Saturday, July 28, 2012

Game 100: Nats at Brewers

US Presswire file photo
Miller Park hosts Wisconsin native Jordan Zimmermann tonight.
Jordan Zimmermann has made 69 starts in his big-league career in 20 different ballparks, none of them at Miller Park. That makes tonight's outing particularly special for Zimmermann, who grew up a short 3-hour drive to the northwest of Milwaukee in Auburndale, Wisc.

The right-hander just barely missed out on opportunities to pitch in his home state in the past: He was scheduled to start against the Brewers in 2009 right before he learned he needed Tommy John surgery. And he missed out by only one day last season, starting in Baltimore on May 22 right in advance of a three-game series in Milwaukee.

Zimmermann, of course, will be looking to keep his streak of six-inning starts intact. He's got at least that many innings in all 20 of his starts this season, a feat bested only by Justin Verlander.

With left-hander Randy Wolf on the mound for the Brewers, Davey Johnson goes with a slightly different lineup. Danny Espinosa leads off, with Steve Lombardozzi bumped all the way down to the 8-hole. Tyler Moore, meanwhile, gets a chance to start in left field, essentially taking Roger Bernadina's spot in the lineup.

As you know, I'm not on this leg of the road trip. Enjoy the game and the ongoing conversation here...

WASHINGTON NATIONALS at MILWAUKEE BREWERS
Where: Miller Park
Gametime: 7:10 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN2, MLB.tv
Radio: WJFK (106.7 FM), WFED (1500 AM), XM 89
Weather: Partly cloudy, 77 degrees, Wind 7 mph in from CF
NATIONALS (59-40)
SS Danny Espinosa
CF Bryce Harper Corey Brown
3B Ryan Zimmerman
RF Michael Morse
1B Adam LaRoche
LF Tyler Moore
C Jesus Flores
2B Steve Lombardozzi
RHP Jordan Zimmermann

BREWERS (45-54)
RF Norichika Aoki
CF Carlos Gomez
LF Ryan Braun
3B Aramis Ramirez
1B Corey Hart
2B Rickie Weeks
C Martin Maldonado
SS Cody Ransom
LHP Randy Wolf

UMPIRES
HP Laz Diaz
1B Mike Estabrook
2B Tim Welke (cc)
3B Paul Schrieber

7:00 p.m. -- A late lineup change for the Nats: Bryce Harper has been scratched with a stomach virus and has been replaced by Corey Brown.

179 comments:

MicheleS said...

Go JORDAN! GYFNG!

NatsLady said...

Must've really soured on Nyjer, not starting him against a righty. Laz Diaz at homeplate. Yuck.

Doc said...

Mark, your review of JZim's past history of near misses of pitching against the BrewCrew, suggests that you know this team down to a T!

Who else can chronical this team as well? My guess, is no one!

natsfan1a said...

Go, J-Zimm! Hope that he's had some home cooking and will enjoy some home rooting tonight. Go, NATS BATS!!

baseballswami said...

Amanda Comak reporting that 5% of Jordan's hometown will be at the game. The last census listed the population at 800. Come on, JZim!!! Do it up right!!! Where else can he pitch where all the fans sound exactly like him?

baseballswami said...

Game 100 - really?

Drew said...

A p.s. on the Edwin Jackson discussion:

In addition to Meyer's rise, the Nats have to think about Matt Purke. I know his health has been iffy, but the Nats gave him a four-year major league deal worth nearly $4 million. So, he's in their plans, too.

I'd love to have Edwin back for two years, but with Cain, Hamels and -- perhaps -- Greinke off the market, he'll be in position to seek a longer and lucrative deal.

Dr Trea (formerly #werthquake) said...

wtf does gyfng mean?

baseballswami said...

Go you (freaking) Nats, go!

Dr Trea (formerly #werthquake) said...

sweet. except i have a feeling that thats the "clean" version haha

Drew said...

Clip:

You might also see occasional references to "hacking the Gorse" or "Gorse hackage" in relation to Michael Morse.

Long story short: Sometime last year somebody, perhaps UNKYD, accidentally typed Morse as Gorse.

Somehow it evolved into a riff of Scottish lore -- Braveheart meets Nats Park, as in "Ay, that's fine Gorse Hackage that would make William Wallace proud."

