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April 30 Frustration NationThe first month of the season is now behind us and I can't say I will be sorry to see it go. The Nationals have become the epitome of frustration. As fans hurl their beer cans at their televisions, they exclaim the utter bad luck of the worst team in baseball. It seems like time and time again we suffer the wrath of the almighty baseball gods. But putting those Nat fans that wear their signed, unwashed Vinny Castilla jersies aside, it's not luck that is the problem, it's the playing on the field. Good, talented fundamental baseball will always trump Bambino curses and billy goats. And frankly good, talented fundamental baseball is what we've lacked this April.
 Granted, we are expected to be a poor team with a very questionable pitching rotation and no big name stars...but the complete and utter non-offense from what's supposed to be our capable lineup along with poor defense on the field is getting old really fast. Finally this past week, we received excellant starts from pitchers that have been struggling early on. Matt Chico took on the mighty Mets and went 5.1 innings holding them to only two runs and scored his second win of the season. The following day, Jerome Williams fighting for his very life as a major league starting pitcher, went head to head against future HOFer Tom Glavine and matched him inning for inning. He left the game with a precarious one run lead in the 6th only to have it given up by Jesus Colome in the 7th. Then Bergmann yesterday - he's surprising everybody (including me) with his performance so far this season.
First off, the Nationals bench is a completely sad college course on non-productivity. Nats pinch hitting is historically bad at 3 for 42. If you didn't get that - that's THREE for FORTY TWO. If you find that hard to believe, then look at the numbers:
But it's not just the pinch hitting and utility players...the fundamentals displayed on the field defensively have been equally atrocious. Zimmerman's web gems notwithstanding, error after error continues to plague this team. If you were misfortunate enough to watch John Patterson's game on the 25th...they looked like low-A minor leaguers. Absolutely horrid defense - misplayed grounders, missed cut-off men and overthrown balls.
 The continuous unsucessfull use of the sacrifice bunt is as equally frustrating. Manny needs to get off of that desperate tendency. No, I think these guys need to go back to Viera and start relearning how to play basic baseball. Bunting is just a little too difficult for them to master at this point. Can we please get a do-over? Before the season started Manager Manny Acta told the media that despite the lack of big stars in our lineup, this team would display solid fundamentals. If this is so, then Manny will have to ignore the month of April.
 April 22 The Phones Are Ringing...Today is the close of week three, so now let's step back for a moment and see where we are. Our current record is six and thirteen (.316) and we're holding firm to our #5 spot in the NL East. As expected by all the sports writers & pundits before the season started, Nationals pitching is indeed dismal. We rank dead last in the National League in team ERA at 4.99 and last in saves with two. We rank first in giving up home runs, earned runs, walks, and losses. The performance of both Matt Chico and Jerome Williams in the past two appearances was a painful experience for any Nat fan, in addition to having to watch Ryan Wagner fall on his sword for a bullpen that was already completely depleted.
I think this rotation is already in need of some changes...and I believe that's going to require some shuffling. Keep in mind that there will probably be alot of moving of the peices this year (I wonder if the Nationals issued permanent jerseys for all of their starters for both Washington and Columbus). The first to don a clean, new Nationals uniform on the mound will probably be Joel Hanrahan in replacement for Jerome Williams. However, I don't expect him to stay around much either...you might even see Matt Chico lose his spot if he can't get his control issues down against the Mets on April 27th - a tall order indeed. Our closer, Chad Cordero is starting to show vulnerability and a depreciated value. Should we have worked a deal with Boston over the Spring? Time will tell. What's frustrating to me is that not only is pitching struggling, but so is the offense. There's no excuse for the Nationals not to be able to compete in the offensive arena when they have such capable bats in their lineup as they do. Thankfully, Zimmerman is finally showing signs that he might be arriving for work. He scored a powerful yet futile grand slam in the 9th inning of today's miserable slaughter by the Fish. Ronnie Belliard, Dmitri Young and Ryan Church, three players that were questionable at the start of the season, have provided a majority of the thrill and drama at the plate so far for Nationals fans. Austin Kearns, Felipe Lopez, Brian Schneider and Zimmerman have been absent, especially with runners in scoring position (RISP) - a trait that is frustratingly becoming a Nationals tradition.
