2006 Washington Nationals season

The 2006 Washington Nationals season was the franchise's second season in Washington, D.C., and 38th season overall.

2006 Washington Nationals
League	National League
Division	East
Ballpark	Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium
City	Washington, D.C.
Record	71–91 (.438)
Divisional place	5th
Owners	Lerner Enterprises
General managers	Jim Bowden
Managers	Frank Robinson
Television	MASN WDCA (My 20) (Bob Carpenter, Tom Paciorek)
Radio	WTWP/WWWT (Charlie Slowes, Dave Jageler)
← 2005 Seasons 2007 →

The Nationals finished last in the National League East for the third consecutive year (counting their final season in Montreal), 26 games behind the New York Mets with a 71–91 record.

Offseason

• On November 4, 2005, the Nationals traded Vinny Castilla to the San Diego Padres for Brian Lawrence.^[1]
• On December 8, 2005, they traded Brad Wilkerson, Terrmel Sledge, and minor leaguer Armando Galarraga to the Texas Rangers for Alfonso Soriano.^[2]
• On December 24, 2005, they signed Mike Stanton – who they had traded to the Boston Red Sox late in the previous season – as a free agent.^[3]
• On February 11, 2006, the Nationals sold Jamey Carroll to the Colorado Rockies for $300,000,^[4]
• On March 31, 2006, they sold Jim Crowell to the Philadelphia Phillies.^[5]

Advertising and marketing

The Nationals' marketing slogan for the season was "Make It Your Pastime."^[6] The slogan was a reference to the common saying that baseball is "the national pastime" in the United States.

Spring training

The Nationals held their 2006 spring training in Viera, Florida, with home games played at Space Coast Stadium.

Regular season

Groundbreaking for Nationals Park

On May 4, 2006, the groundbreaking ceremony took place for the Nationals' new ballpark, Nationals Park in Southeast Washington, D.C. Principal Owner Mark D. Lerner, Managing Principal Owner Theodore N. Lerner, Principal Owner Robert K. Tanenbaum, and Principal Owner Edward L. Cohen wielded the shovels at the ceremony; public address announcer Charlie Brotman emceed the event, and Mayor of the District of Columbia Anthony A. Williams, Nationals Manager Frank Robinson, representatives from Major League Baseball, the District of Columbia Sports and Entertainment Commission, the Anacostia Waterfront Corporation, and Clark-Hunt-Smoot Construction, and former Washington Senators and Homestead Grays players also attended. Less than two years later, the Nationals moved to Nationals Park for the 2008 season.^[7]

Beltway Series

During spring training in 2006, the Nationals and Orioles played each other in Washington on March 31 and in Baltimore on April 1. The first match-up of the regular-season Beltway Series rivalry took place on May 19, 2006, at Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium; the Orioles won. This marked first time in 35 years that the Orioles played a regular-season game in Washington; previously, they had played the original Washington Senators of the American League annually from 1954 to 1960 and the expansion Washington Senators – which replaced the original Senators – each year from 1961 to 1971.

The two teams split the 2006 season series 3-3 with each team winning two games at home and one on the road.

Alfonso Soriano joins the 40–40 club

On September 16, Soriano stole second base in the first inning to become the fourth player to join the 40–40 club, after Jose Canseco, Barry Bonds, and Alex Rodriguez.

Season standings

National League East

v t e NL East	W	L	Pct.	GB	Home	Road
New York Mets	97	65	0.599	—	50–31	47–34
Philadelphia Phillies	85	77	0.525	12	41–40	44–37
Atlanta Braves	79	83	0.488	18	40–41	39–42
Florida Marlins	78	84	0.481	19	42–39	36–45
Washington Nationals	71	91	0.438	26	41–40	30–51

