Results tagged “baseball”

Via the masnsports twitter feed, it appears that some preposterously deluded reality television production company has picked the wrong major league baseball team to build a superfan show around. To wit:

Remember the scene in Fever Pitch where Jimmy Fallon nearly attacks his UPS guy for his season tickets? How about all the challenges he faces throughout the movie as he struggles to balance his baseball fandom with real life?

Continue reading "Reality Show in Works About 'Die-Hard Nationals Fans'"

As if we needed any more evidence that the Washington Nationals are far from D.C.'s most popular professional sports team, the Washington Business Journal reports today that new ratings information indicates that "D.C. is the only TV market in the country where a team from another city gets better ratings than the hometown team." Yes, apparently an average of 16,000 D.C. households tuned into Orioles games on MASN this season, compared with 14,000 who watched the Nats. That's a rough slap in the face for the Nationals, though a MASN rep trots out that old canard that the D.C.-Baltimore area is "really one large mega-market."

Nationals 6, Braves 3: It's now five on the trot for the Nats, as they got yet another big contribution from Ian Desmond to beat the Braves in Atlanta. The Sarasota, Florida native smashed a solo home run in the second, a two-run triple in the fourth, and scored on pitcher Livan Hernandez's single in the fifth. (He's got potential, folks; though if you're reading your trusty LNA regularly, you already knew that.) Hernandez looked pretty good; the real question with him is whether or not the Nats want to bring him back next season or they want to save that spot in the rotation for a young, albeit unproven arm like J.D. Martin or Ross Detweiler. That's for later days, though; for now, what hasn't been to like about this week in NatsTown? It's been a banner one for the young guys, the role players are contributing, Ryan Zimmerman has been scoring lots of important runs, and every guy in the five-man rotation has had a quality start. So what if it's the end of the season; when your team is the first National League club to lose 100 games in consecutive seasons in 25 years, you'll take the winning streaks when they come, dammit.

Nationals 4, Mets 3: Could the Nationals actually end the season on a positive note? Seems like a possibility after they earned their first back-to-back home victories since early August with a win against the Mets last night. The boys from Queens jumped out to a 3-0 lead against starter J.D. Martin. But the young righty calmed considerably, and looked good after the second inning, going six in total. Middle infielder Ian Desmond -- who has impressed since his callup -- went deep in the fifth to get things moving offensively. (We're excited to see what Desmond can do with a whole year at this level: his .333/.473/.806 in 16 games at the major league level shows a bit of promise, even if his five errors in middle infield will do nothing to help solve the Nats' considerable defensive woes.) Ryan Zimmerman then pushed the Nats into a tie with a two-out base knock. A wild endgame ensued, in which two Mets errors allowed the Nats to take the lead in the bottom of the eighth (hey, it feels good to have this happen to our opponents for a change!), and Elijah Dukes made a fantastic play on a long David Wright fly to end the game. The Nats will go for the sweep tomorrow in 2009's home finale.

• Dodgers 7, Nationals 6: Did you know that, as of last official count, there were 96,548 Americans who had lived to be 100 years old? You know, I hear that when an American turns 100, they get a letter from the President, thanking them for staying alive and paying taxes for so long. At the same time, there have been a large number of major league baseball teams who have lost 100 games in a single season. I'm pretty sure that such examples of the suckiest bunches of sucks that ever sucked don't get a letter from the President, at least not the one who lives at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. Yes, instead of being celebrated, these squads inherit one of two difficult to swallow legacies: either they are written off as hardball experiments gone wrong and forgotten or remembered as terrible abominations, a stain on the fabric of the American pasttime. Only time will tell which category the 2009 Washington Nationals -- the newest member of this ineptitude brigade with Thursday night's loss -- will be lumped in. One thing that is certain? No one will shed a tear after this centenarian season passes away.
• Rangers 3, Capitals 2: Jose Theodore let one slip with 1:10 left, and the Caps dropped this exhibition their second-to-last tune up before the season begins. Keith Aucoin and Alexander Semin scored for Washington.

