OLESDEWET

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KbSsa2rbtF8

i wanna see the jump from Harper this year.

best rotation in baseball on paper, lets see it on the field.

defn in the house for the stras & both zman bobblehead days

talk amongst yourselves

>The bullpen is good. The line-up is really good. The rotation
>has the potential to be historic. I guess the team defense is
>slightly above average? Who can you pick ahead of them? By the
>odds, the Dodgers are the only ones within shouting distance.

The line-up is great on paper, but werth, zimm, harper and ramos are all injury risks and they've shown that when one or two guys go down, the offense stalls. The bench is shaky so they really have to stay healthy. They have "new" defensive players in four positions. We hope clippard can be replaced, but he's been one of the best pitchers in baseball. and then there is Matt Williams whose decision making in the offs were really questionable.

I am not saying the team has any significant weaknesses, just that it does have a few problem areas to keep an eye on.

>They've won more games than anybody in baseball over the last
>three years and the consensus is that they just got better. Of
>course they're going to be heavy favorites. I want to believe
>that the disappointment of missing the playoffs as favorites
>in 2013 will keep the team in check, but it's mostly just
>wishful thinking. The reality is, a one week Andrew McCutchen
>blackout in October could bounce them in a 5 game series. I'm
>at peace with this.

>I mean, in those 4 games in the 2015 NLDS, the Giants scored 9
>runs and the Nationals scored 9 runs. Over 45 innings. It's
>not like either team was setting the world on fire. They did
>beat Madison Bumgarner, which was apparently really hard to do
>in October last year.
>
>It's baseball. The best team doesn't always win. At this
>point, the 2010s Nationals could still be the 1970s Royals or
>the 1970s Reds.

You're right. There will be 90-100 wins to enjoy this season. The rest is playoff baseball and will be what it will be.

>The line-up is great on paper, but werth, zimm, harper and
>ramos are all injury risks and they've shown that when one or
>two guys go down, the offense stalls. The bench is shaky so
>they really have to stay healthy. They have "new" defensive
>players in four positions. We hope clippard can be replaced,
>but he's been one of the best pitchers in baseball. and then
>there is Matt Williams whose decision making in the offs were
>really questionable.
>
>I am not saying the team has any significant weaknesses, just
>that it does have a few problem areas to keep an eye on.

Injuries will fuck up any team, but yeah. We traded some legit outfield depth with Souza for a little more infield depth with Escobar (as well as what is hopefully a bridge to Turner after Desmond walks). But a healthy Nate McLouth could be competent off the bench. I'd love to see them get an established right handed stick that can come off the bench like they had with Gomes. Maybe Tyler Moore can be that guy. Danny Espinosa is frustrating as an everyday starter, but really good as a guy coming off the bench who can fill in at 2B or SS with plus defense. I mean, with Rendon, Zimmerman, Espinosa, and Escobar...Maybe Frandsen if he makes th team, you have lots of guys who can legitimately be called upon to plau more than one infield spot.

Of course those options requiring some ingenuity and creativity from the manager. As you mentioned, Williams has not displayed that. I thought he got better, but I still don't have faith in him to deviate from the script. There was somebody in the press that mentioned with Clippard's departure, it means that Williams has more ability to play match-ups in the 8th inning. But Williams always had the ability to do that. He just didn't because that is not how he manages. Harper batted 6th. You could make 99% of his bullpen decisions with the hilarious flowchart that @nextyeardc made. I hope he watched the success of teams like the Orioles and the Giants who succeeded in the playoffs by deviating from the by-the-book bullpen and learn. In reality, I expect Janssen to log 95% of his appearances in the 8th if Storen stays healthy.

>You're right. There will be 90-100 wins to enjoy this season.
>The rest is playoff baseball and will be what it will be.

Yeah. There are obviously no sure things, but the rest of the division looks rough. Phillies are old. Braves just had a fire sale. Mets should have pitching but can't hit. Marlins might be able to hit but I can't see them pitching (especially with Fernandez not coming back until at least June).

I'd love to see a 100 win season. It's doable. I think even if they pull a 2013 and win 86 games, that has a strong chance to win the division.

This might be as good as it ever gets, but I'll ride with this team against anyone. If we need an arm out of the pen, grab Papelbonn or someone midseason. Go for broke. Next year, Zimmermann, Desmond, Spann, and Fister could all be gone next year.

>Go for broke. Next year,
>Zimmermann, Desmond, Spann, and Fister could all be gone next
>year.

plenty of talent will remain, but everything won't overlap as nicely on this roster as it has for the last four seasons.

Even if those guys walk, there is likely enough talent around to compete for the next few years. It might be a matter of going from a true talent 95 win team to 85 wins but that is still within striking distance for the playoffs every year. Hell the Royals and Giants were probably something like true talent 85 win teams in 2014.

