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US Presswire file photo The Nats try to pull off a sweep on Sunday Night Baseball from Turner Field. |
You couldn't ask for a better pitching matchup for Sunday Night Baseball, with Gio Gonzalez (6-1, 1.98) facing Brandon Beachy (5-2, 1.77). According to the Elias Sports Bureau, it's the first time two pitchers with sub-2.00 ERAs and sub-.200 opponents' batting averages and at least 50 innings pitched have met each other since 1985. Wow.
I'll actually be en route from Washington to Miami for the first portion of the game, the only way I could get down there in time for tomorrow afternoon's Memorial Day game against the Marlins. Until then, enjoy the proceedings and the conversation here as always...
WASHINGTON NATIONALS at ATLANTA BRAVES
Where: Turner Field
Gametime: 8:05 p.m. EDT
TV: ESPN
Radio: WWXT (92.7 FM), WWXX (94.3 FM), WJFK (106.7 FM), WTEM (980 AM), WFED (1500 AM), XM 89
Weather: Clear, 83 degrees, Wind 8 mph in from RF
NATIONALS (28-18)
LF Steve Lombardozzi
RF Bryce Harper
3B Ryan Zimmerman
1B Adam LaRoche
SS Ian Desmond
2B Danny Espinosa
CF Rick Ankiel
C Jesus Flores
LHP Gio Gonzalez
BRAVES (26-22)
CF Michael Bourn
SS Tyler Pastornicky
3B Martin Prado
2B Dan Uggla
LF Matt Diaz
1B Eric Hinske
RF Jason Heyward
C J.C. Boscan
RHP Brandon Beachy
UMPIRES
HP Kerwin Danley, 1B Manny Gonzalez, 2B Doug Eddings, 3B Dana DeMuth (cc)
441 comments:
«Oldest ‹Older 201 – 400 of 441 Newer› Newest»TimDz.. a diplomat and a gentleman... good call on the beer.
Livo should stick to his day job!!!
For you JaneB:
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2011/jun/12/records-reveal-hernandezs-drug-ring-ties/
I would like to thank Heyward for this weekend.
Zim, OTOH, lines it into right. Heyward bobbles it, but Lombardozzi was probably going to score anyway, with two outs. 6-2.
Yay Tim. And thank you Ehay2k.
GYFNG!
Lici? Oy.
Like I said Zim wasn't fooled.
We BELONG in first place.
Steady Eddie, Zimm did fall for it but came back.
a little bit scary, that Zimm slide into 3rd base.
F&I.. we have all read that, but we prefer to you know, believe in due process and believe in the concept that founded our judicial system - innocent until proven guilty.
I like the feet first slide by Zim
Man, Heyward is having a terrible series. Tough ball to handle, to be sure. But his head is not in the game at all. Looks like he went to the Hanley Ramirez School of Urgent Fielding.
Good tweet from Kilgore.
Adam Kilgore@AdamKilgoreWP
Harper needs another round of slow-pitch softball on the Mall before his rematch with Livo.
Gonat, can't see the replay but will take your word for it. I am sure Danny does not sleep on basepaths.
That looked bad, but really, the turf just went out from under Heyward on LaRoche's single to right, allowing Zim to get to third.
Nats up 6-2, middle 6.
Nice to see the Nats turn it on for the national TV audience after the Sunday night egg 2 weeks ago vs Philthie
I feel bad for Say Hey kid. But not too bad.
Sorry, 3 weeks ago vs. Philthies
F&I, if you get your non-sports news "facts" from the Washington Times, you won't need any intoxicants, legal or not.
Can I just say that I dig the Big Inning!!! Cool concept.... Why didn't somebody think of it several weeks ago?!
Gio, that should have been your sequence in the 1st inning. Glad Flores learned by that mistake.
F&I.. we have all read that, but we prefer to you know, believe in due process and believe in the concept that founded our judicial system - innocent until proven guilty.
Honestly, even if he is proven guilty, honestly, I don't care. I really don't.
Hey, folks, the Braves still have 11 outs. We need to step on them.Make it ten outs now!
ANd Gio is now the MLB leader in Ks.