Also today, Manager Manny Acta made a public statement to the team when he benched Ryan Church for not hustling on his run to first on a groundout. I don't think it was a blatant Manny Ramirez impression...but I like what he is trying to convey to his players: I don't care who you are - I don't care what the score is...I want 100% out of everybody every game, and every at-bat. Church said after the game that he understood completely and heard the message "loud and clear".
Life isn't going to be getting any easier for our Nationals in the coming weeks...They have to take on Philadelphia and New York, then they are off on a murderous road schedule in which they will have to travel to San Diego, Chicago and Milwaukee, not coming back home until the second week of May. Good luck guys, I think you're gonna need it. April 19 07 HAGERSTOWN SUNS Just about every Nationals game you watch on MASN features an advertisement for the P-Nats in Woodbridge, VA. But take note Maryland fans, your state's got it's own version of Nationals minor league ball...and it's right smack in the middle of Oriole territory. That's got to irritate Lord Baltimore quite a bit...and any thing that makes life a mess for Peter Angelos has got to be worth the price of admission in my book. Just about an hour from Washington to the West on I-70, THROUGH the Oriole affiliate town of Frederick...is the small but booming city of Hagerstown. Home of the Washington Nationals newest affiliate, the Hagerstown Suns.
The Suns are not a new club...in fact, the town has had baseball around since 1915. The ballpark (Municipal Stadium), which was built in May of 1930, is one of the three oldest stadiums in the minor leagues. Despite it's age, I found the stadium to be more than adequate for their needs and the design to be a classic step into baseball's past. The pressbox sits high above the stands and reminds me of a minature version of Fenway Park in Boston.
 Hagerstown Suns Left-Handed Starter Cory VanAllen
The weather last night was another chilly one, but not uncomfortably so. This fact in addition to being a weekday evening series, resulted in plenty of seating...but I hear that the park can get really filled-up during the summer weeks. I snapped several shots which you can view in the photo album in the upper right.
The Suns as a team played well despite falling behind early. From what I understand, this was Cory VanAllen's first start with the club and alot of his early struggles were results of some sloppy fielding and throwing errors by Suns infielders. After being down by six runs through much of the game, the team staged a comeback in the last couple of innings and rallied to within one run in the bottom of the 8th...unfortunately it wasn't enough to put them on top as they eventually ended up losing 7-6 to the Cleveland Indians affiliate, Lake County Captains.
 Florida Hot Prospect Chris Marrero Belted His First Home Run In Last Night's Game
I personally recommend all Nats fans to take a night off and make the pleasant one hour drive to Hagerstown to root for these kids. This team is especially calling all you fans in Maryland...think of it as a way to poke a finger in the eye of that jackass in Baltimore. And while I'm talking about that particular subject, may I just pass the suggestion to the Suns ownership to please lose the orange and black. It makes it difficult for us Washington fans to buy your souvenirs & gear. April 15 We Aren't So Bad After All...So now it's Sunday morning and the Nationals are 3-9. Now most fans wouldn't be too excited with a record like that, but the Nats showed some real improvement in their approach these last few games. And as depressed as I have been with all these blowout losses ...I think there may be reason to believe that maybe watching Washington baseball won't be as painful as I thought. It will certainly be a lot less painful than the typical sports writers (especially one particular guy in Baltimore) have been claiming recently.
 Associated Press Photo: Gregory Smith
Not only did we accomplish our third win against a team that many say is the best in the National League, but we did it rather decisively by mustering six runs against the Mets' two. Our Canadian-born starter Shawn Hill was outstanding in 7 innings of work. But speaking of phenomenal work on the mound...how bout Jason Bergmann stepping to the task last week against John Smoltz?!? Who would have thought Jason had it in him to go head to head against one of MLB's greatest hurlers and pitch a shutout with eight Ks! Holy Cow! Way to go Jason!
 I'm happy to see Ryan Church finally putting up some real numbers. In fact, throughout the Nationals lineup he's actually leading the Nationals in every offensive category except stolen bases...which is currently held by Felipe Lopez with only one. Church's bat is scorching while just about everybody else is slumping. He's mustered a .357 batting average and already has three home runs under his belt. He's making a very strong case to Nats Manager Manny Acta that the competition is over and that he deserves to be on the the starting roster permanently.
