Saturday, April 14, 2012

Jayson delivers on Friday the 13th

Associated Press photo
Jayson Werth is mobbed after delivering the game-winning hit in the 13th inning.
He'd come to the plate six times, as had most of his teammates, and seen this game drag on deeper and deeper into the night, each side squandering what few opportunities there were to simply push across the one run that would win this marathon ballgame.

So by the time he stepped up to bat in the bottom of the 13th inning, the bases loaded with Nationals, fewer than half of the original crowd of 26,959 still in attendance, Jayson Werth figured it was time to put an end to this madness.

Really, what other choice was there at 11:12 p.m. on a Friday night?

"You play that long and not get a win?" Werth said. "That would hurt."

Yes, a loss would've stung. But a 2-1 victory over the Reds, thanks to Werth's walk-off single up the middle past a drawn-in Cincinnati infield? That was as sweet as it gets.

The Nationals' fourth straight victory -- the second straight in extra innings -- continued their impressive run through the season's inaugural week. At 6-2, they remain all alone in first place in the NL East.

And they're doing it in heart-stopping fashion on a near-nightly basis, plating the winning run in the eighth inning or later four times already this year.

"We're having fun," Ryan Zimmerman said.

Fun? Sure, that may be the vibe inside the Nationals' clubhouse after these nip-and-tuck ballgames are over. But the manner in which they've played out has been anything but a pleasant stroll through the meadow, especially when it comes to their uncanny aversion to scoring runs.

For most of the night, the Nationals tried their best to waste yet another fabulous pitching performance by Jordan Zimmermann, whose final line (one earned run allowed in seven innings) mirrored that of his previous start in Chicago. On both occasions, the young right-hander wasn't rewarded with a win.

At least the Nationals managed to get Zimmermann off the hook for a tough-luck loss this time, thanks to Xavier Nady, whose pinch-hit homer in the bottom of the eighth tied the game 1-1 and brought new life to the ballpark.

"I knew they were going to need more than one run to beat us," Zimmermann said. "Thank god Nady hit that home run."

Summoned by Davey Johnson to pinch-hit for Chad Tracy, who had already been announced as a pinch-hitter, Nady delivered his first clutch hit since becoming a surprise member of the Nationals' Opening Day roster.

"To tell you the truth, a lot of it came out of nowhere," said Nady, who was unemployed in mid-March before signing a minor-league contract with the Nationals. "I didn't anticipate I was going to play like this. But I'm happy to be here. It's a wonderful organization and a good group of guys."

Nady's homer represented the fourth RBI by Nationals pinch-hitters already this year. They produced only 14 RBI off the bench all of last season.

But they still needed to score another run to actually win this game. And they needed to prevent the Reds from scoring one first.

Baseball's deepest bullpen took care of that second task. Five relievers (Ryan Mattheus, Henry Rodriguez, Brad Lidge, Tom Gorzelanny, Craig Stammen) followed up Zimmermann's gem by combining to toss six innings of two-hit ball.

Squeezing out that one final run to get over the hump, though, proved a tall task for a lineup that has squandered plenty of opportunities through eight games. Washington went 0-for-9 with runners in scoring position through the first 12 innings of this one, perhaps at times trying too hard to deliver in the clutch.

"Everybody is, a lot of times, trying to do too much, trying to hit one out of the yard or something like that," Johnson said. "And sometimes it makes it easier on the pitcher, because he knows that's what the hitter's trying to do, so you don't give in to them."

The winning rally in the 13th, then, was made possible not by any big blast but by four consecutive quality at-bats. Danny Espinosa got things started by beating out a grounder to the hole at shortstop. Reds closer Sean Marshall then walked both Zimmerman and Adam LaRoche, loading the bases with one out for Werth.

With the infield and the outfield drawn in out of desperation, Werth worked the count to 1-2, then sent a groundball up the middle past that drawn-in infield to bring Espinosa home and ignite a mad celebration near first base.

As he was mobbed by teammates, Werth broke out in a smile and acknowledged the fans that remained til the end and serenaded the veteran right fielder with cheers. Perhaps some of those same fans regularly booed Werth during his dismal first season in Washington.

"I think there's more people that like him than don't like him," Zimmerman said. "It's just that the people that don't like him are louder. I think baseball people understand. It's not easy to come over and just hit .300 with 30 and 100. It's not easy to do that any more. I think if you look at his game as all-around, the way he helps on defense and baserunning and working walks and what he does in the clubhouse, I think a lot of people don't get to see the outside of him. I think they just look for numbers and what happens on the field. And that's a little undervalued for all the other things he does."

Werth was simply happy to give those fans something to cheer.