There are some good players in the minors and Rizzo has demonstrated the ability to acquire through trade. Maybe Giolito becomes the right-handed Kershaw, Harper and Rendon become a 21st century Gehrig & Ruth, and the Nationals find the next Pujols in the draft. Or this could be it. Windows do close.

cut or traded in 2015
the texans dicked him, and he's out

sweet baby jesus PLEASE don't let the colts or the pats get him, okay? amen

A travesty. In a perfect world he'd get his ring, retire and immd be in that htown athlete pantheon... First ballot HOF and our first inductee

Now he's gonna be the Pats #2. You know this.

And he will fucking destroy us next season.

Its all bad


does it really matter?

wonder what bin's doing?
http://i.imgur.com/phECCMp.jpg

hes an OF...so i wonder what that means for micheal taylor...i thought he would be next


does it really matter?

wonder what bin's doing?
http://i.imgur.com/phECCMp.jpg

half the lineup already out and Rendon getting a look from Dr. Andrews :(

Might cancel out.

:|

Taylor has the makings of a decent outfielder. Escobar appears to be about what he was figured to be. Harper still healthy.

Most other things have been ugly.

Last year's team was 25-27 before winning 96 games.

Werth will be back early next week. That'll be a big upgrade over Moore. Span is about to start a rehab assignment. So he's probably back before May.

No time table on Rendon yet.

I'm a little worried about the bullpen. I think they need more. Maybe Cole or Giolito in a 2008 David Price role. Maybe go out and get somebody. Clippard? That'd be funny

>I'm a little worried about the bullpen. I think they need
>more. Maybe Cole or Giolito in a 2008 David Price role. Maybe
>go out and get somebody. Clippard? That'd be funny

After Zimmerman, he's the longest tenured MLB National.

I'm alright with that. He's had a pretty good spring. He's got more pop than Span and he's shown the ability to take a walk in the minors. I think he probably gives away a step in the OF, but he's probably the best plug-in depending on how comfortable Harper feels over there these days.

I'm not too keen on batting him lead-off. I get it. He's a black OF with good speed, so he's going to hit first because that's what traditional managers do. But there is a logical argument that it doesn't make sense to give extra ABs to guy who isn't necessarily good enough to crack the line-up on his But Taylor has some ability, he's just unproven. This isn't hitting Asdrubal Cabrera and Kevin Frandsen either 2nd or 8th depending on which side the coin landed on. Those guys were proven commodities whose skill set did not include getting on base with above average frequency.

Just get everybody healthy by September.

what kind of sorcery is this.

i keep up with her on fb, every now & then drop her a line in the ol inbox, see if the connections still there...and it usually is. everytime i go home, we can get it in...and ill always keep my eye on her from afar, but what we had was my past. i love her but i got to be cognizant of my present and future.


does it really matter?

wonder what bin's doing?
http://i.imgur.com/phECCMp.jpg

Stupid 10th anniversary promo. I've heard countless people on television talk about "celebrating the Nationals 10th season in Washington". That window closed. This is the 11th opening day in DC.

one of the worst defenders in the majors if he starts. can't be a late inning sub. can't pinch-hit. bats right.

He's below average in the field. Below average base runner. His two best qualities are that you can run him out there to pinch hit against a LHP and hope he runs into one and he can fill out a uniform and stand where he is supposed to stand if other players are hurt/tired.

I'm glad to see the complete rebuild underway in atl I will enjoy watching them be terrible for the next 3-5 seasons

He led the NL in walks that year. Had a respectable 19 home runs. But in context, those 19 came after 27, 31, 32, 31, 33, 36 HR seasons. So not as good. Advanced metrics put his value in the range of 3 wins. Pretty good. Not necessarily worth what Atlanta paid him for, but nobody is going to turn away a 3 win player.

In 2013, he slipped further. His line was .179/.309/.362. with a career high 171 strike outs. He still walked a lot, 77 times. He also hit 22 HRs. But his mediocre defense slipped and he made more base running miscues. As a result he was somewhere between replacement level and the worst everyday player in the majors.

In 2014, he regressed again. Through 48 games, his line was .149/.229/.213. Same rough defense. Only now he was walking a little less and had lost his pop, basically the only two things he'd done well. So Atlanta, which had agreed to pay him $62 million over 5 seasons, just ate the money and cut him. The Giants picked him up on a whim. He played 4 games. Got no hits. Walked once. Struck out 6 times. And made 2 errors. They cut him a few weeks later. Got a World Series ring though.

So the Nats picked him up off the scrap heap for basically nothing and gave him a shot in spring training. The storyline was that he had corrective eye surgery and all of his problems the last couple of years could be blamed on that. And to his credit, he had a good spring training. In 46 plate appearances he hit .261/.433/.457 with 2 HRs. 13 BBs and a respectable 9 strike outs. That's the kind of player Dan Uggla was when he was good.

So with Rendon hurt, Escobar playing third to start, and Espinosa still Espinosa, the team figured he'd be a better option than Kevin Frandsen because he could beat Kevin Frandsen in a arm wrestling match (or something like that).

