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Photo by Mark Zuckerman / NATS INSIDER The Nationals return home tonight to finally face the Phillies. |
The good news: Jordan Zimmermann is on the mound for the series opener, exactly the guy the Nationals want for this situation. He'll be opposed by Kyle Kendrick, who has pitched well this season and actually dominated the Nats last year (0.73 ERA in three games).
Big crowds are expected all weekend, but if you're coming to the park tonight, bring some layers. It's cold and really windy. Updates to come, so please check back...
PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES at WASHINGTON NATIONALS
Where: Nationals Park
Gametime: 7:05 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN, MLB.tv
Radio: WJFK (106.7 FM), WFED (1500), XM 89
Weather: Cloudy, 60 degrees, Wind 19 mph LF to RF
NATIONALS (24-23)
CF Denard Span
RF Bryce Harper
3B Ryan Zimmerman
1B Adam LaRoche
SS Ian Desmond
C Kurt Suzuki
LF Tyler Moore
2B Steve Lombardozzi
RHP Jordan Zimmermann
PHILLIES (23-24)
SS Jimmy Rollins
CF Ben Revere
3B Michael Young
1B Ryan Howard
RF Delmon Young
LF Domonic Brown
2B Freddy Galvis
C Eric Kratz
RHP Kyle Kendrick
UMPIRES
HP Laz Diaz
1B Tim Timmons
2B Mike Winters (cc)
3B Mark Wegner
7:00 p.m. — Before we get started, if you haven't seen the news yet on Danny Espinosa (who has a fracture and a bone chip in his right wrist), make sure you read Chase Hughes' report.
7:07 p.m. — And we are underway on a very chilly and windy Friday night in the District. It's 53 degrees as Jordan Zimmermann fires strike one to Jimmy Rollins.
7:10 p.m. — A very nice and tidy, 10-pitch top of the first for Zimmermann, who got a pair of groundball outs and a popout. Nice play by Ian Desmond on Ben Revere's grounder up the middle for the second out.
7:18 p.m. — Some advice for everybody in uniform tonight: If you're going to try to hit a home run, your only hope is to keep the ball no more than 20 feet off the ground. Anything hit higher than that is going to get blown right back by the wind, as Adam LaRoche found out in the bottom of the first. Scoreless after one.
7:29 p.m. — And the Phillies jump out to a 1-0 lead in the top of the second. Ryan Howard led off with a double to right-center, then scored on Domonic Brown's base hit. So just like that, Zimmermann finds himself in a rare situation: Trailing.
7:45 p.m. — Nice to see Steve Lombardozzi smoke a line drive base hit to center in the bottom of the second, one of the harder-hit balls he's had in a while. Unfortunately, it went for naught after Zimmermann grounded out to end the inning, stranding two men in scoring position. Still 1-0 Phillies after two.
8:04 p.m. — And the Nats get one run back in the bottom of the third, thanks to Kendrick's complete lack of command. He issued three straight walks with one out, bringing up Desmond with the bases loaded. Would Desmond even dare swing at Kendrick's first pitch after that? Yes, he would indeed dare. He fouled it off, then lofted a sac fly down the right field line to score Harper and tie this game 1-1 after three.
8:22 p.m. — Yikes, Trent Jewett just hung Tyler Moore out to dry. Sent him around third on a base hit to shallow center, with no legitimate chance of beating a halfway decent throw to the plate. Revere's throw was there in plenty of time, so Moore turned his shoulder and barreled into Erik Kratz, sending the catcher flying. Kratz, though, hung onto the ball. It's a miracle neither was hurt on that play. Very questionable send by Jewett.
8:34 p.m. — And the Phillies get a run back in the top of the fifth amid a flurry of singles. Zimmermann did buckle down to get a 4-6-3 double play to end the inning and avoid serious damage, but the Nats do now trail 2-1.
8:51 p.m. — Except the Nats got the run back ... and then three more during a furious, two-out rally in the bottom of the fifth. LaRoche tripled off the center field wall — yes, LaRoche tripled, a development less surprising only than the fact I'm drinking hot chocolate on May 24 in Washington, D.C. — to drive in the first run. Kurt Suzuki then delivered an RBI single to left, justifying Davey Johnson's decision to bump him up to the 6-spot tonight. And then Lombardozzi delivered the biggest blow: a two-run double to the gap in right-center. That makes Steve 3-for-3 tonight. Certainly picked a good time to step it up. Nats lead 5-2 after five.
9:12 p.m. — Zimmermann now through seven innings of two-run ball. He hasn't been his absolute best tonight, but he's been plenty good and has come through with big pitches when he's needed them. Still 5-2 at the stretch.
9:20 p.m. — That'll be it for Jordan, who's final line is: 7 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 1 K, 92 pitches. Tyler Clippard in for the eighth, the Nats still up 5-2.
9:28 p.m. — And a 1-2-3 eighth for Clippard, who seems to have found his groove here lately. Still 5-2 as Rafael Soriano begins to warm for the ninth.
9:38 p.m. — OK, here we go. Rafael Soriano vs. Young, Howard and Young. (Sounds like a Three Stooges bit.)
