William World News William F. Yurasko's blog v.14 – Nats, Penn State, Redskins, greater DC , travel, more

BeltwayLand was sad yesterday after the godfather of go-go Chuck Brown died (The Post). There was plenty of speculation on Twitter about how and whether the Washington Nationals would honor Brown. In the past, “Bustin’ Loose” was played after home runs. When I heard about Brown’s passing, I tweeted this:

I’d like to see the #Nats honor Chuck Brown tonight. I’d also like to see @NationalsPR do a pregame tribute

I’m pleased to report that that Nats did honor Brown — three home runs by Adam LaRoche, Xavier Nady and Ian Desmond. The first two are former Pittsburgh Pirates. Gio Gonzalez had 10 strikeouts. He gave too much credit to the Buccos as well, which WTOP’s Craig Hesit could not get over.

Hey, a Barry Svrluga chat! Sure, the Nats aren’t mentioned in the preview, but let’s pepper him with questions about them anyway. And Panera.

I couldn’t blog yesterday, car problems (somebody broke my side mirror, no note — gutless coward) so I did not get to comment on the weird Stephen Strasburg ointment story. Weird. I think we can all agree that Gio was the real culprit, right? Strasburg was just part of the many injuries that the Nats are dealing with and dealing with quite well. Still, this graphic is quite telling. Yikes.

Good to see the Nats come back from that awful loss to San Diego Padres on Tuesday afternoon.

Somehow, after a day of rain, the Washington Nationals got in their game against the San Diego Padres last night. It was an eventful one:

Bryce Harper hit his first major league home run:

Sandy Leon made his major league debut at catcher. It lasted 4 innings — Chase Headley took him out at home plate (MLB video). A high ankle sprain is the official diagnosis (CSN Washington), he’s headed to the DL.

Ross Detwiler wasn’t sharp and had his worst outing of the season. He gave up 5 runs, 4 earned, in 5 innings.

Ian Desmond went 3 for 5.

Ryan Zimmerman walked 3 times.

Craig Stammen had two big innings out of the bullpen to earn the win. Maybe he should close for a while?

Homers off the bench — Chad Tracy and Xavier Nady. Chaditude and Nadyitude!

Henry Rodriguez loaded the bases and had to be bailed out by Sean Burnett, who earned the save. Manager Davey Johnson says H-Rod is still the closer…

Did you know the Padres almost moved to D.C. in 1973?

A good, but costly, bounce-back win. Let’s try to focus on Harper’s homer and not all the Spinal Tap drummers that died the tendency for terrible injuries to Nats catchers.

FURTHER READING

Nationals vs. Padres: Bryce Harper’s first home run helps Washington overcome Sandy Leon’s injury – The Post

Nats win an emotional ballgame – CSN Washington

Nats’ Bryce Harper hits homer, Sandy Leon injured during Padres game – The Wash. Times

Bullpen shaky in Padres’ loss to Nationals – San Diego Union-Tribune

Facing Strasburg not just another game for Padres – San Diego Union-Tribune

Dale Hunter steps down as Capitals coach – Capitals Insider, The Post
I’m not surprised Dale Hunter is out as Washington Capitals head coach. He has a good setup with his junior team/farm back in Ontario. Hunter could have been an assistant for years and that wasn’t enough to pull him away. It turns out being a head coach wasn’t either.

Hunter probably determined pretty quickly that his heart was at home, but gave the Caps all that he could because he took a job and wanted to see it through. Would have have liked to win 9 more games? When he was hired, both he and Caps general manager George McPhee said it was interim and they would evaluate at the end of the season. I think Hunter coached the team differently because he knew he wasn’t coming back, so long-term ego management and other issues were not a factor.

I think Thomas Boswell is way off, by the way.

There are great sentimental reasons to be really upset about Hunter going back to the farm, but when it came down to it, the Caps can be summed up by this @DCSportsBog tweet: “Final 56 games of the Caps season, incl playoffs, in 14-game increments: 7-7, 6-8, 8-6, 7-7. #coinfliphockey”

I wonder if I will see the next coach walking down 9th Street in Ballston with his coffee…

The Washington Nationals came very close to returning to D.C. with a winning Ohio River road trip and a sweep of a very good Cincinnati Reds team. The Nats have yet to complete a sweep yet. They went 3-3 on their recent swing.

On the bright side, in order to lose a sweep on the road, the following things had to happen:

A 3 hour 36 minute rain delay.

A rookie outfielder, Bryce Harper, terribly misplayed a fly ball in the 8th that cost the Nats 2 runs. Note to Davey Johnson, give Harper a day off.

