William World News William F. Yurasko's blog v.14 – Nats, Redskins, Capitals, D.C. life, transportation, not so much Penn State anymore,

There has been a lot of discussion and pixels generated over Washington Nationals outfielder Bryce Harper’s collision into the right field wall the other night. All of this talk about toughness and such (I’m guilty of it too) has overshadowed the the actual story — a fairly inexperienced outfielder took a bad route on a fly ball and in trying to catch up to it, ran so hard he didn’t see the wall.

Prior to last night’s Nats 2-0 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers, Charlie Slowes of the Washington Nationals Radio Network interviewed legendary voice of the Dodgers, Vin Scully and Harper’s wall collision came up. Scully reminded us all of the real story:

Charlie Slowes: Speaking of shoulders and knees and collisions, how about Bryce Harper into the wall last thing last night.

Vin Scully: The only good thing about is it knocked his beard off …and I was delighted to see…(Slowes heard laughing in the background)…I went down to the clubhouse because I admire his play and there he was clean-shaven, uh stiches under the chin…such a fine young man and an outstanding player…and it’s none of my business but I hope he stays clean shaven.

I’m sure somebody will get the audio into embeddable format, but until then MLB Gameday subscribers can here it by going to this page, clicking on the WJFK link and starting to listen around the 12:00 mark.

UPDATE: Legendary Dodgers Voice Vin Scully ‘Delighted’ Harper’s Clean-Shaven – CBS DC
The audio is now available from the link above.

The interview also touches on the current Dodgers, the movie “42″ and his start on the radio at WTOP in Washington when he lived at 29th and O Street for $15 a week. Good stuff, but what else would it be? The interview, between to New Yorkers and Fordham graduates) could have been something like:

Vin: Charlie, nobody outside of New York knows how to fold a newspaper

Charlie: Can’t good hard rolls either, Vin

and it still would have been good.

OTHER NATS NEWS

Clayton Kershaw out-dueled Dan Haren (The Post), but with the lineup the Nats put out last night, how wouldn’t he?

Eury in for Span against Kershaw. No Harper:. Espinosa 4, Lombardozzi 7, Zimmerman 5, Desmond 6, LaRoche 3, Moore 9, Ramos 2, Perez 8, Haren

— Adam Kilgore (@AdamKilgoreWP) May 14, 2013

More troubling – Harper is feeling nauseous which suggests he has a concussion.

Booming sales prompts Port City Brewing’s expansion – The Alexandria Times
Good news for beer drinkers, particularly those that like the hoppy stuff, my hometown brewery Port City is going to expand for a second time:

Owner Bill Butcher, a native of the city, is waiting for a trio of 120 barrel tanks to finish making their way from Oregon to Alexandria. When they arrive next week, the massive vats will double the brewery’s output, from roughly 100,000 cases of beer a year to 200,000.

The other week, I had a six pack of their Optimal Wit, a Belgian style beer ideal for cool late spring evenings. Back in 2012, some friends and I took the Port City brewery tour which I recommend. Also, Butcher has more promising things to say for craft beer fans:

“This market is still underserved, but fortunately there are more breweries in planning that are going to be opening up.”

I know the city of Alexandria is expecting another brewery soon in the next few years too.

The Washington Capitals season came to an abrupt halt (Japers Rink) in game 7 of the 1st round of the playoffs as they were dominated by the New York Rangers, 5-0. It was a brutal end to a strange season that started late due to a lock-out that team owner Ted Leonsis was reportedly hard-liner on. The Caps recovery from a 2-10-1 start to win the final Southeast Division crown was impressive, but they led yet another game 7 egg at Verizon Center. Caps fans deserve better, but after presiding over two NHL lockouts in eight years and a season removed from a NBA lockout (Leonsis also owns the Washington Wizards), I think Teddy Lockout could use some humbling.