The kicker is, a year earlier, in the midst of a stretch where he was one of the worst regulars in baseball, before being cut by two teams, in 2014, his spring training stats were:

52 plate appearances. .269/.403/.538 with 4 HRs. 12 BBs and 18 Ks

So, you can choose to believe the eye surgery turned back the clock and his good spring training was the proof of that. Meaning that while he still can't run or field, he can draw a walk and mash to such a level that he is still a player you want in your line-up.

Or you can say that a good spring training meant nothing last year, so why give it weight this year? Maybe the escalating strike outs and decreasing power wasn't so much attributable to poor eye sight but age and declining bat speed. And that you can look at 4 weeks of ABs against some guys who are riding a bus for the Quad Cities River Bandits right now, and say that's nice. But you'd prefer to look at four years straight of declining offensive production at the Major League level over 2000 PA and little else to contribute on the field or on the bases.

I choose to look at the latter.

But, with the Braves footing the bill, it might have been worth basically whatever the cost to house and feed him was to find out. I just think he's completely done as a major league ballplayer. Maybe he can play it out in Japan if he wants to start somewhere this year.

That thing played out EXACTLY like the playoff games, and EXACTLY like we'd suspected it would; great pitching / no offense.

And Desmond blew a no hitter btw.

Scherzer looked good. Harper looked good. I got a 10th anniversary tin for my troubles. That was enough for yesterday.

Dude is a headcase.


does it really matter?

wonder what bin's doing?
http://i.imgur.com/phECCMp.jpg

way to win the series, Stras. of course it was *all* bad luck singles and bloops and Desi defense and whatever.

>Dude is a headcase.

At least he better be by mid season. First month is what it is. Let me see them get in a rhythm

Desmond has 4 errors. Smh. We have only played like 4 games!

Offense isnt anemic....its non existent

Relief pitching is laughable

I mean the book is keep it tight til later innings then feast on the scraps in the bullpen...and they are right

Everyone is either hurt or starting slowly...which in a way is ok with me hopefully the hype train is over and I can go back to getting walk up tkts for $5

despite the strike-outs and inconsistent defense...

but good gracious.

His game is kind of erratic by nature

worst start to a contract yr...ever?

i wonder if scherzer is regretting coming as he looks @ detroit rolling


does it really matter?

wonder what bin's doing?
http://i.imgur.com/phECCMp.jpg

>i wonder if scherzer is regretting coming as he looks @
>detroit rolling

Before 2014, the Tigers offered him $144 million. After 2014, the Nationals signed him to $215 million. I think that extra $71 million is comforting him at the moment.

these errors man


does it really matter?

wonder what bin's doing?
http://i.imgur.com/phECCMp.jpg

+15 run differential over the stretch. Span and Werth back. Rendon getting closer. Uggla hitting .129. everything nearly returning to normal.

Clippard and Soriano gone from last years. Blevins got flushed during spring training. Treinen does not appear where the team hoped he'd be. Stammen done for the year.

Roark is a nice plus and I trust Thornton, Barrett, and Storen. I don't trust Matt Williams to manage the bullpen effectively though.

does it really matter?

wonder what bin's doing?
http://i.imgur.com/phECCMp.jpg

not just Desmond, either. they'll probably turn it around like last year but it's annoying to watch.

Werth has been a black hole in the three spot, too. making too many outs and letting teams pitch around Harper.

2014 Giants:


Before Uggla: 56-44 (.509)
With Uggla: 7-9 (.438)
After Uggla 37-26 (.587)

Werths scuffling

does it really matter?

wonder what bin's doing?
http://i.imgur.com/phECCMp.jpg

We can just go uphill from here on out.

the pitchings anemic
the offense is worse
the defense is utterly atrocious

its like they think *shrug* we can turn it on in the second half of the season

NO.


does it really matter?

wonder what bin's doing?
http://i.imgur.com/phECCMp.jpg

Awesome

https://youtu.be/yyYhZ9HH8cI

This is a problem

At this point, the thing that is keeping him out is no longer the thing that caused him to miss time initially. So it's just a waiting game all around.

man a line up of

span
rendon
zimmerman
harper
ramos
werth
escobar
desmond

with taylor, espinoza, uggla off the bench?!

smh

Get Taylor, a righty, a start. Keep Span healthy. Standard stuff, albeit with a higher degree of caution based on his recent injury history.

Not sure why Escobar left in the middle of the game though.

great weekend of games to be at. the Bryce Harper we've all been waiting for is nearly here -- the plate discipline he's showed this season has been the big thing missing from his approach.

Holy smokes

Rendon comes back...werth returns to the mean

With this staff?

Man.

Pretty much all of his hitting stats exceed those from 2011-2012 when he kinda broke out. He's more patient on pitches out of the zone, when he makes contact he's hitting it pretty hard and he now strikes out at a lower rate. Basically, the sell-low mafia was wrong about him when he was a mendoza line hitter.

