District Daily: Denard Span sets Nationals’ single-season hits record, Boswell finally sees live no-hitter

Sep 27, 2014; Washington, DC, USA; Washington Nationals center fielder

Denard Span

(2) hits a single against the Miami Marlins during the fifth inning at Nationals Park. Mandatory Credit:

Brad Mills

-USA TODAY Sports

Good morning DoD readers! Start off your week with some great Washington Nationals articles from around the web in our District Daily:

Span sets Nationals’ single-season hits record

(Bill Ladson, MLB.com)

WASHINGTON — Nationals right-hander Jordan Zimmermann wasn’t the only one to put himself in the record books during Sunday afternoon’s no-hitter.Denard Span did the same in the Nationals’ 1-0 victory over the Marlins. With a double off Henderson Alvarez in the third inning, Span broke Cristian Guzman‘s Nats record for the most hits in a season (184).

“Any time you are No. 1 in any category, any list, it’s a good feeling,” Span said. “It’s a humbling feeling. It’s just awesome.” Read full article here.

After decades as a jinx, Thomas Boswell finally sees a live no-hitter

(Thomas Boswell, Washington Post)

Baseball press boxes know everything. At least about baseball. So, when a reporter has covered baseball for 40 years, including a decade on the 100-plus-games-a-year beat, plus close to 20 years of attending games as a fan from the age of eight on up, and he has never seen a no-hitter, he gets a nickname.

Jinx.

That’s me.

I’ve even gone to hundreds of big league games as a fan since I became a sportswriter. But I’d never seen a no-hitter until Sunday. Lemme tell you, it was worth the wait. Because it was no ordinary no-no. Read full article here.

Zimmermann’s no-no adds to aura of ’27’ in 2014

(Lyle Spencer, MLB.com)

The magic number for the 2014 Major League Baseball season is 27. It has been worn with distinction by Mike TroutJose AltuveGiancarlo Stanton,Carlos GomezMatt Kemp and Jordan Zimmermann, a sextet of elite stars.

Zimmermann and the National League East champion Nationals, “riding high right now” in the pitcher’s words, gave new meaning on Sunday to the popular notion of carrying positive momentum into the postseason — with a no-hit masterwork.

Applying an exclamation mark to a remarkable September run by his team’s rotation, Zimmermann’s no-hitter is the first in franchise history since the move to Washington, a 1-0 decision over the Marlins on the season’s final day. Read full article here.