9:50 p.m. — It's over. Nats win 5-2. Zimmermann is the NL's first eight-game winner.
The good news: the rain is past, at least for the next day or two. Bad news: You'll wish it was 60°.
ReplyDeleteRemember how they were dressed in San Francisco? Like that.
ReplyDeletePlease, please,please, let this not be the throwback to citizen's bank park south. Natitude instead. Interesting lineup with Zuke at 6, then Moore and Lombo. Apparently Moore and Harper are working on fly balls on the track. I am so hoping that the Nats we all know and love show up tonight and leave behind the .225 hitting, 29 th in the majors Nats.
ReplyDeleteWithout a concerted "take back the park" effort, I wonder what the makeup of the crowd will be. Anyone know if the Nats once again tried to block people with Philly zip codes from purchasing groups of tickets?
ReplyDeleteI'll agree with peric Danny is a great athlete and cold play anywhere. Where exactly do you stash a .160 hitter? If he goes on the DL for 'shoulder surgery' it is to ease the pain of sending him down.
ReplyDeleteNevertheless, my $50 is safe tonight, go Nats and start a healthy home stand and stomp these losers. Lets hope we win in a laugher tonight.
I do know that a lot of Fils phans are quite disgruntled this year. My relatives are bitter. They just love their Halladay, Utley, and Howard and they do not love their new young guys, who are actually good. I have a great personal distaste for Papelbon.
ReplyDeleteI'm absolutely amazed that Tyler Moore is still with the team. Not that I agree but I can see why Espinosa is still around but Moore. Either they see Marrero as a future regular 1st baseman or they really feel the poor ability that Moore has to play the outfield is really valuable.
ReplyDeleteOddities of the day
ReplyDelete(this first two are amazing)
- This season, the Cubs have more RBIs from their number-nine hitter (19) than the cleanup spot (16).
- As a team the Nats are hitting .193/.265/.294 against lefties
- Anthony Gose scored from second on a passed ball
- Scott Barnes got a save for the Indians in a 12-3 game
- Alex Rios leads the White Sox in walks with 18. He had 26 (in 640 plate appearances) last year.
- Colbert Hamels leads his team in home runs allowed, walks allowed and strikeouts
- The Brewers are 18-27 (.400). Half of their wins came in a single winning streak.
And thanks for the oddities again -- I love it!! As for the Espi, Moore discussion - once again. Yes, they are both hitting poorly if you look at their slash lines. But Espi is a starter who can hurt you 4 times a game every single game. He has one thousand major league at bats. Moore is a second year bench player, playing an unfamiliar defensive position -- don't know the number of his ab's but it's got to be much less than Espi. I just don't think it's fair to compare the two players who are at very different places in their careers. I think much more should be expected of Espi at this point. And I agree that Moore needs some Syracuse time. If he has any value to this time in the future or as a trade piece, they have got to do something to stop the stall in his development. For him and for the organization.
ReplyDeleteI just think Moore gets his groove back with a couple of weeks of at bats every day which isn't going to happen here
ReplyDeleteI hate to say it, but the Nats are going to come out of this series below .500, just the way they are going to end the year.
ReplyDeleteI am quite amazed at the poor player selection and development in our farm system right now. Our run differential indicates a team with around 80 wins, and I think this is getting to be set in stone. We haven't won a series since the Detroit sweep. And we have been bad for many years. But when you look at our farm compared to the Cards, Giants, or even the Mets, it looks bare at best. Given the long-term contracts given out to underperforming players, and the underperforming young players like Moore, I'm becoming seriously depressed with this team. Rizzo has to shoulder the primary blame for not taking a more statistically-based approach to drafting and development, and for a willingness to overlook injury history. Don't feel good about this series.
ReplyDeleteRabbit
ReplyDeleteYou don't hate to say it. If you did you wouldn't keep saying it.
Djb
ReplyDeleteThere is the small detail of 98 wins in 2012 which you conveniently left out.
I think Rabbit and DJB are not happy people. Maybe something in their childhoods?
ReplyDeleteMaybe too much Faux News?
Maybe the beltway finally beat the light out of their being
ohm
And I didn't leave it out. It appears more the case that the league hadn't adjusted than a true talent-based record. Both Gio and Stras were new, and the league didn't have approaches to our young talent base, with the exception of Harper. Ideally, if we had a bad season, we could start over by trading Zimm, but we can't even remove him when he is an obvious defensive liability, because our young bats are so weak and we have this huge 6-year albatross around our necks.
ReplyDeleteWE'VE GOT NEWS.
ReplyDeleteSource: #Nats 2b Danny Espinosa's right wrist was broken when Paul Maholm hit him with a pitch in April.
Davey is looking at bringing Kobernus us, says Amanda Comack and Bryon Kerr.
Ugh. Feel better, Danny. I believe I remember that at-bat.
ReplyDeleteOkay, so I'm assuming the team just found out that Danny fractured his wrist. That's unacceptable. He hurt the team last year by not disclosing he had hurt his shoulder and he's hurt the team this year by not revealing his wrist injury.
ReplyDeleteI understand being tough and all that, but this is ridiculous.