He's auditioning

I wish him well

Somebody mentioned this the other day on Twitter:

One of the SS on the Nats is hitting .342/.388/.423 and is signed through the next two years for $14 million.

The other is hitting .238/.293/.362, leading the majors in errors, and wants $100 million.

Now that's not entirely fair because of the age difference, small sample size, and a few other factors. But it's not untrue.

Span, Werth and Ramos get a day off? no problem, just another 10-spot put on the board by the new number one offense in the NL.

Mets still hanging around though.

But man, if Bryce doesn't look like who he was always supposed to be right now. It's awesome

Sole possession of first place.

17-4 over the last few weeks.

Still working around some injuries, but guys are stepping up.

Namely Strasburg, Werth, and Rendon (hopefully sooner than later)

They're a buzz saw

Rendon is obviously a stud and a difference maker if he's healthy. Fister is missed in the rotation. Side note, why hasn't Stammen been moved to the 60 day DL to clear room on the 40 man?

But I have to remind myself that Matt den Dekker, Casey Janssen, and Nate McLouth are on this team.

Janssen sounds like he could be back soon. But his rehab outings have not gone particularly well. 5 appearance. 4.2 IP. 4 R, 4 H, 1 HR, 1 BB, 1 K. I don't feel great about 1 K in 21 batters faced in the minors. He struggled last year and a big part of that was because he couldn't get strikeouts.

den Dekker isn't making any noise in the minors. Blevins forearm blew-up after the trade, so it's pretty much a wash no matter what.

Who knows when McLouth will be back. Quietly, he has the potential to be the worst contract the franchise has ever given out to a position player. Overtaking the Dmitri Young double down after the All-Star year on the cheap.

Dmitri Young 2008-2009
2 years/$10 million
50 G, 180 PA, .280/.394/.400
-0.3 fWAR/-0.5 rWAR

Nate McLouth 2013-2015
2 years/$10 million (with a $6.5 million team option in year 3 or a $750k buyout)
79 G, 162 PA, .173/.280/.237
-0.5 fWAR/-0.7 rWAR

So right now, if McLouth can't get back he'll presumably be paid $750,000 more for -0.2 worth of production than the club gave to Young.

Not sure if they overtake Jason Marquis as worst contract ever. Some mitigating factors with Marquis make it tougher to evaluate. He was traded at the deadline in the second year of the 2 year $15 million deal. And his FIP numbers weren't abysmal in year 2.

Depends what your measuring stick for production is, how much of the pro-rated salary Arizona picked up, and the fact he was flipped for decent bench bat Zach Walters who was later flipped for replacement level plug-in Asdrubal Cabrera.

preseason co-ace along with John Lannan

He'll probably get called up at some point.

That gives him 9 seasons. I'm sure at this point he's got to be thinking about getting a 10th year and that full player pension.

I always feel bad for guys like Dontrelle Willis who never make it back for that 10th season. He pitched 4 years for 4 different teams in AAA just hoping the phone would ring.

Is awesome

Dude has at least one web gem a game

And I love how he's mentoring mike Taylor

Raising em up


does it really matter?

wonder what bin's doing?
http://i.imgur.com/phECCMp.jpg

the consensus is the Nats will be fine without him, and I agree. all his wrist issues and age are concerning upon return, but he can still draw walks. and he wasn't doing much before he got hurt anyway.

Michael Taylor time.

He's a dick, his production was slipping, he gave us nothing in the playoffs...

They're sort of stuck with him because of that contract but if there were a way to move on I'd be straight with it.

But if Toronto moved Vernon Wells, anything is possible.

>They're sort of stuck with him because of that contract but if
>there were a way to move on I'd be straight with it.

Why is it always something with this guy

I dont think its a coincidence this happened right when werth went down

Zimmerman out (whose our 1st baseman of the future?)

Werth out.

What's going on

Just scuffling

No bueno


does it really matter?

wonder what bin's doing?
http://i.imgur.com/phECCMp.jpg

Rendon being back is good. It sounds like they are going to make a move to upgrade the bullpen. But yeah, really hot and cold. Still a contending team and with everybody healthy still as good as anybody. But a step behind where they should be now

Mets haven't gone on a tear or anything so that's good. Fister's been out for awhile, same for Stras (and he was one of the worst qualifying starters in MLB before that), and Zimmermann being mediocre so far...in the long run, I'm not worried about the starting pitching.

pen is dicier and I wonder how effective Werth and Zimmerman will be once they get back (they weren't doing much healthy), but I'm not panicking yet.

2-3 important bats are always hurt. A couple of overachievers carry the team to respectability until they all pull it together. Except for 2012,
Stras and Gio are inconsistent and eventually get it together. Defense is optional some series, others its stellar.

This season is all about Max and Bryce. Good lord, if Scherzer can pitch twice a series for us in the playoffs and Harper is healthish in October the regular season will not matter at all.

They could sweep the World Series or miss the playoffs at this point and I might not be shocked either way.