Record vs. opponents

2006 National League record v t e Source: [1]
Team	AZ	ATL	CHC	CIN	COL	FLA	HOU	LAD	MIL	NYM	PHI	PIT	SD	SF	STL	WSH	AL
Arizona	—	6–1	4–2	4–2	12–7	2–4	4–5	8–10	3–3	1–6	1–5	5–1	9–10	8–11	4–3	1–5	4–11
Atlanta	1–6	—	6–1	4–3	3–3	11–8	3–4	3–3	2–4	7–11	7–11	3–3	7–2	3–4	4–2	10–8	5–10
Chicago	2–4	1–6	—	10–9	2–4	2–4	7–8	4–2	8–8	3–3	2–5	6–9	0–7	2–4	11–8	2–4	4–11
Cincinnati	2–4	3–4	9–10	—	5–1	4–2	10–5	0–6	9–10	3–4	2–4	9–7	2–4	2–5	9–6	5–1	6-9
Colorado	7–12	3–3	4–2	1–5	—	3–3	4–2	4–15	2–4	1–5	3–4	3–3	10–9	10–8	2–7	8–0	11–4
Florida	4–2	8–11	4–2	2–4	3–3	—	3–4	1–5	7–0	8–11	6–13	5–2	3–3	3–3	1–5	11–7	9–9
Houston	5–4	4–3	8–7	5–10	2–4	4-3	—	3–3	10–5	2–4	2–4	13–3	3–3	1–5	9–7	4–4	7–11
Los Angeles	10–8	3–3	2–4	6–0	15–4	5–1	3–3	—	4–2	3–4	4–3	6–4	5–13	13–6	0–7	4–2	5–10
Milwaukee	3–3	4–2	8–8	10–9	4–2	0–7	5–10	2–4	—	3–3	5–1	7–9	4–3	6–3	7–9	1–5	6–9
New York	6–1	11–7	3–3	4–3	5–1	11–8	4–2	4–3	3–3	—	11–8	5–4	5–2	3–3	4–2	12–6	6–9
Philadelphia	5-1	11–7	5–2	4–2	4–3	13–6	4–2	3–4	1–5	8–11	—	3–3	2–4	5–1	3–3	9–10	5–13
Pittsburgh	1–5	3–3	9–6	7–9	3–3	2–5	3–13	4–6	9–7	4–5	3–3	—	1–5	6–1	6–9	3–3	3–12
San Diego	10–9	2–7	7–0	4–2	9–10	3–3	3–3	13–5	3–4	2–5	4–2	5–1	—	7–12	4–2	5–1	7–8
San Francisco	11–8	4–3	4–2	5–2	8–10	3–3	5–1	6–13	3–6	3–3	1–5	1–6	12–7	—	1–4	1–5	8–7
St. Louis	3–4	2–4	8–11	6–9	7–2	5-1	7–9	7–0	9–7	2–4	3–3	9–6	2–4	4–1	—	4–3	5–10
Washington	5–1	8–10	4–2	1–5	0–8	7-11	4–4	2–4	5–1	6–12	10–9	3–3	1–5	5–1	3–4	—	7–11

Nationals vs. American League

Team	AL East
	BAL	BOS	NYY	TB	TOR
Washington	3–3	0–3	2–1	2–1	0–3

Opening Day lineup

Opening Day Starters
Name	Position
Brandon Watson	Center fielder
José Vidro	Second baseman
José Guillén	Right fielder
Nick Johnson	First baseman
Alfonso Soriano	Left fielder
Ryan Zimmerman	Third baseman
Royce Clayton	Shortstop
Brian Schneider	Catcher
Liván Hernández	Starting pitcher

Notable transactions

• July 13, 2006: The Nationals traded Gary Majewski, Royce Clayton, Bill Bray, Brendan Harris, and minor-leaguer Daryl Thompson to the Cincinnati Reds for Felipe López. Austin Kearns, and Ryan Wagner.^[8]
• July 28, 2006: The Nationals traded Mike Stanton to the San Francisco Giants for minor-leaguer Shairon Martis.^[3]
• August 7, 2006: The Nationals traded Liván Hernández and cash to the Arizona Diamondbacks for Matt Chico and Garrett Mock.^[9]
• August 31, 2006: The Nationals traded Daryle Ward to the Atlanta Braves for minor-leaguer Luis Atilano^[10] and Marlon Anderson to the Los Angeles Dodgers for minor-leaguer Jhonny Núñez.^[11]
• September 1, 2006: The Nationals received Nook Logan from the Detroit Tigers as part of a conditional deal.^[12]

Draft

The 2006 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft took place on June 6 and 7. With their first pick – the 15th pick overall – the Nationals selected outfielder Chris Marrero. Other notable players the Nationals selected were pitcher Cole Kimball (12th round, 361st overall), pitcher Sam Dyson (19th round, 571st overall), outfielder Khris Davis (29th round, 871st overall), first baseman Tyler Moore (33rd round, 991st overall), and pitcher Brad Peacock (41st round, 1,231st overall).^[13] The Nationals had drafted Moore in 2005, but he had not signed, and he did not sign again this year. Dyson and Davis also did not sign with the Nationals.

Roster

2006 Washington Nationals
Roster
Pitchers 36 Tony Armas Jr. 34 Pedro Astacio 57 Jason Bergmann 30 Chris Booker 59 Micah Bowie 43 Bill Bray 39 Brett Campbell 43 Roy Corcoran 32 Chad Cordero 27 Zach Day 45 Ryan Drese 58 Joey Eischen 61 Liván Hernández 41 Shawn Hill 37 Travis Hughes 38 Gary Majewski 48 Mike O'Connor 26 Ramón Ortiz 22 John Patterson 54 Beltrán Pérez 55 Santiago Ramírez 51 Jon Rauch 52 Saúl Rivera 47 Félix Rodríguez 55 Chris Schroder 30 Mike Stanton 40 Billy Traber 35 Ryan Wagner		Catchers 13 Robert Fick  7 Wiki González 10 Brandon Harper 18 Matthew LeCroy 23 Brian Schneider Infielders  8 Marlon Anderson  9 Bernie Castro 10 Royce Clayton 18 Melvin Dorta  4 Brendan Harris 24 Nick Johnson 7,2 Felipe López  4 Henry Mateo  3 José Vidro 11 Ryan Zimmerman		Outfielders 26 Marlon Byrd 19 Ryan Church 44 Alex Escobar  6 José Guillén  2 Damian Jackson 28 Austin Kearns  7 Nook Logan 17 George Lombard 21 Luis Matos 12 Alfonso Soriano 16 Mike Vento 31 Daryle Ward 00 Brandon Watson		Manager 20 Frank Robinson Coaches 29 Tony Beasley (Third Base) 53 Randy Knorr (Bullpen) (June 15-)  5 Davey Lopes (First Base) 49 Mitchell Page (Hitting) 14 Eddie Rodríguez (Bench) 46 Randy St. Claire (Pitching) 35 John Wetteland (Bullpen) (-June 14)