Great inning by Gio!!!
Gio Gonzalez, ladies and gentlemen.
Thank you, Mike Rizzo..
Struck out the side in the sixth. Getting to 90 pitches, I think he's got at least one more inning, eh?
Michele, thanks for sharing @Kilgore FTW.
GG is good and also he works pretty fast too.
I don't know how quiet it is, but Jesus Flores has 3 hits.
F&I: you're dead to me. This is the last response I'llake to anything you post... ByeBye.
D**n. though Danny was going to light him up there.
Doesn't matter, Braves are just going through the motions now.
I predict a bunch of Braves batters trying to tie it up on one swing.
Flores with a big night. Hope the Nats turn it on here and don't let up on the gas pedal. A Nats blow-out Win here would be nice.
Guess I'm in the minority, but I like the ESPN announcers...but man, is it just my TV or is the volume on the commercials twice as loud as the game?! My ears hurt...
Soul PFB.. Sometimes the beat reporters really let loose on twitter and they are just hilarious! Miss Mark at the game, he can get really funny/loopy. etc.
NO INJURY TO JFLO!!!
Oh NO!!!
NONONONONONO not JFlo!!!!!!!
Oh no, what did Flores do to himself?
What the f? What happened?
Whoa, Flores coming out, Maldonado pinch running.
Oh, NO! Not Kid Flores too. I guess that means Bryce is the backup catcher.
Did Rizzo keep Pudge's cell phone number?
Can C.Brown catch??
Hopefully, Flores just tired or overheated. EJax didn't have his cleats on yet so the world's slowest pinch runner is on (Maldonado). Doesn't matter, pop-up.
They won't let Bryce anywhere near catcher...
Lombardozzi is the backup catcher.
How did Flores get hurt? He went to second standing up on the bunt.
I missed it. What happened to JFlo? Why did he come out?
What are we gonna do, put Harp atC? Call up David Freitas from Potomac?
This is beyond unreal.
And the opera singer who does God Bless America starts off out of tune and finishes great! Hope that's how it goes for Gio!!!!
Lets all pray Jesus is just a bit gassed...
He wasn't gonna catch tomorrow anyway...
They didn't show anything on JFLO (i scrolled back on the DVR) at all. he didn't look like anyhting happened. I wonder if he is cramping up? Davey has been riding him hard.
FS, no word yet...
No, Harper will never catch. Lombo would catch and X-man would go to left. Davey will have to use EJax if he needs a pinch hitter because Bernie is sick.
Livo took the rookie to school and made him look quite the fool.
What happened to Flores? ESPN is pretty cheap with the replays.
Faraz, we all missed it. No one knows.
And now they are coming to see if Gio is okay? Man alive.
Eagle -- I think we know that re Bryce. I was just frothing at the mouth a little there out of sheer disbelief.
Lombo is an emergency catcher, right?
Just wait until the next time that we get a lead against the Braves at home. I'm going to start the ugliest sarcastic tomahawk chop that you can imagine.
Livo too the rookie to School and made him look quite the fool.
What happened to Flores? ESPN is pretty chincy with their replays -- MASN coverage puts these guys to shame.
Gio at 102 pitches, starting to tire. Stammen up.
Gio may be tired, but he's mad, so there's that.
9 k's for Gio - he's got the major league lead, I believe. Shouldnt Hershiser and what's his name have pointed that out already?
Hinske smart enough to lay off of the hard high stuff once but not twice ;)
10 k's for the Strikeout leader of the bigs.
holy smokes, how good is this guy?
Gio has totally upstaged Beachy who many are saying is the best pitcher in the NL
I just gave Gio a standing O in my living room.
Maybe not that tired. Struck out Diaz and Hinske, and got Heyward 4-3.
We're thru 7, 6-2 Nats.
He's good allright.
FS.. BTW.. Cute pic of the kids.. raise them right.. Nats Fans..
Payback
Phil dun ton, what was that comment about the Nats embarrassing themselves on national TV?
A real Nats fan would know that is the ultimate stopper.
BRYCE!!!!!!!!!!!!