Joe Ross has been a good thing.

including the stud minor leaguers

once we get everyone healthy...if we can get everyone healthy...

thats always the case tho


does it really matter?

wonder what bin's doing?
http://i.imgur.com/phECCMp.jpg

just like that, back in first place and 3.5 up. praise be to the NL East.

The season pretty much starts now, with taylor continuing to fill in admirably for span and joe ross being the 2015 tanner roark for a few more games.

hopefully when stras gets back he has that focus he seemed to have regained before the second DL stint.

Gio, as has been his thing recently, started off slow but really has found himself over the last month. The dominant staff we thought we had might begin peaking at the right time.

Fister wont be pitching in the playoffs at this point, but is a fine as a fifth starter to fend off the Mets.

props to robinson for holding things down till zimmerman could get right. the question of course is whether zimmerman really is back. dude is super streaky...his babip pre-DL was terrible. he is due.

werth...wrist...age... not expecting much power, but he gets on base. He is also not Matt den Dekker, so there is that.

The nats just acquired Ian Desmond for the stretch run. pretty nice to have his bat around.

it has to get in storen's head a bit that they keep going after closers. At the same time, it shows that Rizzo is not playing around this season.

----------
"To face that guy twice a year is going to be a headache. He takes away from your enthusiasm for the game a little bit." Justin Tuck on (rookie-year) RG3

But the deal seems the closest. His velocity is on a 5 year decline, he's cut down on his walks and been able to really develop his slider to keep him effective. He's kind of evolved from a stuff closer to a guy who pitches a bit. He's not the world beater he was with the Red Sox, but he'd probably be the second best relief option right away on the team (maybe third if it's a left-handed hitter). If that option doesn't vest, I think I'd be cool with it.

but for a potential world series or bust rental, maybe papelbon would be tolerable.

----------
"To face that guy twice a year is going to be a headache. He takes away from your enthusiasm for the game a little bit." Justin Tuck on (rookie-year) RG3

If I'm storen I'm pissed.

no bullshit.

Papelbon? the most punchable face in MLB?

I don't have a ton of faith in October Storen* either, but this move just annoys me on selfishly personal reasons. ah well.

*if his ego is bruised, GOOD...pitch better in the playoffs and prove us wrong. if he falls apart after this, he was never to be trusted to begin with.

>*if his ego is bruised, GOOD...pitch better in the playoffs
>and prove us wrong. if he falls apart after this, he was never
>to be trusted to begin with.

the 8th is critical. he can kick butt and make us/someone pay him later or crumble and prove rizzo was right.



----------
"To face that guy twice a year is going to be a headache. He takes away from your enthusiasm for the game a little bit." Justin Tuck on (rookie-year) RG3

Maybe it'll change

lil concerned abt the mets i must admit


does it really matter?

wonder what bin's doing?
http://i.imgur.com/phECCMp.jpg

The big streak is coming soon.

The lineup is too strong and the bullpen is too long.

----------
"To face that guy twice a year is going to be a headache. He takes away from your enthusiasm for the game a little bit." Justin Tuck on (rookie-year) RG3

----------
"To face that guy twice a year is going to be a headache. He takes away from your enthusiasm for the game a little bit." Justin Tuck on (rookie-year) RG3

this post All Star run has been a disaster.

aside from a seven-game road trip to the west coast in a week, the rest of the schedule is favorable for a run. the whole "dominate" the regular season hasn't worked out in October so far, so maybe some late momentum will be better in the long run.

Nats struggled to score against very good pitching this weekend. Mets struggled a little less. They're still a team that was carrying a sub .300 OBP and last week was 1-66 over a stretch with runners in scoring position. Cespedes, Johnson, and Uribe aren't going to make a huge dent there.

Also, next week, the disembodied spirit of Lou Gehrig will leave Duda's body. That will be good. That ball he hit out off Zimmermann was video game shit. I think the list of active major leaguers who can not cheat on that pitch and consistently do damage on that is exclusively inhabited by Miguel Cabrera.

Nats are a more talented offensively inept team. That's what I'm betting on to carry the division. The guy that really worries me in the line-up at this point is Zimmerman. Although, Werth might have gotten old.

say, the rest of this year he's average or worse and there are 2 years left at 21m per.

The team's turn around may have had more to do lucking into stras and harper, and not resigning the willingham and dunns of the world, than signing werth. productive deals for ramos, span, gio, fister, could all have been done without werth around. His WAR will have only reached prime-Phillies levels 2 out of five years - which is pretty much what everyone would have guessed in a post-roids world. And the 7th year of the contract which was the most criticized aspect of the deal doesnt project to be pretty, especially with the move to left and his defensive value being diminished.

But his leadership in the clubhouse has been stressed repeatedly and i tend to think that rizzo had to go big at the time (its interesting to imagine what would be different had Rizzo landed other big fish like Greinke, teixeira or fielder). I can't make a data driven argument for werth on the field, but as a fan i still think he kinda jump started the new era in DC.

