Nats Notebook- Trading Deadline, Season Lifeline.

August 31 and Labor Day weekend do not always go hand in hand, but those are two key signposts in a normal baseball season.  This year they represent a trading deadline and a little over the halfway mark of the regular season. By losing five of six games they’ve dropped to under 12-19 which puts them on pace for 23-37 on the season. It’s also the equivalent of 19-31.  And unlike 2019 Stephen Strasburg is not pitching every fifth day this September.  The final day of August this year is also the MLB trading deadline, but these deals are even more difficult to make because the prospects usually thrown into late-summer swaps would normally be playing minor league ball instead of behind closed doors at training sites like Fredericksburg.  Traditionally the trading deadline in DC has meant attempting to upgrade a sagging bullpen;  this year the Nats relievers own a 4.32 ERA (14th in MLB).  But as bad as this season looks now and as logical as it would be to turn one’s eye towards 2021–they’re not completely out of contention.

Santangelo Math- the MASN TV analyst mentioned on the air that with the shortened schedule, each game is now worth “2.7” games on a 162-game slate.  So the Nats are now “32-51” for what it is worth.  In order to reach the equivalent of last year’s 93-win team they’d need to post a 22-7 mark this month.  The shadows grow longer as summer comes to a close.

Dissecting the Division- Atlanta (19-14) isn’t just the only NL East team with a winning record, the Braves are also the only club with a positive run differential.  That’s good enough for the number three seed this fall.  Miami and Philadelphia (14-15) are tied for second, with whoever takes the tiebraker earning the fifth seed and the loser taking eighth. The New York Mets (15-19) are a game and a half back while the Nats may be in last but are just three games out of the playoffs.

O’s Woes- sorry, but we’ve put “Break up the Birds” on the bench for the moment. Eight losses in ten games have the O’s four and a half games out of a playoff berth at 14-19. The seventh best offense in the bigs couldn’t carry the 19th best pitching staff forever.  Even though they’re not on pace to match last year’s record-305 (113 over a 60-game season) home runs, they are allowing 46 which is tied for sixth most in the majors.  And now Tommy Milone’s been traded to Atlanta.  They didn’t even give me time to get to the team shop to purchase my jersey.

Anthony’s Song (Movin’ Out)- Tony two-bags came down from his .531 mountaintop to hit in a .188 valley last week, dropping the former Nationals third baseman’s batting average to .299.  He’s still leading the team with 24 walks.  The Angels are 12-23 and are tied for the second-worst mark in the majors.

Last Week’s Heroes- Trea Turner hit .519 while scoring a team-high six runs.  Howie Kendrick hit .375 with a homer and five RBI and while Juan Soto is no longer hitting .400 he batted .346 with two homers and five RBI.  Adam Eaton was dropped in the batting order to sixth and drove in a team-high seven runs.  Max Scherzer struck out 11 over six innings while directing the Nats to their lone victory of the week.

Last Week’s Humbled- Austin Voth started twice last week and allowed 11 runs over 5.2 innings. Anibal Sanchez allowed five runs in five innings in his lone start, and Erick Fedde has become a human rain dance (his start last week was truncated due to mid-game rains while his start in Atlanta was rained out). Asdrubal Cabrera hit .143 while Luis Garcia batted .158.  Carter Kieboom was optioned to the training site after striking out 20 times in 64 at bats without an extra base hit.

Game to Watch- Wednesday Max Scherzer pitches against the Phillies;  if the Nats are going to find a way back into the playoff picture they’re going to need to climb over the Phillies.  And in a season where so many things are going wrong, Max Scherzer represents what can go right.

Game to Miss- Saturday the Nationals face NL East-leading Atlanta while Labor Day weekend offers a different distraction:  the Kentucky Derby was postponed due to COVID-19 concerns earlier this year and even thought they won’t be having fans at Churchill Downs, it’s the DERBY.  There may even be a Bus Captain decked out in madras jacket and breathable fedora enjoying a Manhattan or Mint Julep.  Plus, Erick Fedde is supposed to start and if there’s anything we’ve learned it’s that Fedde on the mound means a monsoon in the skies.

Nats Notebook- Strasburg Shutdown.

No matter what happens over the next month and change, the 2020 Nationals season took a major turn over this past weekend when pitcher Stephen Strasburg was placed on the 60-day Injured List.  “Carpal Tunnel Syndrome” was not something I expected to see end the World Series MVP’s season.  I was hoping that 2019 would represent a turning point in the right-hander’s career:  he led the NL in wins and innings pitched while notching career highs in victories and strikeouts before becoming an October star.  Strasburg went 5-0 with a 2.23 ERA and 47 strikeouts over 36.1 frames and saved the Nats’ bacon in the Wild Card Game with three scoreless relief innings.  Instead, 2020 will be the outlier years of all outlier years as the defending champs try to scrape their way back to the playoff pack minus their best pitcher from 2019.  The grind will continue, but the margin for error is that much slimmer minus a major piece of the pitching rotation.

 

Santangelo Math- the MASN TV analyst mentioned on the air that with the shortened schedule, each game is now worth “2.7” games on a 162-game slate.  So the Nats are now “30-38” for what it is worth.

Dissecting the Division- Atlanta owns first place at 16-12 and would score the third seed in the NL Playoffs if the season were to end today.  Miami at 11-11 is in second gets the sixth seed while the third place New York Mets (12-14) are currently eighth, one-half game ahead of the Nationals (11-14) and a full game ahead of Philadelphia (10-14).  As you can see, the COVID-19 postponements are playing a little with the standings, but eventually everyone will play the same games. I think.

Break up the Birds- the O’s may have lost six in a row, but back to back wins over a bad Boston team have the club back at .500 and in contention for the eighth and final playoff spot (they’re currently tied with Toronto).  Anthony Santander’s hitting streak has reached 18 games, and there’s no reason not to think this team won’t be in the mix one month from now during the final days of the shortened season.