If that is true then, first off, get well Danny. But, after keeping his mouth shut about his shoulder last year, it appears Danny still hasn't learned he can't help the team if he is hurt.
ReplyDeletebut his superior defense and athletic ability ???
ReplyDeleteWhy bench him now, who cares what he bats...He is too great a human to rest.
OMG.. DANNY!!! GEEEZ LOUISE! Get well, and DO NOT COME BACK UNTIL YOU ARE FREAKIN HEALED. Kobernus sounds like the next call up (per Kolko)
ReplyDeleteGYFNG!!! GO JORDO!!!! GO BATS!! STOMP ON THE PHILLIES!!! (and someone hit Rollins in the tuckus!!)
Couldn't have said it better myself so, what she said.
ReplyDeleteMicheleS said...
GYFNG!!! GO JORDO!!!! GO BATS!! STOMP ON THE PHILLIES!!! (and someone hit Rollins in the tuckus!!)
Despi is kind of like a genetically enhanced hominid
ReplyDeletelike Khan Noonian Singh or Ricardo Montalbán
Are you [freaking] kidding me?
ReplyDeleteJayson Werth will not be back on the field for at least another two weeks, according to Davey Johnson.
ReplyDeleteWTF? I thought it was two weeks from LAST WEEK.
David P.. hold off on the Werth Talk.. One of the beats tweeted that Davey said 4 days ago it would be 2 weeks "Do the Math" can't find which one said it, b/c the Danny tweets have blown up my Timeline.
ReplyDeleteNo, I really think Despi may be genetically enhanced. Note the resemblance to Khan...I also fear the WOP..Wrath of Peric.
ReplyDeleteDavid P.. found it:
ReplyDeleteDan Kolko@masnKolko
Davey said he was told four days ago that Jayson Werth could return in two weeks. So, well, you can do the math.
as should all of us Petulant Children
ReplyDeleteOkay, now they're saying 10 days. That makes more sense.
ReplyDeleteDanny has a history of hiding injuries, which is just another reason to dump him.
ReplyDeleteDavey said it probably won't be Rendon...yet Rendon is not playing at Harrisburg tonight. Possible he's getting moved up to Syracuse?
ReplyDeleteI'm not buying it. Sounds like Henry and the hand in the door.
ReplyDeleteUnreal that Rendon never got the proper reps at 2nd base to be the callup.
Kobernus hitting .333 at Syracuse with 58 hits and an OBP of .378.
ReplyDeleteI really don't mean to be negative, but haven't we seen this movie before? Nats player is injured but the team (the GM? the manager?) decides to keep him around for a 'few days' to see if he gets better. A few days turns into a week. At that point, the team decides to put him on the 15-day DL retroactively. But in the meantime they've played five or six games without a full 25-man squad. And then the player ends up being out beyond -- sometimes well beyond -- the 15-day mark. In this case, if Danny Espinosa has a broken bone or a bone chip floating around, let it heal. Put him on the 15-day DL and call up someone now.
ReplyDeleteA friend just wrote me about Danny's wrist being broken. I remember that HBP. explains so many things. Mend well as as long as it takes. As LONG as it takes. Kobernus, please be as good as advertised.
ReplyDeleteGYFNG!
Excuse me, but I just looked at my injury report. Danny was out from 4/15 to 4/19 with a "bruised wrist." He didn't conceal ANYTHING. If the team didn't do an MRI, etc., and correctly diagnose, that is on them, not him. Bernadina's been playing with a hurt wrist since the WBC, a lot of guys play hurt.
ReplyDelete222.. Question on Stub Hub, when do you see the prices drop? Thinking about going to Sunday's game for Strasmas and want to get a decent seat on sale (crosses fingers).
ReplyDelete"Unreal that Rendon never got the proper reps at 2nd base to be the callup."
ReplyDeleteRendon has only played at 2nd base for 5 games. Danny played 2nd base in the minors for 7 games before being given the 2nd base job in the MLs. Rendon is ONLY 2 GAMES shy of having enough reps to be given the job!
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteWalking wounded- physically and mentally. Something had to give with Danny . He is one stubborn cuss. First of all- not one person knows how the rest of the season is going to go. Rabbit does not have the market cornered on clairvoyance or he would be in Vegas. Gee, I guess we will just have to watch the games and see what happens on the field. Really talented great guys, good organization. It might not be the season you thought you were going to get. Get over it. Then again- maybe it will. There is a game tonight- Jordan is pitching. Anyone going to be watching or are you too busy planning your October schedule?
ReplyDeleteThis is fun, but I'm off to the game--totally bundled up. Go Nats!!!!
ReplyDeleteMore details from Mark looks like they did the XRay:
ReplyDeleteMark Zuckerman@ZuckermanCSN
Espinosa says original X ray didn't show chip or fracture. Thought discomfort would subside. Several weeks later, it hasn't.
Mark Zuckerman @ZuckermanCSN 15s
ReplyDeleteEspinosa says original X ray didn't show chip or fracture. Thought discomfort would subside. Several weeks later, it hasn't.