----------
"To face that guy twice a year is going to be a headache. He takes away from your enthusiasm for the game a little bit." Justin Tuck on (rookie-year) RG3

Not sure how the narrative will be written with respect to clubhouse culture and front office signals, but 2012-2014 MLB OBP leaders, minimum 1000 PA:

1. Joey Votto - .438
2. Andrew McCutchen - .405
3. Mike Trout - .403
4. Miguel Cabrera - .401
5. Troy Tulowitzki - .399
6. Joe Mauer -.395
7. Jayson Werth - .394
8. Paul Goldschmidt - .386

That is elite company. He's an incredible base runner and was an almost competent outfielder before the end of last year. Throw in 20+ HR pop, even with the injuries, the Nats are slightly ahead on value with Werth. That seemed impossible after that awful first year. Not sure how the last two years will play out, especially with injuries, but I think they'd do the same contract today in retrospect.

offensively they are atrocious.

they swept us. fine. but it wasnt like we got destroyed.

once we get werth, rendon, zim, etc in playing shape...we will be ok


does it really matter?

wonder what bin's doing?
http://i.imgur.com/phECCMp.jpg

I didn't realize how vital he was

Hes clearly the future and its not a knock on his talent but that table setting high on base speed guy at the top of the order we need...his plate discipline isn't there...yet.

Hes close. Lil more seasoning in Syracuse is needed

>once we get werth, rendon, zim, etc in playing shape...we will
>be ok

the mets are peaking and good for them. great story. fun staff to watch pitch.

but that homer by rendon was the easiest power swing you'll see. the bats are coming.

october is all that matters.

----------
"To face that guy twice a year is going to be a headache. He takes away from your enthusiasm for the game a little bit." Justin Tuck on (rookie-year) RG3

Nats are not playing around.

Despite the great ERA, Fister's FIP was quietly 3.93 last year. This move seems totally justifiable yet bold.

Not sure why Desmond cant get the same treatment except that he's a long time Expo/Nat with intangible leadership skills. But his bat is wack. His BABIP is 35 points lower than his career average, so maybe they think his luck will turn around. His K% and Hard% are both about 6% worse than his average and he's swinging outsize of the zone a bit more than usual. I know he hit a homer yesterday, but cmon, free Espi!

----------
"To face that guy twice a year is going to be a headache. He takes away from your enthusiasm for the game a little bit." Justin Tuck on (rookie-year) RG3

even if they win the division, their playoff odds are looking worse by the day. 45 games left though. now or never.

>even if they win the division

...it's a wrap.

if not for Harper's offense, this team would be AWFUL! aside from Harper and Escobar, everyone's having a career low season. it's fucked up that it's happening in the same damn season for this group!

bright spots? Trea Turner will probably join the team for September call-ups. after him, there's not much to call up for offense when looking to the future.

pitching call ups? yo...who's this kid Austen Williams? he got abused in his only outing at AAA, but he went from A to AAA in 1 season. skipped AA entirely.

what REALLY bothers me about the Nats, they don't embrace expectations and meet them. they don't well play as the favorite, they don't play with confidence (outside of Bryce).

between personnel and payroll, this team could be mediocre for a few years before they actually get out of a few contracts and start over in 2017.

6.5 back with no end in sight. this feels like the futile September chase of Atlanta back in 2013.

but yeah...i think its a wrap


does it really matter?

wonder what bin's doing?
http://i.imgur.com/phECCMp.jpg

maybe the mets collapse, but the nats don't deserve a shot.

matt williams has proven yall right. he's added no value as a manager.

do we hold rizzo accountable at all? his preferred manager can't manage a bullpen or order the pitching out of the break to put the mets out of contention. his guy refused to give espi time in august when he was one of our best hitters. he also potentially gave storen his marching papers.

its increasingly looking like 2012 was our shot. the werth and zimm contracts (if only from the perspective of healthy games likely played) over the next 2-3 years are not looking good and the mets and marlins are gonna be a problem in a more competitive division moving forward.

I am nitpicking here. Rizzo is obviously a great GM. But is he the Marty Schottenheimer/Marv Levy of GMs?

----------
"To face that guy twice a year is going to be a headache. He takes away from your enthusiasm for the game a little bit." Justin Tuck on (rookie-year) RG3

>its increasingly looking like 2012 was our shot. the werth and
>zimm contracts (if only from the perspective of healthy games
>likely played) over the next 2-3 years are not looking good
>and the mets and marlins are gonna be a problem in a more
>competitive division moving forward.

Why was 2012 the shot when they had the best record in the NL in 2014 and closed out the season 32-13? They had plenty of opportunity in that Giants series, lost 3 games by 1 run and the Giants offense was bad.

They should be very competitive next year. Ross slots in well, Giolito probably debuts next year and could be a game changer. Desmond to Turner might not be a drop-off at all. Michael A. Taylor should improve. I think a more healthy 2016 team could win 90 games. Whatever magic pixie dust is being sprinkled on that Mets line-up might have run out next year. It'd be fun to be in competition with another team in September for once.