 Another week coming up...and I'm excited for our chances - just more of the same: Atlanta and Florida...and we get to meet the Phillies for the first time this season. Hey peeps, either Wednesday or Thursday this week I'll be making a report from Western Maryland as I take in a game with our newest low-A affliliate, The Hagerstown Suns. I used to drive through that town on the way to college in Morgantown, WV and my Dad grew up not too far away in Cumberland. It's really beautiful country up that way, especially during the fall foliage season. So anyways, if you see me snapping photos at Municipal Stadium...feel free to say hello. April 10 07 POTOMAC NATIONALS As some of you may remember from my previous blog entry two years ago, I have been a fan of the Carolina League club that's currently in Woodbridge since it's inception back in Alexandria during the early 1980s. My Dad used to take me every weekend to ball games which began my life-long love affair with this sport. Last night, I attended the 2007 home opener at Pfitzner Stadium for the start of the club's 30th season. Man, was it cold.
But the weather wasn't the only thing cold last night...unfortunately so were the P-Nats. A starter from the Salem Avalanche named Brad James made an absolute sterling performance in 8 innings of work. The guy was just plain lights out, making eight strikeouts and allowing only one hit. Our starter Carlos Martinez on the other hand, struggled - allowing 5 runs in four innings and was pulled in the 5th by manager Randy Knorr. The night kept getting colder and the P-Nats kept getting clobbered. Finally, it was over with an 8-0 shutout.
 Evening Notables: Schedule magnets were given away at the gate (I love schedule magnets, don't you?). The George Mason pep-band was on hand to provide some great music and entertainment during the game. Screech came to the Pfitz to join his fellow P-Nat mascot; Uncle Slam in the opening festivities. The P-Nats take the field again tonight against Salem with minor league veteran Clint Everts taking the mound. April 07 MR. ANGELOS SPORTS NETWORK This Message Is Brought To You By...
 &  Remember when DirecTV customers were the envy of Nationals fans last year? They got that 24 hour television coverage of every Nat game through the new Mid-Atlantic Sports Network They often liked to taunt other fans that hadn't (or couldn't) switch to the dish. Well last night, the laugh was on them. It appears that DirecTV owners experienced the inevitable SNAFU that occurs whenever you try to fit 10 pounds of potatoes into a 5 pound bag.
Apparently last night, because of the sharing agreement between the Baltimore Orioles and Nationals broadcast slots, it was the Nationals turn to utilize the alternative station MASN2. Unfortunately MASN and DirecTV had their wires crossed somehow and MASN2 was not being broadcast on the designated channel 671 on DirecTV. Mass hysteria and panic set-in on the message boards...and I can only imagine what the poor operators at MASN and DirecTV must have experienced.
'Cause there's nothing worse than a pissed-off Washington baseball fan...34 years of being snubbed by MLB and now being raked through the coals by Peter Angelos can produce some pretty cranky characters, especially when it comes to being able to watch their team.
Well the people at MASN and DirecTV apparently found the problem around 8:30 and service commenced around the 6th inning of a pretty good thrashing on our boys by the Arizona Diamondbacks. With the problem resolved, now our fellow DirecTV Nat fans could commence watching our beloved Nats do a rather realistic rendition of the 1949 Senators.
Prior to this whole fiasco last night, there's also been much discussion about the quality of the Nats broadcasts. I wish to offer my friends some advice: Relax and grab another brewski, things always go wrong before they go right, and although I despise everything about the MASN contract - especially with Nationals TV revenue lining the pockets of Lord Baltimoron...I'm sure our people working on the Nationals side of the network are trying their best to give us the best product with the resources they are given. I'm confident that the MASN2 issue will be resolved by the time the next game is broadcast on the alternate channel this Sunday. I don't complain much about the video quality because I don't own an HD TV. Besides, if I want a really realistic experience, I'd just go to the ballpark. The team can hear me groan better that way. April 06 ET TU LIVAN? Ok, so I don't normally write a new blog entry the very next day but I have a bone to pick with our old ace Livan Hernandez. Say it aint so Livan!
