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USA Today Sports Images Jordan Zimmermann allowed only one run despite seven hits. |
Hitting highlight: Werth talked this spring about how he hoped he'd get full strength back in his surgically repaired left wrist, though it hadn't come all the way back yet. Well, that wrist certainly looked strong enough in the bottom of the seventh today when the veteran right fielder crushed a 1-1 pitch from left-hander Mike Dunn over the visitors' bullpen for a three-run homer, his first of the season (and first since his dramatic shot in Game 4 of the NLDS). Only time will tell whether Werth can completely regain the power stroke he displayed earlier in his career, but today's blast was a good sign.
Pitching highlight: Zimmermann didn't really have his best stuff, and the Marlins actually hit him around a bit, to the tune of seven hits in six innings. But the right-hander made only one legitimate mistake, resulting in a Ruggiano solo homer in the second. Otherwise, Zimmermann made big pitches when he needed them, getting out of a sixth-inning jam by inducing a double play out of Adeiny Hechavarria and then getting pinch-hitter Austin Kearns to ground out to prevent the Marlins from scoring. At 89 pitches (60 strikes), Zimmermann wasn't necessarily efficient, but he was effective. And that was more than enough to put the Nationals in position to win their third straight game to begin the season.
Key stat: Since beginning his Nationals career 0-for-3, Denard Span has reached base in six of his last nine plate appearances, giving the new leadoff man a .500 on-base percentage.
Up next: Is it possible to play a big series on the first weekend of April? Perhaps not, but the Nats and Reds do make for a great matchup, even at this early stage of the season. Friday's 7:10 p.m. series opener at Great American BallPark features Dan Haren making his Nationals debut against fellow right-hander Homer Bailey.
86 comments:
Yep get out the broom and then comes Cincinnati and they will be gunning for the Nats.
Hit it Michele! GYFNG!
Love the sweep. Love the pitching, love Harper's hot start, Zim raking, Span getting on and over, and Werth's monster bomb. Do not love Zim's arm -- he's still not right. The club is delusional if they think he is. Desi's arm is healthy but annoying as he seems to have to bounce the ball to LaRoche. Hope that clears right up too. Great start to what looks to be a great season.
One piece of advice as we go into Cincy: Do not pitch Henry against Joey Votto in the rain (or really in any weather condition).
Werth gets his chance to prove its not a fluke in the Bandbox this weekend. As do Harper, Zim, LaRoche, Espy, Dezzie, and Ramos.
Do not pitch Henry against Joey Votto
Do not pitch to Votto period. They're probably saying the same thing about Morse.
These guys are playing smart, under control , efficient baseball. The team looks well - balanced. Most of the relievers have gotten work. Most of the bats are waking up. ALR is having good AB's but not having any luck. This was a great warm up series. Getting the wrinkles out. Danny and Desi not yet, maybe in Cincinnati .
I don't get this "unsure that Jayson Werth will ever get his power back" meme that I keep hearing.
I've been watching baseball for 50 years and remember a lot of wrist injuries but don't recall anyone suggesting that the type of injury may keep a player's power from returning.
And yet I keep hearing it regarding Werth.
Does anyone know? Does this type of wrist injury not always mend 100%?
Farid @ Idaho
Agree, Peric, Gio and Jordan pitched Stanton the way they should have, giving him nothing good to hit. Votto deserves similar treatment.
On May 20th the Nats will have a 34 year old that has had two serious wrist injuries to the same wrist?
So, I assume you believe that Mark Texiera will be back to his old self May 1st? He's only had one injury to that wrist. Similarly Curtis Granderson?
You might be setting yourself up like Humpty Dumpty Njack.
And Njack? You know I'll be here to jump all over you calling you on it.
WOOOOOO HOOOOOO! !! BRRRRRR! IT WAS COLD!
And Denard Span.....almost EXACTLY like Nyjer Morgan.
Well not quite as good as Nyjer was before he broke his wrist on that slide. After that he was never the same now was he?
(New-posted)
Based on their runs scored/runs allowed ratio, the Nats projected season-long Pythagorean winning percentage is .992.
And JZimm has the worst ERA on the entire staff.
The last time the Nats started 3-0 it was a cruel mirage. I am pretty certain that is not the case this year. Tanks to those at the game for their expert rooting. Ya done good.