TATTOOO! WOW.. BOMB for BAM BAM!!!
Kid got the better of Livo that time.
Kid learns quick, doesn't he?
The Kid is a fast learner.
Does Harp keep score or what?????
Tracy removed Bryce's helmet
"A majestic soaring fly ball" as called by Charlie Slowes.
Round 1: Age & Treachery.
Round 2: Youth & Skill.
Harper just took Livan out to right, nodoubtaboutit.
7-2, Nats.
And Tracy got the helmet for him.
The Kids a quick study..... Bugs THIS old man!!! Too funny....
http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/gl.cgi?id=gonzagi01&t=p&year=2012#pitching_gamelogs::none
check his IP, BBs, Ks, and number of pitches.
thanks JaneB. Hopefully JFlo will be back tomorrow. I was actually thinking that he hasn't had a break since first start against Friday's Os game.
Harper graduated from Livo Academy!
And even Stras smiled at that one!! Shocked
Bryce!!!!
Man. I love to see Washington beat up on Atlanta.
Tonight I wanna party like it's 1864!
wow, IOU cokes all around.
Drew! Going all the way back to Gen Sherman's March!! Lol...
Steve J, Alexandria said...
Livo took the rookie to School and made him look quite the fool.
May 27, 2012 10:33 PM
______________________________
I would take a K any time if it meant that the next at-bat I would get a HR
Drew, you win the thread for your 10:44.
Vintage Livo with the glove!
Davey is smiling at Gio, big smile. Guess he's OK with 7 innings.
WTH, it's Memorial Day:
Marching through Georgia
The 97th Regimental String Band
hate Flores being hurt, but Maldo getting his shot after 17 seasons in the Minors! he must be on cloud 9
Craig "Staymen"? Great ESPN announcer.
WTF do you think he is, a flower?
My neighbor heard my yell at bam bamm's homer, knocked on my door and said uncle ...I gave him another beer...he gave me a knuckle bump...
hate Flores being hurt, but Maldo getting his shot after 17 seasons in the Minors! he must be on cloud 9
17 seasons?? He must be a lot older than he looks.
Eddie.. Shulman is getting killed on Twitter for his Staymen pronunciation
Davey calls him Stayman too.
TimDZ.. tell him it's a holiday tomorrow, invite him in, convert him to a Nats fan. He can sleep in.
Tim, maybe your neigjhbor will come over from the dark side soon. Keep yelling about the good stuff.
How came no word on JFlo yet???
Actually it is 17 years...first season was 1996
JFLO updates.. this is when we need Kristina.
Michele -- and he richly deserves whatever abuse he gets. Simple elementary school phonetics makes it a short "a".
Plus I can't believe every TV and radio announcer doesn't have phonetic pronunciations in their prep materials for every member of oth teams and coaches.
Someone who does that in the face of everything to help them is either an idiot or ompletely lazy. My money's on lazy.
MicheleS, can't say for sure about the one on right since he lives in Brewer territory and family is more of a soccer fan but hope that one on the left becomes a Nats fan and is able to play in Nats park someday.
Whoops, wrong guy.
Carlos Maldonado is 33, but yes, 17 years in the minors.
Not his first MLB time, but not much.
Of all the nights for this to be an ESPN game instead of MASN. How will we know what is going on with Jesus?
Debbie Taylor would have info on Flores already - she was excellent at asking how people were feeling!
What the heck is up with McCatty? Who hit him in the nose?
WTF? Now McCatty has a bloody nose!
Sheesh! Even McCatty is injure!
Yes, 17 years in the minors for Maldonado. Signed with Seattle when he was sixteen, is 33 now.
I though Debi was always telling people howmtheybfelt, as in , "how great did it feel to knock in those winning runs?"
Seriously. Mark isn't there, how will we know?
RickH, yes he does. I've heard him do it.
Not his debut. 26 MLB games
E2hay.... 11:00 gets my vote for post of the night.... Woke up the wife, laughing!!
Hmm Corey Brown was held out of a Chiefs game (without any injury) in Syracuse for the second day in a row?
Is he going to be recalled or ... is he headed off in a trade?