Yeah, it's weird, but now you know.

baseballswami said...

Couple of players I wasn't fond of us facing have left the National League - Greinke, Sanchez, Ramirez, and that was after Pujols and Fielder in the off-season. Anyone else wish to depart? Are those exits making the National League weaker? I am not sure about that - I think the National League has some exciting younger players that just might pushing those guys out a little bit. I think the AL is especially attractive to older hitters who can DH.

NatsLady said...

Wait, the Dodgers aren't in the NL anymore?

UnkyD said...

I'll betcha 1A has the genesis of gorse hacking saved in her machine.... As I recall the phrase I tried t type was "hacking through the order", which got spellchecked into gorse..... Spellcheck is fun!!!

baseballswami said...

Oh - NatsLady - You are correct as usual. I was thinking that we were done with them for this year and wrote them off. Wish we could, actually. Thanks. The musical dugouts have been a big confusing.

Drew said...

Unky:

That's right! That's how we got to hacking the Gorse.

(The blasted autocorrect on the iPhone has a dastardly mind of its own.)

NatsLady said...

After he pitches, does JZ get to go home and meet the team on Tuesday?

natsfan1a said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
natsfan1a said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
natsfan1a said...

I actually didn't have it saved but I did turn it up (hat tip to ask.com). Hacking the first was auto-corrected to hacking the gorse, and the rest is history. :-)

http://www.natsinsider.com/2011/06/missing-zimmerman-more-than-ever.html

NatsLady said...

Just read this:

Bryce Harper was scratched from the Nationals' starting lineup Saturday due to a stomach virus.
Harper was able to take pregame batting practice and will be available to pinch hit if the Nationals badly need him. He should return to the lineup Sunday afternoon.

waddu eye no said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
NatsLady said...

Apparently Hanley ran through a stop sign and scored, evading a tag attempt by Posey. Do you suppose Donny Baseball will fine him for that?

natsfan1a said...

Maybe Harper had one too many brats. :-)

waddu, idk but, fwiw, I think Cat would be the one to ask about pfb. ymmv.

SonnyG10 said...

Wow, 1a. How do you find things in the archives so fast? I would be searching for days.

waddu eye no said...

clip-

fyi, fwiw - ask about kook-aid. iirc, pfb. (imho).

gyfng, btw.

k? ttfn.

CN said...

Anyone know at what point a player can be scratched but still be available for that day's game? I know once the lineup cards are swapped, it's final, but that officially doesn't happen until 2 mins before first pitch. Does this swap really make it official, or is the swap more ceremonial?

natsfan1a said...

I just use a good, old-fashioned search engine, Sonny. Back in the day, I did online research using databases where one was charged by the minute, and I honed my search strategies out of necessity. :-)

(lol, waddu)

CN said...

Nice throwbacks the guys have on tonight. Hope they make those available. I have the 1936 & 1924 throwbacks (both Zimm's numero 11).

Jim Webster said...

Giants DFAd Emmanuel Burris, DC native. Hitting stats this year not great but if he could improve in hometown settting he might be useful backup for middle infield if we could claim him off waivers and park him at Syracuse for a few weeks.

CALSGR8 said...

HARPER has a stomach virus! Brown batting second!

CALSGR8 said...

FP and Carp look out if place in suits!

CALSGR8 said...

You dont have the gray throwback from when the NATS were in Baltimore celebrating 1970 WS? 1970 Senators Replica

CALSGR8 said...

HARPER has a stomach virus! Brown batting second!

Old Wino said...

Mr. Brown will be fine. Are the Nats setting a record with rookies playing the game this year? It sure seems like it.

Ghost Of Steve M. said...

97mph. I would say JZim bas some hometown NatsTown adrenaline flowing!!!

Ghost Of Steve M. said...

NatsJack, 3rd AB

Steady Eddie said...

NJ -- it may take awhile, not for Brown to get his first hit, but to get comfortable and start doing what he's capable of doing at the plate. He's taken some time to get acclimated at each new level and don't see anything in his first few games to think it'll be any different in the Show.

On the other hand he looks comfortable and even sort of polished in CF, with clean routes even to tough balls.

And nice to see JZimm back in the groove again (groundout to Aoki, Ks to Gomez and Braun, for those without GameDay).

