tennis
Roger Federer will miss
Fr ench open and more
after knee surgery. d2
pro basketball
Wizards’ Moritz Wagner is
grateful for John Beilein,
who struggled in nBa. d3
pro football
nFl owners approve cBa
with 17 -game season,
leaving it up to players. d3
KLMNO
SPORTS
friday, february 21 , 2020. washingtonpost.com/sports M2 d
combined 15 pennants and eight
World series. Where else could
you h ave a meal in which “How to
Repeat” i s on the menu?
“I listened,” Martinez s aid. now
when he is asked — several times
a day — whether h is nationals
can “repeat” a s World series
winners, h e always gives
variations on t he theme he h eard
that day — a message t hat he
already l ived by.
“everybody says ‘ repeat.’ no.
It’s a bout ‘compete.’ A nd repeat
the p rocess,” Martinez s aid.
“That’s the only ‘repeat’ t hat you
can control.
“A nd it’s r epeating the process
— go 1-0 today — that leads t o
winning.”
This sounds simplistic.
However, it’s a lso p erfect — an
unusual coincidence.
What To rre, La Russa a nd
Leyland impressed on Martinez
was t hat a psychological l etdown,
a lack of motivation or even
see boswell on d4WEST PALM
BEACH, F LA. — At
the w inter
meetings in
December,
Washington
nationals
Manager Dave
Martinez was
walking t hrough the h otel
restaurant, a gathering p lace of
the w ho’s w ho in baseball, w hen
he heard someone call out, “Hey,
kid!”
Martinez saw ex-managers Joe
To rre, To ny L a Russa and Jim
Leyland sitting at t he same table,
motioning f or h im to join them.
Calling t his trio “ex-managers”
would be like saying Washington,
Jefferson and L incoln were ex-
politicians.
“I didn’t know if I wanted t o sit
there,” t he modest Martinez said
last week.
But i n reality, picking the
brains o f that threesome was his
fondest w ish because they won a
While everybody says repeat,
Martinez wants to compete
Thomas
Boswell
the same sentences for a long
time.”
And it feels like that because
it’s true. Fedde, 26, has been in
and out of the mix since 2017.
Ross, 26, made 13 starts for the
nationals in 2015, appeared in
the playoffs in 2016, then fell
behind following To mmy John
surgery. Voth, 27, emerged last
year after a rough debut in 2018
and impressed with increased
velocity and a four-pitch mix.
one of the right-handers will
round out a rotation stacked
with Max scherzer, stephen
strasburg, Patrick Corbin and
Aníbal sánchez. Another is ex-
pected to round out an eight-
man bullpen. If the odd man out
is Fedde, he has a remaining
minor league option and can be
sent down without going on
waivers. If the odd man out is
Ross or Voth, who don’t have
minor league options, Washing-
ton would risk losing either in
see nationals on d4BY JESSE DOUGHERTYWEST PALM BEACH, FLA. — The
three locker nameplates are in a
row — Joe Ross, Austin Voth,
erick Fedde — and the three
names will be linked a lot in the
coming weeks.
Who will be the Washington
nationals’ fifth starter? Ross,
Fedde or Voth.
Who will get the final spot in
the nationals’ bullpen? Ross,
Fedde or Voth.
What are some of the biggest
questions facing the nationals
during spring training? Aside
from Carter Kieboom, their po-
tential third baseman, the an-
swer is Ross, Fedde and Voth.
“I’m pretty used to this,” Fedde
admitted with a laugh. “This is,
what, the third spring training
now that everyone is asking if
I’m going to be the fifth starter?
If anything, Austin is the new
one to this. It feels like people
have been putting Joe and me inThree familiar pitchers vying
for two spots with Nationals
John Mcdonnell/the Washington Post
erick Fedde, above, has a remaining minor league option, which
could lead the nationals to go with Joe Ross and austin Voth.toni l. sandys/the Washington Post
alex ovechkin, here battling Montreal’s tomas tatar, scored his 6 99th goal 7:29 into the game. His next shot at no. 700 comes saturday afternoon at new Jersey.Capitals at devils | tomorrow, 1 p.m., nBc sports WashingtonBY SAMANTHA PELLAlex ovechkin finally inched forward on his
road to 700. The Washington Capitals captain
ended a five-game scoring drought with his
699th career goal in the first period Thursday
night against the Montreal Canadiens, leaving
him only one from the landmark tally.