Carrying forward:
Yay, Good Mr. Henry! Have we ever swept the Marlins in a three-game series? Dang, I like it!! Er, do we untuck if we win but there's no Soriano save?
I have a memory of late in 2011 Henry started looking very good and it continued into the first month of 2012. He started looking good when he faced Joey Votto with the tying run on base. He struck him out for the third out. H-Rod walked off the mound with his feet seemingly never touching the ground and a smile so big it looked like someone had sewed his lips to his ears when Davey came out of the dugout to shake his hand.
Honestly, how many intentional walks have you seen this team give since Davey's been at the helm? We've got the staff that can pitch to almost anybody in most situations.
Natslady you could add your blog posts to the Baseball Reference player pages as District on Deck is doing. Whether it has to do with the player or not ...
Based on their runs scored/runs allowed ratio, the Nats projected season-long Pythagorean winning percentage is .992.
Same as when everyone would freak out when the Nats would lose, Henry pitch or Danny strike out.
Its early, very early. Need at least 40 games to get a decent sample size.
Let the drama unfold.
3 games- first one two hours ten minutes, other two about 2 and a half. Very efficient. Several teams have gone extras, 2 teams went 5 hours, 16 innings. This is so much more economical .
OK - that was fun!!
Again, I have not read game threads and will go back. Surprised how nervous I was with Henry coming in but he did well.
Span is such a keeper!! He glides to everything hit in the air and I hope someone noticed him cutting off a single to right center and keeping a fairly fast baserunner at 2nd with a good throw!
He has also done a super job at leadoff and that bunt was a thing of beauty. Peric - I think you missed this one.
Harper is just a treat but the attempt to steal 3rd was definitely a mistake. With this line-up we are going to score runs!! (where is Rabbit on our 81-81 record?)
I know that 3 games does not make a season but wouldn't you guys rather be 3-0? Surprised Haren did not fly out early to get his back/hip stretched but I will be eager to see how he does tomorrow.
Go Nats!!
peric, I have already tried to get the blog on baseball reference and it was accepted. Apparently, there is a problem, and they are working on it.
Peric - you are right about giving it 40 games. Still really happy with what I see defensively.
LaRoche - right back doing what he did last year.
Our outfield has the range to track down just about anything hit in the air and Werth does honestly know our right field angles and plays them to a tee.
Espinosa has done everything in the field to convince me his shoulder is ok but I still worry about that fluke injury from diving for a ball.
Desmond & Zimm have both made a couple of iffy throws but they get to just about everything and I will take that over their arms.
Both Ramos and Suzuki call great games and I think we are paying more attention to baserunners.
I realize we did not play the strongest of teams but you have to like the fundamentals in place, no matter who we are playing.
As much as we have talked about the Marlins being a AAAA team, they are all major leaguers, being paid a lot of money and very motivated. Truly, any team can beat any other team on any given day. You just cannot take any team for granted. Is it my imagination, or does Stanton look like a lesser version of himself?
NatsJack in Florida said...
Not just 3-0. 3-0 against a team that's owned the Nats.
No, just a bunch of guys wearing the same uniforms as the team that's owned the Nats.
The actual team is in Toronto.
Peric, Nyjer was a star in 2011 in Milwaukee. He wears out his welcome quickly. Rubber arm and poor reads on balls and horrific against LHP.
Denard Span hits all pitchers, has a good arm, and is a top fielder with very good reads.
NatsJack- the Medlin thing intrigues me. Personally, I find him to be an arrogant piece of work and it bugged me when media types fawned over how well the Barves handled his innings - and blah, blah, well, you know. Have the MLB hitters figured him out? Sophomore slump ? Injury? What say you?
NJ - don't disagree with a word you wrote. But this year's Marlins is not remotely the same as last year's bad team. And they're probably worse.
So it's not like we've finally figured out how to beat those guys. They've just gotten really bad - at the same time that we've gotten really good.
Comparing Span and Nyjer and stating that Nyjer was ever better is than Denard Span is just incorrect. Morgan never played the outfield intelligently, though when he first got here he was an upgrade.He was the epitome of the guy that sometimes overcame his lack of skill with his natural athleticism. Nyjer was always an undisciplined,out of control head case.Span has no history of being anything but a straight up guy. I will say unequivocally that Denard Span is the best center fielder that the Nationals have had since they got to DC. The first three games he has also demonstrated what he brings to the lineup, and why he makes this team better. It's so obvious, I can't understand anyone not seeing it.