Attendance

The Nationals drew 2,153,056 fans at Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium in 2006, placing them 11th in attendance for the season among the 16 National League teams.^[14]

Game log

2006 Game Log
April (8-17) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Attendance Record 1 April 3 @ New York Mets 2-3 Glavine (1-0) Hernández (0-1) Wagner (1) 54,371 0-1 2 April 5 @ New York Mets 9-5 (10) Cordero (1-0) Julio (0-1) 19,557 1-1 3 April 6 @ New York Mets 5-10 Martínez (1-0) Ortiz (0-1) 25,839 1-2 4 April 7 @ Houston Astros 1-6 Backe (1-0) Armas (0-1) 26,978 1-3 5 April 8 @ Houston Astros 12-8 Hernández (1-1) Qualls (0-1) 39,324 2-3 6 April 9 @ Houston Astros 3-7 Pettitte (1-1) Drese (0-1) 31,662 2-4 7 April 10 @ Houston Astros 4-5 (12) Qualls (1-1) Stanton (0-1) 27,944 2-5 8 April 11 New York Mets 1-7 Bannister (1-0) Ortiz (0-2) 40,516 2-6 9 April 12 New York Mets 1-3 Martínez (2-0) Armas (0-2) Wagner (2) 29,986 2-7 10 April 13 New York Mets 13-4 Zambrano (1-0) Hernández (1-2) 25,460 2-8 11 April 14 @ Florida Marlins 3-5 Willis (1-0) Drese (0-2) Borowski (1) 12,913 2-9 12 April 15 @ Florida Marlins 2-1 Patterson (1-0) Olsen (0-1) Cordero (1) 15,668 3-9 13 April 16 @ Florida Marlins 7-5 Majewski (1-0) Herges (0-1) Cordero (2) 10,296 4-9 14 April 18 @ Philadelphia Phillies 10-3 Armas (1-2) Lidle (1-2) 20,072 5-9 15 April 19 @ Philadelphia Phillies 6-7 (10) Franklin (1-1) Stanton (0-2) 27,913 5-10 16 April 20 @ Philadelphia Phillies 10-4 Traber (1-0) Madson (1-1) 28,177 6-10 17 April 21 Atlanta Braves 7-3 Stanton (1-2) Cormier (0-1) 24,597 7-10 April 22 Atlanta Braves Postponed (rain) Rescheduled for September 18 18 April 23 Atlanta Braves 1-3 Cormier (1-1) Majewski (1-1) Remlinger (1) 21,569 7-11 19 April 24 Cincinnati Reds 2-4 Ramírez (1-0) Hernández (1-3) Weathers (5) 19,263 7-12 20 April 25 Cincinnati Reds 5-6 Williams (1-2) Traber (1-1) Weathers (6) 21,642 7-13 21 April 26 Cincinnati Reds 0-5 Arroyo (4-0) Ortiz (0-3) 19,380 7-14 22 April 27 @ St. Louis Cardinals 2-6 Ponson (3-0) O'Connor (0-1) 39,515 7-15 23 April 28 @ St. Louis Cardinals 8-3 Armas (2-2) Marquis (3-2) 40,841 8-15 24 April 29 @ St. Louis Cardinals 1-2 Looper (2-0) Rauch (0-1) Isringhausen (7) 39,596 8-16 25 April 30 @ St. Louis Cardinals 2-9 Suppan (2-2) Day (1-3) 39,383 8-17
May (14-15) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Attendance Record 26 May 1 @ New York Mets 1-2 Wagner (2-0) Majewski (1-2) 28,310 8-18 27 May 2 @ New York Mets 6-2 O'Connor (1-1) Maine (0-1) 34,046 9-18 28 May 3 Florida Marlins 5-6 Nolasco (2-1) Stanton (1-3) Borowski (4) 21,918 9-19 29 May 4 Florida Marlins 3-11 Johnson (2-2) Hernández (1-4) 20,984 9-20 30 May 5 Pittsburgh Pirates 6-0 Day (2-3) Pérez (1-5) 21,059 10-20 31 May 6 Pittsburgh Pirates 4-5 (11) Gonzalez (1-2) Rodriguez (0-1) 29,953 10-21 32 May 7 Pittsburgh Pirates 5-4 O'Connor (2-1) Duke (2-3) Cordero (3) 30,659 11-21 33 May 9 @ Cincinnati Reds 7-1 Armas (3-2) Claussen (2-4) 16,716 12-21 34 May 10 @ Cincinnati Reds 6-9 Weathers (1-1) Stanton (1-4) 14,180 12-22 35 May 11 @ Cincinnati Reds 4-5 (11) Shackelford (1-0) Eischen (0-1) 16,716 12-23 36 May 12 @ Atlanta Braves 2-6 Smoltz (3-2) Ortiz (0-4) 31,818 12-24 37 May 13 @ Atlanta Braves 5-8 Reitsma (1-1) Cordero (1-1) 37,040 12-25 38 May 14 @ Atlanta Braves 8-1 Armas (4-2) Thomson (1-3) 31,062 13-25 39 May 16 @ Chicago Cubs 0-4 Zambrano (2-2) Hernández (1-5) 39,298 13-26 40 May 17 @ Chicago Cubs 0-5 Marshall (3-1) Day (2-4) 39,757 13-27 41 May 18 @ Chicago