Harper of the Atlanta Braves, then retired the next 27 batters for a 5-0 one-hitter. Bibby also hit... [More]

May 14 1913 — Washington’s Walter Johnson gave up a run in the fourth inning against the St. Louis Browns to end his streak of 56 scoreless innings. The Senators won 10-5. 1914 — Jim Scott of the Chicago White Sox pitched nine innings of no-hit ball against the Washington Senators, but lost 1-0 after giving up two hits in the 10th inning. 1920 — Walter Johnson of the Washington Senators recorded his 300th victory with a 9-8 win over the Detroit Tigers. 1927 — Chicago pitcher Guy Bush went the distance for the Cubs in a 7-2 18-inning win over Boston. Charlie Robertson of the Braves almost matched the feat, leaving with one out in the 18th. 1950 — Pittsburgh first baseman Johnny Hopp hit two home runs and four singles in six at-bats, leading the Pirates to a 16-9 victory over the Cubs in the second game of a doubleheader at Chicago. 1965 — Carl Yastrzemski of Boston hit for the cycle and added another home run for five RBIs in a 12-8 10-inning loss to the Detroit Tigers. 1967 — Mickey Mantle’s... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — Wade Miley pitched baseball’s second no-hitter in three days — and fourth already this season — leading the Cincinnati Reds to a 3-0 win Friday night over the Cleveland Indians, who were no-hit for the second time in a month. Miley (4-2) relied on breaking pitches and his experience of 11-plus major league seasons to baffle the Indians and throw Cincinnati’s first no-hitter since Homer Bailey in 2013. The left-hander shook off an 83-minute rain delay to start the game and followed Baltimore’s John Means, who no-hit Seattle on Wednesday,. Joe Musgrove threw San Diego's first no-hotter on April 9. Five days later, Chicago White Sox left-hander Carlos Rodón blanked the Indians. Arizona’s Madison Bumgarner pitched a seven-inning no-hitter against Atlanta on April 25, but that one isn’t recognized as official because it didn’t go nine innings. This is the earliest in a calendar year there have been four no-hitters since 1917, when the fourth was thrown on May 5 and the fifth... [More]