>Why was 2012 the shot when they had the best record in the NL
>in 2014 and closed out the season 32-13? They had plenty of
>opportunity in that Giants series, lost 3 games by 1 run and
>the Giants offense was bad.

We know 2014 wasnt the shot just cuz it didnt happen. I guess they were missing a healthy zimmerman towards the end, but they are always missing a healthy zimmerman. Otherwise, they pretty much gave it their best shot and just failed. I've defended the decision to shut down stras and still get the rationale, but there is some unknown about the potential outcome of 2012...

>They should be very competitive next year. Ross slots in well,
>Giolito probably debuts next year and could be a game changer.
>Desmond to Turner might not be a drop-off at all. Michael A.
>Taylor should improve. I think a more healthy 2016 team could
>win 90 games. Whatever magic pixie dust is being sprinkled on
>that Mets line-up might have run out next year.

A lot of things could happen - Giolito, Turner, Ross, Taylor, maybe Roark step in and there is no real drop at all. All are young, mostly healthy guys and window stays open for another 3 years. If Stras reaches his potential consistently and Rendon returns to form, they could be great, but a lot has to click in order to go from competitive to favorites again.

It'd be fun to
>be in competition with another team in September for once.

I guess. I have an NFL/NBA mentality. I want you to go 12-4 and make the conference champ game. Win 55 games and make the ECF. Boswell talks about how emotionally hard it is to watch baseball for 162 games... i dont think i can take first round losses and missing the playoffs every other year after a 6 month reg season lol.


----------
"To face that guy twice a year is going to be a headache. He takes away from your enthusiasm for the game a little bit." Justin Tuck on (rookie-year) RG3

>I guess. I have an NFL/NBA mentality. I want you to go 12-4
>and make the conference champ game. Win 55 games and make the
>ECF. Boswell talks about how emotionally hard it is to watch
>baseball for 162 games... i dont think i can take first round
>losses and missing the playoffs every other year after a 6
>month reg season lol.

Yeah. My mentality is more baseball. I am not going to let a bad weekend in October invalidate my experiences of the last 6 months. I try and enjoy each game that I can. I love rolling up to a low key regular season game and just watching guys compete. I can't go for that championship or bust. Those RFK teams were a blast for me. Maybe that's just survivalist given the pace of DC sports in my lifetime.

Makes it easier to just roll up to the park on a humbug and see a game

Would it be awesome if they won hell yeah but whatever.

definitely enjoyed cheap lower bowl seats on stubhub.

----------
"To face that guy twice a year is going to be a headache. He takes away from your enthusiasm for the game a little bit." Justin Tuck on (rookie-year) RG3

that was ugly tonight.

5.94 ERA since the break. arbitration eligible next season. not backed by management. it's a shame.

I can't imagine a good market for him in the off season. Maybe let him go a couple months next season and flip in mid-season? If they just want to dump him, they'll find somebody to take him. Worse relievers get signed every year. But either way, it seems like the relationship is dead.

zim is en fuego
starting pitching FINALLY seems to be rounding into shape

fat lady is warming up...but it aint over yet


does it really matter?

wonder what bin's doing?
http://i.imgur.com/phECCMp.jpg

The Mets series is gonna be HUGE. But the Braves rout may just be a trap.

15 runs is a lot of runs and one would HAVE to assume the Mets will slide at some point, even if it is 3 or 4 straight losses. The real test will be next Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, our last crack at the Mets at home. You really need to almost sweep the Braves this weekend and take 2 of 3 from the Mets to keep any kind of dream alive.

Still, it's hard for me to muster up too much optimism when Williams' hilariously poor management of the bullpen becomes less and less excusable by the day. Twice this week we were up 5-3 over the NL's best team on the road in the 7th inning; twice we would collapse thanks to a bullpen that's by now notoriously fragile, all the while failing to bring in your only bullpen commodities in Storen and Papelbon during crucial situations.

>one would HAVE to assume the Mets will slide at some point, even if it is 3 or 4 straight losses

ya'll were dropping 6 in a row against the west coast at the same time though.

Granted that's an awful Braves club, but putting up a stupid amount of runs and getting consistent hitting from your stars is what should happen when you face a team that inept.

Nats are 4 back off the Mets with a 3 game series against them beginning tomorrow. If we have any belief in this still being a season, we need to prove it starting Monday. If we manage to salvage a season from the August wreckage then we'll point to Labor Day weekend as the turning point. And if we don't, we'll instead determine that all of these fun blowouts were for nothing.

Let's go have ourselves a season.

lose and we lose the series, major deflation for the old momentum and the mets at 6+ up with play

we MUST win tomorrow and actually the next day. got to. no excuses no tomorrow.

im kinda keeping my arm loose in case williams needs me to come in out the stands i got @ least 1 inning in me.