Anthony’s Song (Movin’ Out)- Tony two-bags may have tallied only a pair of doubles last week, but the Nats former third baseman hit .531 (17 of 32) to move over .300 for the season.  His 1.012 OPS is currently 12th in the majors.  Unfortunately the Los Angeles Angels are one of four teams that have yet to reach ten wins on the season, and one of the other three is 9-8 St. Louis.  At least the weather is nice.

Last Week’s Heroes- Trea Turner hit .409 with a team-high 7 runs and 5 RBI while Yon Gomes batted .417 with a pair of home runs.  But rookie Luis Garcia made a big splash by hitting .400 with a home run in his first full week at the Major League level. Anibal Sanchez tossed seven solid innings Sunday for his best start of 2020 while Will Harris, Tanner Rainey, and Kyle Finnegan each posted three scoreless relief outings.

Last Week’s Humbled- Daniel Hudson’s ninth-inning hiccup Monday night in Atlanta appears to be just that–an off-night during an otherwise solid season. Austin Voth allowed five runs over four innings in his lone start.  Adam Eaton hit .200; hopefully his two-out, two-run double Sunday will be the start of a spark.  Carter Kieboom batted .111 but walked five times, including in a bases-loaded situation Sunday.

Game to Watch- Thursday the Nats wrap up their series with Philadelphia as Max Scherzer takes to the mound against Aaron Nola.  Skip Scherzday at your own risk.

Game to Miss- Friday the Nationals begin a series against AL East cellar-dwelling Boston.  Yes, the team that won the World Series the year before the Nats are 9-20 and are in a major rebuild after trading away their best homegrown player this century in Mookie Betts. My friend Sully From Southie remains wicked upset regarding these developments and is thankful his Celtics and Bruins have advanced to the second rounds of the playoffs to keep his attention at least until he starts worrying about the possibilities of an 0-16 Patriots season. The final pre-Labor Day weekend Friday is also a great chance for me to visit the Georgetown Waterfront one final time; while 2020 has not been a summer for hanging out at Tony & Joe’s I’ll be down there in spirit as I enjoy a beverage on my balcony. 

Nats Notebook- Pitching Problems.

In 2019 the Nationals were able to go from 19-31 to the World Series thanks to a starting rotation that hit its stride after the All Star Game: even with Max Scherzer’s back issues the trio of Stephen Strasburg, Patrick Corbin and Anibal Sanchez combine to go 21-6 after the midseason hiatus.  As the team is approaching the one-third mark of the shortened season, Sanchez is struggling while Strasburg is on the shelf with nerve issues in his right wrist.  Over the weekend, Scherzer gave up three homers while Corbin allowed five runs in his most recent outing.  So far this summer Austin Voth (0-2, 3.21 ERA over three starts) and Erick Fedde (1-1, 2.55 ERA over two starts and three relief appearances) have been adequate but not awesome; recent issues with Strasburg and Sanchez may change their success from an added bonus to a necessity.

Santangelo Math- the MASN TV analyst mentioned on the air that with the shortened schedule, each game is now worth “2.7” games on a 162-game slate.  So the Nats are now “21.6-29.7” for what it is worth.  But let’s realize they don’t need to get to 93-69 (34-26 equivalent) to make the playoffs this year; using 2020 rules the Cubs at 85-77 (31-29) would have snared the 8th and final seed in the NL last year.

Dissecting the Division- Miami and Atlanta are tied for first, but the Marlins 9-6 mark is potentially prone to a major standings swing as they’ve played eight fewer games than the Braves.  Philadelphia’s 8-9 and in third place, or one-half game out of the eighth and final playoff spot in the National League.  The Nats are 8-11 and one full game out of third while the New York Mets have found the cellar at 9-14 after a three game losing streak.

Break up the Birds- the O’s after dropping two of three to the Nationals find themselves 12-9 and in third place of the AL East, and as the third place team with the best record in the American League are in position to earn the number seven seed.  Anthony Santander is enjoying a breakout year with 17 runs scored, 7 homers and 22 RBI while former Nationals catcher Pedro Severino has seen his bat wake up in Baltimore.  Severino in 115 games with the Orioles is hitting .263 with 18 HR and 62 RBI;  he batted .187 with 4 HR and 22 RBI in 105 games for the Nats. By the way, the seventh seed in the American League currently draws the New York Yankees.

Anthony’s Song (Movin’ Out)- now this is what we were saying goodbye to when the former Nats third baseman signed elsewhere.  Rendon bounced back from a slow (.103) start by going 8 for 20 with 5 homers and 7 RBI.  He also walked six times to post a .538 on base percentage for the week.  His 20 walks this season are tied for second in the majors.  Rendon’s new team?  Currently 7-15 after four straight losses and attempting to climb back into the AL West race.  For those using FP math, that’s the equivalent of a 19-41 start.

Last Week’s Heroes- Juan Soto hits .462 with 5 homers and 12 RBI and looks like the next DC sports superstar.  Trea Turner bats .433 with 3 HR and 6 RBI while scoring 10 runs atop the order.  Asdrubal Cabrera continues to be a bat for opponents to worry about, hitting 3 homers with 8 RBI.  Max Scherzer wins both of his starts while striking out 17 over 13 innings.  Daniel Hudson tallies two saves while Tanner Rainey adds a pair of holds. 

Last Week’s Humbled- Anibal Sanchez allowed five earned runs over 2.2 innings and is now 0-3 with a 9.69 ERA.  Seth Romero posted an ERA of 21.60 while Ryne Harper’s ERA was 18.00.  Carter Kieboom hit .211 while Eric Thames batted .077.

Game to Watch- Saturday Max Scherzer starts against the Marlins Saturday at 4:05.  Late enough to enjoy some precious pool-time while early enough to enjoy a nice dinner-especially with the seven-inning format for doubleheader games.  And Max is on the mound.

Game to Miss- Tuesday the Nats visit Atlanta.  While the Braves are currently the team to beat in the NL East the Washington Capitals are fighting for their playoff lives as they face a potential sweep at the hands of former coach Barry Trotz and the New York Islanders.  It was the Isles who first eliminated the Caps from the playoffs in 1984, and it was NY that first officially broke the heart of Capitals fans early Easter morning in 1987.  Despite the Nats’ season being half-full and the Caps’ campaign mostly empty, I’ll be focused on hockey-at least for one more night this summer.

Nats Notebook- Tales of the Troubled Tarp.

In a short 60-game season like this one, the little things will be magnified.  Especially during the early stages when there is a limited sample size (the Nats are still in the first 20% of their schedule).  If Anibal Sanchez struggles for a second straight start and that’s all you have to go by in 2020, you’re concerned.  If the bullpen blows a 3-0 lead the next night, you’re alarmed because the few games that have been played don’t offer a ton of evidence–and you have to go on something.

That’s why Sunday’s game with the Orioles will be the early benchmark for a while.  It had a little of everything:  a solid start by Stephen Strasburg that faded in a fifth inning where the Orioles plated five runs, missed opportunities with runners on base early, and the disaster of unrolling the tarp onto the field during a rain delay that resembled the keystone cops and resulted in the first base side looking like the beach at low tide.  We’ve all made mistakes while making beds and folding blankets, right?  Imagine doing it under the watchful eye of Major League Baseball.  And wouldn’t you know that in today’s social media climate, video and pictures of the tarp and its troubles would be front and center.  Due to the fact that the infield was unplayable, the game was suspended–so they’ll finish that matchup Friday when the Nats visit the O’s.  I’m hoping for clear skies.

Santangelo Math- the MASN TV analyst mentioned on the air that with the shortened schedule, each game is now worth “2.7” games on a 162-game slate.  So the Nats are now “10.8-18.9” for what it is worth.  It’s not exactly 19-31, but would translate to 18.1-31.9.

Dissecting the Division- Atlanta leads the NL East with an 11-6 mark, outscoring opponents by 27 runs (third best in the majors).  Miami is in second place at 7-3 thanks to their four games sweep of the Orioles.  The New York Mets (7-9) and Philadelphia (4-6) are tied for third, and the 4-7 Nats find themselves in the NL East Cellar with the vibe of last year’s World Series mojo seemingly a million miles away.  They now begin a 10-game road trip.  At least they host the Marlins at the end of this rainbow.

Break up the Birds- “O’s Woes” reared their ugly head while getting swept by the Marlins, but they got their early season vibe back thanks to consecutive wins over the Nats.  The lineup that ranks fourth in the majors in getting on base and sixth in slugging has plated 70 runs, 12th best in MLB.  Renato Nunez hit 31 homers for the O’s last year, and this summer he’s off to a hot start with 5 blasts in the first 14 games.

Anthony’s Song (Movin’ Out)- the former Nats third baseman went hitless in 19 at bats last week, dropping his batting average to .103.  He did walk four times, although he no longer leads the league in that category.  The Angels batted Rendon fifth Sunday, right in front of former teammate Brian Goodwin.

Last Week’s Heroes- Howie Kendrick hit .462 with a home run and did that whole shifting gears thing in the dugout with Adam Eaton.  Asdrubal Cabrera batted .455 while Juan Soto in his first action of the season went 5-14 at the plate with a home run.  Austin Voth in his only start pitched five scoreless innings.  Tanner Rainey and Kyle Finnegan combined for 4.2 scoreless innings over four appearances.

Last Week’s Humbled- Anibal Sanchez didn’t cough up any home runs, but still allowed five runs over 5.1 innings against an Orioles team that had just been swept by Miami. Stephen Strasburg had a rough fifth inning against the O’s, he’ll be much better moving forward as he gets into a groove.  Trea Turner (.105) and Adam Eaton (.111) had less than ideal weeks atop the lineup while Victor Robles batted .077.

Game to Watch- Tuesday the Nationals face the Mets with Max Scherzer on the mound.  Hopefully his hamstring is okay- Scherzer’s last start was shortened to one inning due to a “tweak”.  In a short season one cannot afford a ton of tweaks, especially with Stephen Strasburg still gaining altitude and Anibal Sanchez having issues.

Game to Miss- Thursday Austin Voth pitches a matinee against the Mets, with New York starting “David Peterson”.  I’ve been called “Dave Peterson” on TV, been registered for a road race as “Don Preston”, and regularly called “Don Peterson” by my co-workers in the WTOP newsroom.  I’m going to consciously object to watching this Peterson fellow, hope Voth tosses another strong start, and hope somebody on-air accidentally calls him Preston.

Nats Notebook- One Pressing Pause.

So much for a “normal” delayed shortened season with new extra inning rules.  MLB couldn’t even go a full week before losing games, and now the standings looks like the WFL or ABA when teams were folding mid-season.  The Nationals’ weekend series with Miami was postponed, while Philadelphia lost an entire week of games.  So the usual snapshot involves even less of a limited sample.

Santangelo Math- the MASN TV analyst mentioned on the air that with the shortened schedule, each game is now worth “2.7” games on a 162-game slate.  So the Nats are now “8.1-10.8” for what it is worth.  No “new math” was needed to recognize the 25th anniversary of F.P.’s Major League call-up with the Expos.  In a world where we can’t all be stars, here’s to a grinder who stuck with more than a few big league rosters.

Dissecting the Division- Atlanta owns the early division lead at 7-3 with Miami’s 2-1 mark good enough for second place;  who knows when the Marlins resume their season after 18 players and two coaches tested positive for COVID-19 while in Philadelphia.  The Nats at 3-4 are in third while the 1-2 Phillies will have to make up a ton of games when and if things get back to normal.  Thank goodness the Mets (3-7) are getting things done with their lack or run support for Jacob deGrom and Yoenis Cespedes disappearing mid-series.

Break up the Birds- “O’s Woes” are a mere memory as the Orioles sweep Tampa Bay; they’re 5-3 start is the team’s best since 2017 when they jumped out of the gates by winning six of eight.  Rio Ruiz is hitting .318 with 3 homers and 7 RBI while Alex Cobb has a 2.89 ERA over two starts.  But they’re still chasing the 7-1 New York Yankees.  As is everyone.

Anthony’s Song (Movin’ Out)- the former Nats third baseman after sitting out the first weekend with a tight oblique played all six games for the Angels.  He’s hitting .200 (4-for-30) to start the season but has a league-high 10 walks.  LA may be 3-7 but the season is still early and eight AL teams will make the postseason. Don’t be surprised if Tony Two Bags is raking in October.

Last Week’s Heroes- Starlin Castro is probably the player most upset about the weeken off as he hit 7-15 (.467) against Toronto.  Trea Turner batted .368 against the Blue Jays. Max Scherzer struck out 10 over 7.1 scoreless innings while Sam Freeman and Daniel Hudson tossed scoreless innings of relief.

Last Week’s Humbled- Anibal Sanchez allowed four home runs over five innings in his first start of the season while Stephen Strasburg has yet to make a regular season start in 2020.  Asdrubal Cabrera went 2-for-18 at the plate last week.  MLB lost 20 games on its schedule to positive COVD-19 tests.

Game to Watch- Tuesday the Nats welcome the New York Mets for two games as one team looks to recapture its rhythm (two straight wins) while the other tries to come out of a serious spiral (five straight losses for the Mets).

Game to Miss- Sunday the Nationals and Orioles wrap up their series at 12:35 p.m.  In the summer heat.  This is Washington DC, where Congress flees in August and a President died due to the summer swelter (despite conspiracy theorists who think Zachary Taylor’s milk & cherries was laced with arsenic).  I’ll be by the pool for my one hour before retreating indoors to air conditioning and Elvis movies.

Nats Flashback- Spelling out Possibilities.

PORTIONS ORIGINALLY POSTED July 8, 2019.

The Nationals received their World Series rings this week-with a near-major error. Series MVP Stephen Strasburg noticed the box his ring arrived in had his name spelled incorrectly. For those who recall the days of “Natinals” on Ryan Zimmerman’s jersey and the team store once sold “Teddy Rosevelt” dolls, this wouldn’t have been out of the realm of possibility.  Thank goodness the ring was engraved correctly–that’s much harder to change than writing on a box.  At this time last year the Nats had just moved into the Wild Card lead at the All Star break.  Let’s see how they got there.

As always, 2020 thoughts to things written in 2019 are in boldface italics.

 

“Breaktime!”

The Nats enter the All Star break as the hottest team in the Major Leagues, having won 28 of 39 to move into the Wildcard lead.  But are they that far removed from the team that started 19-31?  Despite taking four of six, the bullpen that was leaky over the first two months still had issues over the weekend.  And despite the cosmetic changes, the relievers’ ERA remains a big league-worst 6.06 while their 18 blown saves is tied for second-most in the majors (behind the flammable Mets).  While getting a healthy lineup (at one point the second through fifth hitters in order were on the Injured List) was a big factor in the team’s turnaround, it didn’t hurt that they’ve built momentum while facing a slew of sub-.500 teams.  When they come back from their midseason hiatus, they’ll face Philadelphia (one-half game back for the Wildcard lead), while division leading Atlanta and the Los Angeles Dodgers also loom later this month.  It’s a long way to October.  But the road looks much more pleasant than it did a month and a half ago.

For the record, they’d go 2-1 against Philadelphia, 1-2 against the Dodgers, and 3-4 against the Braves in July.  Not ideal, but not deadly.

 

Digesting the Division- Atlanta after a 4-2 week leads the NL East with a 54-37 mark as they’re well-represented at the All Star Break by Freddie Freeman, who’s batting .309 with 23 HR and 68 RBI, and Ronald Acuna.  The Nats are 47-42 and six games back while leading the Wildcard.  The #2 Wildcard team is Philadelphia at 46-43 after a 3-3 week; J.T. Realmuto heads to Cleveland on the strength of his 10 homers and 42 RBI.  The New York Mets may be 40-50 but they possess the Home Run Derby champ in rookie Pete Alonso, who also has 30 HR at the break.  The Marlins? At 33-55 they’re on track for another 100-loss campaign despite the solid pitching of All Star Sandy Alcantara.

Believe it or not, the Mets would boast an NL East-best 46-26 mark after the break (the Nats were 46-27).  Meanwhile the Marlins would not disappoint, going 24-50 after the hiatus.

 

Harper’s Weekly- a .292 week moves Bryce over the .250 mark, and he’s on pace to hit 29 HR with 112 RBI-although for the record he’s played more than 150 games just twice in his career.  He’s also cutting down on his strikeouts-the pace of 189 is no longer league-leading.

Bryce would bat .270 with 19 homers and 52 RBI in 67 games after the break (that prorates to 45 & 125 over 162 game seasons) while the Phils would play 34-38 ball the rest of the way.

 

O’s Woes- finally an extended run of success.  The Birds won three straight games last week and have won five of nine to improve to 27-62 (.303-or on a 49-win pace).  John Means (7-4, 2.50 ERA) represents the Orioles at the Midsummer Classic.

The Birds would win 27 games after the break to finish 54-108.  Means would post a 5-7 mark with a 4.85 ERA to fall back to earth after a great start.

 

Last Week’s Heroes- Max Scherzer struck out 11 over seven scoreless innings while going 1-2 at the plate with a stolen base.  Stephen Strasburg K’d 14 over 7.1 scoreless frames.  Patrick Corbin tossed 14 scoreless frames. Sean Doolittle notched two wins plus one save in relief.  Ryan Zimmerman hit .429 with a pair of RBI while Juan Soto hit .333 with four RBI and four runs scored.

Yes, Max stole a base.  Something we’re going to miss this year with the DH in all games.

 

Last Week’s Humbled- Yan Gomes hit 1-for-11 while Matt Adams batted 1-for-10 with five strikeouts. Jonny Venters and Fernando Rodney suffered hiccups out of the bullpen while Austin Voth allowed four runs over 4.1 innings in his third Major League start this year.

Jonny Venters?  The random guys who pitched for this team last year boggles the mind. The 34-year old lefthander wouldn’t appear in a Major League game after the All Star break.  And Fernando Rodney was walking the tightrope between looking mahvelous and needing a little respect.  Thank goodness for 80’s comedy.

 

Games to Watch- Friday, Saturday and Sunday the Nats face the Phillies.  Max Scherzer is already ticketed to pitch the series finale, and one can easily see Stephen Strasburg and Patrick Corbin starting the Friday and Saturday games in some order.  A potential Wildcard Game preview?  I’ll be locked in for all three.

I’m looking forward to checking out those box scores.

 

 

Nats Flashback- Max’s Magical Month.

ORIGINALLY POSTED July 1, 2019.

The Nationals begin…what shall we call it?  Spring Training 2.0? Summer Training? Minicamp?  Whatever we wind up calling it, they’ll be minus Ryan Zimmerman and Joe Ross with each opting out of the 60-game summer sprint.  Zimmerman’s mother has MS and his wife just gave birth;  Ross is less than three years removed from Tommy John Surgery.  Sean Doolittle may very well join them on the sidelines, as his wife has a chronic lung condition.  And the fact that it took players and owners this long to get a deal in place was less than ideal.  Just like Dalton in “Roadhouse” famously said, “Nobody wins a fight”, nobody wins a sports labor tussle.

Thank goodness we have 2019 to look back on.  And thank goodness the Nationals wrapped up an 18-8 month to move over the .500 mark to stay with a victory on June 30.  Here is the “Nats Notebook” from that week.

As always, 2020 thoughts to things written in 2019 are in boldface italics.

“Max’s Mad Month”

The team that entered June nine games under .500 (and Memorial Day 12 games under) finds themselves with a winning record at the start of July–no small feat. The Nats’ 18-8 mark turns the All Star Break conversations from “who should they trade for prospects?” to “can this ridiculous run continue?” and cools off the seat of Manager Davey Martinez considerably.  One major factor in the Nats resurgence was the return to form of three-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer: the 1-4 start with an ERA of 4.08 on May 1 was merely a mirage.  The Scherzer we saw in June went 6-0 with an ERA of 1.00 while notching 68 strikeouts to five walks.  He’s notched three straight wins while sporting a black eye from his broken nose to go with the naturally blue and brown ones.  And once again we have to remind ourselves that perhaps the best pitcher of this generation calls Washington, DC his home.  His next start at home is Saturday.  Guess which game I’ll be focusing on below?

Sadly Max would be bothered by injury the rest of the way; the fact he was able to get back in gear after missing most of two months was incredible, just like his ability to pitch Game Seven of the World Series two days removed from needing to crawl out of bed.

 

Dissecting the Division- Atlanta (50-35) owns a five and a half game lead over second place Philadelphia (44-40) while the Nats (42-41) are seven and a half off of the Braves’ pace. But the story this week is the Melting Mets (38-47) have lost 14 of 20 and their bullpen makes the Nats’ issues minuscule. Was that back to back to back to back blown saves against Philly?  Did Manager Mickey Calloway compare himself to Billy Martin when it came to conduct?  And for the record, I don’t believe Martin hit a member of the press–it was a marshmallow salesman.  To top things off, while honoring the 1969 Miracle Mets the franchise saluted those on that team who had passed away–and tipped their caps to a pair of men who are still living.  Remember the “Natinals”?  The team that shot sausage sandwich showers on fans during misguided promotions?  Nook “What was he thinking?” Logan?  These Mets are those Nats.  Enjoy.

The five Billy Martin regimes with the Yankees remain the stuff of legend:  as fate would have it the star-crossed skipper’s first tenure was 471 games while his second, third, fourth, and fifth stints equaled 470 games.

 

Harper’s Weekly- the former face of the franchise hit 7-of-26 to bring his batting average back to .250. His 15 homers and 59 RBI put Bryce on a pace for 29 & 114.  His strikeouts are down (relatively) as his 101 K’s translate to 195 for the season. And after feasting on the Mets, the Phils aren’t taking water anymore.  For the moment…

How reliant were the Phils on Harper last year?  Bryce batted .282 with 27 homers and 89 RBI while scoring 66 runs in Philly’s 78 wins, .235 with 8 HR and 25 RBI while scoring 32 runs in the team’s 79 losses.

 

O’s Woes- well, they did take two of three from Cleveland.  The first series victory since late April puts the Birds at 24-60 (they lost Monday’s series opener to Tampa Bay).  That their pitching has been a problem is a massive understatement (the 5.74 ERA is the worst in the majors), and the grasping at straws portion of the season includes paying cash to Cleveland for Indians minor leaguer Asher Wojciechowski (8-2 in 15 starts at AAA Columbus) as well as starting rookie Thomas Eshelman (who wears #83, a number that doesn’t inspire longevity) Monday against the Rays.  The Orioles need to go .500 (39-39) in order to avoid another 100-loss season.  They’re currently playing under .300 ball.

It’s amazing how quickly things cratered for a team that made the playoffs three times in five years from 2012-16;  proof that no matter how young you might be or no matter how good your stars are the bitter end is often just that.

 

Last Week’s Heroes- Max Scherzer didn’t just have a great month: he wrapped up a dominant June with two more spectacular starts, going 2-0 while striking out 24 without issuing a walk.  He also went 2-for-3 at the plate and scored twice.  Did we mention he was voted NL Player of the Week?  Patrick Corbin pitched well in his start while Fernando Rodney, Tony Sipp and Jonny Venters tossed scoreless outings of relief.  Anthony Rendon (along with Scherzer the Nats’ other All Star representative) hit .320 with five RBI and six runs scored.  Matt Adams drove in six while Juan Soto notched eight walks and drive in four.

Back issues would limit Max the rest of the way; he’d go 3-2 with a 4.14 ERA in 50 innings over nine regular season starts. It’ll be interesting to see how he pitches this year after the start and stop in Spring Training.

 

Last Week’s Humbled- Brian Dozier hit .174.  With Ryan Zimmerman coming off of the Injured List, one can see Howie Kendrick’s starts getting moved to the middle of the infield.  Already feeling the crunch is Michael A. Taylor, who finds himself in AA Harrisburg and hasn’t been the same since Dusty Baker was fired.  Relievers Tanner Rainey and Javy Guerra both posted ERA’s over 20.

Taylor would eventually get back to the bigs and score a key run in the team’s Wild Card win over Milwaukee.

 

Game to Watch- not only is Max Scherzer pitching for the final time before the All Star break, but Saturday’s game will have the Nats wearing powder blue Expos uniforms to honor the 50th anniversary of the start of the franchise.  This will be nice.

I’m a sucker for the Expos’ unis.  I actually wish they had just kept those colors and fonts when they moved to DC instead of the Angels hand-me-downs.  Just flip the “M and e” on the cap upside down–or go with a BLOCK W.

 

Game to Miss- Sunday Patrick Corbin pitches against the Royals, while the Women’s World Cup holds its final. From Team USA’s 13-0 trouncing of Thailand to the nailbiting win over host nation France, this has been one incredible month for the US.  Can they deliver a win over England and a trip to another Final?  One thinks yes.

The US Women’s National Team did not disappoint, while over the course of 2019 neither did Corbin.  He’d go 7-2 after the All Star break while winning Game Seven of the World Series in relief.

Nats Flashback- Summer Breeze

ORIGINALLY POSTED June 24, 2019.

The Nationals had .500 in their sights as the calendar turned to summer.  Only they ran into a buzz-saw named the Atlanta Braves that would post a 20-8 mark in June. Not helping their cause was a relief corps that still had to get out of its own way.  But while they were not the equal of Atlanta last June, the Nats had gone 18-9 since reaching the depths of 19-31.  And healthy, they were much more like the team over the most recent 31 days than the first 50 games. Here’s last year’s “Nats Notebook” from that week.

As always, 2020 thoughts to things written in 2019 are in boldface italics.

 

“Bedeviled by the Braves and a Bad Bullpen”- my headline form is back.

Things were going oh so well.  A sweep of Philadelphia. A gritty one-run win over first place Atlanta in the series opener.  And then an 8-4 lead after six innings Saturday where Anibal Sanchez didn’t necessarily shine but pitched well enough.  Unfortunately, “bring on the bullpen” is now the four most dreaded words inside the Beltway.  Trevor Rosenthal issued three walks before Tanner Rainey allowed a bases-loaded pass.  And then a three-run double.  While the Nats retook the lead in the eighth, Joe Ross returned the favor by allowing an RBI double and a three-run homer.  Instead of taking two in a row against the division leaders and reaching .500 for the first time since April 23, the Nats wind up falling 13-9 and then go on to lose a series for the first time since May 23.  Instead of an 8-2 or 7-3 jumpstart the season homestand, the 6-4 stretch will have to suffice.  And midseason looms with the Nats now three games under .500.

They weren’t able to sustain the .667 play for the rest of the season, as the 56-29 finish was a paltry .659.  In all seriousness, wow. That’s a 107-win pace for over half of the season.

 

Dissecting the Division- the Braves now have a six and a half game lead after taking two in a row in DC, while Philadelphia (seven straight losses) is fading at 39-38.  The Mets (37-41) are losing games and winning disdain after Manager Mickey Callaway’s confrontation with a Newsday beat reporter, followed by pitcher Jason Vargas getting after said reporter as well.  Don’t sleep on the last place Marlins, who may be 15 games back but just swept the Phillies.  Before you know, it’ll be 2023 and they’ll be in contend-mode.

As much of a mess the Mets were early and often last season, they were able to overtake the Phillies by the end of the season.

 

Harper’s Weekly- Bryce went .263 this past week while seeing time leading off for the slumping Phillies.  He’s now hitting .248 with 13 homers and 52 RBI (projecting to 27 and 109), and for the first time in a while his projected strikeouts total is under 200 (198 as he has 94 over 77 games this year).  Unfortunately, it’s tough to drive in runs from the #1 spot-but sadly he’s the only viable option atop the order for the Phillies at this time.

Harper leading off isn’t as bad as Chris Davis doing the same for the Orioles, but that’s how things had gotten after McCutchen’s injury.

 

O’s Woes- the Birds come home from a 1-6 roadtrip and are now 22-56, meaning they’d need to play nearly .500 ball (41-43) to avoid a 100-loss season.  Last week they optioned pitchers David Hess and Dan Straily to AAA Norfolk;  the disastrous duo had posted a combined 3-13 record over 31 starts while allowing 42 homers and posting an ERA of 8.39.  This week the O’s host San Diego-and former face of the franchise Manny Machado.

Hess & Straily were hardly the only underperformers last year for the Orioles, but that’s one tough double-whammy for a subpar offense (21st in battting, 22nd in runs scored) to try to keep pace with in 40% of your starts.

 

Last Week’s Heroes- Victor Robles hit .444 with two homers while getting hit by two more pitches (he’s been hit by pitch 12 times this year, tied for second most in the majors). Juan Soto hit .476 with seven RBI.  Sean Doolittle saved a pair of games while tossing three scoreless innings. Max Scherzer struck out 10 over seven innings with a broken nose and a black eye (I have an idea what his 2020 bobble-head will be). Wander Suero tossed four scoreless innings over four games.

Max wasn’t just enjoying a 6-0 June where he helped this team get back on track, he didn’t only pitch relief when called upon in the playoffs before starting Game Seven of the World Series, but he pitched through a broken nose.  And the black eye only added to his blue and brown ones.  I hope you all appreciate him now.

 

Last Week’s Humbled- Trevor Rosenthal’s days are done as a National after allowing three walks without recording an out Saturday; despite his scoreless third of an inning Friday in the win over the Braves the free agent pickup leaves DC with an ERA of 22.74.  Tanner Rainey posted an ERA of 9.82 while Joe Ross allowed four runs in his lone inning of relief.  The top of the order has had issues lately, with Trea Turner batting .250 and Adam Eaton hitting .200.

Rosenthal would hook up with Detroit and post an ERA of 7.00 over ten relief appearances.  Joe Ross would pitch much better in the second half of the season for the Nats, posting a 3.83 ERA over nine starts and ten appearances.

 

Game to Watch- like we’re going to pick a non-Scherzer start after last week’s black eye/broken nose gem.  Number 31 pitches twice this week, and is slated to go Sunday at Detroit for the first time since he left the Tigers to sign with the Nats.  He’s also pitching against the guy made superfluous when Max came to DC: Jordan Zimmermann. The last time these two pitched against one another Scherzer struck out 20.  It’s Max See TV.

If I wasn’t covering sports, I would cherry-pick Scherzer’s starts and attend those games. Hands down.

 

Game to Miss- Wednesday Patrick Corbin pitches against Miami, but closer to home it’s the Democrats against the Republicans in the Congressional Baseball Game at Nationals Park.

Last year I had the chance to announce the game with Noah Frank and Mitchell Miller. It was a great experience. Hopefully they’ll play ball again in 2021.

Nats Flashback-Grinding Away…

ORIGINALLY POSTED June 17, 2019.

The long road back from 19-30 included a handful of fits and stalls amid the surges and streaks.  While the Nats would win 14 of their next 21 they’d still be submerged deep in the National League standing, climbing from 14th to 11th place.  And the logjam of teams (five clubs separated by three games) right in front of them may have been teetering, but not tottering just yet.  But technically it wasn’t even summer yet–and the club had its lineup healthy with one of its starting pitchers in the middle of a magical month. As always, 2020 thoughts to things written in 2019 are in boldface italics.

 

“The Time is Now”- (I need to get better at headlines)

Half-full or half-empty?  How do you view the last week where the team went 3-3? The 2019 season continues with the Nationals splitting a pair of series against the Chicago White Sox and Arizona.  Not ideal, but after their string of 11 wins in 15 games, somewhat acceptable.  This week the stakes get a little higher as they take on the top two teams in the NL East-beginning with four games against Philadelphia before hosting division-leading Atlanta on the weekend.  At 33-38 and 7.5 games off the pace, the Nats can ill afford a poor showing here.  They’ll be almost 50% through the regular season slate when the Braves leave Sunday, and while they’re almost assured of wrapping up the homestand under .500 it would be a nightmare to be double digits off the pace.  And given the way things turn on a dime in DC, not completely out of the realm of possibility. Buckle up…

I’m not peeking ahead to how they fared against the Phils and Braves, but after playing .500 ball against a pair of .500 teams one could see that this would be one huge week.

 

Digesting the Division- Atlanta takes a two and a half game lead at 42-30 and the Braves have won nine of ten. They’re also getting free agent pickup Dallas Keuchel to bolster a pitching staff that currently owns the tenth best ERA in the majors.  Philadelphia’s dropped five of seven to slide towards the pack, and the Phillies’ run differential has shrunk to +6.  The New York Mets (34-37, 7.5 GB) remain the driver who can’t find a parking spot on the P1 level, losing three of four at home to St. Louis.  Miami has lost eight of ten and at 25-44 isn’t competing with the Nats, Mets, Phillies and Braves as much as they’re scoreboard-watching with the Orioles–for the first pick of 2020.

Keuchel was the big pickup that stalled- going 8-8 with a 3.75 ERA while averaging fewer than six innings per start.  His innings per start has actually declined each year since his 2015 Cy Young Award.  Caveat Emptor.

 

O’s Woes- Bad days for the Birds.  A twelfth straight series loss (they haven’t won a series since late April).  A sweep at the hand of the defending World Series Champion Boston Red Sox.  This week the team is far from Baltimore–and just as far from successful. At 21-50 they’re 22.5 games back in the AL East. Although they are one game better than last year’s 47-115 club at this time.  And while the team is no longer allowing more than two homers per game, they’re still on pace to cough up over 300 this year.

It’s not a good year when your “games behind” number is larger than your victory total. The homers-allowed record chase would lend a macabre feel to the summer.

 

Harper’s Weekly- Bryce batted 4-for-20 (.200) while striking out eight times.  While he’s still on pace to post 27 HR with 112 RBI, Harper’s 91 K’s keep him on track to break the 200 mark. But, Harper is hitting .321 against the Nats this year. And he comes back to DC this week with the proverbial chip on his shoulder.

Bryce was in the middle of his second-least productive month of the season (.825 OPS) while his team was floundering (losing two of three in Atlanta including the series finale 15-1).

 

Last Week’s Heroes- Matt Adams made his mark on Father’s Day, belting a grand slam as well as a three-run homer (the best drive of the day was by his dad, Jamie, who came down from Pennsylvania–I hope he didn’t take the Turnpike); Adams hit .308 for the week. Howie Kendrick batted .400 while scoring seven runs and Trea Turner had an on base-percentage of .448. Kurt Suzuki drove in eight runs.  Max Scherzer struck out ten for the fifth time this year and the 87th time in his career, while Javy Guerra notched five scoreless innings over three appearances.

Matt Adams would do most of his damage as the Nats were fighting back to .500 with 17 RBI in June.  This was one of those “Big City” days.

 

Last Week’s Humbled- Patrick Corbin has been sliding.  In his last three starts, the lefthander is 0-3 with an ERA of 11.37.  He had a rough outing against the White Sox (7 runs over 5 innings).  Kyle Barraclough had an ERA of 20.25 for the week before landing on the Injured List while Wander Suero struggled in spots.  Brian Dozier is hitting .211 and could be the odd man out whenever Ryan Zimmerman is healthy enough to return, as his at-bats at first base will move Howie Kendrick to second more often.

Despite the week, Dozier had his best month in June (.275 with 5 HR and 13 RBI) as the team began its surge up the standings.

