Not technically D.C.-related, but given that this may actually be the best local TV news story we've ever seen, there was just no way we could pass on it. WLWT in Cincinnati reports on the "growing trend" of "real-life superheroes" in this piece of pure comedy gold. Make sure not to miss the interaction between Cincinnati's top superhero, "Shadow Hare," and a Cincinnati cop about halfway through. Absolutely brilliant. more ›

In just a few months, fans will finally get a glimpse of the new $611 million baseball stadium rising in Southeast. No longer will they simply be looking at an artists rendering -- they'll get to see the new concourse, the stands, the suites and the field for themselves. And today the Post's Marc Fisher poses an interesting question -- beyond the bricks and mortar, what should the team's owners offer inside the stadium? After... more ›

Coming in on the closing days for the Nats at RFK, everyone seems to be bracing for what the new stadium in Southeast and the surrounding area will have to offer. As the Post detailed earlier this week, huge chunks of land in Southeast and Southwest are slated for development, creating the potential of a new and vibrant Anacostia River waterfront in the coming years -- much of it centered around the $611 million stadium.... more ›

I have a small confession. Months ago, when I agreed to take over Nats coverage for DCist, I was anticipating a historically bad season. The kind of season that I could tell my children about, and allow me to forever hold my head above future bandwagon fans. So imagine my surprise that on my inaugural post there are a staggering seven teams with worse records than the Nats, despite seven Washington losses in their last... more ›

News and notes surrounding Washington's loveable cellar-dwellers: Belliard Signs Extension: Though he was widely considered the Nats most moveable commodity, he and the team agreed to a 2-year, $3.5 million extension to keep big Ron in D.C. Belliard’s versatility makes Manny Acta’s job much easier for the next few years with his ability to play multiple infield positions, his willingness to be a bench player when needed, and his veteran leadership. In the meantime, his... more ›

On Sunday, with their 7-2 win over the Brewers, the Nats reached the All Star break and the season’s traditional halfway point. With the team on a not-quite-as-bad-as-expected 66-win pace, those of us who write about them are stuck somewhere between the building euphoria in Boston and the pitchfork and torches crowd in Cincinnati. One of the beautiful things about baseball, though, is that the long season generates plenty of moments, both incredible and pathetic,... more ›

By DCist contributor W. Jacarl Melton “Tell the truth, James Brown was old ‘Til Eric and Rakim came out with ‘I Got Soul’. Rap brings back old R&B; And if we would not, people could’ve forgot.” —Stetsasonic’s “Talkin’ All That Jazz” That quote captures how RAMP went from 1970s R&B/soul/funk jazz obscurity to having one of the most sought-after albums in the history of hip-hop sampling. If you’re not familiar with the group, you’re more... more ›

Holy smokes! Giant fish on the MTA, Paris Hilton in jail, then out, then in again, Al Gore, goatses, blumpkins, Matt Damon, and baby art critics! It's been a busy week across the Ist-A-Verse, and here's a smattering of what's been going on. In Gothamist's neck of the woods, they found out that many things are possible: A man caught a 40+ pound fish off the Rockaways and took it home on the subway. Graffiti... more ›

The Wizards and Capitals are on summer vacation. The only Redskins news prominently features Ron Mexico and is not related to sports at all (well, human sports anyway). Despite these non-developments, this weekend has some intriguing aspects regarding actual Washington sports. >> Boxing comes to the District as the brothers Peterson square off in co-featured bouts at the D.C. Armory. Lamont and Anthony Peterson are a combined 42-0 with 25 knockouts between them. Anthony will... more ›

For a struggling offensive team like the Nationals, there's no greater place to play a few games than the Great American Ballpark in Cincinnati. And lately for the Nats, there's no greater foil than whiny Wayne Krivsky's Reds. For those reasons, I had quite the time watching the Nats pound the stuffing out of the Reds in last night's 12-7 win. The club's long-slumbering lumber has finally awoken--aided by Cincy's teensy bandbox of a field.... more ›

If we told you that Orioles starting pitcher Erik Bedard struck out 12 Nationals batters in a thoroughly dominating performance on Sunday, you’d have expected the O’s to cruise to their third win in a sweep of their Beltway rivals. Likewise, if we told you that both Ryan Zimmerman and Austin Kearns homered and the Nats opened with a 6-0 lead on the road in Cincinnati last night, you’d have expected a first road win... more ›

Georgetown 61, Pittsburgh 53 The Big East is aptly named. The 16-team behemoth is the largest in Division I and backs up its girth with some of the finest play in the nation. So it's no small feat that Georgetown has climbed to the top of this daunting hill. Backed by the strong play of juniors Jeff Green, Roy Hibbert, and Jonathan Wallace, the Hoyas gritted their way to a victory over a Pittsburgh... more ›

This is why preseason football sucks. The Redskins travel to Cincinnati to take on the Bengals in what should be a routine, even dull, first preseason game, and not ten minutes into the exercise, your team’s most important player suffers an injury that could end up haunting the team all year. That’s what happened to Clinton Portis last night. Racing after Bengal Kiewan Ratliff, who had just picked off Mark Brunell (always an encouraging sight),... more ›