The opposite team’s “face of the franchise,” Joey Votto, had to have the best day of his career 3 home runs (walk-off grand slam) and a double

A set-up man turned closer, Henry Rodriguez, pitching for the third day in a row on a sloppy mound had to have tough inning.

Tough loss like one that may have repercussions this week. The Nats have done okay bouncing back and get the San Diego Padres for two games. Then they get the Pittsburgh Pirates for two more. Thus far, the Nats won a series with the former while losing one to the latter.

In other bad news, Wilson Ramos is out for the season with a torn ACL. Hasn’t he suffered enough?

FURTHER READING

Nationals vs. Reds: Joey Votto homers three times as Washington falls, 9-6 – The Post

Rodriguez implodes as Votto slams Nationals in ninth – The Wash. Times

A weird Washington Capitals season has come to a close. They started off hot, then got complacent costing head coach Bruce Boudreau his job. Then, the had trouble adopting Dale Hunter’s system until the playoffs when they won every other game for two series. Unfortunately, they only won 7 of them and they needed to win 8 to keep playing. Game 7’s effort wasn’t there for big chunks of the game.

The Caps had won the two previous playoff series against the Rangers.

I have no idea what the team’s identity is or if they are going to find one. Whether Hunter stays is unknown. Alex Ovechkin isn’t the same player he was 3 seasons ago. Alex Semin needs to go too, I don’t think the Caps can go any further with him aboard.

Also, I lost a four person bet on the season series between the Caps, New Jersey Devils, Philadelphia Flyers and Pittsburgh Penguins. They Caps were awful against those teams.

Washington Nationals Gio Gonzales was going uphill on K Street last night. From Gio Gonzalez fans nine, escapes jam for fourth win (Nationals Journal, The Post):

He struck a season-high nine batters. All of his victims swung at strike three, eight of them on a mid-90s fastball that he zipped over the outside corner all night. His strikeout total for the year climbed to 50 in just 41 2 / 3 innings, one behind rotation mate Stephen Strasburg for the National League lead.

But Gonzalez also issued four walks and used 115 pitches, the most of any Nationals starter this season, in only five innings

The Nats had 7-0 lead over the Cincinnati Reds at one point (homers by Roger Bernadina for the second day in a row and Danny Espinosa contributed) but it wasn’t a comfortable one. The Reds kept putting runners on, getting a few across, and threatening to tie it up late. The Nats bullpen held on, but there was some anxiety.

But that’s not the story…

Rookie Bryce Harper has, in the views of some, gone against type since his promotion to the big leagues by being a model citizen. I joked with someone the other day that douchy thing about him was his hair. Well, the skullet was gone last night (Nats Enquirer) — too beautiful for this world, right?

Harper finally slipped — he went 1 for 6 last night. At the plate, he went 0 for 5. It was in the dugout he got his hit — his face above high right eye. In frusteration, Harper banged his bat against the wall in the dugout and got hit with it on the rebound. Harper went onto the field with his face covered in blood (Nats Enquirer). Had this happened at Nationals Park, the old “Blood Field” name for the neighborhood might have come back.

Seeing Harper covered in blood isn’t a happy sight because it makes a Nats fan worry that this 1.) an actual injury that will keep him out of action 2.) a sign of a bad temper that will hinder his play 3.) a serious injury that will hurt his development or limit his potential.

Let’s try not to think about that though and try to look on the bright side of life — the rookie “hazing.”

Ian Desmond has already declared that Harper will be known as Bam Bam (@AdamKilgoreWP). Given that last year, the “hazing” was sending the Nats rookies up to New York on the train dressed as Smurfs, it stands to reason that this year’s rookies will be dressed as the citizens of Bedrock. Harper will get to be Bam Bam of course. Wilson Ramos will probably volunteer to be Pebbles even though he’s not a rookie though if he doesn’t improve his defense behind the plate, he’d probably deserve it. It won’t be quite as fun as the Smurfs because no hazing ever will be.

By the way, YouTube doesn’t seem to have any clips of Bamm Bamm (proper spelling it turns out) saying “BAMM BAMM!” Baby boomers, you are letting us down.

The final word on Harper’s incident (ha! People are still talking about his getting hit by Cole Hamels) comes from @JeffPassan:

Dear Bryce Harper: Hitting yourself with a bat in the head is so passe. Use me next time. I’m the new hotness. Sincerely, Fire Extinguisher.

Uh, actually one more, this time from @craigcalcaterra

That bat that hit Harper in the face is classless, gutless and chickenfeces. It’s fake tough.

Remember everyone, no matter the score, the Internet always wins.

Nats have clinched the season series with the Reds, but have two more to go this weekend, tonight (overlapping with the Capitals game 7) and tomorrow afternoon.