"I thought it was awesome," he said. "That was a long game on a Friday night, and there are probably a few other places they could have been. But they hung in there pretty good, and I thought it was good. I've definitely seen not only here, but other places, where by the 11th inning there's no one in the seats. So I thought that was awesome."

106 comments:

Anonymous said...

It's not easy to do that any more. I think if you look at his game as all-around, the way he helps on defense and baserunning and working walks and what he does in the clubhouse, I think a lot of people don't get to see the outside of him. I think they just look for numbers and what happens on the field. And that's a little undervalued for all the other things he does."

That's why Davey reached out to DeRosa ... he makes Werth sound suspiciously like a bench player than a starter expected to produce runs at a much lower salary?

Even last year Werth had positive value based on advanced stats. That was clear. But this only reinforces what Keith Law likes to constantly harp on; that the Nationals have are paying 185 million but don't have a 185 million player?

I would hope that Jayson expects more out of his performance than what Zim describes?

~Justin said...

I, personally, could not imagine not being in my seat at a first home-stretch game deep into extra innings. STAY TO THE END, NATIONALS FANS.

Anonymous said...

Who cares what he's getting paid if he knocks in the winning run. The Nats offered him the money and he took what they offered (like most sane people would have).

I think Jason gives a damn how he plays and gives 100% on and off the field.

Anonymous said...

I kind of miss Nats320, Our Lamented Blog!

Cwj said...

Way to win it Werth!
Nats are 6-2, in 1st place and I can sleep well tonight :-)

Ernie said...

That was a fun game to be there for. It felt good to finally be able to cheer for Werth without looking ironic about it. Pretty decent crowd stuck it out until the end too...

I seem to be there for every game where Bernadina makes a boneheaded baserunning play. Picked off on 2nd against the Mets 2 years ago. Last year another pickoff at first base (I can't remember the opponent this late at night). At least tonight he didn't cost us the game. He makes some fabulous catches in the outfield (often after bad initial reads) but his baserunning is atrocious.

Players that I couldn't stand several years ago are coming around. Stammen looks like he's finding himself in the bullpen. Desmond, who I was seeing as a utility infielder, is starting to look like the guy they've talked about for years. It's nice to be wrong sometimes.

The luck won't continue this way all year, but this team is going to be fun to watch. As long as my cardiologist doesn't order me to stop going to games.

zregime said...

Guess what, haters? DC has a team that's in first place. My son and I went in on the 5 Game plan tickets this year (a first, as lifelong college hoops fans) and I'm psyched to get to the ballpark. "Baseball's deepest bullpen." Hellz yeah! Mark Z, love your work and always enjoy hearing you on ST 980. This is a young, hungry club that deserves some support. Jah would never give the power to a bald head, come let's cheer the Nattie Dread!

Meridian said...

This has been fun, to a point, but if these guys don't figure out how to hit it cannot last. It feels exactly like the first half of 2005. It is long past due to replace Eckstein and find someone who can help these guys realize their potential at the plate.

Another_Sam said...

Another nice piece, Mark. (I was long asleep. LOL) Thanks..

FS said...

I am glad Nats won but I gotta say something. I don't like Werth's tendency to chase after down and away pitches. He seems to do that a lot. BTW why don't we play Strasburg in CF? During batting practice, he tracked down a flyball to warning track pretty well.

FS said...

I admit I didn't get the headline at first. I had to google Friday the 13th and read about the franchise to get it. What a luck! 13 innings on Friday the 13th and Ja(y)son wins it for us.

natsfan1a said...

That's a great picture! I'm a total sap but I actually teared up a bit watching Jayson acknowledge the fans and get some love back from them after the game after his rough start last year. Good on him, and good on the fans who stayed. I stayed up and watched tv 'til the end (okay, I was in an upright position on the couch the whole time, and most of the time my eyes were open - hey, it was getting late). :-)

Will be there today for my first game of the season, in my usual Veeckian upper deckian reaches.

As he was mobbed by teammates, Werth broke out in a smile and acknowledged the fans that remained til the end and serenaded the veteran right fielder with cheers. Perhaps some of those same fans regularly booed Werth during his dismal first season in Washington.

Candide said...

natsfan1a said...That's a great picture!

I'm kinda sorry we didn't get Johnny Damon when he was available. Add a couple of Zimmerman's buddies from the Geico commercials and we coulda had MLB's first All-Caveman lineup.

natsfan1a said...

Good point. :-)

Tim said...

Zim is definitely right: Werth contributes so much in other ways, and THIS year, he'll contribute with game-winners. I can't believe there's this many haters and complainers with the Nats 6-2. What's gonna happen when we go into an inevitable skid?