Cubs 5-3 Ortiz (1-4) Wood (0-1) Cordero (4) 40,517 14-27 42 May 19 Baltimore Orioles 1-5 Benson (6-3) O'Connor (2-2) 30,320 14-28 43 May 20 Baltimore Orioles 8-3 Rauch (1-1) Lopez (1-7) 32,502 15-28 44 May 21 Baltimore Orioles 3-1 Hernández (5-2) Chen (0-5) Cordero (5) 32,152 16-28 45 May 22 Houston Astros 3-10 Rodríguez (6-2) Day (2-5) 18,803 16-29 46 May 23 Houston Astros 4-1 Ortiz (2-4) Nieve (1-3) Cordero (6) 23,189 17-29 47 May 24 Houston Astros 5-1 Majewski (2-2) Wheeler (0-3) 24,194 18-29 48 May 25 Houston Astros 8-5 Armas (5-2) Pettitte (3-6) Cordero (7) 24,733 19-29 49 May 26 Los Angeles Dodgers 10-4 Hernández (3-5) Tomko (5-2) 22,712 20-29 50 May 27 Los Angeles Dodgers 1-3 Lowe (3-3) Stanton (1-5) Saito (2) 26,867 20-30 51 May 28 Los Angeles Dodgers 10-4 Ortiz (3-4) Seo (2-3) 30,348 21-30 52 May 29 @ Philadelphia Phillies 2-11 Condrey (1-0) O'Connor (2-3) 33,682 21-31 53 May 30 @ Philadelphia Phillies 2-4 Myers (4-2) Armas (5-3) Gordon (15) 23,805 21-32 54 May 31 @ Philadelphia Phillies 3-2 Hernández (4-5) Lidle (4-5) Cordero (8) 30,386 22-32
June (11-16) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Attendance Record 55 June 2 @ Milwaukee Brewers 10-4 Ortiz (4-4) Eveland (0-3) 21,476 23-32 56 June 3 @ Milwaukee Brewers 4-3 Bray (1-0) Turnbow (2-3) Cordero (9) 40,392 24-32 57 June 4 @ Milwaukee Brewers 8-4 Armas (6-3) de la Rosa (2-2) 21,608 25-32 58 June 5 @ Atlanta Braves 5-4 Hernández (5-5) Hudson (5-4) Cordero (10) 20,702 26-32 59 June 6 @ Atlanta Braves 3-5 Ramírez (2-1) Hill (0-1) Ray (3) 23,497 26-33 60 June 7 @ Atlanta Braves 5-2 Ortiz (5-4) Smoltz (4-4) Cordero (11) 32,001 27-33 61 June 8 Philadelphia Phillies 5-2 O'Connor (3-3) Brito (0-2) Cordero (12) 24,669 28-33 62 June 9 Philadelphia Phillies 9-8 (12) Cordero (2-1) Condrey (1-1) 24,751 29-33 63 June 10 Philadelphia Phillies 2-6 Geary (4-0) Hernández (5-6) 32,089 29-34 64 June 11 Philadelphia Phillies 6-0 Hill (1-1) Hamels (1-1) 30,583 30-34 65 June 12 Colorado Rockies 3-4 Francis (5-5) Ramón Ortiz (5-5) Fuentes (14) 20,633 30-35 66 June 13 Colorado Rockies 2-9 Fogg (4-4) O'Connor (3-4) 21,689 30-36 67 June 14 Colorado Rockies 8-14 Martin (1-0) Bray (1-1) 24,273 30-37 68 June 15 Colorado Rockies 1-8 Jennings (5-6) Hernández (5-7) 22,793 30-38 69 June 16 New York Yankees 5-7 Rivera (4-3) Cordero (2-2) 44,749 30-39 70 June 17 New York Yankees 11-9 Rauch (2-1) Rivera (4-4) Cordero (13) 45,085 31-39 71 June 18 New York Yankees 3-2 Majewski (3-2) Wang (7-3) 45,157 32-39 72 June 19 @ Boston Red Sox 3-6 Snyder (1-0) Armas (6-4) Timlin (1) 36,252 32-40 73 June 20 @ Boston Red Sox 3-11 Wakefield (5-8) Hernández (5-8) 36,421 32-41 74 June 21 @ Boston Red Sox 3-9 Lester (2-0) Hill (1-2) 36,464 32-42 75 June 23 @ Baltimore Orioles 1-2 Lopez (5-8) Patterson (1-1) Ray (19) 48,331 32-43 76 June 24 @ Baltimore Orioles 2-3 Williams (2-3) Cordero (2-3) 36,290 32-44 77 June 25 @ Baltimore Orioles 9-5 Hernández (6-8) Cabrera (4-5) 27,680 33-44 78 June 27 @ Toronto Blue Jays 0-6 Burnett (1-1) Ortiz (5-6) 20,228 33-45 79 June 28 @ Toronto Blue Jays 1-6 Lilly (8-7) Hill (1-3) 17,067 33-46 80 June 29 @ Toronto Blue Jays 4-8 Halladay (10-2) Patterson (1-2) 17,175 33-47 81 June 30 Tampa Bay Devil Rays 1-11 Corcoran (2-0) O'Connor (3-5) 21,854 33-48