Another series, another guest prognosticator post. Since the Washington Nationals are sailing down the Ohio River on a sternwheeler — rounding the bend near Huntington, W.V. about now, (not really) to play the Cincinnati Reds, I have asked Cathie from Church of Baseball to answer some questions. She’s “a Reds fan by birth, Nats fan by residence, worshipper of the baseball religion.” She’s also right on the right side of the Nats heritage debate. Here we go:

WFY: The Cincinnati Reds are over 7 years removed from the Jim Bowden experience and the Reds have one playoff berth to show for it. Do you consider yourself and the Reds healed from his tenure? Was it hard having him as GM as your “other” team? Should there be an “it’s get better video” for fans of teams that Bowden was GM of?

CoB: Jim Bowden is a joke in Cincinnati. We refer to him as “Leatherpants” because of an infamous Spring Training appearance in which he appeared in public wearing leather pants. (Editor’s note: Hey, we say that too!) Reds Hall of Fame broadcaster Marty Brennaman can’t stand the guy and won’t even refer to him by name. Once he called him “Leatherpants Vampire” on air. That guy has no business being a GM anywhere. That being said, he DID draft Joey Votto. Even a broken clock is right twice a day.

WFY: After reaching the playoffs in 2010, what happened to the 2011 Reds?

CoB: I’d love to blame 2011 on injuries. Or Dusty Baker. Or acts of God. But the truth is, they just underachieved. Bronson Arroyo was awful but he still took the mound every 5th day. The shortstop position produced nothing. Scott Rolen got old. Oh, and Dusty Baker’s lineups…

WFY: Have you had Joey Votto’s cereal (Big League Stew, Yahoo!)? Oh and how about that new 12 years, $251.5 million contract?

CoB: Haven’t had VottOs. Love the contract. A player who stays with one team for his entire career is as rare as…well, something that’s rare.

WFY: Ray Knight is now on the Nats studio hosts and occasional color commentator. What do you remember most from his tenure as manager. Oh and Davey Johnson is DC’s manager now too, so I guess we ought to ask about his time in the Queen City.

CoB: I don’t remember much about Knight as manager. Unremarkable, I guess. Davey gave us two first place finishes in the mid-nineties (stupid strike.) Ridiculous he was let go (stupid management.)

WFY: How hard was it having Marge Schott owning the Reds?

CoB: Marge kept ticket and beer prices down. She wasn’t bad. She wasn’t evil, either, just a product of a backwards era in a conservative city that is stuck a few decades behind the times.

WFY: Is there a local/regional beer that goes hand in hand with a Reds game?

CoB: Moerlein is a Cincinnati beer but it isn’t mainstream, though they did just open a Lager House near the stadium.

WFY: What’s so great about cinnamon in chili anyway?

CoB: The trick to loving Cincinnati chili is to understand it is pasta sauce more than chili. Skyline = yum. Gold Star = gross.

WFY: Yankees/Diamondbacks/Rangers washout Buck Showalter thinks that the ballparks in D.C. and Cincinnati are less than iconic. How is Great American Ballpark? What about Nationals Park? How was Riverfront Stadium?

CoB: GABp is middle of the pack. They could have made it great but blew it. Hate the stupid boat. Nice river and city views. Not a bad seat in the place. Park is better than Riverfront though Riverfront had the history. Nats Park has no soul; it feels like a mall. They really blew that.

WFY: I think I head that Pete Rose would run through fire in a gasoline suit to bet on baseball. Does he belong in the Hall of Fame?

CoB: Pete belongs in the Hall, no question. Bud Selig belongs in a gasoline suit in Hell. (editor’s note: Hmmm)

WFY: Where do you get your Reds coverage?

CoB: I watch pretty much every game so I don’t read much about the team. I’ll check Redreporter.com and Redlegnation.com everyday to see if they’ve linked to anything worth reading. Guess I get a lot from Twitter, too.

WFY: What about Reds broadcasts? Is Marty Brenneman as good as advertised? What about Thom Brenneman?

CoB: Marty is cranky. Thom talks too much. Both refuse to understand that the game has changed. They are allergic to sabermetrics.

WFY: Who takes this series?

CoB: Reds have won their last five series in a row and have the best record in the National League since they decided to stop sucking on April 19th. They’ll take this series, too.

Stephen Strasburg struck out 13 and the Washington Nationals came back to beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 4-2. Strasburg got out of a jam in the sixth after he walked 3 in a row. I hope he’s okay.

Here is a fun exchange from the top of the sixth inning:

Me: Roger Bernadina just homered!

Wife: Who? Who?

/wilnieves’d

Wife:That’s a name I haven’t heard in a month of Sundays.