Medlen gives up 2 earned. I like that!
Feels weird kind of rooting for the Phillies to win a game, especially against a division opponent.
Nyjer career oWAR and dWAR - 4.7 and 2.3
DSpan career oWAR and dWAR - 12.9 and 4.5
And Span's head seems to always be in the game. Nyjer's head is... well, who knows where the hell it is?
Michael Young, a professional hitter, leads off the 3rd swinging at the 1st pitch. SMH
Funny, I thought LeBlanc looked like Maddux.
Just facially, mind you.
Hard to believe you even have to defend Denard Span. Only 1 person here saw him as a weak bench player. Take it for what it is based on who said it and any comparison to Nyjer is an insult to Denard.
NatsJack said:
I started to tell Joe earrlier to not lower yourself to that type of discussion.
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Sometimes I forget.
candide, I said the same thing to my cousin.
Nice catch Justin.
Totally agree with JoeS, NJ, sjm, and everyone else on this blog, well, almost everyone, about Span. I will say, however, that he has yet to show evidence of having anything better than an average arm.
The way he covers ground in CF and gets on base, I'm ok with that.
Do the Marlins ever hit balls to 3rd base? Ryan Zimmerman would have gotten more work if he played in short left-field the last 2 games.
I was wondering about the Justin reference. You really meant nice non-catch. Yah, blame it on the new position.
Sure did NJ. There is just about the right amount of baseball on today.
SO just got home. And it was down right cold. it may not have been as windy as last night but by the second inning it was down right chilly, so that can explain what is going on whit some of the bats.
Harper should have never tried to steel 3rd. He will learn.
Denard beating out that bunt was a thing of beauty. His speed is going to give opposing pitchers fits. Plus he is all around a great base runner. You can definelty see that Harp and Werth can play the lines a little more. Denard has great range. Love the aquisition.
Oh and Zimmy is just Crushing it. His arm may not be 100%, probably more like 85, but it will get there and when you have a GG at 1B, that will help with any short hops.
I think after Zim robbed the Marlins in the 1st inning of Game 1 they stopped hitting the ball his way. ;)
Another_Sam... saw your message, and not sure Brantly would have seen a few inside pitches. From my seats, it looked like it was a clean play at the plate and Harper's contact was more incidental than deliberate.
I thought the throw Span made that almost nailed the runner rounding second got there in a hurry 222. I was expecting him to throw to Zim, but by going to desi surprised me and the runner.
I will say unequivocally that Denard Span is the best center fielder that the Nationals have had since they got to DC.<
Better than Soriano? I think not. And the jury is out dude. IMO Ankiel was the best fielder they've ever had out there. Period. End of story. The jury is out as to whether Span generates enough OBP to offset the loss of a guy who has already hit 4 home runs? Let's compare those two shall we?
C'mon I've been watching this team longer than you have Joe Seamhead.
Medlen throws his best inning of the night in the 5th and the Phillies had him on the ropes in innings 1-4 and they let him off with only 2 runs.
Denard Span hits all pitchers, has a good arm, and is a top fielder with very good reads.
Three games. I'll still take Moore with Harper in CF, Alphonso Soriano when he was patrolling CF, and if I want a fielder with a rifle arm, Ankiel. The jury is out on the bat. Last I looked Morse was winning that contest hands down.
Peric, Soriano was a left-fielder in 2006. Try again.
Bryce Harper was the best CF the Nats had to date.
Soriano never played CF for us.
oops, one drink to Gonat.
Soriano? Alfonso or Rafi? Doesn't matter because neither has ever played CF for the Nats.
Details, details?
dj, that was a nice throw, but it wasn't a very long one. I'm not saying he has Juan Pierre's arm out there, but to say he has a good arm may be overstating it based on what we've seen so far.
Another drink for you Gonat. Apparently I spent too much time trying to be funny.
Peric, Soriano was a left-fielder in 2006. Try again.
Harper could be better still.
Marlon Byrd wasn't bad and later became an All Star. Jose Guillen was pretty good as was Alfonso Soriano.
Picking Span as the best CF yet is pretty ridiculous since its only been 3 games. You might as well say Ben Revere is the best CF the Phillies have ever had since he beat Span out for that job.