Nothing at all on Twitter about JFlo.
Hopefully FS at 10:43 was right and it's just giving him a rest after 3hits and a day game tomorrow.
But I would expect Maldonado would have started that anyway.
Oh, that Staymen, he's a pistil!
peric, Brown is joining the team in Florida, presumably in case Tracy goes on the DL. But could be a trade.
NatsLady, are you sure? I understand that's not allowed by the CBA unless he's actually called up.
How can it be illegal to fly to Miami? He's still getting paid
NatsLady how'd you hear that?
Peric -- some Tweets earlier about Brown heading down to Miami on the chance that Tracy may be headed to the DL.
Sofa, I thought so too on the CBA, and tried to make sense of the rule. But Kilgore tweeted he was joining the team. So, I'm not sure.
Dave Jaegler is funny. Says the 1st base ump wasn't even looking on that Uggla check swing.
OK.
Storm took out my radio, have to listen to the ESPN jerks.
WHAT?
Kilgore tweeted it. Brown not on the 40 man roster, I don't see how the CBA can prevent him from being in Miami. He can't be in the clubhouse or dugout though...
Swift Eagle, I could well be wrong, I'm not sure, but I thought the CBA had rules about not keeping a minor leaguer just hanging around the MLB team, he has to be WITH the team whose roster he's on. It's not illegal, it's contrary to the labor agreement. If I'm right. Which I may not be.
Sofa ... Your 11:07 is in the running for post of the night too. Funny.
Closet open, getting the broom out!
WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!
First Sweep of the Year!!!! Lets Go have some Fried Fish!!!!
Sweeeeeeeep!
Now JFlo news please.
Nats win!
It's a labor agreement, i.e., a contract. It can say whatever they agreed on.
Nice time and team to sweep.
Go Nats! Head down and beat the Fish!
Memorial Day 2012: Nats are 29-18, still in soul possession of the NL East.
In the immortal words of MicheleS:
"WOOO-HOOO!!"
(Copyright, MicheleS, 2011).
Soul, I don't know the rule either. You may be 100% correct. Makes sense
Sweep, on the road, against the Braves! Bait the hooks, the fish are next.
Michele...make it official please...
WooooHoooooo!!!!
btw that WHAT was for brining in Burnett since I thought it was unnecessary when Stammen is doing the job. Besides to be honest, I would have used HRod in ninth because of low pressure situation and he hasn't pitched in four days.
Anyways, we won. Swept Braves. To be fair, they were not at full strength. Then again, neither are we. Onto the Fish now!
Kool Aid
https://twitter.com/JWerthsBeard/status/206947441373745152/photo/1
Hey Rick @ 11:16 -- I get a piece of that action too!
My WTF flower's gotta be worth at least 30%, right?
Swift.. see 11:16 but worth repeating!!!
WOOOOOOOOO HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!
First Sweep of the Year!!!! Lets Go have some Fried Fish!!!!
Haha, twice is nice!
Sofa, if you look at the CBA (it's online) the relevant paragraphs are on pp. 61-62. Let me know what you think.
MLB CBA
http://bizofbaseball.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=5679:2012-16-major-league-baseball-cba-released-to-public&catid=30:mlb-news&Itemid=42
Sofa, I thought so too on the CBA, and tried to make sense of the rule. But Kilgore tweeted he was joining the team. So, I'm not sure.
I missed that tweet Natslady ... thank you. Have to assume a move has already been made (per the CBA) sofa. Which just don't know who was moved?
Now the deal with Flores complicates things ... especially with Solano just coming off the DL and Sandy Leon still weeks away.
I hope folks ask some pointed questions of Davey and Rizzo.
Eddie ... You get 30% for being first to mention it.
One game...two monkeys off our backs...
A legit sweep...
A win on National TV..
Cost me two beers...at the price of some "HELL YA'S"
Soooooo worth it...
TimDz said...
One game...two monkeys off our backs...
A legit sweep...
A win on National TV..
Cost me two beers...at the price of some "HELL YA'S"
Soooooo worth it...
