tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3442809928829881676.post9037046880386577275..comments2024-02-15T05:42:18.307-05:00Comments on Nats Insider: Nats' offense shuts down in loss to O'sMark Zuckermanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13525315258889435961noreply@blogger.comBlogger69125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3442809928829881676.post-46185978648974059752013-05-31T10:39:16.754-04:002013-05-31T10:39:16.754-04:00Here's Kelly Johnson's career slash which ...Here's Kelly Johnson's career slash which is much better than Espi's and plays well in a National League tea. plus he is a lefty and started his career as a LF for the Braves. He can play multiple positions including 2nd base and you are getting a player who would've cost $2.5 million. <br /><br />.256 /.339 /.434 /.773 Ghost Of Steve M.https://www.blogger.com/profile/05745394350047225996noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3442809928829881676.post-43891520055576941542013-05-31T10:34:03.455-04:002013-05-31T10:34:03.455-04:00bowdenball, I don't talk in hindsight and you ...bowdenball, I don't talk in hindsight and you should know that about me. I detest all those that speak with 20/20 hindsight. Anyone can do that.<br /><br />I didn't even suggest starting Kelly Johnson. I suggested bringing into camp 2 inexpensive Free Agent options and trade Espi or worse case send him to AAA.<br /><br />There was no reason given the revelation of Espi's shoulder and the way he ended the season that he should have been the frontrunner for starting 2nd base on Opening Day but there really was no competition.<br /><br />Lombo is a good kid but I don't think he is ready yet.Ghost Of Steve M.https://www.blogger.com/profile/05745394350047225996noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3442809928829881676.post-23939836241155974722013-05-31T10:21:54.897-04:002013-05-31T10:21:54.897-04:00I'm 100% with you on Tracy, GoSM. I wasn'...I'm 100% with you on Tracy, GoSM. I wasn't a fan of the extension and I think they could have found a better left-handed bench bat in the offseason. Those are a dime a dozen.<br /><br />Kelly Johnson seems like a hindsight move, though. He hit .225/.313/.365 last season. Espinosa actually had better 2012 numbers and was still approaching peak instead of over 30. <br /><br />Right now I'd rather have Johnson than Espi and Soriano (I'm assuming a limited free agent budget), but before the season started, Espi + Soriano over Johnson seemed like a total no-brainer. I can't fault anyone for that.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3442809928829881676.post-80645621282742678062013-05-31T10:21:28.392-04:002013-05-31T10:21:28.392-04:00"Ghost Of Steve M. said...
Those were 3 of m..."Ghost Of Steve M. said... <br />Those were 3 of my biggest arguements last year. If you come into 2013 with a good squad then you only have to deal with less problems like Tyler Moore and Bernadina."<br /><br />Rizzo had to make a decision with Espy and he is the middle of every discussion on whats wrong with this team. Horrible approach at the plate and a rally stopper.<br /><br />Bowdenball doesnt get it. Cant help a guy who doesnt see the problems.Nats 128https://www.blogger.com/profile/08432607182669878624noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3442809928829881676.post-44366899323832074582013-05-31T10:21:09.509-04:002013-05-31T10:21:09.509-04:00>You guys are taking something incredibly compl...>You guys are taking something incredibly complicated and reducing it to sports talk radio level discussion. Sorry, but I'm not a fan of that.<br /><br />I don't think it's all that complicated to start Lombo for two weeks and then longer if he proves the hitting wasn't a fluke.<br /><br />I don't really know what goes into sending down Moore and replacing him with someone, and I do have the impression that most replacements would not be power hitters. Still, I seem to recall that Kobernus is a more versatile utility man than Moore and, while he doesn't hit for power, I seem to recall that he gets on base. If that's the case, when he fills in, put him early in the line up and let someone drive him in. It's better than what Moore's doing.