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File photo by Mark Zuckerman / NATS INSIDER Sparkling AT&T Park hosts the Nationals for a three-game series beginning tonight. |
The challenge in the series opener (Tim Lincecum) is daunting, but the Nats have actually enjoyed success against the ace. Washington has won its last three head-to-head match-ups with Lincecum, with the right-hander actually taking the loss the last two times (including April 29 in the District).
John Lannan starts for the Nationals, and though he's pitched well against the Giants in two previous encounters (1.98 ERA over 13 2/3 innings) he's yet to earn a win. The lefty has been the victim of poor run support -- he took a 2-1 loss to Jonathan Sanchez on April 30.
I won't be making the rest of this West Coast trip, but I'll have full draft coverage here tonight, so check back for that and then enjoy the late-night game in San Francisco...
NATIONALS at GIANTS
Where: AT&T Park
Gametime: 10:15 p.m.
TV: MASN2
Radio: WJFK (106.7 FM), WFED (1500 AM), XM 188
Weather: Mostly cloudy, 51 degrees, Wind 10 mph out to CF
STARTING LINEUPS
NATIONALS (26-33)
CF Roger Bernadina
SS Ian Desmond
RF Jayson Werth
LF Laynce Nix
1B Michael Morse
2B Danny Espinosa
C Ivan Rodriguez
3B Jerry Hairston
P John Lannan
GIANTS (33-26)
CF Andres Torres
3B Miguel Tejada
2B Freddy Sanchez
RF Cody Ross
1B Aubrey Huff
LF Aaron Rowand
SS Brandon Crawford
C Eli Whiteside
P Tim Lincecum
78 comments:
Ryan Zimmerman having another good night in the Minors (Potomac) and Harper back in Hagerstown hit another HR.
Harper and Rendon could end up in Harrisburg together. That might be interesting.
Show casing Pudge tonight? The Giants need a catcher with Posey out for the season.
Anthony Rendon a good pick at 6.
Go nats beat Giants.
On the Nats pregame Ray Knight is watching yesterday's Hagerstown hilights and saying Harper should be back in a few days. Who does the research for these guys?
Thank you Adam Dunn for Alex Meyer and Brian Goodwin
My earlier prediction of 4 K's in one in the first inning for Lincecum almost came true!!! Here we go with the K-Fest.
Why does this team swing at balls in the dirt, in the dirt? If you're swinging your bat through the dirt, it CAN'T be a strike!
Lannan imploding ... time to call in either Maya or Stammen ... be interesting to see who Rig calls.
Rendon, Meyers and Brian Goodwin. Two bats and 1 potential projectable top-of-the-rotation starter.
Michael Morse Fan Club! BOOOOOOM
You go, Michael Morse!
Daggone it, I was just checking the thread before turning in and you guys made me go and look at Game Day. I gotta go to sleep now, so you folks have the con. Nats, you keep up that hitterish stuff. I'd like another happy game results email in the morning, please. 'kay, thanks.
If Morse is gonna hit the inside pitch out of the park, then pitchers are in deep trouble. That has been his weak spot, and if he can adjust to turn on a fastball from *Lincecum*, then the rest of the league had better watch out . . .
Great play by Desi. He must of thought Adam LaRoche was playing at 1st!!!
On a non-baseballish note - did you see that everyone is bundled up in hoodies - it's like 50 degrees out there. I thought MM could only hit when it was hot outside. Quite a switch from Arizona. Nice to see that Lannan survived the first and the nats got a hit, and on the scoreboard early. And the giants thought THEIR offense was torture last year. Although, I like it when I hear commentators talking about how highly ranked our defense is. Can we have it all please, please?
Did you just see that pick by Morse of Desmond's bounce? Can we all agree that Rizzo made the right move in letting Adam Dunn go? I don't think anyone saw MM playing first, much less playing this caliber. And spring training isn't looking like quite the aberration that some folks were thinking a month ago,eh?
Now I see why Zim isn't going to play in San Fran as it is back to Winter there!
Great AB by Desmond!
So, Lincecum has faced 11 hitters and had ONE putout. Everything else is a K, a BB or a hit. Crash Davis would call the Freak a fascist.
Michael Morse again! The Giants already got someone up in the pen.
...or maybe Crash Davis Morse would call the Freak "meat"!
MORSE!!!!! 4 runs off Lincecum so far! Unrelated - F.P. referred to a hit and then a pitch as a "cookie". I think he's going back to the press buffet to look for a snack between innings.
Walks even come back to bite strikeout kings on the backside. He must feel about facing the Nats, like Lannan feels about facing Philly.
69 pitches through 3, amazing.