While cruising the internet I came across an article written last night in the Arizona Republic (D-back territorial news outlet) which had a synopsis of the game last night at RFK. It appears one of our most beloved inaugural heroes has truly gone turncoat. Livan?! What have we ever done to you man? We loved you man! How could you?!
So that's it then. We absolutely have to kick his behind when he takes the mound this Sunday just out of sheer principle. Of course, I know that Livan's doing the same thing every player does when they join a new team...but that doesn't mean I have to like it. Livan was one of my favorite players from day one...I was sad to see him go, but now it's game-on buddy and you're going DOWN!
Well I hope so anyways. April 05 DMITRI! I must be honest, I went to yesterday's game without much excitement in my veins. The weather was depressing and we hadn't shown much promise so far to prove all the doom-sayers wrong. I was mostly happy just to be attending a day game and grabbing a whole bunch of those neat schedule magnets that you stick on your refrigerator every year. It was a dark, cloudy, bone-chilling day at the ballpark I've been wanting a Nats windbreaker for some time so I used this opportunity to purchase one at the team store (trying desperately not to listen to my inner voice saying "never buy gear at the stadium you idiot, you get ripped-off!").
Another thing I was really looking forward to was seeing Matt Chico on the mound for the first time. I'd heard so much about the kid and really wanted to see how he could do. I hanged around the bullpen before the game and watched him warm-up and chatted a little while with pitching coach Randy St. Claire. Chico was all business and was in his kharma zone - trying to tune out the rest of the world while he concentrated on getting mentally prepared for the game. Unfortunately, he got touched-up pretty bad and Acta had to pull him out early in the 4th inning.
 At this time it was looking as though the Nationals were in for another bad day. The score on the scoreboard said 6-1 and Nationals reliever after reliever was being called in to find a way to stop the bleeding. The crowd of 18,835 was rather subdued and there was alot of eye rolling and groaning going on. Then Ryan Church in the 6th hit his first home run with a 3-run shot over the right field wall and everybody came alive - "Hey, we got a ballgame here!". With the bad weather and being a day game, I think most of the crowd attending that day were die-hards because that little crowd made a whole lotta noise after that home run.
One fan's observation: Ray King needs to get his act together. He looks sloppy and disfunctional when he procedes to make one mental mistake after another. Manny replaced him after just a third of an inning when he put a guy in scoring position with a messed-up throw to first that ended up in right field. Come on Ray - we know you are better than this.
 All hail Dmitri! After a very foreseeable collapse by ex-Boriole closer Jorge Julio, Young scored the game winning RBI with a fly ball blooper into left that Marlins outfielder Josh Willingham let fall just to the right of the foul line thus producing the Nats first win of 2007 with a score of 7 to 6. What came next was unexpected - the Nationals poured out of the dugout and swamped Dmitri with a victory huddle....and you know what Dmitri did? He sought out manager Manny Acta onto the field and gave him a big hug while displaying that infectious and jovial grin from ear to ear that has now become his trademark. Congragulations to both Dmitri and Manny Acta for his first major league win as a manager in the big leagues.
Amazingly despite it's start, this turned out to be one of my favorite games as a Nat fan so far. Yes, we're going to lose alot of games this season - but hopefully with a few victories like this sprinkled in there from time to time, there is most definately the potential from a great season among low expectations. Go Nats indeed. April 02 BLOGnostication Credibility Challenge Brought To You By Ball-Wonk
NationalsNation Makes The Following Predictions:
1. Nationals Season Record will be 75 - 87.
2. Divisional Standing At End of Season: 5th.
3. Nick Johnson's Return? - Will Not Return This Season.
4. Question four is N/A because NJ will not return in 2007.
5. Team Leader in Pitching Starts will be Shawn Hill with 31.
6. The Nationals will have 11 different starting pitchers throught the season.
7. Manny Acta will be ejected twice during the season.
8. Guzman's Batting Average: .266, On Base Percentage: .317 & Slugging Average: .385
9. Nationals Home Runs Of 2007 @ RFK Stadium: 45
10. Attendance for Nationally Broadcast Rockies Game: 21,257.
OPENING DAY IS TODAY! APRIL 2, 2007 !!!
SEE YOU AT RFK STADIUM! GO NATS! |
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