<br /><br />Also not sure what's involved with DFAing Tracy, and I'm aware that the same possible issue of replacing his potential power is there. But, again, even a banjo hitter would be an improvement right now.Erichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00678357994045101892noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3442809928829881676.post-68718060957897766852013-05-31T10:15:31.911-04:002013-05-31T10:15:31.911-04:00Bowdenball, Kelly Johnson was an available Free Ag...Bowdenball, Kelly Johnson was an available Free Agent. Great clubhouse guy and solid offense/defense.Ghost Of Steve M.https://www.blogger.com/profile/05745394350047225996noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3442809928829881676.post-82441103438892137282013-05-31T10:14:09.610-04:002013-05-31T10:14:09.610-04:00Bowdenball, I would never say make change for the ...Bowdenball, I would never say make change for the sake of a wholesale change. I'm beating my drum from last year.<br /><br />Tracy had a horrible year after he got injured. Why reward him with a $1 contract extension?<br /><br />Why not sign an upgrade in the off-season at 2nd and attempt to trade Espi while he had value?<br /><br />Trade Henry Rodriguez for a case of baseballs I think I said. The jury is out on him and again, I err on the side of caution with him.<br /><br />Those were 3 of my biggest arguements last year. If you come into 2013 with a good squad then you only have to deal with less problems like Tyler Moore and Bernadina.<br /><br />Ghost Of Steve M.https://www.blogger.com/profile/05745394350047225996noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3442809928829881676.post-85922124708103213442013-05-31T10:12:12.988-04:002013-05-31T10:12:12.988-04:00See, Nats128's post is the perfect example of ...See, Nats128's post is the perfect example of what I was talking about. Replace Espi in the offseason? Fine. With who? If it's a free agent, what kind of deal would you have offered, and do you understand that probably means no Soriano? If it's a trade, who are you trading for? Would you be willing to give up the prospects that would be needed for such a trade? <br /><br />You guys are taking something incredibly complicated and reducing it to sports talk radio level discussion. Sorry, but I'm not a fan of that.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3442809928829881676.post-22940149672616752272013-05-31T10:07:47.355-04:002013-05-31T10:07:47.355-04:00"Oh, and if you replace Espi with him, make s..."Oh, and if you replace Espi with him, make sure you also replace Espi's leaping grab in the first with a single, giving the Orioles a run in the first."<br /><br />True enough. But, I think now is the time to see if Lombo's performance against the Phillies was a flash in the pan. If it was, I will remain in Espi's camp; if not, let Lombo start there for a month and let Espi back up when Lombo has to fill other roles due to injury, etc. Unlike Rendon and even Kobernus, Lombo's close enough to Espi defensively that I can live with it.<br /><br />Wonk, re: Tracy and Moore, it would be one thing if this were an isolated incident. Unfortunately it's not. They seem look like that against every pitcher they face. LaRoche, Zim, and even Bernie lately were just straight up beat by a pitcher on his game last night. I don't see those as comparable groups even though their performance was comparable last night.Erichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00678357994045101892noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3442809928829881676.post-92038682512718197662013-05-31T10:07:23.564-04:002013-05-31T10:07:23.564-04:00I don't mean to talk down to you, GoSM. I thi...I don't mean to talk down to you, GoSM. I think you're hearing me getting frustrated about the same pet peeve I've been talking about for weeks. Demanding change for the sake of change because you're frustrated makes no sense. If people think there's a way to improve the team's performance, they should show their work. Tell us not just that you want change and that you want to bench this guy or that guy, but tell us who you would replace them with and why you think that would make a difference. Otherwise, what's the point?<br /><br />I'm frustrated with the season so far, too. But I'm not frustrated with the front office or the manager like many of you seem to be, because I'm not sure they could have done anything differently that would matter all that much. Lombo's bat is slightly better than Espi's, but not enough to really make a difference, especially when you consider the downgrade on defense. Werth and Harper have been hurt, but until Brown came back and showed he was healthy this week Moore and Bernadina were the only options. <br /><br />I agree that we can fault the front office for Tracy. But other than that I think the problems so far are just plain old bad luck, not bad front office or managerial moves.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3442809928829881676.post-20331623169615823232013-05-31T10:03:44.701-04:002013-05-31T10:03:44.701-04:00"bowdenball said...