Dodgers 14, Nationals 2: Alright, there's four series left in the season. The Nationals, having little else to play for the rest of this season, should take the next 13 games and just try to win more than half. You know, baby steps to a better ballclub. Well, that meager goal didn't get off to the best start last night. Two six-plus run innings buried the Nationals, and the Nats suffered their worst loss since a July 25th drubbing against San Diego last night. The boys from L.A. were red-hot during the fourth and seventh innings, beating up several Washington pitchers in the process, notably Livan Hernandez (8-12) and Saul Rivera. Meanwhile, Dodgers starter Hiroki Kuroda looked nearly unhittable. Adam Dunn did smash his 38th longball of the season -- and with it, a great chance to be the only guy not named Soriano to post a forty-homer season in a Nationals uni -- but that was the only mistake that Kuroda made in six stellar innings of work, so even without the huge innings, the Nats were swimming upstream from the start. Winless wonder Ross Detweiler will attempt to stave off the odometer clicking over to 100 losses tomorrow.

Phillies 6, Nationals 1: Pop quiz, hot shot. There's only six games you can lose before hitting 100. You've got bases loaded, one out, down by two, against a team you haven't scored against in 16 innings. If this lead goes any higher than it is now, the game is blown up. What do you do? WHAT DO YOU DO? Well, if you're Nationals reliever Jason Bergmann, you groove a two-strike pitch right down the middle to Jayson Werth and he absolutely crushes the ball into the left-center stands for a killer grand slam. (Good thing that Bergmann wasn't the negotiator in Speed, eh?) The trooper of the night award goes to starter Livan Hernandez (8-11), who was solid: two runs in six innings should be enough to give your team a good chance to win. But the Nationals' run production was, once again, anemic. They finally broke their scoreless streak against Phillie pitching in the ninth inning, but Joe Blanton (10-7) -- who had a rough go of it at Nationals Park one week ago -- benefited from numerous base-running mistakes, including Ian Desmond being thrown out at third on a safety squeeze and Cristian Guzman getting doubled off first base on a line drive with two men in scoring position.

Nationals 5, Marlins 3: Baseball has always been a haven for the interestingly named. While Mike Morse might not have a name that stands out that much, his is a dream for those who can't help but indulge in far-too-simple puns. Morse tapped out (see?) a big pinch-hit RBI double in the sixth inning and the Nats made it two in a row against the Marlins in Miami. Although they only had five hits, the Nationals made sure that each one counted: in addition to Morse's big hit, Ryan Zimmerman and Adam Dunn also added longballs to account for Washington's runs. Starter J.D. Martin (4-4) also made the most of his five innings on the hill, allowing but two hits. Fortunately, Morse's game was so positive -- I can tuck away the cheap S-O-S lines for another day.

Phillies 5, Nationals 3: Everything was smooth sailing for John Lannan and the Nationals. Willie Harris and Cristian Guzman were hitting at the top of the order, the Nats capitalized on an error by Chase Utley, and Lannan retired 14 of 15 batters between the second and the sixth innings. Sadly, in the majors, they play a full nine, and the WFC brought their lumber come the seventh inning. After Ryan Howard grounded out to start the inning, three of the next four batters -- Jason Werth, Raul Ibanez, and Carlos Ruiz -- crushed solo home runs. Walking opposing pitcher Pedro Martinez (4-0) was just the icing on the cake for Lannan (8-11), all his fantastic ace-level work firmly erased on three bad pitches. Willie Harris pulled one back on -- what else? -- a solo home run in the bottom of the seventh, but Utley canceled that out with another longball for the Phils. Counting Ibanez's earlier dinger, Philadelphia scored all five of their runs on solo home runs -- fitting for a team who is now only the 12th team in major league history to feature four batters (Werth, Howard, Utley, and Ibanez) with over 30 home runs in a season. As far as the Nationals go, the game is pretty much a fair assessment of the team as a whole. There's about two-thirds of a moderately decent, even at times good, baseball team in there -- it's just a matter of finding that other third that's the really elusive part.