Next season will be different, the Southeast division heads to the dust-bin of history. The Caps will return to what will hopefully be called Patrick Division with Carolina Hurricanes, Columbus Blue Jackets, Philadelphia Flyers, Pittsburgh Penguins, New Jersey Devils, New York Islanders and the Rangers. No more cheap division titles moving forward. I think the franchise will benefit from the new surroundings, though it may not be right away.

After another brutal game 7 loss for the Washington Capitals (more on that later) what D.C. fans absolutely did not need was Washington Nationals OF Bryce Harper running into a wall.

That’s from SB Nation: Bryce Harper injury: Nationals outfielder hurt after colliding with wall.

Probably not a good idea in a 6-0 game to go for the play and not settle for playing the ball off the carom.

Harper is listed as day-to-day, but aren’t we all?

I’m sure The Post will have a side-by-side breakdown comparing Harper running into a wall with Babe Ruth running into a wall at Griffith Stadium (Ghosts of DC).

Bryce Harper receives 11 stitches, no concussion after nasty collision with Dodgers Stadium fence [UPDATED] – Nationals Journal, The Post

Lots of photos on Nats Enquirer: Bryce Harper runs into Dodger Stadium wall, leaves game shaken up and bleeding…

Get well, Bryce, LOVE the stirrups!

The good news is the Nats beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-2 after that awful series with the Chicago Cubs. Jordan Zimmermann is the first MLB 7 game winner of 2013.

Ryan Zimmerman drove 3 runs.

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — I have been critical in the past of the lack of signs along state numbered highways in the city and Northern Virginia region. Generally speaking, Alexandria does not post numbered routes with any regularity, especially the 400 series. Did you know that at least portions of Van Dorn Street, Quaker Lane and Seminary Road are all primary state highways? They are routes 401, 402 and 420 respectively. If you drive along them, you may not because the route markers are not posted with any way that is useful for navigation. Those numbers appear on maps though:

Having the routes appear on maps, but not on the roads is pointless because it can lead to motorist confusion. Now, for the first time that I am aware of, there are marker signs posted for VA 420 (Seminary Road) due to a detour for construction in the Mark Center development.

I’m not sure how useful having the route marker for these detour signs is because it isn’t used elsewhere. Also, I believe the only part of Seminary Road that is actually under Virginia Department of Transportation jurisdiction is the overpass over Interstate 395, due to the blue “BEGIN VDOT MAINTANENCE” sign on the approach.

I would appreciate it if Alexandria, other Northern Virginia municipalities and VDOT could get serious about using route signs, so if this is a baby step in the right direction, I’ll take it.

Lastly, the detour sign shows Route 420 in a circle which is incorrect. Route 420 should be in a shield, as there are no secondary numbers below 600 in Virginia.

Highway markers courtesy of Shields Up!

Friday, it all started out well with the Washington Nationals taking game 1 of the weekend series over the Chicago Cubs 7-2 (mlb.com video) and the Washington Capitals taking game 5 over the New York Rangers, 2-1 (nhl.com video).

The good times would only last until Saturday’s fifth inning, when, after dominating, Stephen Strasburg came completely undone. A Ryan Zimmerman error was followed by a walk, then an Edwin Jackson (his revenge!) double, followed by a walk, followed by a single. Four runs were home and the game was effectively over. Zach Duke just threw gasoline on the fire and the Cubs won 8-2 (mlb.com video) .

Sunday also started out promising – Gio Gonzalez retired the first 15 batters. Zimmerman drove in an early run. After 7 innings, the Nats were beating the Cubs 1-0. Then Drew Storen replaced Gonzalez and gave up a run. Then in the ninth, Rafael Soriano couldn’t get it done and Kurt Suzuki made an error that led to the winning Cubs run. Cubs take the game and series 2-1.

The evening was no better, the Caps couldn’t get on the powerplay once, while the Rangers did 5 times. The Rags won 2-1 (nhl.com video), forcing Game 7, tonight at 8 p.m. (have fun beat writers!) in D.C. The Nats are out on the West Coast for the next week too, so no games before 10 p.m. We’ll have to console ourselves with this great Post feature on Bryce Harper’s swing. (By the way, Bryce, you can start hitting again.)

