‘Waiting for the call’
courtesy of ‘afagen’
Stephen Strasburg’s first start with the Nationals is being welcomed during a desperate time.
Here’s the set-up: In 6 games, the Nats have been outscored 67-30 and haven’t won a single game so far. Granted, this is Spring Training. The games don’t matter. What DOES matter is prepping for the regular season. The hopeful pitching staff isn’t showing much in the prep department as of yet. They have given up 91 hits, 28 walks and 12 home runs in 50 innings.
If that wasn’t bad enough, the real killer is – 17 pitchers have an ERA of 9.00 or higher – with a team ERA of 10.98.
Here’s to hoping that the six previous losing were just the Nats “taking a few for the team” while waiting for Strasburg to take the mound. But – if that’s the case – there’s no excuse for such poor performances.
“You don’t like to see your guys get knocked around,” Riggleman told Nationals Journal writer Adam Kilgore. “You hate to see your guys giving up runs. We’re trying to win the ball game. Nobody’s trying to give up hits. Nobody is satisfied that we’re not winning ball games […] It’s just part of what we got to go through to get through these first couple of weeks of spring training. Our guys are just taking it on the chin a little bit.”
Tune-in to WFED 1500 AM at around 12:30 for the 1 pm Strasburg debut. Charlie Slowes and Dave Jageler will be announcing the play-by-play.
Update 9:56 am — (Via Adam Kilgore’s Twitter) “The #Nationals will make cuts earlier next week, and it will consist mostly of pitchers.” Good thinking.
Rachel moved to DC in the fall of 2005 to study Journalism and Music at American University. When she’s not keeping up with the latest Major League Baseball news, she works on making music as an accomplished singer-songwriter and was even a featured performer/speaker at TEDxDupont Circle in 2012. Rachel has also contributed to The Washington Examiner and MASN Sports’ Nationals Buzz as a guest blogger. See why she loves DC. E-Mail: rachel@welovedc.com.
I’d normally say it’s only spring training. But 11 runs a game over an entire week is REALLY bad. Then again, I still don’t think time to panic, since that kind of craptitude is unsustainable.