UnkyD said...

Thanks, 1A!! You are one PFB searcher...
Boy... We were a frustrated bunch, last June, no? Does CB in DC still post? Winder what he thinks of our "culture of losing" now? Gawd, how that phrase grated!!

Swift Eagle said...

Never seen a ball hit the rosin bag before...bad luck

Swift Eagle said...

Those uniforms look uncomfortable, both teams...unless that's faux-flannel...

Swift Eagle said...

That will work for CB Jack... Funny

FP's 5:00 Shadow said...

Atta boy!!!!

NatsLady said...

Well, there ya go!!! First hit, a home run!!! Can't ask for better than that!

Candide said...

Welcome to The Show, Mr. Brown.

Swift Eagle said...

Cue the Corey Brown fan club...

Swift Eagle said...

Let the Roy Hobbs comparisons begin...Uniform and everything

Candide said...

What was Porter thinking sending Morse home?

NatsLady said...

Oh, Bo Porter. Agressive is good, but that was not good.

NatsLady said...

Morse was trying, for a guy who's not fast, he was chugging away.

Swift Eagle said...

Bo owes Tyler one now. Crunch

NatsLady said...

OK!!! Had to get to this guy sooner or later, I mean, look at his ERA...!

Ghost Of Steve M. said...

ROOKIE POWER!!!!

FP's 5:00 Shadow said...

And the happiest guy in the ballpark? Bo Porter.

Swift Eagle said...

Syc Cheifs (Grays) 3, Milwaukee Brewers (Bears) 0

NatsLady said...

I'm sorry, they could have caught that one. Brewers not hustling.

Steady Eddie said...

Now JZimm's turn....

FP's 5:00 Shadow said...

LOL Good one Swift Eagle

Steady Eddie said...

Well at least the rooks have given JZimm some run support.

NatsLady said...

Hey, he almost did get a hit. Turned on some jets, made it real close.

Swift Eagle said...

Wow, Ryan may be the 2nd fastest Zimmerman(n) on the team...Jordan was moving

NatsLady said...

Something wrong with my color, Jordan is BLUE!!

Steady Eddie said...

Is everyone else getting that bizarre color reversal on MASN? Someone messed up with a filter....

Swift Eagle said...

Me TOO!! Looks like Avitar

Steady Eddie said...

It's Avatar baseball!!

Swift Eagle said...

It's actually kind of cool

Swift Eagle said...

Sigourny Weaver warming up in the bullpen?

NatsLady said...

Aliens on the field!

Candide said...

There is nothing wrong with your television set. Do not attempt to adjust the picture. We are controlling transmission. If we wish to make it louder, we will bring up the volume. If we wish to make it softer, we will tune it to a whisper. We will control the horizontal. We will control the vertical. We can roll the image, make it flutter. We can change the focus to a soft blur or sharpen it to crystal clarity. For the next hour, sit quietly and we will control all that you see and hear. We repeat: there is nothing wrong with your television set. You are about to participate in a great adventure. You are about to experience the awe and mystery which reaches from the inner mind to — The Outer Limits.

Steady Eddie said...

Eagle, I aun't giving you a Coke 'cause I spelled UT right! ;-)

NatsLady said...

Carp is the same though. "Jammage."

Candide said...

I've always thought Blue Man Group was kinda creepy...

NatsLady said...

Won't this be something if it shows up this way on the MLB highlights?

Swift Eagle said...

Lol, I cant argue that Eddie!

I've watched lots of sports on TV, never seen this happen before

Steady Eddie said...

The "Bears" look like the Reds.

Jim Webster said...

The Grays become the Blues.

djinFl. said...

It is only MASN
The Mil. broadcast is fine but not my MASN.

NatsLady said...

OK, JZ, settle down. I know you are a stranger in your own land, but, just settle down...

Jim Webster said...

The Grays become the Blues.

Candide said...

You know what's cool about this? All the players - white, hispanic, black, Japanese - are pretty much the same color.

Finally, we have become post-racial America.

FP's 5:00 Shadow said...

Thank you to our friend Peter Angelos for another fine broadcast of Washington Nationals baseball.

Sunshine_Bobby_Carpenter_Is_Too_Pessimistic_For_Me said...

I didn't know Boise State played baseball.

waddu eye no said...

i thoght they already did the smurf thing last year.