When it comes down to it, the Cubs and Rangers just love their moms more.

Financing for turnpike/I-95 connector concerns auditor general – The Inky
In not-all-surprising news, that Pennsylvania Turnpike/I-95 green card scheme has gotten the attention of Pennsylvania Auditor General Eugene DePasquale.

DePasquale said he was especially interested in why an entity was created to broker the deal, in which wealthy foreign investors would lend the turnpike $200 million in exchange for possible permanent residence in the United States.

DePasquale said his office was legally bound to wait until a transaction is completed before launching an audit, so “it may be several months or longer” before he formally investigates the turnpike plan.

“I am going to follow this situation carefully,” DePasquale said. “It raises some alarms. I’m not taking a position that it’s wrong yet. . . . We’ll wait till the issue is ripe for an audit.”

Yup, it is all weird.

I understand Pennsylvania being unhappy about having to build this connection since it was New Jersey that cancelled a nearly 30 mile stretch of I-95, but the Pennsylvania Turnpike should have built a connection with I-95 years ago anyway. The foot dragging has been going on for about 30 years.

Also, weren’t toll authorities designed to avoid this kind of nonsense? Perhaps raising federal and state gas taxes by a few cents might not be a bad idea either. Heaven forbid we pay several more cents per gallon (we’re paying a whopping 18.3¢ a gallon (over $3.60 where I live) right now for 21st century infrastructure.

Interstate shields courtesy of Shields Up!

An interchange I go through to get to my in-laws, Interstate 81 and US 22/322 had a nasty tanker truck fire on Friday. I-81 is still closed, though it may open on Monday with Tuesday being more likely. Tolls are suspended for motorists traveling between the Carlisle and Harrisburg East interchanges on the Pennsylvania Turnpike (I-76) which is roughly parrallel to I-81 in the Harrisburg area. The eastbound US 22 span has to be removed. Traffic will be rerouted onto the westbound span. It will be months before full service is restored.

Located on the border of Harrisburg and Dauphin County, the stack interchange (kurumi.com) was constructed in the early 1970s, according to pahighways.com.

View Larger Map

pennlive.com/Patriot-News has dozens of stories on the tanker fire.

PITTSBURGH — I am not sure I can overstate what a wonderful combination of architecture, location, size and that is PNC Park, home of the Pittsburgh Pirates. In fact, I only detected one flaw^* with the whole ballpark.

No cupholders.

^*A unscientific sample of Pirates fans agreed with The Onion that there was another flaw – the home team: PNC Park Threatens To Leave Pittsburgh Unless Better Team Is Built

The Washington Nationals host the Chicago Cubs this weekend and will host more day games against them then when they visit Chicago. That happened two years ago — all three games were scheduled as night games, but Mother Nature saw the folly of that and rained a game out.

Times are tough on the North Side and tension between the team and neighborhood is high:

No joy in Wrigleyville as Cubs, neighbors clash – USA Today
Cubs ownership wants significant changes to Wrigley Field, including a giant video board and more advertising. The rooftops, once a quaint feature are now big business that is threatened by proposed modernization. Finding solutions to the challenges of making a century old neighborhood ballpark sufficiently competitive is going to be tough for both sides, but concessions are going to have to be made as mutually assured destruction is the consequence if they aren’t. Wrigleyville won’t be Wrigleyville without the Cubs and the Cubs won’t be the Cubs without Wrigley — they’d just be a hapless franchise that hasn’t won in our grandparents or great-grandparents lifetimes. I hope they work it out, because I have a soft spot for the Cubbies.

When I was a kid, I watched a lot of Chicago Cubs games on superstation WGN. Without our own local team, the Cubs were a pretty good proxy – they had so much going for them:

Day baseball!

Wrigley Field

Harry Carray, especially after the middle innings on the radio, when he came back “refreshed”

I never made it out to Wrigley Field and that’s a regret that I hope to correct someday. I refuse to do it at night though.