We don't have our closer and our clean-up hitter until mid-season and we're winning close games and building confidence. Don't let anybody kid you that April games don't matter. They count every bit as much as September games.

Joe Seamhead said...

Well, I drove 4 of us to the game last night and by about 10;30 there was a growing impatience to go from a couple of my crew. Ain't gona happen, folks. Joe doesn't leave before the fat lady sings. I was still yelling until the sweet end and though I'm pretty horse this morning, I'm walking on a cloud. Frustratingly fun game.
Mark, thanks for the great entertainment you provide all of us with. To the neg-anon, I say this is a baseball blog for people that want to talk baseball without that bullfeathers that you constantly dish out. When we disagree, namecalling is uncalled for. You should learn to conduct yourself with a little class. And your warnings to posters that they're next to be the target of your wrath just come across to all of the rest of us to be childish. Make your mama proud, and grow up.

D'Gourds said...

The difference in last night's game was our bullpen and Dusty's ineptitude. Why would you bring the ss and 2b in with the bases loaded and 1 out? Why not bring the corners in and play the middle infield at double play depth? That would have given them a chance for a dp--maybe even on Werth's hit up them middle. I think he was trying to psych out Werth by pulling the infield in.
He also screwed up by pulling Arroyo after 94 pitches while he was pitching a superb game. Made no sense. And why did he pinch hit for Harris in a bunting situation? Harris is a very good bunter! Can you imagine how we would be on this blog if Davey had made those moves? The bottom line is we won. In the past we would have lost that game. We took advantage of the other manager's mistakes. Very cool. Go Nats!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Joe Seamhead said...

I just noticed that Mark Zuckerman posted this at 1:15 a.m. this morning after the near marathon win last night.Mark, you weren't excited too, we're you?
Again, a hearty thank you for your efforts!

Joe Seamhead said...

Darn auto correct! What I meant to say was: You weren't excited too, were you?

Chris "Boomer" Berman said...

Is it a coincidence that HRod and CStam are never seen on the same mound together?

I don't think so! It's the same as Clark Kent and Superman!

sjm308 said...

JoeS - great to hear you were one of the faithful. We were not there last night but my son has learned that we don't leave a game, no matter what the score. Last night would have been fun and I actually was not worried as our bullpen was just lights out. Had to love Gorzo when they had guys in scoring position. I was trying to figure out why he didn't use Burnett but I heard in his press conference his back was tight. I don't think Stammen will ever see the minors again.

Go nats!

Drew said...

Mark, thanks for all of your fine work. We appreciate it.

Friday night farm report: Looks like it was a good night everywhere but Syracuse. After two starts John Lannan has a 13.50 ERA. Bryce Harper is off to his customary slow start at .219, but we know what happens when he settles in. Tyler Moore knocked in two more runs and has 10 RBIs.

At Harrisburg Danny Rosenbaum had another fine outing, giving up 2 earned over 6.2 innings. He has a nifty 2.13 ERA. Eury Perez (.350) and Jeff Kobernus (.385) are a dynamic duo atop the batting order. Destin Hood homered and is up to 8 RBIs despite his .143 average.

At Potomac Kevin Keyes got off the schneid with a homer and 4 RBIs. At Hagerstown Kylin Turnbull gave up 1 earned over 5.2 and third baseman Matt Skole drove in two more runs. He's up to 13 RBIs.

There's still a lot of talent on the farm after the Gio deal. My biggest concern is all of the injuries to key pitchers. Sammy Solis and Taylor Jordan recovering from Tommy John, Matt Purke and Robbie Ray sidelined -- seems it never ends.

Rabbit said...

Great win. We haven't lost a series yet. Zimmermann screwed again. Maybe Werth will get to like the feeling of the fans cheering him and pull out of his over-a-year slump. With the pen we have we may go a year with the best ERA in baseball and no starter with any more wins! GO NATIONALS!!!!

Anonymous said...

Drew.. What is up with Purke and Ray?

NatsLady said...

It was long and it was cold and it was great. The whole park is wondering what Baker was thinking when he pulled Arroyo. Time stopped with Nady's ball hit the tip of the outfielder's glove. Then HUGE laughing cheer! How could you not win the game after that gift?

One of these days the Nats are going to play a team with a good bullpen and a smart manager. Then the might have to get some runs....

baseballswami said...

Should I worry about myself because I am also hoarse? You see, I was not at the game, I was watching at home - alone. And yes, I was yelling at the tv - a lot. Watching these guys play is like being on an emotional tightrope. You can barely leave the room to go to the bathroom. It may not be pretty , but it is gutty. I heard there was a nice piece written by amanda comak about Stammen, ( or should I say K-raig, with a K!) but can't find it. Anyone know where it is? Love the starters, love the bullpen! The offense I have a love/hate relationship with. It seemed very strange to have one of those post-game interviews with Jayson - I hope we see more.

natsfan1a said...