May 27, 2012 11:26 PM
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Yes, and the Nats are missing more starters than the Braves + no Storen!
Is there any indication Brown will be used more than Moore? Why would Davey start him over Ankiel? You now would have 4 guys who could play CF and all of them are lefties.
1/2 game ahead of the O's; 1/2 game behind the Rangers; Oh, right...
Anyway, nothing shabby about being in first place in the NL East 11 games over .500 on Memorial Day.
NatsLady said...
1/2 game ahead of the O's; 1/2 game behind the Rangers; Oh, right...
Anyway, nothing shabby about being in first place in the NL East 11 games over .500 on Memorial Day.
____________________
HELL NO!!!!
(once more for my neighbor...)
coolstandings @coolstandings
WAS 7, ATL 2. #Nationals playoff chances now 70.4%.
NatsLady, how bizarre that the Mets are in 2nd and the Braves are in 4th?
Flores with a mild strain of the hamstring
Nothing on Twitter. Kilgore wrote this in his gamer:
Sunday night may have brought yet another health challenge. Jesus Flores went 3 for 4 with two RBI, but he left in the seventh inning with an apparent injury to his midsection. Carlos Maldonado finished the game as the Nationals catcher following Flores’s undisclosed injury.
Gonat, where did you see/hear it?
don't like that Beachy gets away with one earned run. His two walks clearly had a role to play in tying that game.
Pretty sad that there is NOWHERE to find out about what happened to Flores...Imagine that in NY or Bos, or better yet the Redskins, there would be about a zillion reports if the backup punter stubbed a toe...
NatsLady, that was in Davey's Press Conference. That's all he said. I'm sure Kilgore and Amanda will have more.
Gonat, thanks. My radio is out, so I will have to wait until MASN puts up the video to hear Davey. Maybe it's only a few days, but they will have to get another catcher.
Gonat, thanks. My radio is out, so I will have to wait until MASN puts up the video to hear Davey. Maybe it's only a few days, but they will have to get another catcher.
Solano is on his way to Florida ... mebbe on the same flight with Corey Brown from Syracuse?
To give you exact confirmation of what I wrote earlier:
Adam Kilgore @AdamKilgoreWP
Davey says Flores has a mild hamstring strain. Flores says "minor tightness." Both say not a DL situation. Sigh of relief at first blush.
Pretty sad that there is NOWHERE to find out about what happened to Flores...Imagine that in NY or Bos, or better yet the Redskins, there would be about a zillion reports if the backup punter stubbed a toe ...
Rizzo (like Shanahan) likes to keep things pretty close to the vest. No one even knew that Jhonatan Solano had a back problem until a couple of days ago! Doug Harris takes Rizzo's desire to keep things close to the vest very seriously.
NatsLady said...
Gonat, thanks. My radio is out, so I will have to wait until MASN puts up the video to hear Davey. Maybe it's only a few days, but they will have to get another catcher.
May 27, 2012 11:46 PM
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You are welcome. I don't think there will be any MASN video as I don't think they were there. Probably covering the 1st Place Orioles (insert anger).
I had a friend text me immediately from Davey's Press Conference but maybe it was a side conversation. Not sure why it took Kilgore and Amanda so long to Tweet it out.
This is a nightmare at C.
How many MLB teams have not one but two top notch young #1 catchers and have them both injured, and the first back up called up too?
By the way, has anyone seen anything about Sandy Leon's condition? Haven't read anything since the "maybe four weeks?" right after he was hurt, then radio silence.
Here is Amanda's tweet on Corey Brown.
Amanda Comak @acomak
Seems DL move for Chad Tracy imminent. #nats plan to have Corey Brown in Miami in case. If Tracy isnt greatly improved tom. seems inevitable
NatsLady, I got my text exactly 11 minutes before Kilgore's Tweet. Strange, huh?
Grandstander @ 11:30 --
No comparison between Moore's role here and Brown.
Moore is a first baseman without a position, who was brought up to replace DeRosa but with the smallest experience even in MiLB in the OF. no fault of Moore's -- it's that he didn't really bring what the opening was.
Brown has been an OF, and especially a CF, his whole MiLB career. And he'd be replacing a continuing liability at CF.
