Category Archives: Sports Fix

Sports Fix
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Homestand Preview: What a difference a week makes

Photo courtesy of
‘Presidents Race!’
courtesy of ‘kimberlyfaye’

Some weeks, you’re George, some weeks, you’re Teddy.

The Nationals (40-41) return home on Friday night after a 2-4 road trip, and carrying a 3-game losing streak, having been swept in Los Angeles. Things have not quite gone as imagined during the aftermath of Jim Riggleman’s Sarah Palin-esque departure.  Ahead of the All-Star Break, the Nationals play 11 games in 10 days starting Friday night.

These 11 games before the All-Star Break are pretty critical to the season, but there’s many reasons for hope, Natstown. Let’s look at what we’re up against, shall we?

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Sports Fix
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Your Wizards Draft Cheat Sheet

In case you were too busy hating on Jim Riggleman or trying to figure out Ron Artest’s crazy new name, the NBA held their draft this past Thursday and the Washington Wizards added three new players to the team. Coming into last week’s draft, many regarded the draft class as pretty bland. There weren’t any future LeBrons or Walls in this year’s draft, in fact the most exciting moment of the draft was when Wizards’ first-round pick Jan Vesely made out with his hot girlfriend Eva Kodouskova after hearing his name called.

Not gonna lie, it was pretty hot. Jan hears his name, buttons up his suit, his girl rises into the frame, waits a moment, and goes in for the kill. Even Joe House approves (of the kiss at least.)

Anyways if you want more on the kiss just read Kyle Weide’s story and interview over at Truth About It. He’s a great Wizards blogger and struck gold with the story.

For everybody else, here’s the quick and dirty info on the draftees because most likely the last time you heard about the Wiz was when they got those new fangled uniforms.

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Sports Fix
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Rigglegate: The train wreck at 1500 South Capitol

Photo courtesy of
‘Head in Hands’
courtesy of ‘Alex E. Proimos’

So. That happened.

Everything that came out of Nats Park yesterday wasn’t a fever dream, it actually happened. The Nats won their 11th game out of 12, in the bottom of the 9th, on just one run. They pitched well, they fielded well, they’re on a streak of good baseball and wonderful luck, and sure enough, manager Jim Riggleman quit his job due to a contract dispute.

Details are coming out today as both Jim Riggleman (it is distinctly odd not to type manager in front of that) and General Manager Mike Rizzo have done turns on sports radio to talk about the decision.  Both sides were firm: the other guy had made a grievous mistake in dealing with the situation. Both sides are right, at least in part. This was handled very badly, and the circumstances that we find ourselves, as fans, in now is nothing short of terrible. As Dave Nichols wrote, there were no winners at Nats Park yesterday.

Where to, now?

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Sports Fix, The Daily Feed
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Nats mount historic rally, beat Mariners 6-5 in the 9th

Photo courtesy of
‘Bang! Zoom!’
courtesy of ‘John C Abell’

The biggest deficit that the Nationals have ever overcome in the 9th inning, going into tonight’s game, was 2 runs. Tonight they battled back from 4 runs behind, and with two outs in the ninth inning, mounted a 5-run rally capped by a monster home run off the bat of rookie Wilson Ramos into the left field stands.

After being limited to just a single run against the Mariners’ Doug Fister, the Nationals came into the ninth inning down 5-1.  Jayson Werth, now sporting just a soul patch, having earlier shaved his beard, confounded Justin Smoak with a hard hit ball to first.  It deflected right off the glove of Smoak and Werth was at 2nd with no one out. Roger Bernadina drew a 7-pitch walk, the Nats were suddenly threatening.  Ryan Zimmerman grounded into a 6-4-3 double play just three pitches later, and it looked very much like Brandon League would be getting himself out of another jam.  Jerry Hairston Jr., who entered the game when Laynce Nix aggravated his right Achilles tendon, struck a single up the middle, plating Werth for the first run of the ninth.

The Nationals were now threatening in earnest, having been limited to just three more batters than the minimum by Fister through eight full.  Morse made strong contact off a slide from League, and hit it into the Mariners’ closer, ricocheting the ball back toward the 3rd base-line, and injuring League.  With the trainers coming out, it looked like the Mariners might add injury to insult.  With two down in the 9th, the Nationals had the tying run at the plate in Danny Espinosa, ratching the crowd of 21,502 into action.  Hungry for a rally, Espinosa hit the very first pitch from Danny Pauley up the middle, scoring Hairston, making it 5-3.  Wilson Ramos came to the plate as the winning run, and he just pounded an 84-mph changeup from Pauley into the left field seats to bring the house down on the Mariners.

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Sports Fix
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A Look inside the Nationals Win Streak

Photo courtesy of
‘189/365’
courtesy of ‘Danilo.Lewis|Fotography’

The winning streak that ended on Sunday was the Nationals’ longest since 2009, and is tied for the second longest since their return to Washington. As I said on Sunday, streaks are difficult things, and they take you out of the big picture, and you start to live for the microcosm of the streak and not for the reality of the season.  I pulled a lot of the numbers for the streak, and for the season as a whole, and the conclusions are pretty interesting.

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Sports Fix, The Daily Feed
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Nationals drop game to Orioles 7-4, end streak at 8

Photo courtesy of
‘Moon over Nationals Park’
courtesy of ‘BrianMKA’

Streaks are hard things.

Streaks take you out of seeing the Big Picture, and they change your focus to the tiny reality of the streak.  Streaks of either kind aren’t microcosms, they’re localized disruptions of the normal. As a good friend said Sunday, “Losing streaks are the result of talent, while winning streaks are the result of luck.”

The Nationals came into Sunday’s game riding as high as they’ve been all season, winners of eight straight and 10 of their last 13. They didn’t hardly look like the same team on the field on Sunday. Maybe they indulged a bit too much at Saturday night’s Dream Foundation Gala, but the Nats just couldn’t get it going. 3 errors, and some rough plate appearances were their undoing, and they dropped the game, and the streak, in a 7-3 loss in front of 35,439.

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Sports Fix, The Daily Feed
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Nats rack up 8 in 7th straight win, beat Orioles 8-4

Jayson Werth makes contact

Photos by Patrick Pho, special to We Love DC

Oh, for a real crosstown rivalry.

The Nationals came into the Battle of the Beltways (or whatever they’re calling it this year) on a tear, having won six straight, and having just swept the formerly hot Cardinals. Tonight, they put their best starter on the mound against a slumping Baltimore team, and the damnedest thing happened.  The Orioles ganged up for a dozen hits off Marquis, but only plated four runs. They’d pick up another half dozen against the Nationals’ bullpen, but couldn’t strike again, while the Nationals picked up 8 runs on just 10 hits, striking for 7 runs on 6 hits in the fifth and sixth innings.

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Sports Fix, The Daily Feed
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Nats mount comeback, deal Cards 8-6 loss

Photo courtesy of
‘bang, zoom go the fireworks’
courtesy of ‘philliefan99’

On the night when Ryan Zimmerman returned to the lineup for the first time in over two months, the Nationals put together one of their more impressive rallies. In the seventh inning tonight, they plated six runs against the St. Louis Cardinals, four of which scored with two outs. The Nationals got to their former teammate Miguel “Miss Iowa” Batista for five runs in a “6-run, 5-hit, 3-walk, 1-hit batter, 1-wild pitch, 12-batter rally.”

Second only to the offensive explosion against the Cardinals’ bullpen was the quality of the fans this evening at Nationals Park. The crowd of 26,739 was on its feet for a good part of that 7th inning rally, likely fortified by the new Shake Shack at the ballpark. On a day when many feared that the fans of Nats Park could only be plied by fancy bawbles and gewgaws in the form of concessions, fans of the home team showed that they could get into a close game, and were on their feet and rallying around the home team as they beat the Cardinals’ bullpen into submission after being down by four.

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Sports Fix
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Homestand Preview

Photo courtesy of
‘the best chance to score’
courtesy of ‘philliefan99’

The Nationals return to DC on Tuesday, and there’s a lot for everyone to look forward to. One of the longest homestands of the season starts with a three game set against the St. Louis Cardinals.  The Nats are here through the middle of next week, and there are plenty of reasons to get out to the ballpark. Let’s take a look at what this run of baseball brings, shall we?

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Sports Fix, The Daily Feed
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Nationals add three in Amateur Draft

Photo courtesy of
‘The team’
courtesy of ‘fishhawk’

While the Nationals toiled in San Francisco (a game they would lose 5-4 in 13 innings), the front office staff and general manager Mike Rizzo were busy in the war rooms at Nationals Park working out who they would take in the MLB Entry Draft yesterday.

The Nationals have enjoyed the first pick in each of the last two drafts, putting them in the position to take Bryce Harper and Stephen Strasburg, two of the strongest draft picks that the sport has had to offer in a generation. The Nationals added 3B Anthony Rendon with the sixth pick in the draft after three years at Rice University where he hit .371 with 46 doubles, 52 homers and just under 200 RBI in 187 games. Rendon, whose 21st birthday was yesterday, is 6′, 190lbs and was considered to be a plus defender at third, though was quick to tell reporters he’d be happy to play anywhere, so long as it meant playing.
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Sports Fix
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Road Trip Preview: The Western Swing

Photo courtesy of
‘Roy plays backup’
courtesy of ‘philliefan99’

The Nationals finished up their most recent homestand with a big win yesterday afternoon, coming up huge against the dominant Phillies.  Over the three-game series, the Nationals did a lot to make the best 1/2/3 starting combo in baseball today look a lot more human and hittable. Heading out of town for almost two weeks, the Nationals had a bit of an uneven homestand. I’d expected them to handle the Padres with a little more discipline, instead of dropping two close games on lack of offense.

The Nats are headed on a westward swing starting today, and that means a lot of late nights for Nats fans. Click on through for some thoughts on the upcoming road trip, and how you’re going to cope with the sleep loss.

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Sports Fix
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Homestand Preview: Padres and Phillies

Photo courtesy of
‘Bright and Ballsy’
courtesy of ‘Kevin H.’

There are few things that say summertime quite like baseball. With the long weekend coming, the Nationals (21-28) return home for a six-game homestand against the Padres (20-30) and Phillies (31-19).  The road trip wasn’t as kind to the Nationals as the previous one, with the Nationals going 1-7 across three cities, and playing some pretty dismal baseball.  It’s clear that the Nationals are in for some interesting times.  But, there’s some good reasons to hit the ballpark this time round.

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Sports Fix, The Features
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LaRoche sidelined, Nationals in trouble

Photo courtesy of
‘Washington Nationals second baseman Danny Espinosa (18) and first baseman Adam LaRoche (25) and catcher Wilson Ramos (3)’
courtesy of ‘Keith Allison’

Last evening, the Nationals announced that Adam LaRoche’s shoulder injury is worse than they had previously suspected; instead of a slight tear of his labrum, it’s a far more serious tear to his labrum, and his rotator cuff is also torn. Bill Ladson, usually a source of endless optimism concerning the Nationals, tweeted that he would be surprised if LaRoche returned to the Nationals before the end of the season.

The injury to LaRoche may not be devastating the way that he has hit this season (.172/.288/.258) but the feats that he has performed at first base are going to be missed. LaRoche had been the anchor point for the Nationals’ infield this season, digging out throughs from Desmond and Espinosa, and snagging flares and liners by the dozen. LaRoche had recorded 380 putouts with 0 errors this season before winding up with a potentially season-ending injury.  The picture for his potential replacements isn’t terribly pretty.

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Sports Fix, The Features
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Atlanta, Winnipeg and How It May Just Affect the Caps

Photo courtesy of
‘IMG_2722.jpg’
courtesy of ‘bridgetds’

Could Southeast Division fans be losing one of their own members to the great white north?

In 1996, during the ‘Canadian Flight Era’ of the NHL, the Winnipeg Jets were one of several teams that crossed the border to an American professional sports market. Moving to Phoenix and becoming the Coyotes, the Manitoba city has been without an NHL team now for 15 years – but financial troubles in the last few years by the Coyotes have left Winnipeg hovering the team like someone waiting for a bar stool to open up.

The Coyotes needed to find some $25m to stay operating or a new buyer (presumably the True North group of, you guessed it, Winnipeg) could swoop in, but thanks to some idiosyncrasies of the team and the hockey-only-arena they play in out in the Phoenix suburb of Glendale, the town and the NHL are sinking more money into the franchise to keep them around.

If only the same lifeline could be thrown to the Caps Southeast Division rival, the Atlanta Thrashers.

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Sports Fix
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The Road Trip: New York, Baltimore and Milwaukee

Photo courtesy of
‘Route 16’
courtesy of ‘Kevin.Jack’

The Nationals got a nice present from Mother Nature yesterday: a rainout. A day off at home is about as rare a commodity as you’ll find during the Major League Baseball season.  The Nationals leave in the morning for a quick two-game jaunt in New York before three games of interleague play in Baltimore, and then three games in Milwaukee.

With a 20-21 record, the Nationals go into their road trip with a 6-4 record over their last ten games.  Their trip to New York will see them play the last place New York Mets, who are also sporting a 6-4 record over their last ten games, mostly at the hands of Houston and Los Angeles, who’ve not had strong starts, but also against Colorado, who lead the West.  Tom Gorzelanny (2-3) and Livan Hernandez (3-5) will start in New York, with Jordan Zimmermann losing his start due to the rain yesterday.  Given that the Nats are trying to limit the returning hurler’s innings this season, a saved start is a wise choice for the club.  They’ll likely face Dillon Gee (2-0) and R.A. Dickey (1-5).  A split would be the bare minimum, but I’d say it’s possible we’ll see a short sweep.