.

http://ic.pics.livejournal.com/louderback/95107/210205/210205_original.jpg

If I hadn't watched the 2012 NLDS, I'd say this is the worst collapse I've ever seen in a baseball game.


Least I've got the Skins to hold on to!

we've wasted two grand slams in back to back games. Granted Taylor's was an unorthodox one tonight, but still. I'm willing to bet no team has ever had back-to-back four point plays in consecutive losses.

I'd rather have Storen than Papelbon, but I doubt he'll ever be right in DC again.

season officially over. ah, relaxing in a way.

Even if they did make it no lead is safe with this bullpen so having hope is futile.

I thought man we're gonna lose this but even if we miraculously did make the playoffs what kind of noise could we even make with these bums in the pen?

in the long line of sports losses ive endured...as a houston sports fan all my life...and now with the nats...

got to be...in the top 5.

i was running some errands listening on the fan and was begging someone...ramos...the pitching coach...hell Screech SOMEBODY to go out to the mound. TALK to these fools.

we have no leadership. bryce cant big dog on cats like zimmerman and werth he has more talent but no seniority. zimmermans hurt all the time, werths overpaid

its just sad. i dunno im blown.


does it really matter?

wonder what bin's doing?
http://i.imgur.com/phECCMp.jpg

this team hasn't been good for awhile. catching the Mets was more of a desert mirage the past few weeks than a real thing (just like the chase of Atlanta two seasons ago).

2012 NLDS Game 5 is still the worst for any Nats fan. biggest postseason collapse in a deciding game...ever.

yes that NLDS loss was worse.

oilers coughing up a 28 pt lead in the fucking playoffs is THE worst. for me.

but yeah...this is in that discussion

the pen just cant do its job.

last year when soriano lost his grove, they replaced him with storen and kept the ship moving.

this year they have no one else to go to. and the irony of clip closing the door this series...

yunel has done everything right to make the trade work on paper. the infield injuries suffered this year made his presence critical...

but they should have brought clip back at the deadline.

----------
"To face that guy twice a year is going to be a headache. He takes away from your enthusiasm for the game a little bit." Justin Tuck on (rookie-year) RG3

http://espn.go.com/mlb/story/_/id/13639604/drew-storen-washington-nationals-suffers-broken-right-thumb-resulting-slamming-locker-shut

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OAZG2duVte4


does it really matter?

wonder what bin's doing?
http://i.imgur.com/phECCMp.jpg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Y7NVBnkOos
----------
"To face that guy twice a year is going to be a headache. He takes away from your enthusiasm for the game a little bit." Justin Tuck on (rookie-year) RG3

https://img.washingtonpost.com/rf/image_1484w/2010-2019/WashingtonPost/2015/09/27/Production/Daily/Sports/Images/490330798-2217.jpg?uuid=i7vPxGVfEeWDJaQrWkWbHg

After Harper flied out and jogged to first base, Paplebon appeared to say “run that out” to the outfielder from the top step of the dugout as Harper walked off the field. Papelbon and Harper kept talking as Harper walked down the dugout steps. The conversation got more heated and escalated into yelling, and then Papelbon reached for Harper’s neck.

Papelbon, who got the last out of the eighth inning, stayed in with the score tied and gave up a two-home run to Andres Blanco. Papelbon drew loud boos from fans at Nationals Park and was finally pulled after 32 pitches. He was charged with five of the eight runs the Phillies scored in the ninth. -- WP

****

fuck Papelbon. fuck Rizzo for bringing him in.

I know cats werent into the williams hiring. That was Rizzo's hand picked guy and he lost the team. Rizzo has to get it right this time.

who would you want to see interviewed now?

Should Randy Knorr get a shot or is it time to clean house?

----------
"To face that guy twice a year is going to be a headache. He takes away from your enthusiasm for the game a little bit." Justin Tuck on (rookie-year) RG3

http://www.cbssports.com/mlb/writer/jon-heyman/25324936/inside-baseball-nationals-to-let-williams-go-and-more-mlb-moves

Davey Johnson...

2012: First full year as Nationals manager, most wins in NL, Manager of Year, first round playoff disappointment
2013: Underachieving season, miss playoffs

Matt Williams...

2014: First full year as Nationals manager, most wins in NL, Manager of Year, first round playoff disappointment
2015: Underachieving season, miss playoffs

TBD...

https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/nationals/nationals-fire-matt-williams-after-two-seasons/2015/10/05/482f6248-69fb-11e5-9223-70cb36460919_story.html

interestingly, the whole staff was fired. So no randy knorr then.

----------
"To face that guy twice a year is going to be a headache. He takes away from your enthusiasm for the game a little bit." Justin Tuck on (rookie-year) RG3

im not with firing managers for players dull performance, i think stability is the KEY variable in making a team go but there was no cutting werth or harper or any other malcontent...so Williams takes the L

good luck to him we had a decent run.

what manager would wanna come in here now?

rizzo is on the hot seat next year

they were close to hiring him before.