Mark Zuckerman @ZuckermanCSN 1m
Espinosa was adamant about not using injury as excuse for his offensive struggles.
Laddie, don't make me laugh. 2 days needed!
ReplyDelete"Rabbit34 said...
ReplyDeleteI hate to say it, but the Nats are going to come out of this series below .500, just the way they are going to end the year."
So you are predicting a Phillies sweep, then? Because that's the only way the Nats end the series under .500. They're one game over now, so if the Phillies only take 2 of 3 the Nats would be at .500 coming out of the series. I hope you're putting money down on your prediction, because you'd probably get a huge payoff if the Phillies actually do sweep the series.
Re: the Nats farm system - it's generally evaluated as about 13-15 in the majors. Not great, but considering all the talent promoted in the last few years, not bad. It's considered better than the Giants' by a fair margin, as they're near last.
ReplyDeleteMost clubs have trouble maintaining a top farm system once they start winning and picking lower. The Cards and Rangers are major, unusual exceptions to that rule.
Re: Espinosa - it makes no sense at all to me that they're not DLing him. He's shown how he's going to perform trying to play through this for a month now, for God's sake. The Nats have really forced themselves to play short too much this season by being too afraid of the DL.
Well they're sending down a reliever (Maya?) and bringing up someone (Kobernus or Rhymes)so they won't be short.
ReplyDeleteNeed a spot on the 40 man to bring up Kobernus. Duke DFA I think.
ReplyDeleteSee, the thing about StubHub is that if it's a game that people actually want to go to, the prices don't drop. The law of supply and demand applies.
ReplyDelete"Mark Zuckerman @ZuckermanCSN 1m
ReplyDeleteEspinosa was adamant about not using injury as excuse for his offensive struggles."
That statement is probably true---he has never been able to hit big league pitching.
Phil, that statement of yours is mostly true. He used to be a good RH hitter.
ReplyDeleteThe way Danny's wrist fracture is being described on the tweets is as a bone chip, that the chip supposedly isn't bothering him but that the bone that it's fractured off of hasn't healed. How a few days rest that doesn't even put him on the 15 day DL (which is also how it's being described) is going to heal something that's been fractured for almost a month and a half is not clear. Also, Danny was hitting .175 at the time, so it's not as if the injury caused his production to plummet -- unlike his shoulder/rotator cuff injury last September, where he was hitting .258 -- a remarkable figure for him, especially coming off a slow first part of the season -- when he made the diving play against the Fish on September 9. While whatever is causing his miserable non-hitting is probably not his wrist, it also doesn't suggest that having his wrist heal is going to make much difference.
ReplyDeleteNatsLady said...
ReplyDeleteExcuse me, but I just looked at my injury report. Danny was out from 4/15 to 4/19 with a "bruised wrist." He didn't conceal ANYTHING. If the team didn't do an MRI, etc., and correctly diagnose, that is on them, not him.
Awww, C'mon NatsLady . . . you're taking the fun out as there is one less thing to dump on Espi for ;-)
It's possible he was just having a slow start but was never able to improve to his career numbers because of the wrist. It was still very early in the year.
ReplyDeleteJust because his numbers before and after the fracture aren't much different doesn't mean the wrist isn't a factor.
MicheleS, what Dominats Vobiscum said.
ReplyDeleteBut look at seatgeeks.com. It scoops up ticket prices from ALL the big ticket brokers, not just StubHub, (kinda like kayak.com does with airfare prices) and uses some kind of algorithm to calculate where the best deals are.
That having been said, it looks like Sunday's going to be expensive - cheapest seats right now are about $26.
Rabbit34 said...
ReplyDeleteI hate to say it, but the Nats are going to come out of this series below .500, just the way they are going to end the year.
And, just for the heckuva it -- I'll reply again: wanna bet on it?
Now I understand Espi's struggles. Because of pain in his wrist, he began swinging at high fastballs, fastballs on the inside and outside, and any curveball tailing out of the zone. He needs an extensive rehab stint in AAA, say 1 year at least, to make sure his batter's eye is not affected by pain in the wrist.
ReplyDeleteDavid Proctor -- Danny's wrist would only be a meaningful factor if he was seeing the ball well enough to be selective in his swings and takes, neither of which has been the case. He hasn't been connecting solidly enough for it to matter. His shoulder may also be part of that.
ReplyDeleteMicheleS: I'm not a huge StubHub user, but my experience when traveling has been that if you're only looking for one ticket you should try to find the seats that are being sold as singles -- you can tell on the StubHub stadium map -- and the asking price is often discounted to begin with. Most buyers are seeking to purchase two or more seats together and thus the price for those is higher. Not a perfect rule, of course,
ReplyDeleteDanny is a superior human...No DL for him, He's too valuable to this team, this city and world peace. I'm sure Davey agrees with me.
ReplyDeleteMichele -- Usually in the last 24-36 hours prices take a dive, though the better seats will have sold by then. And, of course, there's always a chance that the prices won't drop significantly because sellers who held out for a higher price realize they are the only game in town. But usually there will be at least some sellers who really want to unload by the morning of the game and are willing to cut their asking price significantly. I've been following the Sunday prices in the Infield Gallery for several days because I had a few seats up for sale there. Prices were coming down slowly but steadily, but lots of tickets sold over the past few days, including mine - now there are only 1,700 left in the whole park, compared to 5,000 or so maybe four or five days ago. So I'm not sure you're going to see a big drop.