But ovechkin couldn’t find the net again
despite a few strong chances late, and after To m
Wilson scored with 20.1 seconds left to tie the
game in regulation, the Capitals settled for one
point in a 4-3 overtime loss when Ben Chiarot
scored 58 seconds into the extra period for
Montreal.
ovechkin was double-shifted for much of the
third period, and his best chance at no. 700 came
when the puck bounced off him right in front of
the net, only for Canadiens goaltender Carey Price
to make the stop. He logged 22:22 of ice time and
had six shots on goal. His next shot at 700 will
come saturday afternoon against the new Jersey
Devils in newark.
“You’re hoping that a guy that has scored that
number of goals is going to get himself into a
prime spot and be able to convert there,” CapitalsCoach To dd Reirden said of giving ovechkin extra
shifts late in the game. “Unfortunately he wasn’t
able to, but at least we are one step closer to
moving past that milestone.”
Goal no. 699 came 7:29 into the game, when
ovechkin flung a wrist shot past Price directly off
a faceoff win by nicklas Backstrom. It was
ovechkin’s 260th career goal assisted by Back-
strom and the 22nd of his career scored against
Price.
But the quick start ultimately went to waste as
Washington’s slump continued. The Capitals
( 37-17-6) have lost five of their past six games and
are 10-10-1 in their past 21.
“It’s no secret. We are going through a
struggle right now, and... we didn’t play well
enough to be able to get two points against r eally
any team in this league,” Reirden said. “so weneed to play better.”
T he only silver lining was that Wilson’s late
equalizer helped Washington earn a point and
move back into a tie with the Pittsburgh Penguins
atop the Metropolitan Division after Pittsburgh
lost at Toronto. The Penguins have a game in
hand.
“no, I’m not panicking, but at the same time, I
think obviously you feel the pressure,” Backstrom
said. “I feel like everyone goes through ups and
downs during the season. The quicker we can get
out of it, the better we’re going to be.”
A lack of team defense has been a common
theme during Washington’s lull, and despite the
Capitals debut of newly acquired defenseman
Brenden Dillon, the defensive issues remained.
After the score was tied at 2 at the second
intermission, Chiarot scored only 30 seconds into
the third period to give Montreal (28-27-8) its first
lead. With ample time to aim and shoot, he walked
in and ripped a shot over goaltender Braden
Holtby’s right shoulder. Playing with the lead for
the first time, the Canadiens kept the Capitals at
bay for nearly the entire third period until Wilson
was finally able to jam one past Price with Holtby
see capitals on d5One goal from glory
CANADIENS 4, CAPITALS 3 (OT)
Ovechkin ends five-game drought
with 699th career score in home lossBY KAREEM COPELAND
AND LES CARPENTERThe Washington Redskins re-
leased tight end Jordan Reed on
Thursday, ending his injury-
plagued seven-year stint with the
team that drafted him with a
third-round pick in 2013.
Reed dealt with injuries
throughout his career, and he
suffered his seventh documented
concussion in the third pre-
season game in August, causing
him to miss the 2019 season. The
release is the latest for a Redskins
team making significant person-
nel changes under new coach
Ron Rivera. Cornerback Josh
norman and wide receiver Paul
Richardson Jr. were let go last
week.
The 29-year-old Reed played
only 19 games over the past three
seasons because of injuries —
including foot, toe and hamstring
issues — but the concussions
have put his career in danger.
Reed was on the receiving end of
a brutal helmet-to-helmet hit by
Atlanta Falcons safety Keanu
neal on Aug. 22, and Rivera said
last week that Reed remained in
the concussion protocol nearly
six months later. The team did
not comment Thursday about
whether Reed had cleared the
protocol, but he wants to contin-
ue his career and intends to play
in 2020, according to a person
with knowledge of the situation.
The Redskins will save
$8.5 million against the salary
cap following the move; Reed had
two years left on a five-year,
$46.75 million deal, according to
the salary website over the Cap.
The team now has $61.3 million
in cap space.
Reed’s most productive season
came in 2015, when he recorded
87 receptions for 952 yards and
11 touchdowns while playing in a
career-high 14 games. He made
the Pro Bowl in 2016 after posting
66 receptions for 686 yards and
six touchdowns in 12 games.
The seven-year veteran
seemed poised to have a
s uccessful 2019 season; he looked
see Reed on d3
Redskins
release
Reed after
seven years
Oft-injured tight end
missed 2019 as he dealt
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