Flores of course wasn scheduled to pitch tomorrow, though I know you meant catch.
He walked off pretty good, so I thought it was precaution. But loved when harper laughed when he saw McCatty with noth nostrels plugged.
Gio Gonzalez has more RBI's than Nyjer Morgan (none in 112 at-bats, by far the worst of any major-leaguer).
What I find so exciting about this team is all of the young talent throughout the organization -- and we're about to get another infusion from June 4-6.
Anyone who thinks the Nats won't help themselves now that they're picking 16th isn't familiar with the story line. The Nats have shown a remarkable ability to spot, sign and develop ballplayears that others miss:
2006 -- Brad Peacock, 41st round, pick 1,231
2008 -- Tom Milone, 10th round, pick 301
Tyler Moore, 16th round, pick 481
Steve Lombardozzi, 19th round, pick 571
2009 -- Danny Rosenbaum, 22nd round, pick 652
The other day Kilgore mentioned that the Nats are excited about Hagerstown outfielder Billy Burns, a speedster drafted out of Mercer in Atlanta. The Nats got Burns in the 32nd round, with pick 967 of the 2011 draft.
In 41 games at Hagerstown Burns has 26 walks, 19 steals, a .300 batting average and an on base percentage of .427.
So this team, already a joy to its fans, has some enviable problems:
-- If the Nats keep LaRoche and Morse for 2013 and Espinosa and Desmond remain powerful middle infielders, where will Lombo get his at bats? Will he become the Nats' Zobrist?
-- If and when Rendon is healthy and ascends through the minors, how will the Nats get his lightning bat in the lineup? This probably gets clearer after 2013, when LaRoche or Morse is gone.
-- If LaRoche stays next year and the outfield is Morse, Harper, Werth, what becomes of Downtown Corey Brown? Maybe he's the new, improved Rick Ankiel.
-- With Zim, Rendon and Lombo in the house and Marrero often injured, does Matt Skole become the first baseman in waiting -- or is that Ryan?
The belabored point here is that another draft is upon us. The Nats' system -- and the plot -- are about to get even richer.
A look back from AJC SPorts
Nothing on the Miami pages yet...
NatsTalk Live guy reported that Davey said Flores had mild hamstring strain. Maldonado would play tomorrow but he expects Flores to be ready for the game on Tuesday. Hope that's right and hamstring didn't tighten up overnight.
I sure will be glad when Mr. Zuckerman gets back on track.
I've been wearing a curly W hat for over 7 years now, mostly ignored by others until recently. Now everywhere I go people want to talk Nats baseball with me. Winning does that. We are slowly gaining momentum in the respect of the public paying attention. In addition to the FOF RZimm, the likes of SS,Gio, and of course the Kid, are becoming the talk of the town. Even outside of area people are beginning to notice us even if they're not yet taking us seriously. Starting last fall I wasn't concedeing that we were "still a year or two away." in 2012. Question DJ's decisions all you want, it's a gawd given American right to second guess your baseball manager, but the day Davey took over I knew that the Nationals were going to be in contention this year. Has he made mistakes? Yeah, him and every other MLB manager has, but he has instilled a "We Win Now!" mentality throughout the entire organization. Combine that with the job that Mike Rizzo has done and we are a huge perfect storm forming. Call it Tropical Storm Nat until the playoffs, then it will gather momentum and become Hurricane Nat.
Just another Joe Seamhead editorial
Oh and the STAY Min/STAM min controversy has been confirmed that Shulman was using the pronunciation he heard from Davey.
Haven't read the comments yet, but did watch the whole game. Well, most of it. I may have nodded off a time or two in the late innings. Anyway, some random synapse firing follows.
So glad that I'm not a Sox or Yankees fan because then I'd have to watch that ESPN booth about every week. Yech. All of those promos and breakaways for in-game updates on other teams. Plus the inane commentary on the actual, you know, game that is taking place. When they were actually paying attention to the game. Which didn't seem to be all that often. Well, they *were* pretty attentive when the HP ump had his chimes rung. Even did a replay on that one. And analyzed the play. Great work, ESPN! Not.