We couldn't help but notice that perennial loser Teddy Roosevelt was absent from the Presidents Race during the Nationals' game against the Marlins on Saturday. Given how badly the game went, it was just another disappointment among many for Nats fans that night. But what happened? Had Teddy finally succumbed to the crippling depression of never winning? Did he run off to establish another national park?

Marlins 9, Nationals 6: Giving up 11 hits to the opposition's first five hitters in the lineup is a sure way to get yourself in some serious trouble; such was the case for Garrett Mock and the Nationals last night at Nationals Park. The Nats couldn't hang with the Marlins' hot bats last night and dropped their seventh straight game. Washington's unbelievably ugly alternate "American" uniforms did little to distract Florida hitters, and Mock (3-7) struggled through three innings, allowing six runs. The home team certainly wasn't out of the game, though, as they scored five runs themselves in the first three frames -- Josh Willingham hammered his 22nd home run of the season and Ryan Zimmerman and Alberto Gonzalez had triples. But long reliever Saul Rivera couldn't stop the bleeding, and allowed three more runs in the next couple of innings. Perhaps the Nats could have got back into it with some clutch hitting -- culprit number one: catcher Josh Bard, who left 10 men on base -- but five Florida relievers kept the bats quiet.

Padres 4, Nationals 1: Washington's bats could barely muster a whimper last night -- generating but one run for the second straight evening -- and the Nationals lost their fifth straight. Only Josh Bard, who bashed a solo home run in the seventh inning, could manage to undo Padres starter Clayton Richard (8-4), who exited after a sterling 6.2 innings. The dinger was of little import, really, as San Diego proceeded to get fantastic relief work from three pitchers to nail down the victory. Nats rookie pitcher J.D. Martin (3-4) continued to show improvement, allowing only two earned runs over six full innings, and picked up where a solid August left off. But the wilting offense gave Martin no chance to go over .500 on the season -- Josh Willingham struck out four times, and Elijah Dukes was thrown out on the basepaths twice. The Nationals finish their series with the Padres tomorrow, when John Lannan will certainly be hoping for more than one run of support.

Padres 3, Nationals 1: If you're a sports fan, chances are that you've experienced that feeling of blind loyalty -- you know, that conscious urge commanding you to watch your team, despite their lack of competitiveness or the fact that they are playing the late game on the West Coast. "Hey," that voice will tell you, "you never know; something exciting might happen!" Sadly, more often than not, that voice is very, very wrong. And so it was on Monday night, as whatever Nationals fans who could claim themselves die-hard enough to stay up past midnight in order to watch a team with nothing to play for certainly found nothing exciting in last night's 3-1 loss against the Padres. Oh, there were plenty of conclusions to be had, mind you -- just none of them particularly enthralling: Willie Harris sure is no Nyjer Morgan at the top of the lineup; Livan Hernandez (7-9) has got to be bummed that another decent outing ended in defeat; and -- don't ask me how -- the Nationals may be the only team in professional baseball who are capable of hitting into a 1-2-3 double play with the squeeze on. All this against a team consisting of Adrian Gonzalez, Tony Gwynn's son, David Eckstein and six guys you've probably never heard of. Yup, sometimes that inner voice of loyalty is just a no-good, dirty liar.

Two Fridays ago, a friend and I were sitting in the third base club seats at Nationals Park on the cheap, thanks to the team's recent dollar seat offer. It was then that a thought that I've had numerous times in the past struck me once again: why don't the Nationals -- who obviously have little to offer in terms of the baseball on display -- take the remainder of the season and host a few crazy, off-the-wall promotions? Where are our "Jay Buhner Buzz Cut Nights", our Free Money Night, our own Veeckian brand of happy insanity?