When we attended our first Nats games in 2005, my Chicago baseball buddy (AKA 1B) and I set up our own fan ground rules. Of course, one of them is that we never leave until the last out. We also vowed not to do anything that might lead to our being ejected from the park, or to boo our players. We're both gals who like to plan ahead, so we even had guidelines for when (not if) we reached the playoffs - no foam fingers or red and blue fright wigs for us, thank you very much. That's a personal decision, of course, so we won't judge if your own guidelines are different (we might, however, point and laugh). :-)

NatsLady said...

Sorry for typos. No internet at my house. Using slow wifi. Another one today=== just not like the other one. How about a BIG win, a laugher.

sm13 said...

Great to see us pull that game out. In Davey's postgame news conference he slammed last year's bench -- saying that all they could do was draw a walk or get hit by a pitch, while this years's guys can actually get hits. Seemed kinda harsh on poor Alex, Brian, and Johnny Gomes. By the way, I saw Bixler was optioned to AAA by the Astros.

Onwards today to an EJax gem and a power breakout led by the return of Rick A!! I'll be there and I'll be loud!

natsfan1a said...

swami, I yell at my tv set all the time. :-)

Couldn't find a specific article on Stammen but Comak had thoughts on him in a recent blog piece.

Anonymous said...

This is a four game series so we haven't won this one yet either. We have to wait until Sunday to complete the sweep.

Theophilus said...

I hear FS about Werth chasing curve balls. But I think he's like people who eat snails. Low curve balls are his idea of a delicacy. As long as it's not in the dirt, he thinks he can serve 'em up into the outfield. The game winner was about six inches off the ground and Werth just reached down and cue-ed it straight up the middle.

I also would have expected the Reds to be at double play depth in the 13th but I don't think it would have mattered where Werth put the ball. From that deep beyond the second base bag, I don't think they had a chance of getting two.

Anybody notice that Cozart, the rookie SS everyone is raving about, is older than Desmond?
Not sure what that signifies but it's interesting.

Big Cat said...

I see Alex Meyer found out pro ball isn't gonna be a cake walk. In his second start for Hagerstown he lasted only 2/3 of an inning and gave up 5 earned runs. Oh well.....he'll probably still be in Potomac in a month or 2 and if all goes well, finish the year in Harrisburg.

NatsJack in DC said...

MicheleS......saw your post from a previous thread. I'm sitting in section 235, first row by the right field foul pole.

Going to stop by the Presidents Club to meet The Honorable Brian Z and his Mom about 30 minutes before first pitch.

Drew said...

Anon:

Purke and Ray are starting the season on the DL according to Byron Kerr of MASN and two papers that cover Carolina League teams, the Potomac News in Prince William and the Lynchburg News. I haven't seen anything on the extent of their injuries.

Andrew said...

Here is my video on the walk-off and celebration

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KUAj2GGH-WY

natsfan1a said...

What, you get a personal audience with The Kid? Jealous. :-)

NatsJack in DC said...

MicheleS......saw your post from a previous thread. I'm sitting in section 235, first row by the right field foul pole.

Going to stop by the Presidents Club to meet The Honorable Brian Z and his Mom about 30 minutes before first pitch.

FS said...

Theophilus, I think Werth succeeds at chasing those down and away balls less often than we like. In earlier innings, he struck out like that, so did Ramos. anyways I guess that's his style of play. I just hope it continues to work for him like it did in bottom of 13th (btw I think normal defense does not yield that a hit, but a DP).

About Reds' defense in 13th, I thought bringing in the infield is the right idea since it is the bottom of an inning with chance of game ending. It just did not work for Dusty. I didn't understand bringing in the infield in BOS vs TBR game where Rays were losing 1-8.

anyways, out of 18 strikeouts last night, only one was looking.

Gonat said...

Tim said...
Zim is definitely right: Werth contributes so much in other ways, and THIS year, he'll contribute with game-winners. I can't believe there's this many haters and complainers with the Nats 6-2. What's gonna happen when we go into an inevitable skid?

We don't have our closer and our clean-up hitter until mid-season and we're winning close games and building confidence. Don't let anybody kid you that April games don't matter. They count every bit as much as September games.

April 14, 2012 7:51 AM
_____________________________

Jayson Werth brought the right attitude to DC last year when he arrived. He helped change over the clubhouse.

Davey Johnson has since drilled into their brains that they are winners.

They aren't hitting but they sure are keeping up the walks and finding ways to score runs.

BTW, Ludwick has no hops. I can't believe he didn't catch Nady's HR ball-add a lot of luck to what we are seeing.

jeeves said...