Candide said...

But the grass is still green!

waddu eye no said...

i hope they don't fix it.

Swift Eagle said...

Speaking of "there's something wrong with my TV", the beach volleyball players appear to be wearing long sleeve shirts...what's that all about?

ExposedinDC said...

Smurfs vs oompa loompa's

Steady Eddie said...

Actually it's getting sort of nauseating unless you think of everyone as Avatar actors.

I think this is not healthy for JZimm.

"Minor"technical difficulties, MASN?

waddu eye no said...

" Finally, we have become post-racial America."

the best of all possible worlds

Candide said...

...and now the picture craps out entirely, and sound goes to 1940s radio broadcast quality...

Steady Eddie said...

Hey, I'd rather see them in blue than not at all.

NatsLady said...

I want my #BLUENATS back!!!

NatsLady said...

Turtles, that was a strike... OK, Jordan, don't give it back.

Anonymous said...

Swift Eaglei, (1) the Olympic powere that be decided to let female volleyball players wear more than bikinis if they wanted (mostly so that women form Muslim or other culturally conservative countries could participate, (2) temperature as in the 60s when the game now on NBC was played.

Steady Eddie said...

And nothing can help Laz Diaz's miserable umping.

Swift Eagle said...

Awesome pitch, and a great stretch by ALR (again), he makes that look so easy

NatsLady said...

Double play. Pitcher's best friend. Wonder if someone will tell JZ he was blue for half the inning.

NatsLady said...

Boy, Ross Detwiler's dad sure looks like him. Wow.

Steady Eddie said...

Boy, Ross Det looks like a total clone of his Dad!

NatsLady said...

NJ, yeah, McCatty in the dugout--not a happy man.

Unknown said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Swift Eagle said...

Too High....I thought... Nice Ryan

NatsLady said...

RZ!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Still loving ya, man!

waddu eye no said...

"he was blue for half the inning."

you'd be too.
if each plan
for zimmer man
kept fallin through.

oy, i'm getting on my own nerves again

Steady Eddie said...

That was reassuring to see. According to Boz, Zim still has 2 or 3 weeks left on his hot streak.

Steady Eddie said...

That old-fashioned uni looks good on JZimm. Anyone who'd pitch with a broken jaw wired together would fit any definition of old school.

NatsLady said...

Jason Benetti ‏@jasonbenetti
Jayson Werth just hit a soaring double to right center to score Jeff Mandel in the 5th. Chad Tracy just singled to score Werth after. #Nats


CMW--mixed results. 6 innings, 2 gopher balls, 4ER, no walks, some doubles (hard to know if they were legit w/o watching the game). 10 ground outs, plenty of strikes.

NatsLady said...

Aw, Davey is taking JZ out. GREAT JOB!!!! AGAIN!!!

Steady Eddie said...

JZimm pitch count up to 93 after 6, ERA down to 2.28!

Think he'll come out for the 7th?

(I'd suspect yes, but only if he accepts that Davey will take him out if he gets into any trouble.)

Steady Eddie said...

So much for flipping between the Olympics and the Nats....

NatsLady said...

Davey protecting JZ, thinking of Sept and Oct. Look at that 56 MPH. Eephus?

Steady Eddie said...

I love it! Danny takes an Eephus pitch and gets a Texas leaguer.

NatsLady said...

GIve Weeks credit, that was a very nice play.

Steady Eddie said...

Actually, NJ, the hopeful thing is they just showed Druuuu warming up."

Although I think we could all live with the Nats giving up only one more run in this game at this point.

NatsLady said...

The Grays uni does not flatter Storen. Not important. Just hope he is OK.

NatsLady said...

oooooh, shook Flores off twice and then hit Weeks. Maybe should have taken Flores advice?

NatsLady said...

I know peric wants RZ at 1B, but I so love to watch him on the hot corner.

NatsLady said...

Ah, RZ, beautiful! And he checks his glove, just to make sure it's there! :) :)

MicheleS said...

I need better friends. No cable or internet at their house. So i didn't see the blue team. Darn it. Just got home and I am watching now. Happy for jordan and corey.

NatsLady said...

Yes, Kimbrell is filthy. Can't believe he blew a save in that crazy game... And he shows no sign of being tired.