"People keep asking me, 'What's wrong?' I'm going to have my numbers. People shouldn't worry about Jose Guillen." more ›

When George Mason's name was called on Selection Sunday, it turned more than a few heads (including DCist's). They were included over major conference clubs like Cincinnati and Florida St., and conference foe Hofstra, who had just beaten the Patriots in the CAA semis. They would also be playing without Tony Skinn, their second-leading scorer, who was suspended one game for punching a Hofstra player. Friday night in Dayton, Ohio, they proved they belonged, coming... more ›

Though ranked sixth in the country, George Washington has been characterized as an overrated team. Given the opportunity to prove that their 26-1 record and 18 game winning streak wasn't just a house of cards, the Colonials instead folded, losing 68-53 to Temple in the first-round of the Atlantic Ten tournament. The loss is not only disappointing and gives fuel to the team's critics, but it likely cost them a couple of seeds in... more ›

Prior to yesterday afternoon, the last time the Georgetown Hoyas took the court they put on an embarrassing performance, losing to South Florida and costing themselves a first-round bye in the Big East conference tournament in the process. In the first half of Wednesday's game against Notre Dame, they extended their streak of mediocre-to-bad play to 60 minutes, missing their first 12 shots and trailing at the break before rallying for a 67-63 win.... more ›

The Nats have had better weeks. more ›

Last week Ball-Wonk picked up the news that a Cincinnati company called Bygone Sports might win a case with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office granting them the rights to the name Washington Nationals. Today, ESPN and The New York Times are reporting that the dispute will go to a judge in April, and a loss in the case there might necessitate a name change for the beleaguered Washington franchise. Ball-Wonk, whose post covers the implications pretty thoroughly, suggests we keep our name and shorten the moniker on the jersey to just "Nats," which most of us call them anyway. I like the Nats idea, but think we should change the long name to the Washington Natropolitan Baseball Club. more ›

This entry was written by DCist contributor Hayden Alfano Playing as they do in the poorly-regarded Atlantic 10 conference, George Washington is often overlooked when the conversation turns to D.C. hoops, particularly since they play in the long shadows cast by Georgetown and Maryland, two successful programs in the nation's "power" conferences. But the Colonials may just be the best the area has to offer. With an 81-62 over Rhode Island on Saturday, GW ran... more ›

We've all heard the news -- the negotiations between MLB and the District over the new stadium aren't going particularly well. The City Council is increasingly annoyed with a stadium that is fast exceeding expected costs, while MLB continues being its own worst enemy by refusing to consider even the most basic financial concessions to the city. In a private meeting with the council yesterday, MLB chief negotiator Jerry Reinsdorf both surprised and angered the... more ›

Brendan Benson's latest album, The Alternative To Love, played heavily into this summer's soundtrack. His name has been a frequent one on music bloggers' lips (fingers?), especially with talk of his upcoming project with Jack White and the Greenhornes in a band called The Raconteurs. Suffice it to say, we were looking forward to last night's show at Black Cat. more ›

After losing an absolute heartbreaker on Saturday night at Shea to the NY Mets, the Nationals bounced back yesterday, scoring six runs in the first inning and holding on to beat the Mets 7-4. Things were going so well for the Nats that Christian Guzman doubled twice and also drove in two runs, raising his batting average to an almost robust .194. Esteban Loiza pitched 6 1/3 inning on three days rest, striking out... more ›

This DCist has tried to push dance on you people before, and since we apparently never learn from our mistakes, we are doomed to push dance on you again. Yes, this week you have a chance to see some unusual and beautiful forms of dancing, and we recommend that you take advantage of it. We frankly don't understand the aversion of some people to ballet: what is not enjoyable about watching beautiful people with toned... more ›

tough. more ›

(Review and interview by DCist special contributor Peter Denton) Image from carteldc.com Too many trips to 9:30 Club and Black Cat to catch the latest indie sensation really start to wear us down. It’s always refreshing to head to a smaller venue and see some hard-working local bands with their egos firmly in check. So this past Saturday we ventured into the cookie-cutter community of Clarendon to find much-buzzed-about locals Cartel headlining at Iota. With... more ›

Supreme Court Justices Stephen Breyer and Antonin Scalia are scheduled to speak at Amerian University's Washington College of Law from 4 to 5:30 p.m. on Jan. 13. The talk is provocatively titled a "conversation on the Relevance of Foreign Law for American Constitutional Ajudication," which we can imagine is likely to produce some judicial sparks. If you're interested in attending RSVP by Jan. 10 by contacting the law school at (202) 274-4075 or secle(at)wcl.american.edu.... more ›

Once again DCist is happy to bring you the football coverage of Jason Linkins aka The DCeiver. There are NFL teams that you know have the capability to walk onto the field and pitch and catch their way down your throats. The Minnesota Vikings, the Green Bay Packers — Mike Martz this weekend opened with what? 300 straight passing plays? But the Redskins are built differently. They are built on the foundation of running the... more ›

Once again DCist is happy to bring you the football coverage of Jason Linkins aka The DCeiver. more ›