Adam LaRoche hit another homer against his former team, a two-run shot. Ryan Zimmerman walked right after Bernadina’s homer.

Rick Ankiel homered in the ninth to add an insurance run. I think closer Henry Rodriguez appreciated it.

Here is the Strasburg K reel, which probably won’t work until sometime on Sunday. Again, MLB just needs to let us embed them outright.

The Nats salvaged the series and can still take the series with a 2-game sweep next week. I hope they do, because I want to win another Primanti Bros. sammich (still have to claim the first one) and not owe a half-smoke.

I like to think the Nats boarded a sternwheeler in front of the ballpark and are sailing down the Ohio River for their series with the Cincinnati Reds. I think they’d be to about Marietta by now, right?

MORE

THOMAS BOSWELL: Bryce Harper makes an immediate impact in a variety of ways for Nationals – The Post
I love watching Harper play, but what is the team’s record since he arrived? He’s certainly helped win, but the team is struggling a bit. Or at least it seems they are. #firstplacenatsproblems

MLB Network makes the comparison between Harper and Mickey Mantle (DC Sports Bog, The Post):

I’ll have more to say about the Mantle comparison later in the season.

Johnson tries to boost Nats’ spirits during meeting – CSN Washington
TEAM MEETING FTW 1!!!1!!!1

In 1986 (Jay Schroeder’s Pro Bowl year!), the Washington Redskins celebrated their 50th season in the Nation’s Capital. You may remember this logo:

I remember I had a Redskins pennant with that logo and there are probably still several Mobil Oil glasses with it in my parents basement. I should ebay them.

I don’t recall any more anniversary celebrations until 2002, when the Redskins celebrated 70 years as an NFL Franchise. That means they change how they measured their anniversary in two ways:

1.) They counted years, instead of seasons

2.) They included the 5 season prior to arriving in D.C.

The Redskins started as the Boston Braves, playing at Braves Field. They moved to Fenway Park and were renamed the Redskins because it was similar to Red Sox. Then they moved to D.C. in time for the 1937 season and promptly won the NFL championship with rookie Sammy Baugh at quarterback. Any how, the Redskins celebrated the 70th year by wearing fauxbacks that looked like the 1960s uniforms with a spear on the helmet. They also celebrated by naming the 70 greatest Redskins. They also had this logo:

Five years later, the Redskins celebrated their 75th year overall (70th as a Washington team) with the logo below:

They also wore their early 1970s uniforms for a game or two.

Now, five years later they are celebrating their 80th year overall. I think they should be celebrating the 75th in D.C., but I suppose it would be awkward to change direction after the 2002 decision. The logo is just an update of the 75th:

They are also going to wear approximations of the Baugh era uniforms. They are trying to mimic the look of a leather helmet and the rest of the kit looks like something Boston College would wear. Given the origins of the team, that’s probably not a coincidence. As an aside, those are gold pants.

Had it been up to me, the team would have honored quarter-century anniversaries of their arrival in D.C., but I don’t feel too strongly about it.

Last night after watching the Washington Nationals fall to the Pittsburgh Pirates for the second consecutive night, I tweeted “You know that *skepticism* we have of Rick Eckstein and the team doctors/trainers? I have that for the #Nats optometrist too.”

It is oversimplifying matters to suggest that the need for more thorough eye exams could be the root of all of those Nats strikeouts, but I’d like Danny Espinosa to get a good eye exam. I like to think that is the issue and not that he’s just not a good hitter, a la Rick Ankiel, who should be nothing more than a fourth outfielder. Espinosa’s strikeouts are just brutal (The Wash. Times)

You could say that K Street is a two-way street.

The Nats 4-2 loss meants this is the second series of the season that they didn’t win. They have to win the next 3 games against Pittsburgh or I lose an annual bet.

FURTHER READING

Rehashing a strange 3rd inning – CSN Washington
IT was strange and the third run was preventable, but Ian Desmond hesitated on the throw home. Then he almost hit a home run, missing by a few inches.

Stephen Strasburg, healthy and ‘one of the guys,’ might be baseball’s best pitcher – The Post
No other D.C. player combines athletic excellence and intelligence as well as Strasburg. It isn’t even close. He is on the mound tonight to try and salvage the series.

Where do the Nationals fit among D.C.’s pro sports teams? & SNYDER: Nationals’ bandwagon is starting to fill up – The Wash. Times
The Nats rank #3, fairly far behind the Capitals who always make the playoffs and of course, the Redskins who are #1 by about a light-year, performance notwithstanding. A successful Nats team could overtake the Caps in a few years. The Wizards and DC United round up the rest. If the bandwagon is a little slow in starting up isn’t a terrible thing.