Ghost Of Steve M. said....."bowdenball said... <br />Ghost Of Steve M. said...<br /><br />"GMs like Frank Wren and John Mozeliak have 1st Place teams and know continual improvement is part of the process."<br /><br />Mozeliak and Wren have had their jobs three years longer than Rizzo. Wren and Mozeliak both inherited perpetual winners, Rizzo inherited an pseudo-expansion team loser with very little revenue and a minor league system in shambles."<br /><br />I guess you could have stuck Sabean into the mix. He brings up fill ins like Cody Ross and Marco Scutaro and wins 2 World Series.<br /><br />Sitting on your hands and saying a guy has less experience is no excuse, its just an excuse.<br /><br />Rizzo had the best team in baseball last year and didnt replace his weakest link in the chain and that was Danny Espinosa the guy who went 1 for 15 in the playoffs.<br /><br /><br />Nats 128https://www.blogger.com/profile/08432607182669878624noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3442809928829881676.post-61523656726248188192013-05-31T10:02:33.419-04:002013-05-31T10:02:33.419-04:00It's definitely weird that Kobernus has been a...It's definitely weird that Kobernus has been almost totally ignored.Erichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00678357994045101892noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3442809928829881676.post-30645408484570277162013-05-31T10:02:15.091-04:002013-05-31T10:02:15.091-04:00bowdenball, you're on a roll! I agree with al...bowdenball, you're on a roll! I agree with all your comments this morning. <br /><br />Let me pile on: those complaining about Tracy going after a bad pitch in the 2nd are giving Garcia no credit. Anyone watching the game could see that Garcia was on fire last night -- throwing nasty 2-0 and 3-1 splitters. He got first pitch strikes on a huge proportion of batters. He was dealing. Yes, the Nats are hitting poorly, but last night wasn't all on the Nats. Both Garcia _and_ Haren pitched awesomely. (The first run scored with the aid of a seeing-eye grounder; the guy who scored the O's second run got on base with a broken-bat hit).<br /><br /><i>Bernadina, Moore, Tracy and Espinosa went 1 for 13.</i><br /><br />So what? Span, Zimmerman, and LaRoche combined for only one hit, also. That should tell you something. Go ahead, blame Tracy for being hitless -- blame him for going 0-for-3 with a K, but them blame Ryan Zimmerman, too. After all, RZim followed his 3 HR night with 0-for-4 with a K.<br /><br />As I've said many times:<br /><br />1. A team is not as good as it looks during a winning streak; nor it is as bad as they seem during a slump; and<br /><br />2. The first 1/3 of the season is for "seeing what we got." We've now just finished the first third. I bet Espi either gets it together or gets moved to the bench or AAA within the next two weeks (possibly as early as this weekend).A DC Wonkhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09732615221598098540noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3442809928829881676.post-73384153708263072862013-05-31T10:00:02.934-04:002013-05-31T10:00:02.934-04:00Bowdenball, you must be mistaken me for someone el...Bowdenball, you must be mistaken me for someone else. You address me like you are talking down to me.<br /><br />My only point on Kobernus is if you bring him up use him right away. If you don't use him you can expect diminishing returns from sitting on the bench.Ghost Of Steve M.https://www.blogger.com/profile/05745394350047225996noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3442809928829881676.post-66429548714982505252013-05-31T09:54:15.332-04:002013-05-31T09:54:15.332-04:00Rest Hsrper on DL and bring up Corey Brown for two...Rest Hsrper on DL and bring up Corey Brown for two weeks?? baseballswamihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03473384422940931212noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3442809928829881676.post-57321003797775080442013-05-31T09:50:26.840-04:002013-05-31T09:50:26.840-04:00I am very concerned to bring Harper back too soon ...I am very concerned to bring Harper back too soon but would have no hesitation to bring Corey Brown up and play 3 lefties in the outfield especially since Teheran has bad splits against LHB's.<br /><br />.325 /.378/ .521/ .899 <br /><br />vs. RHB's<br /><br />.225 /.272 /.344 /.616 <br /><br />and then you have Hudson on Saturday who actually has better splits this year against LHB's. Go figure. Might be a good time to get Kobernus and Werth in the lineup.<br /><br /><br /><br />Ghost Of Steve M.https://www.blogger.com/profile/05745394350047225996noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3442809928829881676.post-71371692383201636902013-05-31T09:49:15.970-04:002013-05-31T09:49:15.970-04:00Ghost Of Steve M. said...