ReplyDeleteOf course, the Nats are selling tickets well above face value under their new market based demand pricing scheme. So StubHub still may be your best bet, but I'm not sure there will be great bargains. It's a game of chicken for both buyers and sellers.
By the way, I trust Rizzo's selection of young arms for the farm. Who needs Shelby Miller and a young Trevor Rosenthal to bring up in a pinch when you have Yunesky Maya. I see Bill Bray has an unfortunately unpredictable injury to his shoulder, and who wouldn't pick Zach Duke over Lannan for a spot start. But don't worry, we have Giolito on the way once he recovers from TJ surgery. Who could have predicted he would have blown out his elbow during the first start in the minors? I'm not concerned about handing out a six-year contract to a player who was on the DL three year before. These things happen.
ReplyDeletelet's face it DJB, The Nationals are for the Birds
ReplyDeletewell at least MASN is...
ReplyDeleteI smell Angelos lovers.
ReplyDeleteRendon's not playing for Harrisburg because he got his Wisdom Teeth removed.
ReplyDeleteI know they said the call up is likely coming from Syracuse but rendon suspiciously out of the Harrisburg lineup today. Had a day off couple days ago.
ReplyDeleteI know they said the call up is likely coming from Syracuse but rendon suspiciously out of the Harrisburg lineup today. Had a day off couple days ago.
ReplyDeleteJust for kicks, has anybody looked at strength of schedule lately -- as in: what was the strength of schedule for the Nats until now, and what will be it over the next month?
ReplyDeleteQuick! Everybody out on the ledge!!! Can we please watch a game - maybe see how it goes first?? My baseball team is playing badly and my life is ruined, how ever will I live through this? I hate losing as much as anyone , and I get especially frustrated with bad baseball, bad at bats, mental errors, that kind of thing. But I won't get truly irate until I see a lack of effort. I have not seen that yet. Go Nats!
ReplyDeleteThe Nats schedule gets VASTLY easier from here on out. Boz actually had an article on that today in the Washington Post.
ReplyDeleteAngelos is for the birds
ReplyDeleteProblem is that Marrero and Rendon are the only MiLB infielders on the 40-man right now, so they will have to add someone to the 40-man if they want a backup middle infielder. Either that or move Desi over to second and put Rendon at SS (where he's played in college), which is so implausible I can't see it happening, especially doing all that to avoid adding a MI to the 40-man.
ReplyDeleteWow just heard Davey's going werewolf (not shaving)
ReplyDeleteIt will be difficult to tell the difference between him and Jason and the members of ZZtop
Who could love the evil midget? Give us our money, you second-rate city, but I don't love Rizzo either. To add to my rant - why not have a 20-year-old 1 year removed from playing catcher play center, left and right fields, as we know baseball fields are straight and there is absolutely no difference between these positions? Left field, right field, the walls have to be the same distance. And if the only one who can hit on this team runs into a wall, what's the big deal? We have Espi to swing for the fences.
ReplyDeleteDavey finally moved Suzuki up in the order. TyMo starting in LF. Let's hope for that breakout game.
ReplyDeleteAwww, C'mon NatsLady . . . you're taking the fun out as there is one less thing to dump on Espi for ;-)
ReplyDeleteSince I'm usually first off the bench to criticize the medical staff, this may surprise you, but I actually think there is plenty to dump on him. That injury happened on April 14. According to the Wagner piece, they missed the fracture initially because of swelling. (Nice job Doogie Howser.) So Danny sat out a few games, then rejoined the lineup and:
"Knowing he would have to play through some discomfort, the slumping Espinosa continued to play but the pain in his wrist never improved or worsened."
So even though he's been stinking up the joint ever since, and his wrist wasn't getting better, A FULL MONTH LATER, he doesn't ask for another medical evaluation before the west coast road trip, which started on May May 13. That's ridiculous! Instead, we've been saddled with his putrid hitting for the last 10 games (.079/.103/.079) and he said nothing until they got back. That really hurt the team. He's a selfish player, there's just no other way to look at it.
Ack, I'm done with this. Time to go to the game and root root root for the home team. At least Espi won't be in the lineup so I won't be tempted to boo him.
Davey with a beard? Nahhh, I don't think so...
ReplyDeleteDavid Proctor -- re the schedule, Boz's piece is the flip side of what was pretty clear early on.
ReplyDeleteJust looking at who we and the Braves were playing for the first two months, I wrote back on April 9 that "We all heard it was going to be a tough first couple of months for our guys. It's just that the Nats' 55% tough (30/55) for April and May will make it a huge challenge to keep anything close to pace with the Braves' much more meager and gearing-up-to-boot 42% tough (23/55).... on the average, we're going to have to really play exceptionally to be within a couple of games of the Braves (let alone ahead) by June."