Also, prince Oppo Boppo hit his 14th dinger tonight.
BTW- I believe Morse has taken over as team leader in RBI's.
Werth looked so bad in that at-bat. No outs, bases loaded, sheesh. No comment on Nix for fear of the wrath of his fan club.
Rendon-Meyer-Goodwin and a 4-0 lead on Lincecum.
Bundle up, San Fran. It's baseball Christmas!
I
I just read this in SI on the 17th pick by the Angels.
17 C.J. Cron 1B Utah 6-4 225 Son of former big leaguer Chris Cron, C.J. Cron is a massive, powerfully built 1B along the lines of an Adam Dunn. Cron is a slow runner and his throwing and fielding tools all indicate a future as a DH or 1B. Perhaps the premier power hitter in the 2011 draft, the right-handed hitting Cron has enjoyed a spectacular 2011 season despite the mandated usage of the dreaded BBCOR bats. One dimensional players with tremendous power can hang on in the majors for a long time (i.e. Matt Stairs), so look for Cron to be a big league power hitter for many years.
Rizzo passed on him.
dj in FL, perfect for the Angels in the American League.
dj, are you suggesting that with the #6 pick Rizzo should have chosen Cron? Not sure your point as Cron was gone by pick #23.
dj in Fl, Cron sounds like another Steve"Bye-Bye" Balboni.
No Annon8,
Just having fun with the references to Nats players, current and former.
Rizzo made three great picks tonight, and looking toward more tomorrow.
Wow, Lincecum out of the game! Who saw that coming in the 5th!
Cruises through the 1st and then goes on to get strikeout 1,000 after the Morse solo. That walk to Lannan put him in a tail spin.
Love how the anons start in immediately on LannEn even though he worked out of a tough inning. Look at his last 3 games folks, he is never going to be a #1-2-3 starter but he can be an excellent #4-5. It was weeks ago that natsjack pointed out how most negative comments were by the various anons but I don't see much here in the middle of the 5th. We can still lose the game (that is the beauty of baseball) but I really like how we have been playing lately. I saw a stat that shows since April 29 we have the best defensive stats in the majors. What an amazing turnaround. Now if we can just start to hit.
On the draft, I am wondering how a 6 9" kid with heat can only have a 7-5 record? I realize this is a strength with Rizzo and our staff so I can't wait to see who else falls into our laps. We got a starting pitcher, a 5 tool centerfielder, and perhaps the best hitter in the draft. Nice start.
Go Nats!!
hey sjm308,
Levo can explain about good efforts going for naught.
It is nice when the nagative annons go to bed early. Sorry Mark isn't with us for an excellently played game so far.
Assuming this 3 run lead holds, what of Storen? He's been horrific lately and that save opportunity in Arizona might have taken him out for today. They can pass it off as giving him rest, but who comes in for the save? Coffey in the 8th Clipp in the 9th? Very interested to see how Riggs works the pen here.
I like LannEn as much as the next Nat fan, but please take hi mout before he ruins this good game so far....
Glad to see just a quick pep talk from Riggs, and let Lannan finish his night off properly.
Cardiac Nats strike again! Clippard and Storen are unavailable. It's going to be up to HRod and Kimbell at this point.
Trying to showcase Pudge and Coffey has not turned out well. I mean really...is there ANY other reason Clippard isn't in there?
This isn't on Coffey its on Hairston. Riggleman again managing with sentiment instead of his "amazing" baseball acumen. That first double probably doesn't happen if he puts Cora in at third instead of Hairston. It definitely doesn't happen with Zimmerman. So, what's he do again? Its all about sentiment not "smart ball". Ankiel, he of zero bat, in center. Nix out of the game and the score is tied. And you ask why Riggleman has the worst winning percentage in the modern history of baseball? There ya go. Leave Nix in and take Hairston out is the right double-switch move. Hairston is a terribly inconsistent third baseman.
This team's total inability to hit against relief pitching will cost them another game. Pathetic.
Now Ankiel is the cleanup hitter. Brilliant move Riggleman.
Nationals Against Starters - .234/.301/.374
Nationals Against Relievers - .189/.312/.245
Rizzo passed on him.
@dj in fla,
The Nats are a National League team. There IS NO DH. As we can see tonight fielding is important? Hairston lost this game because he is a terrible third baseman.
Cron sounds to me like another Michael Burgess. Another Chris Marerro. Not for an NL team.
Wondering what Hairston's UZR is at third base?
Again, Riggleman should have just started the 8th with H-Rod? I thought he said H-Rod was his 8th inning guy now? Sheesh the guy can never do anything without some bizarre sentimental move that ends up with the Nats losing.