"Kobernus? Poor ki...<br />Ghost Of Steve M. said...<br /><br />"Kobernus? Poor kid gets 1 AB and with all of his bench sitting lately he is probably lost the timing he had."<br /><br />Sure. Go back through play by play of the game last night and replace Espi or Bernadina with Kobernus. Give him two singles if you want, even though he would have been hard-pressed to get one the way Garcia was dealing. Let me know if it changes the result. <br /><br />Oh, and if you replace Espi with him, make sure you also replace Espi's leaping grab in the first with a single, giving the Orioles a run in the first.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3442809928829881676.post-89668792436221600362013-05-31T09:46:37.248-04:002013-05-31T09:46:37.248-04:00(psst, see the MASN link at left on Werth)(psst, see the MASN link at left on Werth)natsfan1ahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14540238101124316529noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3442809928829881676.post-45738076855097146182013-05-31T09:45:14.985-04:002013-05-31T09:45:14.985-04:00Any word on Werth's performance last night?Any word on Werth's performance last night?Erichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00678357994045101892noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3442809928829881676.post-13164789452163137062013-05-31T09:41:35.959-04:002013-05-31T09:41:35.959-04:00Sorry, that should be two years for Rizzo. Two ye...Sorry, that should be two years for Rizzo. Two years vs. combined ten years.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3442809928829881676.post-71147520524538458492013-05-31T09:40:37.364-04:002013-05-31T09:40:37.364-04:00Ghost Of Steve M. said...
"GMs like Frank Wr...Ghost Of Steve M. said...<br /><br />"GMs like Frank Wren and John Mozeliak have 1st Place teams and know continual improvement is part of the process."<br /><br />Mozeliak and Wren have had their jobs three years longer than Rizzo. Wren and Mozeliak both inherited perpetual winners, Rizzo inherited an pseudo-expansion team loser with very little revenue and a minor league system in shambles.<br /><br />Despite those enormous differences in their starting points, Rizzo has produced as many division titles in his three years as those two guys have produced in their combined ten years.<br /><br />Tell me again about who knows how to build a first place team? <br /><br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3442809928829881676.post-54396808003418822062013-05-31T09:40:29.130-04:002013-05-31T09:40:29.130-04:00Kobernus? Poor kid gets 1 AB and with all of his b...Kobernus? Poor kid gets 1 AB and with all of his bench sitting lately he is probably lost the timing he had.<br />Ghost Of Steve M.https://www.blogger.com/profile/05745394350047225996noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3442809928829881676.post-40877613514635537092013-05-31T09:35:23.207-04:002013-05-31T09:35:23.207-04:00Anyone else finding themselves checking MLB Trade ...Anyone else finding themselves checking MLB Trade Rumors more than usual during the season? I normally read it a lot during the offseason, but not so much once April rolls around. These days I keep checking it in hopes the Nats get mentioned -- so far only Rizzo saying he's *not* seeking any roster upgrades -- on the 2B front (or for any additional offense, for that matter). Just wonderin'https://www.blogger.com/profile/08204327684996213881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3442809928829881676.post-72935426177829652932013-05-31T09:33:29.230-04:002013-05-31T09:33:29.230-04:00Nats 128 said...
"fast eddie said...
Braves...<i>Nats 128 said... <br />"fast eddie said... <br />Braves' manager benched all three of his sub-.200 guys last night: Heyward, Uggla and BJ.<br />Maybe Davey could learn a lesson.<br /><br /><br />May 31, 2013 8:24 AM"<br /><br />The Atlanta Braves also DFA'd 3rd baseman Juan Francisco prior to Thursday's game against the Toronto Blue Jays<br /><br />That's sweeping change and THEY ARE A 1ST PLACE TEAM!</i><br /><br />GMs like Frank Wren and John Mozeliak have 1st Place teams and know continual improvement is part of the process. They also know that they may have to cut a player who becomes a good player somewhere else and that is a risk that comes with it.<br /><br />Rizzo had a chance for Kelly Johnson as his 2nd baseman as a Free Agent and could've traded Espinosa and he could have retained John Lannan as his 6th starter or even his 5th starter.<br /><br />1/3 of the season has elapsed and the bench depth has been badly exposed. <br /><br />Just because you send a player to AAA doesn't mean they are banished there forever. Both Tyler Moore and Danny Espinosa could use some time there to get better.<br /><br />Rizzo had the opportunity to DL Espinosa and he chose not to. That is on him.Ghost Of Steve M.https://www.blogger.com/profile/05745394350047225996noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3442809928829881676.post-53563684373076770462013-05-31T09:33:01.101-04:002013-05-31T09:33:01.101-04:00when Werth comes back someone will have to go, if ...when Werth comes back someone will have to go, if it's Kobernus that will be a shame. <br /><br />I also hope that Kobernus is in left tonight with Lombo at 2nd. I can dream, right?alexvahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16607068733172426326noreply@blogger.com