Washington Nationals

The Washington Nationals' nominal ace, John Lannan, will miss at least one start with soreness in his left forearm and elbow.

Lannan first recognized the pain in his April 21 start against the Colorado Rockies, a game in which he threw 107 pitches and surrendered four runs on 11 hits in six innings of work. The opening day starter has struggled so far this season, going 1-2 with a 6.34 ERA in six starts. He is expected to return on May 13 at Coors Field against those same Rockies.

Ivan Rodriguez continues to defy the odds. 

At the age of 38, few thought he would be a productive everyday player in the majors in 2010. However, out of the gates, Rodriguez is leading the majors in hitting and despite speculation of an upcoming fall to reality, he has kept on hitting.

Entering Friday's game he is batting .405/.432/.514. While that kind of production is likely unsustainable, the Nationals need to try and take more advantage of it while it's here.

What Rodriguez has done 2010 to help spark his resurgence is create a new approach at the plate.

It only took five starts for Washington Nationals’ RHP Stephen Strasburg to get his first promotion as a professional baseball player.

After going 3-1 with a 1.64 ERA and 27 K’s in 22 IP against Double A batters, the Nationals have promoted Strasburg to Triple A Syracuse. My guess is that if Strasburg impresses at the Triple A level, the Nationals will promote him to the big club by June.

NATS' HISTORIC APRIL

With no game Monday evening, the Washington Nationals (13-12) can look ahead to their upcoming series with the Atlanta Braves (11-14).

While just one game above .500 now, the Nationals went 13-10 in April, posting a winning record in the month for the first time since the franchise moved to Washington.

With star third baseman Ryan Zimmerman returning after missing eight games so far, optimism abounds at Nationals Park.

EAST UP, A-TOWN DOWN

Every year it seems, a 30-something-year-old player inexplicably locates the fountain of youth. Last year it was Kevin Millwood , though he appears unwilling to revert back to his old ways this season.

As we do each Monday throughout the season,  today we look at Accuscore's playoff forecaster to see how the previous week's games effected the NL playoff race.

Each month The Nats Blog will announce our Nationals Player of the Month as voted upon by our writers. This award will be determined on quality of performance as well as the impact of that performance.

The Washington Nationals attempt at four-straight wins, and a tie for first place in the division, was stymied by Chris Volstad and the Florida Marlins lineup.

Combining for only five base runners on the night, the Nationals had no chance to match the seven runs the Marlins put up on the board, and fell to 13-11 in a 7-1 Saturday night.

Apart from Volstad imposing his 6' 8" self on the Nationals lineup, Washington fans found themselves disappointed as the Nationals club seemed to take a step backward on the night, allowing six earned runs and committing two errors.

While the Mets are celebrating their ascension back into relevance with their eight-game winning streak and Phillies are floundering without their anchor, Jimmy Rollins, the Nationals are on a high of their own.

Bill Ladson reported on twitter that Washington Nationals third baseman Ryan Zimmerman will be back in the lineup tonight as the club embarks on a three game series in Miami. Ladson also indicated that the weather has played a factor in the decision: