Game 44: Nats at Padres

Photo by USA Today

Today the Nationals play the finale of their four-game series against the Padres out at Petco Park with what looks almost like a spring training lineup. Bryce Harper is out again with a sore left knee, there is no Jayson Werth of course, and Ian Desmond is taking a scheduled day off. Danny Espinosa will move over to shortstop with Steve Lombardozzi playing second.

Dan Haren (4-4, 4.76) will take the hill vs. San Diego after a string of good outings. He is 2-1 with a 3.00 ERA in the month of May so far. He has seen a lot of the Padres over the years having formerly been in their division with Arizona. In 14 career starts against the club, Haren has a 3.39 ERA across 95 2/3 innings.

Pitching for the Padres is 26-year-old Andrew Cashner (2-2, 2.84) who is off the best start of his young career. He has made five relief appearances against the Nationals over the last four years and has yet to allow a run to the team.

Enjoy the game...

WASHINGTON NATIONALS at SAN DIEGO PADRES
Where: Petco Park
Gametime: 4:10 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN2, MLB.tv
Radio: WJFK (106.7 FM), WFED (1500), XM 188
Weather: Sunny, 69 degrees

NATIONALS (23-20)
CF Denard Span
2B Steve Lombardozzi
3B Ryan Zimmerman
1B Adam LaRoche

A piece of D.C. baseball history

Over the last few years since my grandmother passed away, my parents have been slowly going through her belongings, items and boxes that scattered across a large basement at her house in Laurel, Md. Among the discoveries they have made is the fact my great grandfather - on my Dad's side - was the batboy for the Washington Senators sometime in the early 20th century. We don't know the exact years, but he was around evidently when Walter Johnson was active as a player. 

In searching through the boxes, my parents made quite the find: a pamphlet autographed by 'The Big Train' himself, signed at his 50th Birthday Testimonial Dinner at the Mayflower Hotel. The event was held on Nov. 6, 1937, just two years after he retired as manager of the Cleveland Indians.

Inside the program is plenty of interesting stuff, especially considering the time period. For example, the advertisements themselves are rather unique. It doesn't seem like many of the companies are still in business and their slogans are appropriate only for back then. My favorite would have to be Burnstine's pawn shop that says: 'You can hock anything here but your wife.' A car ad bragging their vehicle can hit 35 miles per hour is also pretty funny.

There is also a story called 'Life is Just a Game of Innings' that recalls Johnson's career in nine installments, adapted to reflect the game of baseball. It also serves as the night's dinner menu, I believe, as abstract as that sounds. I have pictures of each page below for you all to see.

Game 43: Nats at Padres

Photo by USA Today

Though it took extra innings last night, the Nationals beat the Padres for their second straight win and will now look for three in a row with Jordan Zimmermann on the mound. The Nats' right-hander leads the majors in wins with seven and will look for his eighth against a club he has had success against in the past. Zimmermann has started three games against San Diego, holding a 1.42 ERA across 19 innings pitched. He has taken the mound twice at Petco Park, going 1-0 with a 0.69 mark.

Pitching for the Padres will be 33-year-old lefthander Eric Stults. Stults split time with the White Sox and Padres last year and posted a 2.91 ERA through 99 innings. This year, however, he has struggled with a 4.57 mark in eight starts.

Stults will be making his first career start against the Nationals. The only two Nats that have faced him in their career are Dan Haren and Adam LaRoche. LaRoche is in the lineup tonight and is 0-for-2 against the lefty in two plate appearances.

One standout of the Nats' lineup is the absence of Bryce Harper, reports out of San Diego say it's due to a sore left knee.

Enjoy the game...

WASHINGTON NATIONALS at SAN DIEGO PADRES
Where: Petco Park
Gametime: 8:40 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN, WUSA 9, MLB.tv
Radio: WJFK (106.7 FM), WFED (1500), XM 188
Weather: Partly cloudy, 64 degrees, Wind 7 mph LF to RF

NATIONALS (23-19)
CF Denard Span
LF Steve Lombardozzi
3B Ryan Zimmerman
1B Adam LaRoche

Nats quarterly report-5/18

Photo by USA Today

A baseball season can’t be broken into perfect fourths due to a total of 162 games, but the Nats basically entered the second quarter of their season on Thursday in playing their 41^st game. Here is a look at the team through roughly one-fourth of the year and how they compare to last season, plus some predictions for the next 41 games.

Lineup

Aside from Bryce Harper, Ian Desmond, and Denard Span, everyone else in the Nats’ lineup hasn’t been playing up to their capabilities. Injuries have been a significant factor, but that excuse doesn’t apply to everybody. Danny Espinosa has simply struggled, and Adam LaRoche is still recovering from his forgettable April. As a whole they don’t get on base, strike out too much, and don’t make the most of opportunities.

After ranking among the top ten teams in the majors in team batting average, runs scored, and home runs in 2012, the Nats are among the ten worst teams in each of those categories this season. Their team OPS is second worst only to the Marlins and their batting average is third worst. Espinosa is the posterboy for these struggles, but he’s not the only one at fault. Harper and Desmond are the only members of the Opening Day lineup that aren’t hitting below their career batting averages. That applies to Kurt Suzuki as well.

Game 42: Nats at Padres

USA Today Sports Images

The Nationals go for two in a row at Petco Park.

Nothing like a dominant Stephen Strasburg outing and a rare offensive explosion to make everybody feel better, right? The Nationals certainly got back on track last night thanks to eight strong innings from their would-be ace and some offensive fireworks from Bryce Harper and Adam LaRoche.

Now they'll look to keep it going tonight against the Padres' starter, a young man by the name of Burch Smith. Yes, Burch Smith. He made his major-league debut six days ago against the Rays ... and got knocked out after allowing six runs in one inning. So he boasts a career ERA of 54.00. Yikes. The 23-year-old right-hander, an 11th-round draft pick in 2011, did post a 1.15 ERA at Class AA, so he's obviously got some talent. But talk about being thrown to the wolves...

Gio Gonzalez gets the nod for the Nationals, looking to build off his really strong previous start in which he held the Cubs to two hits over seven innings but then was surprisingly pulled for a pinch-hitter and wound up with no decision.

Enjoy the game and the conversation. Chase will have you covered over the weekend, and then I'll be back on the case Monday...

WASHINGTON NATIONALS at SAN DIEGO PADRES
Where: Petco Park
Gametime: 10:10 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN2, MLB.tv
Radio: WJFK (106.7 FM), WFED (1500), XM 188
Weather: Partly cloudy, 64 degrees, Wind 7 mph LF to RF

NATIONALS (22-19)
CF Denard Span
LF Steve Lombardozzi
RF Bryce Harper
3B Ryan Zimmerman