Good piece by Kilgour about the Nat's infield. Zimmerman had nothing but praise for the defensive prowess of Desmond and Espi, and, of course, LaRoche. I suppose Zim doesn't know as much about the subject as some of the posters here (re Desi) but still, it's good to hear.

JaneB said...

My husband and son stayed through the end...inwas home yelling at the TV like swami and 1a. I have been known, in tense times, to follow the televised instructions when I hear that voice say, "evRy boDy clap YOUR HANDS!"

Is there a stat for most manufactured runs by a team? Whatever that record is, I bet we own it sooner than later. I do not even know how to look it up.

natsfan1a said...

Me, too. :-)

I have been known, in tense times, to follow the televised instructions when I hear that voice say, "evRy boDy clap YOUR HANDS!

Candide said...

baseballswami said...You can barely leave the room to go to the bathroom.

Do what I do: http://www.depend.com/

Anonymous said...

Just a heads up: Looks like WaPo is going to start monitoring there blogs and have stated they will ban people. So we may see more of the trolls over here.

natsfan1a said...

I'll believe it when I see it re. WaPo monitoring. Actually, I wouldn't see it because I tend to read posts but not comments when I go there.

Mick said...

watching Phil and Mike while type and recover from many bottles of beer, lol My take so far: Desmond has been an excellent lead off, we still need one more bat in line up and one more off bench,veteran presence of has been a huge plus, Bernadina's days should be numbered,other than that let's hope we can start hitting and Lidge and H rod still scare me

Mick said...

can we still pick up a big bat now without having to bring up Harper and the other young stud?

MicheleS said...

Mick, thanks for the heads up. Phil must really tired since he was at the game late last night!

Mick said...

MicheleS, they are irritated that fans left in 9th

The Fox said...

Interesting and fun game. There were a lot of decision points for the managers from the 8th inning on.

Dusty had to know that when he went to Bray a lefty that Davey would counter with a righty and the X man who has some power would most likely be the choice.

Dusty compounded his mistake of taking Arroyo out and then gave Davey the match up he wanted.

As for Werth and the curve ball he had 2 strikes on him (I think) so he had to protect the plate and swing at anything near the strike zone.

Defense in the 13th tough call, the chance of cutting down the winning run increase with the fielders in however you have to get another out where the double play is less likely but gets you out of the inning.

whereswilky said...

I completely disagree with those who say this club has been lucky, like the 2005 club. People, the reason we've won 6 of8 is that the pitching has been phenomenal! That's not luck, that's talent. And when your starters give up 0,1,or2 runs every game znd your bullpen is almost as good, you dont need to score a lot of runs to win. The offense, in fact, has not been lucky - we are putting a lot of runners on base but not doing too well at cashing them in. Still, when you keep getting baserunners, you have chances to score even on your opponents mistakes, which is what they've done. The 2005 club. OTOH, really did benefit in the first half of the season from luck - they ran off 10 or 11 one-run winsin a row. That just couldn't keep going, and it didn't.

That said, these guys can't keep winning at a .750 clip, simply because no team in mlb history has ever done that. The pitchers can't continue at quite the same level of excellence - well, maybe strasburg can- so they will need to start scoring a few more runs if they want to win every night. But, hey, it's baseball - you can't win everynight. But 6 out of 10 (which is a drop off from their current pace) gets you into the postseason.

Mick said...

Fox... well said, I agree that Dusty made a huge mistake taking out Arroyo. the only thing in his defense is that Dusty has to find out early how bad his bull pen problem really is. That was an opportunity for the maligned Reds bullpen to step up and they failed, which makes me happy, lol

MicheleS said...

JaneB are you going to be at the game today?

The Fox said...

Mick sort of, you have to give credit to both bullpens they both did an outstanding job.

The Reds series is a little different then when we played the Cubs or Mets the Reds have a good team with much better hitters.

The Nat's pitchers have been lights out and they will not continue to pitch this well over a 162 games. Oh they are good and the starters barring injury will at least pitch to their norms but no staff in baseball can keep this up.

Just trying to keep it realistic or you will be sadly disappointed later.

Today's game will show a lot. Both teams need their starters to go deep. If Ejax gets in trouble early don't look for Davey going to the bullpen real soon.

waddu eye no said...

candide said:

Do what I do: http://www.depend.com/


just what we need. another smart ass like me

is this the best of all possible blogs, or what?

mark - thanks for the late night duty. typing with bryan on your lap, i'm sure.


gyfng

FS said...

oh yeah, one thing I don't like about stadiums is selling drinks. I don't consider drinking and hollering (much less at Nats Park but still there) a family environment.

JaneB said...