A. Soriano had a bunch of outfield assists when he was here because people were running on him as much as they could. But the idea that he was "patrolling" any position is kind of funny.
Are you thinking of Nook Logan or something?
Sometimes you just have to laugh, right Joe?
Its a long season and I've got my bold face ready to roll.
Gonat, you almost gat a weekends worth of drinks on that one. Luckily I knew I was slow on soriano in centerfield so I didn't post
Peric, come on, you are trying to force your point and it's not working. The Nats have sucked in centerfielders until Bryce Harper.
Denard Span has a long history in CF and it's impressive.
This is the best defensive outfield the Nats have ever had and the most athletic. The question will be the offensive output and we will have to wait and see.
djinFl. said...
Gonat, you almost gat a weekends worth of drinks on that one. Luckily I knew I was slow on soriano in centerfield so I didn't post
April 04, 2013 8:50 PM
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Hah! I did good there.
I just can't believe how poor Peric is on Nats history. Not even 9 full years yet!
Denard Span hits all pitchers, has a good arm, and is a top fielder with very good reads.
NJ, not sure what you meant by "no one is talking about Span's arm", but this is the comment I was responding to. Like i said, I'm totally with you about his skill as a CF, I just haven't seen enough to be able to say he has a "good arm" as opposed to an "adequate arm." But you've seen him a lot. Do you think he has a good arm?
Section 222 said...
A. Soriano had a bunch of outfield assists when he was here because people were running on him as much as they could. But the idea that he was "patrolling" any position is kind of funny.
Are you thinking of Nook Logan or something?
April 04, 2013 8:48 PM
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I agree on Soriano. He threw out a lot of baserunners but his other fielding skills were not great.
This is the best defensive outfield the Nats have ever had and the most athletic. The question will be the offensive output and we will have to wait and see.
I think the outfield that saw Harper, Werth and Ankiel was just as athletic and maybe more so. Offense was the question mark except for Harper ane even he was just getting his feet wet.
This outfield is not as good as Atlanta's. Not as good as the LA Angels just to name a couple.
And Morse's offense, if it continues, will make it seem like a poor move on Rizzo's part were it not for the one and done deal and Morse is a free agent. And it won't be me saying that every single baseball pundit will be saying that.
Its still early to be anointing this outfield.
Like Bourne, he has an adequate arm.
And Atlanta decided to replace Bourne. One wonders why?
Whatever. Soriano and Ankiel? This reminds me of a song by Jerry Jeff Walker called "Pissin' in the Wind"
Incidentally, I started going to Senators games at Griffith Stadium, and went to the very first Nats game in Philly, saw Del Unser throw out the first pitch. As I said, whatever.
Del Unser never played in Griffin stadium.
Sorry Del Unser never played in Griffith stadium. Maybe you were thinking of Harmon Killebrew?
Better than Soriano? I think not. And the jury is out dude. IMO Ankiel was the best fielder they've ever had out there. Period. End of story. The jury is out as to whether Span generates enough OBP to offset the loss of a guy who has already hit 4 home runs? Let's compare those two shall we? >
Span is the lead-off center fielder the Nats had been lacking and seeking for many years. Neither Soriano nor Ankiel is a center fielder with range who can bat lead off with high OBP.
And why do you compare Span to Morse? The Nats finally found what they were looking for in Span, and then there was a choice between Morse and ALR at first base. So make comparison between Morse and ALR if you want to.
When it comes to Morse and ALR, I believe Rizzo made the right decision, no matter how monstrous numbers Morse put up this year. Don't forget what we had was only one year control of Morse. Morse was my favorite as a Nat, and I still feel sad about his departure. But, he would have left after this year anyway with TyMo in the wings.
Don't forget what we had was only one year control of Morse. Morse was my favorite as a Nat, and I still feel sad about his departure. But, he would have left after this year anyway with TyMo in the wings.
I believe I've already said that more than once. And you'll find most here don't believe in T-Mo (which is also his twitter handle) as opposed to TyMo.
Joe...Del Unser in Philly. I understand.
He ended up in Philly after the team moved. Maybe we should start comparing Span to Stroud?
And then we can compare Dave Nelson to Espy? Or mebbe Toby Harrah and Brinkman to Desmond? Aurelio Rodriguez or Ken Mullen to Zim and Rendon.