At least the Nats broke the losing-on-national- tv curse. Wait. Does that mean that they'll be on national tv even more? Yech. My husband went to bed as Livo was about to enter the game. Said he didn't know how to act: Yay, Livo! Wait, he's pitching against us. Boo! No, wait. I like Livo. Eh, I'm going to bed. Talk amongst yourselves.
Hope Flores is okay. Saw that he's "day-to-day" with a mild hammy strain? I said some bad words when it happened. Of course, I didn't actually *see* it happen. Because the cameras were on the ESPN crew, who was discussing something other than, you know, the actual game. Possibly it was baseball-related, though. Yech.
Nice to get the sweep, in addition to the series. So far, so good on the dreaded NL/AL East phase. (5-1 on the road, right?) Will be interested to see how the New Nats play the Marlins, who seem to have always owned them. I'll be glued to the tv. Well, not literally glued, but sitting in front of it. I may even stay awake for the whole game. But no promises.
Go, Z'nn!! Go, NATS!!
Drew,
Great post.
I think a lot of the questions you pose depend on how well Morse performs when he gets back. He was phenomenal as an everyday player for the first time last year. Can he do it again? If so, I think his best position on the team is first base as he is a natural infielder and not so great in Left Field. If Rendon ascends through the system quickly, he'll probably play 2b until Zim decides he no longer wants to play 3rd. As per Espinosa and Lombardosi--my patience with Danny is getting thin. I know Davey sees great potential in him and he plays the game right with excellent defense and hustling, but he just has HUGE holes in his swing and he doesn't seem to be able to make adjustments. Lombardosi, on the other hand, has made excellent adjustments and has really come through with some clutch hits. As someone close to Lombardosi has said (I can't reveal whom), Steve can hit a pitcher's pitch with two strikes. Danny only gets a hit if a pitcher makes a mistake. I thought that summed it up pretty well. Also, Lombardosi does project to develop some power, so it wouldn't be a complete loss of power if he took over 2b. Another option is to platoon them. Danny is just awful from the Left. Wht not use Lombo against righties and Espi against Lefties?
Such optimism here in Natopia. We're very lucky. Let's enjoy the ride for the next decade!
At the end of the 2011 regular season
Joe Seamhead said:
As far as next year for us? I'm so high on the Rizzo-Johnson Kool-ade that I have to keep my expectations under control, but honestly? I think that the Washington Nationals are going to win the NL East next year.
September 29, 2011 9:53 AM
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My thoughts haven't changed one bit. 5/28/2012
Completely missed everything last night but slowly catching up on the dvr and here, of course - lots and lots of stuff to read, but it's helping me find the spots I want on the recording! Gio just seemed to have flipped a switch after the first inning. You guys must have been seriously worried after he threw so many pitches. He is a smart fielder and hitter, too with the sac fly and bunt. Thanks a million times Mr. Rizzo. Harper makes quick adjustments, doesn't he? I don't think you can fool him with the same thing twice. Nice to see the boys taking pitches, hitting with 2 strikes and 2 outs. Praying about Flo, though - catcher jinx for sure. Again with Rizzo - the depth in this organization is just crazy and that's what is keeping things going. One goes down - another steps in. Would love to see it stop now. If anyone hears news of Morse at Potomac, please post - I'll go and post from the game if he plays tomorrow night. At this point they may send him straight to Miami.Go JZINN - hope the run support keeps up.
I noticed that, too. OTOH, I like FP but he persists in pronouncing Adam's name as "LaRoach."
Steady Eddie said...
Michele -- and he richly deserves whatever abuse he gets. Simple elementary school phonetics makes it a short "a".
Plus I can't believe every TV and radio announcer doesn't have phonetic pronunciations in their prep materials for every member of oth teams and coaches.
Someone who does that in the face of everything to help them is either an idiot or ompletely lazy. My money's on lazy.