MichelleS, I'm not. Someone else has the seats today. I wish I were going...not just for the bobblehead, either.

Theophilus said...

Agree Nats won't win 75 percent of their games but 60 percent is within reach. Pitching has been better than I hoped for because the pitchers -- with one exception -- have been better than I expected. Other teams have to be afraid that they'll not only lose three out of four in a four-game series but will leave town in a two-week slump.

spike94wl said...

Thank you for staying up late and posting this Mark! Hope it wasn't as bad as that dreaded colorado game last year.

whatsanattau said...

re: possible invasion of the neganons, I understand that planet MASN is looking for space settlers.... (not that I'd wish that on anyone, but ...)

erocks33 said...

does anyone think the BoSox would be interested in Bernadina now that Ellsbury is out for at least the next 6 weeks? Don't know what we could get back from them, but I'd be okay with getting the proverbial PTBNL for Bernie. I still like the Shark, but am afraid that he might need a change of scenery to get his career going.

Anonymous said...

HAHAHA Theo, work on your math buddy! 75% would be 121 wins, nobody EVER does that. 60% would be 97 wins - you seriously think that's a reasonable expectation for the Nats?? I'm all for it if they do, but it seems unlikely.

You need to realize that teams that win 60% of their games are considered VERY good.

FS said...

The Fox, I think that was just a bad swing. The pitch before was better.

http://tinypic.com/r/k1z1bl/5

baseballswami said...

natsfan1a - that was the very article I heard about - thanks!

whatsanattau said...

Fun facts: Homer Bailey's career ERA against the Nats 22.50 (only 2 innings). Career in April 6.91. Career 4.91. EJAX career vs Reds 2.57. Career 4.47. Career at Nationals Park -- never pitched there. (or at least that's how I read it).

MIcheleS said...

Theo.. math aside (and snarky comments), I would LOVE to win 97 games! Drinking the Koolaid today and will be leaving soon to get my Bobblehead (I am a sucker for that stuff!)

baseballswami said...

and thanks to Andrew for the crazy video of the end of last night's game from his seat at the park -- it made me seasick but it was awesome to see the fan's eye view and hear the fans. It sounded very loud, indeed. Awesome.

NatsJack in DC said...

We'll be at the Scoreboard Pavillion right after the gates open.

Gonat said...

erocks33 said...
does anyone think the BoSox would be interested in Bernadina now that Ellsbury is out for at least the next 6 weeks? Don't know what we could get back from them, but I'd be okay with getting the proverbial PTBNL for Bernie. I still like the Shark, but am afraid that he might need a change of scenery to get his career going.

April 14, 2012 11:17 AM
_________________________________

Bernadina can still make things happen. If Cozart throws to 1st, Bernadina scores the winning run and is the hero.

This team needs some X Factor guys and Bernadina is one of them.

Yes, he needs to pick it up at the plate but lets face it, 1/2 the team is struggling. He had a nice hit and walk yesterday + a stolen base.

natsfan1a said...

Carrying over another fun fact re. match-ups.

natsfan1a said...

Just noticed this in the preview for today's game. Oh well. :-)

Washington's Brett Carroll is 3-for-3 with a homer and double in his career against Bailey.
April 14, 2012 9:37 AM

Janner33 said...

Is there anyone in their 30s on this blog? If so, I'm sure you'd agree that Werth in that photo could be one of the Thundercats from the cartoon series :-)

Seriously though, was so happy for him to have the walk-off hit. I can't remember the last time he was interviewed on field and on camera at the end of a game!

GYFNG!

natsfan1a said...

Trying to talk my hubby into getting there before 2, but not having success so far. :-)

Andrew said...

baseballswami said...
and thanks to Andrew for the crazy video of the end of last night's game from his seat at the park -- it made me seasick but it was awesome to see the fan's eye view and hear the fans. It sounded very loud, indeed. Awesome.

April 14, 2012 11:29 AM

You are welcome. Sorry about the video quality as I was running down the steps to get towards the middle of the dugout.

I will upload the play where Bernadina ran past 3rd. You will see if the pitch was out of the strike zone that Ramos would have walked and Bernadina would have stolen 3rd.

We also couldn't see that Bernadina was as far off of 3rd as the MASN feed showed.

The Fox said...

FS you are correct the pitch before was in the strike zone but Werth swung and missed it. See Andrews post @ 9:21. So now he has 2 strikes a 1-2 count I think, if he had gone down looking the boo birds would have come out big. He had to at least protect the plate.

It was not a pretty swing if you want to call it bad or lucky I guess you can? It probably is not a hit unless the defense is playing in too, but they were and everyone in Natstown went home happy.