NatsLady said...

This guy, Henderson, sorry to see him get Nats out, but really glad for him, ten years is a LONG time to be riding those buses. Lotta guys give up and just get jobs coaching in high school.

Steady Eddie said...

Yeah, NJ. So much for the ignorant who were sure the Phils were going to go on a run because they could get to the Brewers' bullpen for a series. Now two straight losses to the Barves.

The good thing about that is that the Phil's won't come into Natitude Park with any head of steam.

Faraz Shaikh said...

yeah, gameday called that pitch 'eephus' too. didn't know pitchers throw it nowadays.

NatsLady said...

OK, Clip, just do your job. NO drama, please, I'm sleepy. :)

Steady Eddie said...

Nice to see Clip with good command of all three of his pitches.

MicheleS said...

WOOOOOO HOOOOOO!!! 60 wins! 2008 &2009 are in the rear view mirror!!! Onward and upward!

Steady Eddie said...

Hey, NL, how does a 1-2-3, 9 pitch ninth look to you?

Swift Eagle said...

Curly W #60 is in the books...Sweet

Sunshine_Bobby_Carpenter_Is_Too_Pessimistic_For_Me said...

.600 baseball!

"WOOOOOO-HOOOOOO!!"
(Copyright, MicheleS, 2011).

NatsLady said...

Eddie, it looks GREAT. And the Yanks lost, so even though it's not relevant, I still like being their equal!!! If we meet them in October, boy are we a different team than in June!!!

sjm308 said...

We now can take a game into the 7th inning and know we can dominate!!

Storen, Burnett, Clippard

Enough said

Go Nats!

Major Jammage said...

A good, solid win. No mistakes, and some power from the rookies. Sweet!

Candide said...

What, no Gatorade bath for Corey Brown and Kristina?

natsfan1a said...

And the good Smurfs win. I love it when that happens. :-)

Maybe no bath because it's on the road, Candide.

Steady Eddie said...

13-win Gio facing a AAA call up for the series win tomorrow.

baseballswami said...

What a strange game with the retro unis, the blue, the sound only for a while. So happy for JZim with his posse in attendance. He was hitting 96 tonight.also happy for Corey Brown and TyMo. Hope Bryce feels better soon, though. I thought he was looking thin.

Drew said...

Congrats to Corey Brown! Well done, Tyler Moore.

All the young dudes
Carry the news ...

mick said...

Look how our rookies step up, I love it!!!

mick said...

but alas, those damn Braves win again, lol

mick said...

loved the uniforms... Cool Papa Bell, etc...

Ghost Of Steve M. said...

Well played by the defense. JZim with another gem and he got the Win!!!

Rook power!

baseballswami said...

At first I thought JZim was getting the B lineup tonight. Brown and Moore take advantage of their starts. Good going. Jordan must have had plans with his group for after the game. Pretty fast game. So happy for him. Go Gio!!!!!!

natsfan1a said...

Also loved that they had Mamie Peanut Johnson in the house. Listened to and met her at a Smithsonian baseball program. She was still talking smack to all the former batters. You go, Mamie! :-)

mick said...

natsfan1a very very cool!!!!

Ghost Of Steve M. said...

Mick, yes, Braves won and the Phillies keep falling further and further out.

Trade the Nats Brian Schneider for backup. One of my favorites. Trade them Cutter Dykstra.

mick said...

Ghost... lol

mick said...

speaking of Cool Papa Bell... here is one of his infamous quotes

"I remember one game I got five hits and stole five bases, but none of it was written down because they didn't bring the scorebook to the game that day."

Sunshine_Bobby_Carpenter_Is_Too_Pessimistic_For_Me said...

Just say no to Brian Schneider. That ship has sailed. We're not going back there.

baseballswami said...

Once again a key player goes down and the rest of the team keeps it going. I miss watching Desi play, though.

Swift Eagle said...

My favorite...

"Cool Papa Bell was so fast, he once hit a line drive up the middle that hit him in the head sliding into 2nd base"

natsfan1a said...

I always liked the one about the light switch.

Swift Eagle said...

great link,thanks

mick said...

swift and natsfan1a.... lol!

baseballswami said...

I usually like the historic unis. Some guys look great in them and some guys look really bad. Jordan is a throwback and so he looks good, so does TyMo. Braun looks absolutely horrible.