July (14-11) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Attendance Record 82 July 1 Tampa Bay Devil Rays 4-3 (10) Cordero (3-3) Meadows (2-2) 21,515 34-48 83 July 2 Tampa Bay Devil Rays 6-2 Ortiz (6-6) Seo (2-5) 23,823 35-48 84 July 3 Florida Marlins 9-1 Astacio (1-0) Nolasco (6-5) 24,943 36-48 85 July 4 Florida Marlins 6-4 Cordero (4-3) Borowski (0-2) 23,118 37-48 86 July 5 Florida Marlins 9-18 Petit (1-1) O'Connor (3-6) Pinot (1) 18,441 37-49 87 July 6 Florida Marlins 8-7 (11) Cordero (5-3) Vargas (1-2) 29,053 38-49 88 July 7 San Diego Padres 2-3 Williams (4-1) Ortiz (6-7) Hoffman (23) 25,161 38-50 89 July 8 San Diego Padres 2-5 Young (8-4) Astacio (1-1) Hoffman (24) 27,060 38-51 90 July 9 San Diego Padres 9-10 Cassidy (5-4) Cordero (5-4) Linebrink (1) 22,000 38-52 All–Star Break (July 10–12) 91 July 14 @ Pittsburgh Pirates 4-7 Duke (6-8) Ortiz (6-8) Gonzalez (14) 26,720 38-53 92 July 15 @ Pittsburgh Pirates 6-7 Gonzalez (3-3) Corcoran (0-1) 32,626 38-54 93 July 16 @ Pittsburgh Pirates 8-4 (11) Stanton (2-5) Hernández (0-3) 18,908 39-54 94 July 17 @ Florida Marlins 2-4 Nolasco (7-6) Armas (6-5) Borowski (18) 7,562 39-55 95 July 18 @ Florida Marlins 7-6 Stanton (3-5) Kensing (1-3) Cordero (14) 11,247 40-55 96 July 19 @ Florida Marlins 0-1 Sánchez (3-0) Ortiz (6-9) Borowski (19) 25,546 40-56 97 July 21 Chicago Cubs 7-6 Rauch (3-1) Howry (3-3) Cordero (15) 35,442 41-56 98 July 22 Chicago Cubs 7-3 Hernández (7-8) Williamson (2-3) 38,021 42-56 99 July 23 Chicago Cubs 7-1 Armas (7-5) Mármol (3-4) 30,851 43-56 100 July 25 San Francisco Giants 8-6 Ortiz (7-9) Morris (8-8) Cordero (16) 33,358 44-56 101 July 26 San Francisco Giants 4-3 Rivera (1-0) Benítez (4-2) 30,248 45-56 102 July 27 San Francisco Giants 6-5 Hernández (8-8) Cain (7-7) Cordero (17) 29,717 46-56 103 July 28 @ Los Angeles Dodgers 1-13 Billingsley (2-3) Armas (7-6) 55,825 46-57 104 July 29 @ Los Angeles Dodgers 5-7 Lowe (8-7) O'Connor (3-7) Broxton (1) 41,540 46-58 105 July 30 @ Los Angeles Dodgers 3-4 Broxton (2-0) Rauch (3-2) Saito (9) 43,346 46-59 106 July 31 @ San Francisco Giants 10-7 Astacio (2-1) Lowry (5-7) Cordero (18) 37,106 47-59
August (9-18) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Attendance Record 107 August 1 @ San Francisco Giants 4-1 Hernández (9-8) Cain (7-8) Cordero (19) 37,258 48-59 108 August 2 @ San Francisco Giants 6-8 Schmidt (8-7) Armas (7-7) Stanton (1) 38,283 48-60 109 August 4 @ San Diego Padres 6-2 Ortiz (8-9) Young (9-5) 36,538 49-58 110 August 5 @ San Diego Padres 3-6 Embree (4-2) Astacio (2-2) Hoffman (30) 40,339 49-61 111 August 6 @ San Diego Padres 2-3 (10) Brocail (2-0) Bowie (0-1) 35,648 49-62 112 August 8 Florida Marlins 2-4 Nolasco (10-7) Armas (7-8) Borowski (23) 24,922 49-63 113 August 9 Florida Marlins 5-2 Ortiz (9-9) Willis (7-9) Cordero (20) 21,390 50-63 114 August 10 Florida Marlins 6-9 Moehler (6-8) Wagner (0-1) Borowski (24) 21,304 50-64 115 August 11 New York Mets 2-1 Traber (2-1) Glavine (12-5) Cordero (21) 29,414 51-64 116 August 12 New York Mets 4-6 Feliciano (5-2) Schroder (0-1) Wagner (27) 42,507 51-65 117 August 13 New York Mets 1-3 Bradford (4-2) Rauch (3-3) Wagner (28) 37,732 51-66 118 August 14 Atlanta Braves 4-10 James (5-3) Ortiz (9-10) 21,550 51-67 119 August 15 Atlanta Braves 5-0 Astacio (3-2) Cormier (2-4) 24,036 52-67 120 August 16 Atlanta Braves 9-6 Traber (3-1) Smoltz (10-6) Cordero (22) 28,094 53-67 121 August 17 Atlanta Braves 0-5 Villarreal (9-1) Bergmann (0-1) 29,007 53-68 122 August 18 @ Philadelphia Phillies 6-4 Armas (8-8) Myers (8-6) Cordero (23) 30,123 54-68 123 August 19 @ Philadelphia Phillies 2-11 Hamels (6-6) Ortiz (9-11) 34,881 54-69 124 August 20 @ Philadelphia Phillies 10-12 Wolf (2-0) Astacio (3-3) Rhodes (2) 36,023 54-70 125 August 21 @ Florida