Crap. H-Rod is wild. The pressure is too much.
Here's the unwritten story of this game. If Marquis doesn't get thrown out so early yesterday, Clippard's arm is saved and HRod doesn't come in there. That stupid ejection likely cost us this game.
Cora should be playing third base not Hairston. Hairston should be DFA'ed because I think Bixer would be better over there.
How many outs can JH2 cost us before we get rid of him? Seriously. Let's make a pool.
Wow. I really thought the Giants were going to win it in the 9th.
We can only hope they can Upton and it doesn't cost Rizzo literally the farm ... then the bench should also significantly change. Ankiel won't be coming in to replace Upton. Zim will be back so no Hairston at third. And Hairston won't be needed in the outfield ... so ...
Perhaps we should start a "Buy Jayson Werth Contact Lens" Facebook page. If Bryce can afford them, surely Jayson can.
Werth and Ankiel "the wonderful veterans" looking really pretty bad right now ... one is starting to look really pathetic at the plate but at least has a high OBP and hopefully will be effective batting 2nd ... and the other is completely and totally lost at the plate per the back of his baseball card. Its futile to put a bat in his hand.
Another crazy night in extras....
Better hope Pudge doesn't get hurt, because we just wasted Ramos. If Stairs were a real player -- able to field, run and hit -- we'd still have Ramos available.
More bloopers and bleeders against the Nats tonight.
I can't take much more of this.
Espi as a rightie comes through again! A shame Morse couldn't get that walk.
Cheddar Onion McChicken
Wow, I need to go to bed, but I gotta see the end of the play.
The 3 new Draft picks are all watching their new team in this crazy game.
So, we gonna see Stammen tonight? I'm so drunk. Why have you let this go on so long... MAMMEN!!!
Wow, Matt Stairs is still on this team. Comes in to pinch hit and Bochy doesn't even go to the bullpen to get a lefty. Looks at 2 straight strikes and a ball and slaps a single. How do you like that!
We saw history folks. Matt Stairs got a hit. We HAVE to win now, right?
Who else loves the fact we have to run for him with a pitcher?
Jason Marquis runs the bases like Bryce Harper. He runs until you throw him out and luckily got to 3rd as he surprised Torres.
Boy, right now I sure wish Nix was still in!
gee, ya think
That could have been a replay of the 11th in Arizona with Ankiel up with the bases loaded and Morse behind him.
And we head for the 13th.
I sure hope Rendon can hit -- this morning.
Welcome back Craig Stammen. Walk the backup catcher....
Dang. Unhappy game results email. Did Stammen warm up sufficiently? He's been starting in Syracuse rather than coming out of the 'pen, right? On the plus side, sounds like LannEn may be getting it together.
I went to bed 4-0, Lannen in total control. Wake up to see the bullpen for the second consecutive day imploded. Once in a while things happen, but 2 straight days, it is now a concern.
Giants bullpen gives up almost nothing.
Our starting pitching for the most part is good enough to win, the rest of team needs to up their game to the same level.
Back out the door with 3 hours sleep. Stammen walked the backup catcher on 4 pitches. Then he got lucky that the pitcher sacrificed to get an out. The gave up the winning hit. Oh well.
Was hoping that this Craig Stammen opportunity would be different.
Werth, Nix, Pudge, and Ankiel all came up with opportunities all game long and did nothing. Werth looked lost at the plate.
No brainer here Henry Rodriguez is not a major league pitcher. He just can't throw strikes. That's why the Nats lost tonight.
Didn't someone point out the other day that we shouldn't get too excited that Stammen got the call to replace Slaten because he is, after all, still Craig Stammen? I really thought we got rid of this joker last year, but I guess I had him mixed up with Scott Olsen. There is a pool of pitchers that I lump together and get mixed up due to general mediocrity: Stammen, Olsen, Mock, Chico, Detwiler. Seeing those names year after year makes me feel like we're making little progress.
We can beat the Giants. That's what makes the loss so frustrating.
Bright side?
1. We ALMOST beat Lincecum!
2. Nicely pitched game by LannEn. If he keeps this up, we can make him a no 4/5.
3. Stairs got a hit (heh heh). (If Rizzo doesn't get rid of him, we can at least make the most of the situational comedy).
4. GREAT DRAFT!!!!!!!
5. Zimmerman's almost back. If its me at GM, I let Zimmerman recuperate at 1st base and put Morse at 3rd/OF. It was just painful to watch them intentionally walk Werth with runners on 2nd/3rd to get to easy out Ankiel. Painful.
HRod's walk was bad enough, but how the heck do you walk a guy on 4 pitches in the 13th? Stammen just sucks.
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