BTW Andrew you owe Jason $5 dollars cash for that RBI. I clearly heard you offer it. You can mail it care of the Nationals and I'm sure he will get it.

Candide said...

Cunegonde and I should be there around 2:30 for our first game of the season.

MicheleS said...

Oh.. and I will be wearing the Werth Jersey and have a nice Reds fan with me (although I am working on him.. he will convert soon)

Anonymous said...

Espn just did a great article about pitching mechanics,arm injuries, and interviews with orthopedic surgeans.They talk about the nats quite a bit in this article.Its kind of about the inverted w,but they talk with top orthopedic surgeans,pitching coaches,and medical literature.There are things in this article no one can dispute. here it is
http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=science%20arm%20injuries&source=web&cd=1&ved=0CC0QFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fespn.go.com%2Fmlb%2Fstory%2F_%2Fid%2F7712916%2Ftommy-john-surgery-keeps-pitchers-game-address-underlying-biomechanical-flaw-espn-magazine&ei=tZqJT-7UKImW2QXw-6XACQ&usg=AFQjCNEv9cpVHqPhJyLxBoqkRK9acT6RVA

NatsLady said...

Quite a few fans left after the 9th and some left around the 12th, but an awful lot of people stayed. Bear in mind, it WAS cold, maybe around 50 and all the food stands had long since closed. From Andrew's video you can see there were only a smattering of us in the upper decks.

They had a second shirt toss AND a second Presidents Race (Teddy still didn't win, although I thought they should have let him TIE at least!)

natsfan1a said...

fwiw, red polo with interlocking DC letters, red script Washington windbreaker, white Nats cap with red curly W, and a RFK exploding fireworks pin to top it all off. Hoping for some bang zoom today. :-)

The Fox said...

FS,

Thanks for the photo I don't know how you get the perfect frame a DVR I guess. Anyway, there are at least 14 people in the picture that aren't paying attention to the game at all and this is the bottom of the 13th with the bases loaded. 7 on the left hand side don't have a clue.

It should be like those Miller hi-life commercials and an usher should come down and escort them out.

Unless your under 12 they should make you pass a basic baseball test to sit there ;-).

natsfan1a said...

Agreed re. fan attention issues but isn't the screenshot from the 7th inning? (Unless I looked at the wrong link.)

MicheleS said...

1A.. where are your seats today?

natsfan1a said...

We're waaay up in sec. 408 but will be wandering around before. Need to trade in some ticket vouchers, buy a program, meet up with a baseball buddy.

The Fox said...

natsfan1a,

Your are correct, Maybe I misunderstood what FS was trying to tell me?

In my best Emily Litella voice, never mind.

Kids as your parents.

MicheleS said...

Janner33.. just a smidge past the 30s, but I totally got the thundercats! Here is a youtube link..

Thundercats Intro

FS said...

The Fox, agree about basic baseball test.

frame I got it from mlb.tv. Did print screen on that at bat and hosted on web.

I am going today as well. Probably in sec 104-105 or OF reserves by RF. yet to get a souvenir.

FS said...

the fox, I was talking about seventh inning at bat where he struck out on an outside slider. the slider before was close to strike zone so I understand him swinging. that was a good pitch and he lost. but the pitch he struck out on was not so great.

BTW your test idea still applies in any inning.

Janner33 said...

@MicheleS... that's fantastic! Thanks :) Ahhh, the memories!

The Fox said...

Thanks for the info FS, have fun at the game I'll be watching it on TV. Hope they win.

NatsLady said...

Nationals = NL team leader in ERA (1.97). Next is PHI with 2.27. League average is 3.64.

Nats have given up 1 (read ONE) homerun. League average is 7.

That is with 75 innings pitched (league average is 67.

standard pitching stats

http://www.baseball-reference.com/leagues/NL/2012-standard-pitching.shtml

Mr. Doggett said...

I was in section 315 and I was with my cousin's boyfriend who is from Bristol, England. He had never been to the US let alone seen a baseball game before. Case and point: We spent a good 20 minutes before the game taking photographs of the racing presidents/ watching them from the Red Porch. I have a feeling the people around us (obvious close knit group of season ticket holders) had a hard time holding laughter when he called the players "batsmen" or screamed loudly in excitement at a high foul ball. We stayed the whole time he definitely got a memorable experience from that game. However, he just couldn't understand why Xavier Nady wouldn't have stayed in the game after hitting that home run (one of the only nuggets of baseball knowledge he had before the game.

Talked to him this morning and it turns out he spent an hour or so reading about the game afterwards. Sounds like we may have helped to create a little fan base across the pond.

Anonymous said...

When will the gamer be up? Inquiring fans want to know? Ankiel starting?

natsfan1a said...