Cubs 9, Nationals 4: Normally, signing a sub-.500 pitcher who was just recently given his unconditional release by a team that's 17.5 games out shouldn't be such an occasion, but we're not talking about any mediocre starter here: we're talking about Livan Hernandez! (How's this for depressing: in Nationals franchise history -- that is to say, from 2005 on -- Livan is still the team's all-time leader in wins. With 24. Man, the pitching for this team has been great, eh?) In any case, the rotund righty rejoined the team quickly enough to get the start last night at Wrigley. And what do you know: Livan brought the goods, giving up only two runs in six innings. Sadly, the Nationals were unable to scrounge up a quality bullpen arm to replace Jorge Sosa in addition to reacquiring the Cuban. Sosa just fell apart and allowed five runs in the eighth inning -- including allowing six straight Chicago batters to reach base -- to spoil Hernandez's effort, and the Nationals fell to the Cubs. On the bright side, if the team can get outings like this from Livan consistently, it'll be a steal -- and another feather in new GM Mike Rizzo's cap.

Nationals 15, Cubs 6: I was practically raised on Eddie Vedder's nearly-unintelligiable snarl, but I can't seem to recall a song in the Pearl Jam catalog which provides quasi-cryptic advice about pitching. Too bad for the Cubbies: the bearded Ved threw out the first pitch at Wrigley last night and he probably could have quoted such a tune (if it existed) to Carlos Zambrano before he gave up eight earned in four and a third last night. Outfielders Josh Willingham and Elijah Dukes lit up a number of Cubs pitchers for a combined seven hits, three home runs, and a massive eleven RBIs, seven of which came with two outs. Nationals starter Garrett Mock recovered from giving up an early home run to Zambrano and pitched into the sixth -- although by that point, the Nats were already up by eight, so one probably shouldn't read too much into Mock's numbers. The Nationals are averaging about 4.5 runs per game this season, and in their last seven games, they were right on that number. But sometimes you just get the feeling that they should develop into a much more potent offensive threat, and tonight, they certainly did: as Eddie might say, "it's evolution, baby."

Brewers 7, Nationals 3: The Nats couldn't really get the offense going, and dropped their fourth straight decision. Adam Dunn did smash his 32nd home run of the season, and Ryan Zimmerman added a solo blast in the ninth. But it wasn't enough to overcome some very poor hitting by the bottom of the order -- five hits in total just isn't going to cut it. It's a concerning trend for the Nationals, especially as they can I'll afford to waste solid pitching performances like the one J.D. Martin delivered. Martin (2-3), though far from fantastic, was generally under control: four runs in 6.2 innings, which could have been even better if the Nats had a couple of close calls go their way. Normally, this kind of pitching performance would put Washington in a good position to win. However, Braden Looper (11-6) was dynamic aside from the Dunn homer, and Jorge Sosa looked plain awful in a seemingly interminable top of the ninth, allowing three runs. The weather certainly didn't help matters much -- rain fell over the game for most of the evening. (But it was nice and sunny for the introduction of one young Mr. Strasburg. Coincidence? We think not.)

Rockies 4, Nationals 1: Obviously, the Nats just have trouble matching up with the Rockies -- Colorado completed the sweep after another quiet night from the Nationals' lineup and a good pitching start which somehow lost its way. Adam Dunn smoked a two-out RBI double in the sixth inning, but otherwise Colorado hurler Jason Hammel (8-7) shut down the home bats and allowed only three hits in seven innings. It was the third straight game in which the Rockies got fantastic starting pitching: over the three games of the series, Colorado starters allowed six earned runs in 21 innings, for a sparkling 2.57 ERA. Nats starter Garrett Mock (2-5) started just as strong, with eight strikeouts in four scoreless innings -- but he just threw too many pitches and the Rockies hopped on him in the fifth. The Rockies certainly enjoyed their quick trip to the nation's capital, increasing their lead in the race for the NL Wild Card to 2 games over San Francisco. Washington will try to get their offense back on track as Milwaukee visits tomorrow -- perhaps the unveiling of the much-ballyhooed Stephen Strasburg and a big crowd from dollar ticket sales will help nudge them back on the right track.

Rockies 5, Nationals 4: Bad news first: it was another night, another one-run loss for the Nationals. Just like last night, Washington was lacking balance from their lineup: the 5-6-7 slots didn't get a single hit, wasting a good night from the top half of the order, and a homer from eight-hole hitter Josh Bard. Ryan ZImmerman did all he could with a double and a triple to knock in a couple runs, but starter Collin Balester's incredibly poor start proved too much to overcome. Balester (1-3) couldn't get out of the second inning, allowing three runs while throwing 55 pitches to get four outs.

