It�s the Mets @ Nationals for three this weekend in DC and yours truly will be on hand for all three games. I look forward to seeing fellow CPF�ers in section 113. It will be hard to find me since I�ll be in Mets garb. Fans of the local team aren�t as vocal as we are and they don�t dress in team clothing as much as we do. If you�re watching on TV, they�ll be the ones on their Blackberries during the game. It�s a three game series, so I�ll break this into three parts. 1. The Ramblings 2. The Standard Stuff 3. Your Favorite Nationals Fan. 1. The Ramblings Given how last year�s Mets-Nationals games went, the key is Willie Harris. You might remember his many fantastic plays against the Mets and they are featured in a MASN commercial. TV ads for he Nationals don�t feature their nice ballpark, their players (Dunn is ad-worthy), or even the fun you can have at a ball game. Instead, they have some of their fans (heck, it might be their only fans) narrating highlights about the Nationals success against upcoming opponents. They even have one for the Phillies despite the fact that the Nationals lay down and die at the sight of a Phillies uniform. The ads with the Mets have some idiot shouting with glee as Willie Harris makes great plays against the Mets. I hate that guy�the fan, not Willie Harris. The Nationals aren�t exactly winning the hearts and minds of DC fans. Even this true fan is angry: http://firejimbowden.blogspot.com/ That guy does a great job, unlike this �see no evil� blog: http://nats320.blogspot.com/ Edgy DC did an excellent job in an earlier KTE discussing the many woes of the Nationals so there�s no need to rehash them. Since then, they fired the pitching coach and replaced him with Steve McCatty. Our old friend Manny Acta is still the manager but that might not last too much longer. He�s being criticized for poor in-game management, such as�wait for it�bunting too often. The big story around the Nationals is whether or not they will draft and then sign Stephen Strasburg. Remember that they didn�t sign their first round pick last year so there�s some angst this year. The Washington Post is covering Strasburg more than they�re covering the team. Oh yeah�don�t forget that the Nationals beat writer for The Washington Post hates sports. 2. The Standard Stuff Friday, Tim Redding (0-2, 9.20, 1.91 WHIP) pitches for the Mets. I thought that he was a good signing as he would pitch a lot of innings but, so far, I�ve been wrong. Perhaps pitching against his old mates will settle him down. Josh Willingham is 5 for 13 (.385) against Redding with 2 HR and 4 RBI. Adam Dunn has one HR but he does that to a lot of pitchers. At the end of the season finale of the amazing �Breaking Bad�, Bryan Cranston�s character grew a goatee and it made him look like Tim Redding. I�m not sure who I�d rather have pitching tonight. The Nationals pitcher will be Shairon Martis (RHP, 5-1, 5.62, 1.42). Note that he has five wins out of the team�s total of 14. The Mets clobbered him last September 17: he only lasted 3 innings and gave up 6 ER (Jerry used 8 pitchers in that game and the Mets held on to win 9-7). FYI: he pitched for the Netherlands in the Olympics. Beltran has a HR off Martis. Saturday, it�s John Maine (5-3, 3.75, 1.34) for the 3rd time in 5 games this season for me. Austin Kearns has two HR off him. Ryan Zimmerman is only 5 for 30 (.167). Maine beat Washington on May 25, 5-2, 6 IP, 1 ER. John Lannan (LHP, 2-5, 4.21, 1.53) pitches for Washington. He�s from Long Beach. He lost to the Mets on May 25, lasting 5 innings and giving up 5 runs, including a 3 run HR by Gary Sheffield. Last September, the Mets clobbered him and then six days later, he beat our team going 7 IP and only giving up one run. In other words, he could pitch a good game despite his record. Sunday, it�s Livan Hernandez (4-1, 4.33, 1.43) also pitching against his old team (for Livan, there have been 7 formers teams, including The Expos). Kearns has hit two HR off him and is hitting .444. Cristian Guzman is hitting .455. You might recall Livan�s complete game victory against the Nationals on May 26. It�s Craig Stammen (RHP 0-1, 5.71, 1.27) for Washington and Ryan Church should be back which I know will thrill every Mets fan. He lost to the Mets on May 26, going 5 innings and giving up 3 runs in a 6-1 Mets win. As for ex-Mets: if you�re looking for Lasting Milledge, he was sent to AAA and is now on the DL; Jesus Flores is also on the DL. Ron Villone was with the Mets in ST and he�s pitching well. Anderson Hernandez is starting at 2B. Ray Knight is on the post-game show with local legend Johnny Holliday. Knight was a lot better at hitting for the �86 Mets. 3. Your Favorite Nationals Fan It wouldn�t be a bmfc1 KTE without the presence of dcbatgirl! 1. Still into it as much as ever or are the losses getting you down? First, a warm hello to my friends at the Crane Pool Forum. Isn�t baseball a great game! Yes, the Natinals provide all sorts of material for late-night-mockery, from some of the worst bullpen performances ever, to some scary fielding by the big guy who hits home runs, but this batgirl still manages to have fun at Nationals Park. The last three games I attended? Randy Johnson�s 300th win, a 10-6 win over the Giants that included a 6-run adventure in the bottom of the 8th, and an 8-5 win over the Os in which the scary fielder had 2 home runs and 6 RBI. Even in the worst games, something positive usually happens. And when it doesn�t, I commiserate with my growing group of baseball friends. I�m still having fun, and look forward to wonderful times as we improve. (And I�m assuming that things can only improve.) I�m also looking forward to seeing bmfc1 at the game on Friday. 2. How much longer for Manny? Who knows? Conventional wisdom is that Manny�s days are numbered and few, but I think it�s possible that he�ll make it to the end of the season. I wouldn�t bet on his contract renewal, however. Personally, I am probably close to wishing him well in his new job, I assume somewhere in the Mets organization. : ) I also wonder what will come next for Jim Riggleman, not because I have any idea what kind of manager he would be, but rather because I have a little bit of a batgirl crush on him. With my binoculars, I have a pretty clear view of Jim from my spot just outside 3rd base. 3. Any doubts that the Nationals will sign Strasburg? I worry that they won�t, but I don�t have doubts, exactly. Maybe this equivocation means I�m a little more beaten down than I admit in #1, but the thinking side of batgirl assumes that the often-tone-deaf Lerner family understands that even diehard batgirls might reach their limit if the team drafts, but does not sign, the pitching sensation from San Diego State. Keeping with pitching, I see that Mr. Redding is your probable pitcher for Friday. I think our young Mr. Martis will make it a competitive game. Best wishes for the rest of your season�except of course when you face my Nats.