Marlins 1-3 Sánchez (5-2) Traber (3-2) Borowski (28) 9,316 54-71 126 August 22 @ Florida Marlins 5-7 Tankersley (2-1) Wagner (0-2) Borowski (29) 10,260 54-72 127 August 23 @ Florida Marlins 7-9 Olsen (10-7) Armas (8-9) 11,318 54-73 128 August 25 @ Atlanta Braves 7-6 Wagner (1-2) Paronto (1-2) Rivera (1) 33,621 55-73 129 August 26 @ Atlanta Braves 1-10 Smoltz (12-6) Astacio (3-4) 38,610 55-74 130 August 27 @ Atlanta Braves 6-13 McBride (4-1) Traber (3-3) 30,587 55-75 131 August 29 Philadelphia Phillies 6-10 Myers (10-6) Armas (8-10) Rhodes (4) 25,735 55-76 132 August 30 Philadelphia Phillies 1-5 Hamels (7-7) Ortiz (9-12) 24,438 55-77 133 August 31 Philadelphia Phillies 6-5 (10) Wagner (2-2) Fultz (3-1) 22,221 56-77
September (15-13) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Attendance Record September 1 Arizona Diamondbacks Postponed (rain) Rescheduled for September 2 as part of a double header 134 September 2 (1) Arizona Diamondbacks 7-6 Cordero (6-4) Lyon (2-4) 22,012 57-77 135 September 2 (2) Arizona Diamondbacks 4-3 Rivera Hernández (10-12) Cordero (24) 22,922 58-77 136 September 3 Arizona Diamondbacks 5-3 Wagner (3-2) Webb (14-6) Rauch (1) 30,771 59-77 137 September 4 St. Louis Cardinals 4-1 Ortiz (10-12) Marquis (14-13) 31,092 60-77 138 September 5 St. Louis Cardinals 0-2 Suppan (11-7) Astacio (3-5) Isringhausen (33) 25,937 60-78 139 September 6 St. Louis Cardinals 7-6 Cordero (7-4) Isringhausen (4-8) 21,322 61-78 140 September 7 @ Colorado Rockies 5-10 Corpas (1-1) Wagner (3-3) 18,617 61-79 141 September 8 @ Colorado Rockies 8-11 Field (1-1) Rauch (3-4) Fuentes (24) 22,214 61-80 142 September 9 @ Colorado Rockies 5-9 Venafro (1-0) Ortiz (10-13) 22,735 61-81 143 September 10 @ Colorado Rockies 9-13 Mesa (1-5) Schroder (0-2) Fuentes (25) 18,647 61-82 144 September 11 @ Arizona Diamondbacks 7-6 Rauch (4-4) Vizcaíno (4-5) Cordero (25) 29,610 62-82 145 September 12 @ Arizona Diamondbacks 5-4 Rodríguez (1-1) Peña (3-4) Cordero (26) 31,182 63-82 146 September 13 @ Arizona Diamondbacks 2-4 Hernández (12-12) Armas (8-11) Valverde (16) 19,031 63-83 147 September 15 Milwaukee Brewers 2-5 Villanueva (1-1) Ortiz (10-14) Cordero (19) 21,168 63-84 148 September 16 Milwaukee Brewers 8-5 Astacio (4-5) Bush (11-11) Cordero (27) 24,252 64-84 149 September 17 Milwaukee Brewers 6-1 Rivera (3-0) Davis (10-11) 26,128 65-84 150 September 18 Atlanta Braves 1-6 Davies (3-5) Armas (8-12) 25,211 65-85 151 September 19 Atlanta Braves 9-2 Pérez (1-0) James (10-4) 20,596 66-85 152 September 20 Atlanta Braves 3-7 Cormier (4-5) Ortiz (10-15) 19,027 66-86 153 September 22 @ New York Mets 3-2 Astacio (5-5) Hernández (10-11) Cordero (28) 42,788 67-86 154 September 23 @ New York Mets 6-12 Maine (6-5) O'Connor (3-8) 45,245 67-87 155 September 24 @ New York Mets 5-1 Armas (9-12) Trachsel (15-8) 44,543 68-87 156 September 25 @ New York Mets 7-3 Pérez (2-0) Glavine (14-7) 34,027 69-87 157 September 26 Philadelphia Phillies 4-3 Ortiz (11-15) Myers (12-7) Corero (29) 18,960 70-87 158 September 27 Philadelphia Phillies 7-8 (14) Condrey (2-2) Bergmann (0-2) Castro (1) 21,809 70-88 159 September 28 Philadelphia Phillies 3-1 Traber (4-3) Lieber (9-11) Rauch (2) 18,324 71-88 160 September 29 New York Mets 3-4 Feliciano (7-2) Rauch (4-5) Wagner (40) 27,805 71-89 161 September 30 New York Mets 0-13 Glavine (15-7) Pérez (2-1) 30,449 71-90
October (0-1) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Attendance Record 162 October 1 New York Mets 2-6 Mota (4-3) Ortiz (11-16) 29,044 71-91