Does all this talk about new injections of talent into the Nationals organization have you yearning to take in a game at the stadium? Well, you're in luck -- to celebrate the signing of Stephen Strasburg, the Nats will be offering tickets (while supplies last, of course) for Friday's game against the Brewers at the low, low price of a buck. Fans can get $1 tickets -- located in Sections 108, 110, 135 through 137, 103 through 107, 201 through 205, and 223 through 235, so actually half-decent seats -- through this page at the Nationals website. The cheap tickets go on sale starting at noon today, so get clicking. The Nationals will also be introducing their new star pitcher in a press conference on the field at 2 p.m. on Friday -- fans with tickets to the game will be allowed in early to watch Strasburg pose for photos in his new jersey, and participate in a half-hour Q&A session. Since the presser is a solid five hours before game time, though, you might want to just catch it on television.

It's a glorious day in NatsTown. Stephen Strasburg is finally a Washington National, agreeing to terms with minutes to spare before last night's midnight deadline. Like other people who follow the Nationals closely, the prospective combination of Strasburg and fellow first-round pick Drew Storen (who called it a "great night for the Nats") eventually gracing the mound at Nationals Park has us drooling. Is today the best day in Nationals history since they moved to D.C.? It's up there. Here's some food for thought on this very exciting morning.

• Nationals 2, Reds 0: Ronnie Belliard is hardly known as a guy with a ton of power -- after all, he's never hit more than 17 longballs in a season, and he's a player from whom ten homers in a season would be a solid return. But his blast in last night's game against the Reds could probably count for two -- Belliard absolutely crushed a first-pitch breaking ball from Reds starter Aaron Harang (6-14) to open the scoring in Cincinnati. Thanks to a great outing from Garrett Mock, that was enough offense to lead the Nationals to a victory. Mock (2-4) looked dominant at times in posting six shutout innings to earn his second straight victory. Washington's bullpen also reverted to its form from the team's recent eight-game winning streak -- four Nats relievers held the Reds in check, capped by Mike MacDougal, who retired the side in the ninth for his 12th save. More good news for the Nats: the team has acknowledged that the front office has held meetings with holdout #1 pick Stephen Strasburg and superagent Scott Boras -- the deadline to sign the stud pitcher is Monday. Will the Nationals get a deal done? Only time will tell.
• Mystics 91, Sun 89: It was a big game for both teams -- a win for either would do a whole world of good in the logjam that is the race for second in the WNBA's Eastern Conference: perhaps it should come as no surprise that it took double overtime to settle matters. Connecticut and Washington played one of the more entertaining matches of the WNBA season at the Verizon Center, with the Mystics coming out on top, despite missing chances to win the game at the end of regulation and the first extra period. Crystal Langhorne came to the rescue: the Maryland product had a sensational game, with career highs in points (22) and rebounds (16) -- she also hit the game-winning shot with nine ticks left in the second OT. With the win, the Mystics pull into a three-way tie for second place with the Sun and Atlanta.

• Ravens 23, Redskins 0: It's a good thing that the NFL preseason doesn't mean a damn thing. Here's how the 'Skins ended their offensive possessions last night: punt, punt, punt, punt, fumble, halftime, punt, interception, punt, punt, punt, punt. Yuck. Unfortunately, the individual numbers weren't any less horrendous. Colt Brennan, who wants to challenge Todd Collins for the back-up quarterback role? 4/12, 43 yards, one pick. Clinton Portis took last night off -- apparently, so did the rest of the tailbacks. The trio of Rock Cartwright, Ladell Betts, and Marcus Mason failed to impress, managing only 49 yards and a subpar 3 yards per carry. On the bright side, new punter Hunter Smith got a lot of practice -- he hit nine punts last night, which was nearly six more than he averaged per game -- 3.3 -- last season with the Colts. Of course, this all means very little; frankly, tomorrow's release of the newest edition of Madden will do much more to build anticipation for the season ahead. But still, real, actual football is on the horizon: get excited, Washington.
• Reds 7, Nationals 0: Sometimes you've just got to tip your cap and say "well played, good sir." The Reds got a complete game two-hit shutout from Bronson Arroyo (11-11) and three home runs off the bat of right fielder Jonny Gomes in a rout of the Nationals. Washington starter Collin Balester (1-2) allowed five runs for the second consecutive start. But there was obviously little that the Nationals could do, as Arroyo was brilliant -- he wasn't overpowering (only three strikeouts), but exhibited a complete mastery of the strike zone and only walked one batter.