Considering we've been absolutely terrible at both hitting and fielding (though the latter has improved a bit, esp. from Desi), to be above .500 and only 4 1/2 back after all that schedule disparity positions us well to move up with even average hitting and fielding. (A little nervous because we hinge on Bryce and this cold weather is not going to do his knee any good.)
And remember all the LoD who were convinced that Gio, Desi and were going to "regress"?
Okay, so I'm assuming the team just found out that Danny fractured his wrist. That's unacceptable. He hurt the team last year by not disclosing he had hurt his shoulder and he's hurt the team this year by not revealing his wrist injury.
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't jump to conclusions. The Nats medical staff misdiagnosed his detached rotator cuff remember? Maybe they just now decided to do a complete check of him again due to the slump?
Look, the guy is tough. Its hard to divine when he is really injured. They should know that by now. And Davey likes him those kind of players. Still, the Medical's should just do a thorough check anyway. They work for the Lerner's not Davey.
Ugh, terrible ump alert.
ReplyDeleteLaz Diaz at HP and Tim Timmons at first. Just what we needed to settle things down, random irrationality.
That's ridiculous! Instead, we've been saddled with his putrid hitting for the last 10 games (.079/.103/.079) and he said nothing until they got back. That really hurt the team. He's a selfish player, there's just no other way to look at it.
ReplyDeleteSo, its peachy keen and okay for ZIM to play with a seriously injured shoulder last season? Remember that hole in the #3 spot until the cortisone shots? And when asked what did he say? I paraphrase: "This is the first time we've been in the mix and I am not going to miss it!" And gee isn't he still having problems with that shoulder? Aren't they still losing games on account of his erratic throws? IS ZIM SELFISH!!!??
Oh c'mon y'all act like a bunch of petulant children!!! If Zim and LaRoche can do it why not Espinosa? And Harper is ready to play and he can't even stand up straight?
Sheesh some fans. Might as well be Philly fans.
Probably the fans you see in Philly jerseys at the game tonight are converted Nats fans. Peric just may be correct!!
ReplyDeleteEither they see Marrero as a future regular 1st baseman or they really feel the poor ability that Moore has to play the outfield is really valuable.
ReplyDeleteDue to his sporadic play he really didn't come around at the plate until June last season. They are almost there ... that in my estimation is what they are waiting for. Fortunately, they are far more patient than crazy ass fans.
Peric your destain for veterans on this board is well noted
ReplyDeleteIf Peric had his way, we'd just bring up half of Syracuse's roster. That is, until they turn 30. Then we repeat the process.
ReplyDeleteKobernus isn't playing for Syracuse tonight. He looks like the guy.
ReplyDeleteIs it too much to ask that we face one pitcher who is having a bad start ? Just to give us a jump start? I am open to charity.
ReplyDeleteWe've had a few decent early innings. We hopped on the Tigers starters early and we did with Beckett. There are a few others. The problem is we'll have decent innings (2-3 runs) but end up with the bases loaded and stand them. We need one HUGE inning. Last year, we occasionally had 6 or 7 run innings.
ReplyDeleteOf course, right now I wouldn't complain about 2-3 runs.
ReplyDeleteFrom the MASN pregame interview, it would appear the guys warmed up today to the tune of Stevie Wonder's "Uptight (Everything is Alright)." A message to the fans, perhaps. *g*
ReplyDeleteDavid- in the few games we had our actual line up it seemed that we scored in more than one inning.
ReplyDeleteLaz Diaz behind the plate! Oh boy. No one argue calls tonight, boys, our short bench can't absorb anyone being thrown out.
ReplyDeleteGreat inning for JZimm.
ReplyDeleteWhats with the twom morons behind homeplate???
ReplyDeleteKobernus to Nats is official.
ReplyDeleteperic said:
ReplyDelete"Oh c'mon y'all act like a bunch of petulant children!!!"
-------------------------------------------
Yes!
Petulant : 1.insolent or rude in speech or behavior. 2. : characterized by temporary or capricious ill humor : peevish.
ReplyDeleteFrom what I have seen of Denard Span this season, I am not convinced he is the answer to the Nationals lead off problem. He doesn't walk much, he's not much of hitter and his base stealing has been unimpressive. He's never been the same player after his concussion problems with the Twins.
ReplyDeleteI assume you are talking the phanatic hat morons.
ReplyDeleteNo..the phanatics like our sub .200 hitters in the lineup
ReplyDeletelaz Diaz squeezing us.
ReplyDeleteDesmond faked going to third on a play I think he had Howard had he gone there.
Also FP did have news a run early against RYAN zImmerman.
Squeezing still.
ReplyDeleteZimm's stuff is a little up. Curse of too much rest?
ReplyDeleteScore runs, Nats.
Davey says he's not shaving until the Nationals start hitting. In a month, he could be Werth's double.
ReplyDeleteSpan was taking a lot of walks early. Wonder if he's pressing, or was advised to be more aggressive.
ReplyDeleteGood to see Jayson in the dugout.
ReplyDeleteWhy Tyler and not roger? The only thing uglier than Mores batting average is the stupid Philly fans sitting behind home.
ReplyDeleteMoore has good numbers against Philly and Kendrick.