Sunshine_Bobby_Carpenter_Is_Too_Pessimistic_For_Me said...

Regarding the search for a backup catcher: George Kottaras, recently DFA'd by the Brewers, likely will be traded to Oakland.

SonnyG10 said...

I saw the smerfs play tonight also. I was watching the game and get up to go to the bathroom (water pills working). I come back and my gosh, Jordan is blue. In fact everybody is blue. I thought oh no, my tv has lost a color gun. It is very expensive and I can't afford to replace it. I switched channels and saw normal color; what a relief that was.

I thought Laz Diaz umpired a good game tonight...for both sides.

What a thrill to see Corey Brown get his first major league hit and it being a home run. Moore and Zims home runs were crushed also. Great game. Nice to have 60 wins.

peric said...

Nice to see good friends Tyler Moore and Corey Brown playing together again ... there's a lot of synergy ... Dan Kolko called it Syracuse south. Hopefully Corey can start hitting consistently like his friend Tyler Moore when he gets called.

peric said...

I know peric wants RZ at 1B, but I so love to watch him on the hot corner.

Over the last 2 years how many games have you seen him do his magic at the hot corner? Sure the guy is good but one of the big knocks against his getting that contract was his injury history ... and it has only gotten worse? He was pathetic at the plate until he got the cortisone shot. Will it last the entire season?

They need Zim's bat. He is absolutely their best hitter bar none. Advanced stats clearly show that he is capable of hitting at MVP caliber. Most MVP caliber hitters must stay healthy in order to achieve those levels. How many play first base? A good number. Some play a corner position of the outfield. They are there for the bats not their gloves.

Bottom line: the Nats need Zimmerman in the lineup not on the DL. The one guy they can least afford to lose to the DL right now has to be Zimmerman. Yet it has happened.

Davey Johnson says Rizzo is more into insurance than he is. If I'm MIke Rizzo I am going to do everything possible to ensure Ryan Zimmerman and his bat are in the lineup for the entire season. That means first base as soon as Rendon is ready to take over. If Rendon can manage to play the hot corner after surgeries on both ankles and avoid the injury bug.

Sure, Davey might ask to keep LaRoche next year. He may have already made the request. But eventually I think we have to assume Zim and his great glove moves to first. And honesty, I think Zim will be better at the other corner than LaRoche.

baseballswami said...

Kudos to both of the Zimmermen tonight!

#4 said...

On the west coast and just catching up. I watched the highlights on mlb.com, and I continued to be amazed at how this team is filling in with guys. I was interested to see Davey insert Brown rather than Bernadina tonight when Byrce got sick. I wonder what his reasoning was. Was he asked in the post-game presser? Regardless it worked as most things seem to do with him this year.

I also need to point out (again) just a ridiculous decision by Bo Porter tonight. A MLB base coach should NEVER get a runner thrown out by that much at home plate with less than two outs. Simply brutal.

Joe Seamhead said...

Ricky Henderson in his prime couldn't have scored on that play, much less Morse. I like aggressive baserunning, but I detest stupid baserunning. I'm beginning to think Bo porter needs an eye exam and a pair of glasses.

Anonymous said...

Question for you guys...If Zimmermann took a bunch of players out for dinner, how would the bill be payed? A credit card number, checking account number, and carrying a bunch of cash can all be stolen? I would assume they would chance a CC. Any guesses?

NatsLady said...

Will be interesting to see next week how Davey aligns the bullpen now that everyone is finally healthy, knock on wood...

MicheleS said...

Apparantly we need chicken soup now too! Whoever noticed Bryce looking slimmer, per Kilgore's notes, he has been vomitting since Thursday. Great! And of course he says he plays today.

60 is a nice number.

MicheleS said...

And Liriano went to the White Sox. Apparantly Kenny Williams is all in this year.

natsfan1a said...

Huh? Everybody knows that Jordan doesn't have to pay for meals in Wisconsin. ;-)

Ginger ale and crackers, Michele.

In other news, guess who's leading the majors in dingers? That's right, former Nat Adam Dunn. Atta way, Dunner.

NatsJack in Florida said...

For those pour souls that actually bought in to the BS the Marlins were selling during Spring Training, Google "Jeff Passan Miami Marlins" and read his July 25th article on Yahoo.