Player stats

Batting

Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; R = Runs scored; H = Hits; 2B = Doubles; 3B = Triples; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; AVG = Batting average; SB = Stolen bases

Complete offensive statistics are available here.

Pos	Player	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	AVG	SB
C	Brian Schneider	124	410	30	105	81	0	4	55	.256	2
1B	Nick Johnson	147	500	100	145	46	0	23	77	.290	10
2B	José Vidro	126	463	52	134	26	1	7	47	.289	1
SS	Royce Clayton	87	305	36	82	22	1	0	27	.269	8
3B	Ryan Zimmerman	157	614	84	176	47	3	20	110	.287	11
LF	Alfonso Soriano	159	647	119	179	41	2	46	95	.277	41
CF	Marlon Byrd	78	197	28	44	8	1	5	18	.223	3
RF	José Guillén	69	241	28	52	15	1	9	40	.216	1
SS	Felipe López	71	274	43	77	13	2	2	22	.281	21
RF	Austin Kearns	63	212	21	33	12	1	8	36	.250	2
2B	Marlon Anderson	109	215	31	59	13	2	5	23	.274	2
CF	Ryan Church	71	196	22	54	17	1	10	35	.276	6
C	Robert Fick	60	128	14	34	4	0	2	9	.266	1
UT	Damian Jackson	67	116	16	23	6	1	4	10	.198	1
UT	Daryle Ward	78	104	15	32	9	0	6	19	.308	0
2B	Bernie Castro	42	110	18	25	1	3	0	10	.227	7
CF	Nook Logan	27	90	13	27	2	1	1	8	.300	2
CF	Alex Escobar	33	87	14	31	3	2	4	18	.356	2
UT	Matt LeCroy	39	67	5	16	3	0	2	9	.239	0
C	Brandon Harper	18	41	6	12	3	0	2	6	.293	0
C	Wiki González	12	35	3	8	0	0	0	2	.229	0
IF	Brendan Harris	17	32	3	8	2	0	0	2	.250	0
CF	Brandon Watson	9	28	0	5	0	0	0	0	.179	0
UT	Henry Mateo	22	26	5	4	2	0	1	3	.154	0
OF	George Lombard	20	21	2	3	0	0	1	1	.143	2
RF	Mike Vento	9	18	3	5	1	0	0	1	.278	0
IF	Melvin Dorta	15	19	3	4	1	0	0	0	.211	0
OF	Luis Matos	14	15	2	3	2	0	0	0	.200	0
P	Ramón Ortiz	38	56	5	6	0	0	1	3	.107	0
P	Tony Armas Jr.	30	50	1	3	0	0	0	1	.060	0
P	Liván Hernández	26	45	6	12	4	0	1	6	.267	0
P	Pedro Astacio	15	25	2	5	0	0	0	0	.200	0
P	Michael O'Connor	21	31	2	2	0	0	0	1	.065	0
P	Billy Traber	15	13	1	1	0	0	0	1	.077	0
P	Jason Bergmann	29	8	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	0
P	John Patterson	8	8	0	2	0	0	0	0	.250	0
P	Zach Day	5	7	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	0
P	Shawn Hill	6	6	1	1	0	0	0	0	.167	0
P	Beltrán Pérez	9	6	0	3	0	0	0	0	.500	0
P	Saúl Rivera	54	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	0
P	Jon Rauch	85	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	0
P	Gary Majewski	46	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	0
P	Ryan Wagner	26	3	0	1	0	0	0	0	.333	0
P	Ryan Drese	2	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	0
P	Joey Eischen	22	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	0
P	Chad Cordero	68	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	0
P	Roy Corcoran	6	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	0
P	Chris Schroder	21	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	0
P	Micah Bowie	15	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	0
P	Félix Rodríguez	31	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	0
P	Travis Hughes	8	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	1.000	0
P	Mike Stanton	56	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	0
P	Bill Bray	19	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	0
P	Kevin Gryboski	6	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	–	0
P	Chris Booker	10	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	–	0
P	Santiago Ramírez	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	–	0
P	Brett Campbell	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	–	0
	Team Totals	162	5495	746	1437	322	22	164	695	.262	123

Pitching

Note: Pos = Position; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; G = Games pitched; GS = Games started; SV = Saves; IP = Innings pitched; R = Runs allowed; ER = Earned runs allowed; BB = Walks allowed; K = Strikeouts

Complete pitching statistics are available here.