ReplyDeleteSometimes I wish there was the DH. Yuck
ReplyDeleteWho would we DH anyway? Not like we have many guys hitting well on the bench.
ReplyDeleteOf course, if there was a DH we could've kept Morse, but that's another story. And I prefer NL baseball.
Agree David. As bad as our O is it would have been nice to get a hit. He actually made good contact. In watching this team lately I just feel like 1 or 2 runs by the opponent is too much to overcome.
ReplyDeleteEspi is on a program of no hitting or no throwing yet no DL. What am I missing?
ReplyDeleteOnly thing that i like less than overall poor hitting by us is Philpthy Phans
ReplyDeleteNo fly balls please. Line drives only.
ReplyDeleteNats Jack Rizzo and Davey don't understand our hitting needs help.
ReplyDeleteWell I would be ok if he just Kees walking guys
ReplyDeleteBizarre choice by Young to throw to 3B.
ReplyDeleteWalks the based loaded and Desi swings and misses the first pitch outside.
ReplyDelete@#$%$#$#%@#$$##$$%^&!!!!!!!
8 of the 9 flies to the outfield.
ReplyDeleteWell at least we got something out of it. Would've been nice for Suzuki to plate Zimmerman from third.
ReplyDeleteManassas weak fly balls too
ReplyDeleteDavid Proctor said...
ReplyDeleteThe Nats schedule gets VASTLY easier from here on out. Boz actually had an article on that today in the Washington Post.
Hmmm . . . do I owe Boz a drink?
Nice pick by Lombo, no drop off from Danny's D on that one.
ReplyDeleteZimmermann didn't throw Howard a single strike and Howard got himself out. That was a funny sequence right there.
ReplyDeleteTHAT was fun. After Howard hammered that 2B first time up, JZimm doesn't give in on a 3-0 count and gets him on a soft fly to center. Well done!
ReplyDeletePapaJohn's loses almost no money on tgeir 50% off on pizzas when Nats score 7
ReplyDeleteDavid Proctor -- any pitcher who can get the movement on his pitches that JZimm is getting doesn't need to throw strikes to a hitter like Howard. As long as he can get first pitch strikes to most of the other hitters, they'll be swinging early in the count.
ReplyDeleteWe need a run now.
ReplyDeleteUm. That was an odd choice. I feel sorry for Kratz taking that collision though.
ReplyDeleteTrent Jewett needs to find a new line of work!
ReplyDeleteWHy would you send Moore? THere's was no out. Jewett not so great.
ReplyDeleteMy wife wanted to know why I was screaming no.
ReplyDeleteShe then saw collission. I ssid no as soon as I saw moore not stopping I was yelling no.
Totaaly stupid play.
Oh well -- Jewett should never have sent TMo with the slow start he got from second, but at least Moore got to take out some of his frustrations and lowered his shoulder right into Kratz.
ReplyDeleteWell Revere's arm is awful and he made a bad throw before. We need runs so badly, I understand the decision, although I don't agree.
ReplyDeleteRollins givith and Jewitt taketh awsy.
ReplyDeleteDammit. We needed that run.
ReplyDeleteis trent jewett on drugs? tyler wasn't even at third base when revere had the ball in his hand.
ReplyDeleteMoore was not even to third.
ReplyDeleteSpan's would have been the second out.
Why are these hitting high flies.
Span should be like Willie Mays Hayes and have to do push ups for fly balls
ReplyDeleteYikes, wild pitch.
ReplyDelete6 men stranded through 4 innings. Not good. That will haunt us later. Zimm deserves better
ReplyDeleteLombo now 2 for 2 with a very good defensive play against Young in the last inning. I honestly don't understand the people who criticize Lombo's defense. Yes, his arm is weaker than Espinosa's and perhaps his range isn't what Danny's is but he is more than adequate as a backup middle infield/utility player.
ReplyDeleteAnd what the heck is Jewett doing sending the "Magnolia Muscle" home on that play? Sure Revere has weak arm but the MM has no speed at all! Guess I'm being a petulant fan.
Carpenter and FP both blathering on about what a great job Moore did. Not a hint of criticism of Jewett.
ReplyDeleteThis team has enough problems. We sure don't need a bad 3rd base coach on top of it. Ughhhhhh
ReplyDeleteIs Eck fired yet?
ReplyDeleteI see phils do the little things we have no lue how to do.
Candide. FP and Carp will NEVER say anything bad about this group. The team is bad enough. But listening to those guys sugar coat everything makes me sick.
ReplyDeleteI am so tired of watching us scratch for a run
ReplyDeletePhillies have historically hit JZimm well. Same with the Cardinals. Don't know what it is with those two teams.
ReplyDeleteLooks like we all agree, Jewitt should be apologizing to the whole dugout.
ReplyDeleteC'mon, JZimm, cut it off here. All these soft bloopers and bouncers finding holes.
FP: "Phillies are playing good fundamental baseball here tonight."
ReplyDeleteAnd the Nats are not. Desmond swinging first pitch after Kendricks walks bases loaded. Jewett sends Moore home when holding him would have men on first and third with no outs.
