[Just as the Nats return to town, I will be out west for several days, so updates here will be limited.]

• For a week that started so promising—the walk-off homer by Ryan Zimmerman in the Nationals Park opener, the two wins that followed in Philly—it ended with a thud. John Lannan, called up to pitch Sunday, did a reasonable job: other than Rick Ankiel (RBI double and homer) he kept the Cards in check for 6.2 innings. Problem was, though, that Kyle Lohse and the St. Louis bullpen kept the Nats off the scoreboard entirely. "We've got to go home and play well," Paul Lo Duca said. "We're a better ballclub than we played here, and we know that. Including myself, we need to pick it up." Cards complete the three-game sweep, winning 3-0 Sunday. (Box score)
• Lannan's outing may have been wasted because of the Nats' anemic bats, but it didn't go unnoticed by the team. "That kid's going to be a good pitcher in this league for a long time if he throws like that," said Lo Duca. "He's not scared."
• Jesus Colome will work on his mechanics after encountering difficulty finding the strike zone so far this season. One possible case: Colome's arm angle is "a lot lower" than last year, according to pitching coach Randy St. Claire.
• Jesus Flores and bench coach Pat Corrales were scheduled to have a session today "about the art of catching". While the team is pleased with Flores' bat, his mechanics behind the plate aren't very good, according to Corrales. Flores will get an opportunity to work on that more when he's sent down to Double-A to be the everyday catcher when Johnny Estrada comes off the DL this month.
• Comcast SportsNet has a relationship with the Post, so it's no surprise that MASN has inked a deal with the Times that will include "some live talent" as well as sharing sports coverage.