Braves 6, Nationals 2: The Nationals got no relief, quite literally, from their recent woes last night. Jorge Sosa (1-1) and Sean Burnett sullied a solid effort by starter Craig Stammen by allowing four runs in the seventh and eighth innings, Nyjer Morgan was picked off first to cut the legs off a ninth inning rally, and Atlanta completed a quick two-game sweep of Washington last night. Stammen -- who had posted an ERA over 15 in his previous three starts -- pitched very well, only allowing a couple of solo home runs, and Rafael Ronnie Belliard's single tied the game at two in the top of the seventh. But the bullpen couldn't hold the Braves in check -- first Sosa, who allowed Adam LaRoche's second longball of the night, and then Burnett, who allowed three runs to really seal the loss. In what was probably his most forgettable game with the team to date, Morgan had a rare bad game: besides being caught off first to make the final out, he was also caught stealing once and left men on in scoring position with two outs twice. For the second night in a row, the Braves got fantastic starting pitching. Derek Lowe (12-7) really had the sinker working, coaxing three double plays and getting a little bit of revenge for two losses to the Nats earlier this season. Perhaps an upcoming four-game set in Cincinnati can right the ship.

"Nationals' Unexpected Success Sends Washington Post Into A Fugue State"

Ay carumba -- to think, we were all set for a tranquil evening on the sports front, with no local games on the schedule. We're definitely sure, though, that this was not the kind of news that the Nationals were hoping for on their day off and after closing out two consecutive home sweeps: rookie pitcher Jordan Zimmermann has blown out his throwing elbow and will require a ligament-replacement procedure. That's right, Tommy John surgery.

Poor, poor Teddy. The guy just cannot catch a break. It's bad enough that he's usually drifting off during the most vital point of the Presidents Race, or running the wrong way, or having his name spelled incorrectly. But at least things never got violent -- that is, until Friday night.

Nationals 8, Pirates 4: Big innings -- when the Nationals get them, they're quite difficult to beat. On this road trip, the Nationals scored four runs or more in an inning five times during their four wins -- and had no such high-scoring frames in their four losses. Last night in Pittsburgh, they had two: four runs in both the sixth and seventh counteracted yet another Andrew McCutchen home run and three errors in the field. The finale of the four-game series was a good one for the middle of the lineup and the infield. 2-3-4 hitters Cristian Guzman, Ryan Zimmerman (who homered for the second straight game), and Adam Dunn (who also went yard, his 27th) all had multiple RBI and the front defensive six turned three double plays to snuff out multiple Pirate threats. Starter Garrett Mock still couldn't get past the fifth inning, but Tyler Clippard (2-1) continued his quality mop-up work and was rewarded with the victory. The win caps a fairly successful swing through the rust belt which finds the Nationals returning home no more worse for wear than when they left. Their homecoming present? A three-game set against former Nat Nick Johnson and the Marlins, a team Washington hasn't defeated all year.

Most of the baseball world was focused on who was buying and who was selling in the hours before yesterday's trading deadline. Of course, there were no such inquiries about where the Nationals fell on that spectrum. As the deadline approached, it was thought that the Nats might sell high on moving outfielder Josh Willingham -- hitting two grand slams in one game just days before the deadline certainly gave his trade value a little bump. But Willingham, likely the biggest chip that the Nationals would have seriously considered trading for prospects, is still a Nat today.

Brewers 7, Nationals 3: It's kind of amazing that with all the negativity the Nationals have experienced this year, the team's manager had only been ejected once in 2009. (Once the losses start piling up, screaming at umps probably seems like a waste of energy.)