EX- Nationals PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Jon Rauch Jon Rauch was traded last summer from a struggling Washington club to an Arizona team trying to stay in contention. One year later, the big reliever was traded again, this time from a struggling Diamondbacks squad to a Twins club trying to catch the Tigers in the AL Central. Rauch's tenure in the desert had been miserable, but he finally got back on track and posted a 1.82 ERA in 35 appearances leading up to last week's trade. And he made an immediate impact on his new team, earning the win in each of his first two outings with Minnesota. MINOR LEAGUE WATCH
Brad Meyers hasn't drawn nearly the kind of accolades as other Nationals pitching prospects. Come to think of it, the 2007 fifth-round pick hasn't received any accolades. It's time to start paying attention to the right-hander, though, because he dominated this season at Class A Potomac and Class AA Harrisburg. Meyers went 10-3 with a 1.71 ERA in 23 games (22 starts) between the two levels, and he allowed one earned run or fewer in 17 of those games. The former Loyola Marymount standout won't be among Washington's September call-ups, but don't be surprised if he's in the majors next season.
THE BUZZ
Tracking the Nationals' news and trends from the past week:
ROTATION INJURIES - Down
Stammen, Balester done for the year - who's left to pitch?
STRASBURG IN D.C. - Up
Now he can run through boring fielding drills in the nation's capital.
FLORES RETURNS - Up
Unfortunately, not even Jesus can save this season.
ATTENDANCE - Down
Labor Day weekend + Marlins + losing streak = 16,000 a night.
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