Peric is right about one thing, T-Mo is TyMo's old nickname just like Bernie was Bernadina's nickname and now it's Shark. I hear T-Mo likes TyMo better!
NEW POSTED just in time!
peric, if you knew so much about the Nats as you say you woildld know that Del Unser threw out the ceremonial first pitch for the Nats very first game 2005 in CBP in Philly.
Peric: you can argue all you want about whatever you want, but you surprised me with your error on Soriano as a centerfielder. Hell, he didn't even want to play left.
This is a 9 year old team and I think people are correct that Span is what we have been waiting for and is the best CF in all aspects to ever take the field. Stop trying to argue something that you can't win by making mistakes. Just let it go, focus all your karma on Tyler Moore or T-Mo or TyMo just getting on the field because that one ain't happening yet either.
Watching Span closely-- he seems to be a more polished CF than any we have had. Good baseball IQ, savvy base runner, good routes, field awareness. And he doesn't even know the league yet. I see him in the dugout sharing info after his at bats. Mature stuff. I have trouble with new guys, but he is winning me over. And it's not big things or numbers, it's more subtle things. The first three games I have noticed the Nats doing a great number of those subtle, but important things. I like it.
Peric have to give you credit you have been against Span since day 1 and think no matter what he does you'll see the worst in him. Comparing him to Morgan is beneath you.
What is important is that the team wins and Rizzo thinks with his combination of skills he makes us a better team. That you see nothing good in Span after extolling the virtues of Brown last year tells me you can, at times, see what you want in players. You are entitled to your opinion but I hope you are wrong.
I was afraid Trent Jewett wasn't going to be as aggressive as Bo Porter as 3rd base coach, but was I ever wrong. Trent is going to need rotator cuff surgery before this season is over.:)
peric said...
I will say unequivocally that Denard Span is the best center fielder that the Nationals have had since they got to DC.<
Better than Soriano? I think not. And the jury is out dude. IMO Ankiel was the best fielder they've ever had out there. Period. End of story. The jury is out as to whether Span generates enough OBP to offset the loss of a guy who has already hit 4 home runs? Let's compare those two shall we?
C'mon I've been watching this team longer than you have Joe Seamhead.
April 04, 2013 8:39 PM
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Joe Seamhead said...
Whatever. Soriano and Ankiel? This reminds me of a song by Jerry Jeff Walker called "Pissin' in the Wind"
Incidentally, I started going to Senators games at Griffith Stadium, and went to the very first Nats game in Philly, saw Del Unser throw out the first pitch. As I said, whatever.
April 04, 2013 8:59 PM
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peric said...
Sorry Del Unser never played in Griffith stadium. Maybe you were thinking of Harmon Killebrew?
April 04, 2013 9:01 PM
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From there you were just digging your hole deeper. When did I infer that Unser played in Griffith Stadium?
You made the comment that you had been watching this team longer then me. I'm confused as to how that's possible, as I was there in Philly, in 2005, at CBP when Del Unser threw out the ceremonial first pitch.
BTW, Soriano, after reluctantly switching from 2nd Base, moved to Left field where most knowledgable baseball people never saw him as elite defensively. Regardless, he never played centerfield for the Nats as you claim.
Seamhead - think you owe me a coke on that last statement!!
I'll do you one better at the stadium, Coach.
Michael Morse was perhaps my favorite Nats' player too and though I think he's going to hit .300-35-100 this year, he wouldn't have made this team any better.
And there is no way the Nationals would have paid the cost to re-sign him following his walk year (2013).
Remember, the Nationals let Alfonso Soriano walk and they traded Josh Willingham for two players who probably won't make an impact at the major league level.
Soriano and Willingham were two-demensional players, like Morse.
Farid @ Idaho
Why you guys keep poking, I'll never understand.
Maybe they're bored.
Indeed, I believe that the Nats went 21-33 against the Marlins from 2010-2012. The Marlins' overall record during those seasons (in order from 2010-2012) was 80-82, 72-90, and 69-93. Not exactly world-beaters but they were certainly Nats-beaters.
NatsJack in Florida said...
Candide...the Fish stunk last year but still managed to play .500 ball against the team with the best record in baseball.
And when the Nats almost played .500 ball the year before, they killed the Nats.
April 04, 2013 7:32 PM
forgot to add my 2 cents....great game all around!
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