And that's just what I caught.
Kendrick gets a hit Jordan has left 3 runners in scoring position.
ReplyDeleteThis might be Zim worse inning of the year. Not putting away batters.
As bad as we have been hitting you cannot pitch like this.
Very nice DP.
ReplyDeleteDesmond swinging first pitch isn't a bad idea. You're most likely to get your best pitch to hit then, especially against a guy who just walked a bunch of guys. Regardless, Desmond did his job and drove in a run.
ReplyDeleteI won't defend the Jewett decision though.
And Lombo starts a DP to end the inning and kill the Phillies inning. Come on guys go get some runs!
ReplyDeleteDouble play i would have never on bet on that.
ReplyDeleteBut still jzim knows better than to give up another run.
David Proctor said...
ReplyDeleteDesmond swinging first pitch isn't a bad idea. You're most likely to get your best pitch to hit then, especially against a guy who just walked a bunch of guys.
Except that pitch was about a foot outside. Desmond couldn't have hit that pitch with a shovel.
Team has pathetic plate discipline.
Left fielder almost in the infield for Harper
ReplyDeleteCandide. In 48 games this team hasn't played good fundamental baseball. They are what there record says they are. They will be in third by the end of the weekend. It's a lost season. Wow now FP blaming weather for awful bats. What a PUTZ
ReplyDeleteCandide no discipline a product of poor coaching.
ReplyDeleteFP isn't blaming the weather for awful bats, he's blaming it for a lack of HRs in this park--by both teams playing. It's a FACT that the park plays big when it's cold and small when it's hot.
ReplyDeleteWOW I thought that was gone. LaRoche with a triple.
ReplyDeleteWrong Wassin we win the east and make it to the series
ReplyDeleteWow awesome. But we just can't catch a break. Should have gone outmoded. Dangggggggggg it. Lets get him in
ReplyDelete"And that ball is GAWWWgainst the wall!"
ReplyDelete:-)
Come on Ian
ReplyDeleteWind just robbed ALR of a dinger.
ReplyDeleteHaving baserunners again is reminding me how annoying I find Trent Jewett at third base. He just keeps giving away outs. Revere has a weak arm, but it's like Tyler has even average speed.
ReplyDeleteYay Adam!
Your right David. It just seems to me like it's the old " it's still early thing". Not early anymore. C'mon Desi
ReplyDeleteBoy revere took a horrible stab at that but I like it
ReplyDeleteSteady Eddie,
ReplyDeleteWas it the wind or as one poster here likes to say, an aging LaRoche with diminishing power numbers?
I LOVE ADAM
ReplyDeleteThe way things going for Porter in Houston we should get him back at third. Then he can manage next season. CAN'T STRIKE OUT THERE. C'MON TAKE A HACK.
ReplyDeleteI wish they would've shown PitchTrak on that pitch to Desi. Looked inside to me, but he didn't argue so who knows.
ReplyDeleteNice job Zuke!
ReplyDeleteDamn Ian listen to what Wade Boggs says. Never K with man on third with less than 2 out.
ReplyDeletezuk bails you out.
Zuuuuuuuuuuuk. That a baby.
ReplyDeleteVery unprofessional AB by Desi. You HAVE to protect the plate with two strikes.
ReplyDeleteAnd Zuk bails him out! Dei owes him a steak.
David Proctor -- GameDay showed it exactly on the lower outside corner on the 3rd strike to Desi. Despite it being Laz Diaz, it was a reasonable call.
ReplyDeleteGo yard here Zimm. FINISH HIM!!!! Karate kid reference
ReplyDeleteLombo keep hitting we need more runs.
ReplyDeleteThis will be the last inning for Kendrick. Let's wear out their bullpen for games 2 and 3.
ReplyDeleteOops Lombo up. From AHS
ReplyDeleteThey'll pitch around Lombo to get to Zimmermann.
ReplyDeleteLOMBO!!!!
ReplyDeleteLombo on fire!
ReplyDeleteThis is the inning we've needed.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if the team did get a chat from Davey about not arguing with Diaz's calls, because Ian really looked like he wanted to.
ReplyDeleteThank you Phillies defense! And yay offense!
danny who,?
ReplyDeleteLombo. From ATHOLTON HIGH SCHOOOOOOOOOOOL. Go RAIDERS. See ya DANNY
ReplyDeleteEspi: "@#$%^*&^%$#@!!!!"
ReplyDeleteHey David. Glad you were wrong. LOMBO. Did I mention he went to ATHOLTON High?
ReplyDeleteheh heh
ReplyDeleteAnd the weak hitting Lombo comes through again tonight. NatsJack, is that what you meant when you said he had to take advantage of his opportunity tonight?
ReplyDeleteHonestly, if I were the Phils, I would've IBB'd Lombo. Lombo was 2-2 and has been good this year with RISP. The pitcher was up. Oh well. I'll take it.
ReplyDeleteSigh. We don't need throwing errors from our 2B too.
ReplyDeleteHave to like the way Jordan keeps fighting after the error
ReplyDeleteNJ, that was Lombo doing his impression of a RZ throw from third base.
ReplyDelete