May 27, 2012 10:57 PM
IOW, it's not only the ESPN guys (yech) who do that. See also, Don Sutton/Brian "Snyder." Sometimes I think these guys may be a tad bit stubborn. :-)
natsfan1a--don't get me wrong, I love the job Carp and FP do on MASN, but I enjoyed getting a different perspective from Tito and Orel last night. Those two guys are simply the best color analyst in baseball in my opinion. They were great players and great coaches and nobody out there knows the game better. Period. Now they may not know the Nats as well as we do--we watch every game! But they do know baseball. I loved how Tito analyzed Harper's swing. it was priceless. And Orel, an ex-pitching coach by the way, did a great job analyzing Gio. It's just nice to get an impartial, different perspective once in a while. Although we are lucky to have Carp and FP--they really do an excellent job and know their stuff for the most part.
BTW,regarding Corey Brown, if he officially gets called up, I don't expect him to be any kind of a second coming, but I do sincerely feel that he will be,if given a chance to play, an improvement for an already very good team.
tough matchups are coming up against Marlins for us. Zambrano (2 hits last time), Sanchez (who historically owns us), and JJ (who seems to be regaining form). Then again our offense has been hot lately.
Today's lineup will most likely have Ank and Harper in CF and RF resp. Hoping to see Brown start in LF.
ESPN guys were OK. Mainly what I don't like is them talking about other non-baseball stuff and some of their facts that needs checking. They are clearly new at covering non-Yanks/non-Bos teams so I get that.
highlight of the night was Harper vs Livo.
I think it's all subjective and that we'll have to agree to disagree on the ESPN broadcast, D'Gourds. I strongly dislike in-game break-ins that supplant video of the action, whether it's a sideline reporter or an ESPN booth resident. I don't disagree that those guys know the game, but much of the time, they aren't even talking about the game. I repeat, yech.
On a related note, no disrespect to him but, while Tito certainly knows the game, I'm not sure that even he would agree with you on the "great player" part of the equation. ;-) On the broadcast front, there are plenty of color commentators who have been at it much longer than he has and have the "chops," as it were (imho). As for Harper, they seemed quite surprised that he didn't act like a jerk, which seems to be the national media party line. Whatever, dudes. To each his own, but these guys are definitely not my cup of tea. (Did I already say "yech"? :-))
In other news, some morning reading from a Braves blog. This caption from a related photo seems to sum things up nicely: "Kerwin Danley, tonight's home plate umpire, took a fastball from Brandon Beachy to his nether-regions. The Braves can commiserate with the feeling."
Mark, Congrats on the Northwestern lacrosse championship. The girls looked great! Maryland goes for the Men's championship today.
Nats are now 11 games above .500 and 37 total days in 1st place. It's all great but still not even close to Nats records set in 2005.
Nats were 19 games above .500 on July 5th and held 1st place for 53 days in 2005.
This is 2 totally different teams except for RZim. The 2005 team lacked depth. This Nats team has filled in holes well.
Thanks, Steve M. I may be rubbing it in a bit today to my esteemed colleague on the Nats beat who had the misfortune of attending Syracuse. Pretty remarkable what kind of program they've built at Northwestern, seven NCAA titles in eight years. And the program didn't even exist when I graduated 14 years ago!
Hey you guys! We get Mark back today, don't we? That means more JFlo news. And good tweets.
NatsJack, I expect you'll be there too, today, yes?
1a, you made me snort my Diet Coke when I read the quote about poor Kerwin.
Mark, I knew about the lax success at Northwestern and their dominance but did not know the program hasn't been around long. 7 titles in the last 8 years is legendary type of numbers.
JaneB, I think Mark is already in Miami which is much needed.
Quick! Fresh post, before we turn over to page 3!!!
More 2005 trivia, on this evening in 2005, the Nats were 24-25 and then the Nats went on a 15-2 run.
come on, let's go page 3. :P
Congrats Mark on championship.
Everything relevant has already been said--
I just wanted to be Comment #400.
Ghost Of Steve M. said...
More 2005 trivia, on this evening in 2005, the Nats were 24-25 and then the Nats went on a 15-2 run.
May 28, 2012 9:42 AM
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One similarity to 2005 is how good and balanced the entire NL East is this year. In 2005, no NL East teams finished below .500
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