Pos	Player	W	L	ERA	G	GS	SV	IP	R	ER	BB	K
SP	Ramón Ortiz	11	16	5.57	33	33	0	190.2	127	118	64	104
SP	Tony Armas Jr.	9	12	5.03	30	30	0	154.0	96	86	64	97
SP	Liván Hernández	9	8	5.34	24	24	0	146.2	94	87	52	89
SP	Michael O'Connor	3	8	4.80	21	20	0	105.0	61	56	45	59
SP	Pedro Astacio	5	5	5.98	17	17	0	90.1	64	60	31	42
CL	Chad Cordero	7	4	3.19	68	0	29	73.1	27	26	22	69
RP	Saúl Rivera	3	0	3.43	54	0	1	60.1	28	23	32	41
RP	Jon Rauch	4	5	3.35	85	0	2	91.1	37	34	36	86
RP	Gary Majewski	3	2	3.58	46	0	0	55.1	24	22	25	34
RP	Mike Stanton	3	5	4.47	56	0	0	44.1	22	22	21	30
	Jason Bergmann	0	2	6.68	29	6	0	64.2	49	48	27	54
	Billy Traber	4	3	6.44	15	8	0	43.1	33	31	14	25
	John Patterson	1	2	4.43	8	8	0	40.2	21	20	9	42
	Chris Schroder	0	2	6.35	21	0	0	28.1	21	20	15	39
	Shawn Hill	1	3	4.66	6	6	0	36.2	20	19	12	16
	Félix Rodríguez	1	1	7.67	31	0	0	29.1	25	25	16	15
	Zach Day	1	3	4.73	5	5	0	26.2	15	14	11	13
	Bill Bray	1	1	3.91	19	0	0	23.0	11	10	9	16
	Beltrán Pérez	2	1	3.86	8	3	0	21.0	9	9	13	9
	Ryan Wagner	3	3	4.70	26	0	0	30.2	21	16	15	20
	Micah Bowie	0	1	1.37	15	0	0	19.2	3	3	7	11
	Joey Eischen	0	1	8.59	22	0	0	14.2	18	14	19	18
	Chris Booker	0	0	3.68	10	0	0	7.1	3	3	1	7
	Travis Hughes	0	0	6.35	8	0	0	11.1	8	8	6	4
	Ryan Drese	0	2	5.19	2	2	0	8.2	8	5	8	5
	Kevin Gryboski	0	0	14.29	6	0	0	5.2	11	9	2	4
	Roy Corcoran	0	1	11.12	6	0	0	5.2	8	7	4	6
	Brett Campbell	0	0	10.38	4	0	0	4.1	5	5	2	4
	Santiago Ramírez	0	0	8.10	4	0	0	3.1	3	3	2	1
	Team Totals	71	91	5.03	162	162	32	1436.1	872	803	584	960

Team leaders

Qualifying players only.

Batting

Stat	Player	Total
Avg.	Nick Johnson	.290
HR	Alfonso Soriano	46
RBI	Ryan Zimmerman	110
R	Alfonso Soriano	119
H	Alfonso Soriano	179
SB	Alfonso Soriano	41

Pitching

Stat	Player	Total
W	Ramón Ortiz	11
L	Ramón Ortiz	16
ERA	Ramón Ortiz	5.57
SO	Ramón Ortiz	104
SV	Chad Cordero	29
IP	Ramón Ortiz	190.2

Awards and honors

All-Stars

• Alfonso Soriano, OF

Annual awards

• Silver Slugger: Alfonso Soriano, OF

Farm system

See also: Minor League Baseball

Level	Team	League	Manager
AAA	New Orleans Zephyrs	Pacific Coast League	Tim Foli
AA	Harrisburg Senators	Eastern League	John Stearns
A	Potomac Nationals	Carolina League	Randy Knorr and Edgar Caceres
A	Savannah Sand Gnats	South Atlantic League	Bobby Williams
A-Short Season	Vermont Lake Monsters	New York–Penn League	José Alguacil
Rookie	GCL Nationals	Gulf Coast League	Bob Henley

^[15]

References

1. baseball-reference.com Trades between Washington Nationals & San Diego Padres
2. Alfonso Soriano Statistics Baseball-Reference.com
3. Mike Stanton Statistics Baseball-Reference.com
4. baseball-reference.com Trades between Washington Nationals & Colorado Rockies
5. baseball-reference.com Trades between Washington Nationals & Philadelphia Phillies
6. Anonymous, "Second season of uncertainty," washingtontimes.com, February 18, 2006
7. Anonymous, "Today in Nationals’ History: Nationals Park Groundbreaking Ceremony," mlblogs.com, May 4, 2017.
8. Felipe López Statistics Baseball-Reference.com
9. baseball-reference.com Trades between Washington Nationals & Arizona Diamondbacks
10. Trades between Washington Nationals & Atlanta Braves
11. Trades between Washington Nationals & Los Angeles Dodgers
12. baseball-reference.com Trades between Washington Nationals & Detroit Tigers
13. baseball-reference.com 2006 Washington Nationals Picks in the MLB June Amateur Draft
14. baseball-reference.com 2006 Washington Nationals
15. Johnson, Lloyd, and Wolff, Miles, ed., The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball, 3rd edition. Durham, North Carolina: Baseball America, 2007

• 2006 Washington Nationals season at Baseball Reference
• 2006 Washington Nationals season at Baseball Almanac