A bunch of us knew this all along.

natsfan1a said...

Link for Passan story.

NatsJack in Florida said...

Thanks 1a.

That article sure makes one happy to be a Nats fan.

natsfan1a said...

You're welcome, NatsJack. Thanks for the heads up on the story. That's a clown front office for sure.

NatsJack in Florida said...

In Syracuse, Josh Johnson finished the game in left field after starting at shortstop.

Are the Nats grooming another utility guy, possibly one that can actually play shortstop?

And Christin Garcia got a save for the second night in a row.

MicheleS said...

WOW! That story on Loria is bad. At least the Lerners are from DC and want to set this up to be a source of Civic pride. Loria is just a swindler.

Laddie Blah Blah said...

Oh, boy. Davey reportedly told the media that Jordan has been having soreness in his pitching shoulder just prior to his last 3 starts, and that is one reason he has been taking him out after 6, or 7, at most.

He is the heart of that rotation, and they just cannot afford to lose him.

Candide said...

Wikipedia article about Loria says he tried to buy the Orioles, but lost to Peter Angelos.

Never, ever complain about the Lerners again. Loria or Angelos... O's musta felt like Poland stuck between Hitler and Stalin.

DWS said...

As a former Expos fan I know all about Loria and Samson. I think Selig should shoulder a little responsibility as well. No fan should be exposed to that BS.

UnkyD said...

Amen, Peric! Zim to first, as soon as Rendon is ready. And he'll have no
problem with it, because he'll see the wisdom... He want to be healthy as badly as we want him to be....

Section 222 said...

Passan hates Loria, and with good reason. That article is powerful. I do want to call attention to Harper the Blogger's take on the "fire sale," which he doesn't believe is a true fire sale. You can still despise Loria and his annoying son in law GM, while also recognizing that unloading Hanley, Annibal, and perhaps Johnson for top prospects might be a good baseball decision.

Here's an excerpt, but I recommend his whole post, which also covers the Phillies' signing of Colbert.

As for the Marlins the gamble was that the team would be good enough to compete this season. Bring in Reyes, bring in Buehrle and get yourself a pennant race. Didn't happen, so now what? The minor leagues for the Marlins is pretty bare. There was little help coming, especially in the rotation. You could keep trying to throw money at this, watching as most of your starters go over 30 and into oblivion or you could pull the rip cord now. The Marlins best players, and one of the best players in the league, is Giancarlo Stanton who is 22. He is a special player. The new plan has to work around him, because you don't know when you'll get another like him. Get as many major league ready prospects as you can and cross your fingers that they work out. That's what they've done. Eovaldi and Turner are ready for long looks in a major league rotation, Brantley might be ready to catch at the major league level next season. Get lucky and maybe these guys can help you out right away. The likely "worst case" though is that they are all major league players for as long as you have Stanton. Along with their top prospect, OF Christian Yelich, they could be the kind of cheap filler that you can then work around signing guys in 2015 or so to fill in the holes.

This isn't a fire sale. This isn't a team that could compete right away. It looked more like a team looking to hover around .500 for a year or two until it crashed back down. By jumping the gun and grabbing guys that look to be part of a Stanton led team a couple years down the road, the Marlins have given themselves hope that they'll be as relevant as they wanted to be in 2012 in some year not too far down the road.


And by the way, featuring Ozzie Guillen on two of three seasons of The Franchise is way more than enough. I am so tired of his schtick.

Ghost Of Steve M. said...

Sect 222 Hanley was a cancer there and wasn't producing. Anibal for young prospects? No brainer.

Just like the Greinke trade, have to do it. The Cubs needed to trade Dempster and his wear is showing with 2 bad starts.

JD said...

Ghost,

You are right but the entire pre season splash with FA signings and the addition of Ozzie was a typical Loria, Samson production. They finagled a new stadium on the tax payers, pretended that hey are increasing the payroll to become competitive and now they are pocketing the savings from Hanley, Anibal and more to come.

Wait a year or 2 and these two con artists will cry poor again with pretend offers to move the team to Portland Oregon or Las Vegas. Those of us who lived through the end of the Expos era know their game real well.

The best advice for any town or team is when you see these 2 coming hide your wallets as well as your women and children.

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