Heading out now. Seeeeeeeeeee youuuuuuuuuu laaaaaaaater!

NatsLady said...

Apparently, Lannan's line looks worse than it actually was.

"Lehigh Valley (7-2) scored five runs in the first three innings off of Chiefs starter John Lannan thanks to a few fortuitous bounces and some Syracuse errors."

However, he did walk 3 and gave up a homerun in four innings of work.

Bryce went 1 for 5 and is now hitting .219.

The details are not pretty, Syracuse fielding pretty bad. Corey Brown dropped a ball in the outfield and two runs scored.

IronPigs squeak by Chiefs

http://www.milb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20120413&content_id=28602084&vkey=recap&fext=.jsp&sid=t552

jeffwx said...

i go to get me a tix for today's game.
I've got the fever

UnkyD said...

Anon said:

"There are things in this article no one can dispute."
---------
How long have you been here? There is no such thing as something no one can dispute.....hehe, good luck with that...

SweetBlues said...

Save me a Bobblehead!!! Section 210!

Anonymous said...

Who cares what he's getting paid if he knocks in the winning run. The Nats offered him the money and he took what they offered (like most sane people would have).

I'll just let Boz do the talking for me instead ...

ThomasBoswellWP: The Reds lost it. Two walks in 13th. Especially LaR __LH on LH. That pulls in infield. So Werth's grounder is -8, not (maybe) DP 6-4-3.

I think Jason gives a damn how he plays and gives 100% on and off the field.

I wholeheartedly concur! However, he still appears to be in a possible 30-ish decline. He will have a positive effect according to advanced stats but, again, as Keith Law states not to the tune of 185 million. If the decline continues he could end up as a very expensive bench bat.

Hopefully I am wrong ... but the fact he isn't getting many line drives and is striking out quite a bit ... again ... is disconcerting.

Anonymous said...

Is there anyone in their 30s on this blog? If so, I'm sure you'd agree that Werth in that photo could be one of the Thundercats from the cartoon series :-)

You don't have to be in your 30's to know who the thunder cats are ... ;)

Anonymous said...

However, he did walk 3 and gave up a homerun in four innings of work.

Not really Natslady he completely imploded in the fifth and couldn't get any outs ... Arneson and the Syracuse bullpen came in to bail him out. Sounds like his usual refrain does it not? Except Riggleman would have yanked him before he allowed the homer and Beasley didn't.

The first four innings were underscored by errors by the left-fielder who admitted on twitter that he had a terrible day and a guy who should not be at shortstop at the AAA level: Seth Bynum.

In the end Lannan isn't all that different from many past Syracuse starters starting with Garret Mock. Its not a permanent condition. One need only look at Tommy Milone? If Lannan could learn to be the pitcher Milone is he would find success and a #3 slot in any rotation.

Anonymous said...

Is there anyone in their 30s on this blog? If so, I'm sure you'd agree that Werth in that photo could be one of the Thundercats from the cartoon series :-)

I thought the Gargoyles "anime" was pretty cool. Voices of Wil Riker, Deanna Troi, and I think Worf?

Janner33 said...

@Anon 1:11pm: Also perhaps parents of those in their 30s? hehehe ;)

Section 222 said...

Looking forward to a great time today at the Park. Section 314 is the place to be. Go E-Jax! Show the rest of the K Street Crew you're just as good as they are.

People should lay off the fans who left in the 9th last night (or the 8th or 10th or whenever). Some people have kids with them, or babysitters at home. Some might have to work at 6 am, or have been up since 5 am. Some might have a 1.5 hour drive ahead of them. I can probably think of 10 other good reasons if I try for about 30 seconds more. It's arrogant to assume that they are any less devoted fans than those who stay to the last out every game. If Phil Wood was complaining about them, he should be ashamed. Would you rather they just stayed home?

I'm happy Zim thinks Werth is worth his contract and Desi is a great shortstop. He has no reason not to tell us what he really thinks when he's interviewed about these topics, right?

Ok, negative comments over for now. Back to being in bliss about about in "sole possession."

JaneB said...

222, Werth pretty much HAS said what he believed, if only by default and non-mention. I think he's a straight shooter. FWIW.

The Nats have been making me pretty happy all day, just thinking about them.

Anonymous said...

222, Werth pretty much HAS said what he believed, if only by default and non-mention. I think he's a straight shooter. FWIW.

Agreed. He appears to be trying too hard ... again ... not sure how Davey plans to rein him in ... might try giving some rest early on ... they have to find out if he is in decline or if its something psychological.

Anonymous said...

@Anon 1:11pm: Also perhaps parents of those in their 30s? hehehe ;)

Its like asking if you've ever watched the Baby Einstein videos or TellyTubbies. ;)

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