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Thom Loverro

Thom Loverro has been a professional journalist since 1977, working for a number of newspapers, including eight years as a news editor and reporter for The Baltimore Sun, where he covered government, politics, and crime. He moved into sports writing when he joined The Washington Times in 1992. He moved to The Washington Examiner as a sports columnist in 2009 and returned to The Washington Times in 2013, where he is currently the lead sports columnist.

Columns by Thom Loverro

Seth Romero gets message from Nationals: Grow up

For a moment, it felt like the bad, old motorcycle-gang days of former Nationals general manager Jim Bowden, when news broke Monday that left-handed hurler Seth Romero, the team's No. 1 draft choice last year, was sent home from spring training for violating club rules.

March 6, 2018

Miguel Montero gets fresh start with Nationals

Miguel Montero was asked what went wrong in Chicago with Jake Arrieta when he met with reporters at the start of spring training. "You can't live in the past, so you've got to move on," Montero said. Still, it ought to be interesting if Arrieta -- Scott Boras' prize free agent pitcher -- arrives in the Nationals clubhouse.

March 5, 2018

LOVERRO: You don’t want to be one of the boys on the bus

Sunday was one of those unique spring training creations -- the team playing two games at the same time, known as "split squad" games.

March 4, 2018

No one wants to talk about rules changes during Spring Training

And no one seems to care, because everybody is happy when it's 83 degrees without a cloud in the sky. So sure, let's talk about changing a game that treats change like you're tinkering with the Bill of Rights.

March 3, 2018

Mets-Nationals spring training game both a novelty and pilgrimage

It was the kind of novelty act you'll see from time to time in spring training baseball - one that has star power, even if those stars are crossed. It was Max Scherzer vs. Tim Tebow - power vs. pious.

March 2, 2018

NFL Scouting Combine a reminder of Redskins’ dysfunction

The NFL scouting combine -- the Washington Redskins' time to shine -- is upon us. Last year, the franchise glowed.

March 1, 2018

Shoe companies and the 3-point line killing the game

While much of the attention in basketball is being paid right now to the college basketball payment and corruption scandal, there's another crisis facing the game -- one far more complicated, but perhaps sharing the same disease -- the quality of the game itself.

February 27, 2018

LOVERRO: Nothing will change after NCAA scandal

CBS and Turner Broadcasting are about to begin broadcasting their Super Bowl: March Madness, the NCAA tournament that consumes much of the country for three weeks. And nothing -- certainly not some little scandal that involves up to 20 Division I schools -- is going to get in the way of their television show.

February 25, 2018

Dave Martinez has learned from game’s best skippers

Few rookie baseball managers have had as much on-the-job training, from so many mentors, as new Washington Nationals manager Dave Martinez.

February 22, 2018

Max Scherzer says Rizzo deserves long-term deal

The Washington Nationals have a lot invested in Max Scherzer -- a seven-year, $210 million contract signed two years ago -- but Scherzer had a lot invested in the Nationals' future as well.

February 21, 2018

Stephen Strasburg, Bryce Harper fueled rebirth of baseball in D.C.

Six years after they first took the field together, it appears this may be the final year of the Nationals' Strasburg-Harper tag team of dreams -- and their last chance together to fulfill what at one time seemed to be their destiny.

February 20, 2018

Bryce Harper tells media: No questions about contract

The Washington Nationals superstar, entering his final contract year, met with those he wants to wall off -- the media -- on Monday at Nationals spring training and declared that he would only be answering questions related to the 2018 season.

February 19, 2018

Jim Bouton, ‘Ball Four’ lost on new generation

Once a must-read, "Ball Four" is little more than a curiosity these days.

February 18, 2018

Adam Eaton says lower gear may be key

Adam Eaton says Washington fans ill see a smarter, better version this season.

February 17, 2018

Dave Martinez dips into Dusty Baker’s human resources playbook

It's still hard to believe that the manager who led that team to those 97 wins --Dusty Baker -- is gone, replaced by a rookie skipper in Dave Martinez, who would be hailed as a great manager if he can match those victories.

February 16, 2018

Max Scherzer needs to end as dominant as he begins

It was the first team workout of spring training for the Washington Nationals -- a voluntary one, pitchers and catchers -- but Max Scherzer was in midseason form.

February 15, 2018

Matt Wieters has no time to dwell in the past

There was a lot that went wrong for the Nationals in Game 5 of last October's National League Division Series loss to the Cubs. It was a team meltdown. But Matt Wieters' fifth-inning contribution was a big part of it.

February 14, 2018

Nationals carry the burden of Lerner expectations

Good news for Washington Nationals owner Ted Lerner. When he gets to West Palm Beach for spring training, he'll find the World Series trophy there. Granted, it will be on the Houston Astros' side of the training facility they share with the Nationals, but at least he can get close to it.

February 13, 2018

Ted Leonsis signals new direction

Was last week's announcement of $40 million in renovations at Capital One Arena an indication that building owner Ted Leonsis has given up his quest for a new arena at the RFK site?

February 11, 2018