 

Game to Watch- Wednesday the Nats host Philadelphia with Max Scherzer squaring off against a former Nationals prospect for the second time in a week:  Nick Pivetta (dealt in the trade for Jonathan Papelbon) is 4-1 with an ERA of 5.00 over eight starts this year. It’s the semi-pivotal third game of the series.

Rainouts would force a doubleheader on Wednesday, shifting Scherzer into a showdown with former Orioles underachiever and Cubs overachiever Jake Arrieta (who would also go 8-8 in 2019–what is this, the NFL?)

 

Game to Miss- Saturday Patrick Corbin pitches against Mike Foltynewicz in prime time.  Both starters have hit snags in the early season:  while Corbin’s dropped three straight decisions Foltynewicz has an ERA of 5.53.  Stay late at the pool–which closes at 8 p.m. even though it stays light until nine this month. Really?

Right now I’d be okay if my pool was open at all–but why can’t pools be open while its light out in June and July?  

Nats Flashback- No June Swoon.

ORIGINALLY POSTED ONE YEAR AGO ON THIS DATE-

We saw the Washington Nationals rebound from a 19-31 start to win a World Series in 2019. Meanwhile, there might not be a 2020 unless players and owners hammer out a deal.  Thank goodness for last year’s “Nats Notebook”. At this point the team was still under .500 but gaining steam. Thoughts now on what I wrote then are in boldface italics.

 

June 10, 2019- “Back to Back to Back to Back”

So they didn’t win their series in San Diego. But back to back wins Saturday and Sunday preserve a split, and four consecutive homers in the victory at the Padres in the series finale give the Nationals hope.  Despite being under .500 over 40% of the way into the regular season, this team is finding its stride recently.  After winning four series over the first two months, the club won four straight series entering their split in San Diego.  Yes, the bullpen has issues-especially in the eighth inning.  But the season is far from over-and the Nats are far from irrelevant.

We had them all the way, right?  What amazes me is that all during their 19-31 start the team remained resolute that they were capable of playing great baseball.  They’re still under .500 in June, but with two Wild Card spots there’s plenty of hope. 

 

Dissecting the Division- Philadelphia is far from fading, but the NL East leaders at 37-28 have lost six of ten and remain just one game ahead of Atlanta.  The Braves have won three in a row while moving within one game of the Phillies.  The New York Mets have won two straight and stand five games back while the Nationals at 30-35 remain seven games off the pace.  Miami at 23-40 is all aboard for 2025.

The Phillies’ would fade; their June swoon saw the team go 11-17 and lose the NL East lead to Atlanta (20-8 in June).  And by the end of the month the Mets would be closer to last place than to fifth.

 

Harper’s Weekly- the former face of the franchise hit .280 last week with one RBI over 25 at bats, and is now batting .251 with 11 homers and 44 RBI-or a pace of 27 & 109 over 162 game season.  His 83 strikeouts keep him on a pace of 206 for the year-and Harper was caught stealing home over the weekend.  Is it 2030 yet?

NBC Sports Washington’s Todd Dybas recently wrote a piece that explored “what if the Nats re-signed Harper?” that presents a different short-term (Eaton likely gets dealt out of a crowded outfield) and long-term (the team loses both Strasburg and Rendon last winter) results. Harper could have been THE FACE of this franchise moving forward.  And while he’ll make a ton of cash in Philly, he won’t be the cradle-to-grave star he would have been here.

 

O’s Woes- the Birds dropped four of six and at 20-65 remain on a pace of fewer than 50 wins. It’s one thing to be 20.5 games out of first place in the AL East; it’s another thing to be more games out of first than you have wins.  But the O’s glass is sometimes half-full, and this week it’s in the form of Pedro Severino:  the catcher is hitting .277 with 8 HR and 18 RBI over 37 games this year-after swatting four home runs in 105 games played with the Nationals. Must be the AL ballparks.

Severino would cool off, hitting 5 HR with 26 RBI over his final 59 games played in 2019.  He still has room to improve, having played just 201 Major League games.

 

Last Week’s Heroes- Stephen Strasburg went 2-0 while notching his 100th career victory, and Max Scherzer struck out nine over seven innings while snapping a two game losing streak Saturday in San Diego. Tanner Rainey tossed 3.2 scoreless innings over four relief appearances.  Howie Kendrick hit .350 with six RBI and a team-high six runs scored, while Anthony Rendon drove in a team-high 8 RBI and Trea Turner belted a walkoff home run (his first HR since breaking his finger in April) to salvage their sweep of the White Sox.

Amazing to think how Turner basically played all of last season with an injured finger.  Making a move up the standings is a little easier too with Strasburg and Scherzer at peak perfomance.

 

Last Week’s Humbled- Juan Soto hit .190 while Yan Gomes batted .214.  Gerardo Parra and Michael A. Taylor went hitless in limited action (Parra had seven at bats while Taylor had four at bats).  Relievers Sean Doolittle and Kyle Barraclough posted 6.75 ERA’s while Doo surrendered the game-winning hit Friday in San Diego.

Don’t worry, Parra’s a little over a week away from bringing “Baby Shark” into our lives.

 

Game to Watch- Friday Max Scherzer pitches against Robbie Ray, as the current ace faces the former Nats prospect that was dealt some time ago.  No time to ask “What if?”- it’s time to ask “What now?”.  Let’s find out…

Scherzer would go on to win all six of his June starts.  Simply sensational.

 

Game to Miss- Sunday Anibal Sanchez pitches against the Diamondbacks, and while Sanchez has been more than sharp since returning from the Injured List Sunday is the final day of the U.S. Open at Pebble Beach.  Tiger Woods may have won on that course in 2000, but Brooks Koepka is going for his third straight title-a feat not accomplished since 1905.  I’m headed to the couch… 

Sanchez after his 0-6 start would go 11-2 with an ERA of 3.42 the rest of the way; he was at his best in a 3-0, 2.76 June.