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Sports Fix
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Nats flash bats, beat Fish 8-4

Shark and Pudge at the plate

Photo by Anthony Amobi

After two games where the Nationals could barely get the bats off their shoulders, they came out hammering in the first against struggling hurler Javier Vazquez.  Every National made it to the plate in the first, putting seven aboard, and scoring six.  Even pitcher Jason Marquis got in on the fun, ripping a double to the left field corner before being gunned down at third trying to stretch it into a triple.

Roger Bernadina lead the game off with a bunt single, just beating out a throw from Greg Dobbs.  Jayson Werth would take first on a grounder to the left side that Hanley Ramirez wasn’t able to handle cleanly, and the Nats found themselves with runners on first and second with just one out.  This homestand had, so far, been filled with disappointment for runners on base, but the Nats just kept delivering on Sunday afternoon.  Laynce Nix stroked a single to shallow left, followed by a walk to Adam LaRoche, and a 2-RBI single by Pudge Rodriguez.

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Sports Fix, The Features
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Homestand Preview: Marlins & Pirates

Photo courtesy of
‘ballpark crescent’
courtesy of ‘philliefan99’

Welcome to the sweet spot of the baseball season in Washington, when the weather is perfect, the team is playing good cohesive ball, and there are enough deals and giveaways to make a night at the ballpark sound absolutely redeeming. The Nats come home this Friday night for a short but sweet five-game homestand.  There’s a lot to look forward to, for the dyed-in-the-wool fanatic, and the casual fan. Read on.

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Sports Fix, The Daily Feed
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Wizards Dial Back The Clock With New Retro-Inspired Uniforms

Sure Jordan Crawford and John Wall don’t look very excited in this photo, I’m sure they would rather be in the middle of an exciting NBA Playoffs that’s in full swing right now. However I am personally excited for what they are wearing- the new uniforms of the Washington Wizards.

At an unveiling this morning Wizard’s owner Ted Leonsis, Team President Ernie Grunfeld, and Head Coach Flip Saunders were among those on-hand to show-off the new look which both match the existing motif of other DC teams and take us back to the Red, White, and Blue stylings of the franchise’s past when they were better known as the Washington Bullets.

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Sports Fix, The Features
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A Little Brains, Heart and Nerve: Say Goodnight, Washington Capitals

Photo courtesy of
‘IMG_1503.jpg’
courtesy of ‘bridgetds’

I could wile away the hours,
Conferrin’ with the flowers,
Consultin’ with the rain,
And my head I’d be scratchin,’
While my thoughts were busy hatchin’ …

The Bruce Boudreau Era is done.

Make no mistake about it. Heading into the postseason the question was not so much about how far the Caps would go but more about how they performed once they got out of the first round. “Does Boudreau lose his job if the Caps do not make it to the Stanley Cup Finals” was an unfair question. The Stanley Cup is perhaps the hardest trophy to win in all of American sports, outside of the horse racing Triple Crown.

Washington just needed to play respectably, up to its potential and level of talent. No choking, no dramatic series losses after being up big. From the Eastern Conference semifinals on, if the Caps played well but got beat, that would have been an acceptable outcome.

That is not what happened.

Getting swept by the Tampa Bay Lightning was simply appalling. There is no excuse for it. It looked like Washington had found a way to win in the playoffs after the New York series. They were motivated, they played tight defensively, were opportunistic when they needed to be and, most importantly, they looked like they were focused and playing together. Sheer talent and determination should have been enough to get them through the semifinals.

A very good friend of mine, Erin, said that the Caps would be swept. She is an evil genius. Most pundits picked Washington to win anywhere between five and seven games. Myself, I thought Washington could eke it out in seven. I was not going to be one of those writers who dismissed the Lightning as too young or too raw. Tampa has a superbly talented hockey team not to be underestimated.

What I did was overestimate the Washington Capitals.

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Sports Fix, The Features
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Caps Dropped By Bolts In Overtime of Game 2

Photo courtesy of
‘Ovechkin Tosses First Star Puck to Crowd’
courtesy of ‘clydeorama’

A group of reporters huddled around a television in the press room at Verizon Center on Sunday night after the Capitals had lost Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Stanley Cup Playoffs semifinals 3-2 to the Tampa Bay Lightning in overtime. Deadlines momentarily forgotten, the drama of the night swirled up in wonder and emotion that has nothing to do with hockey.

Osama Bin Laden Is Dead.

Normally this would be the spot where I lay on the analytics. The logic of how the Caps have let two games at Verizon Center slip away after dominating much of the play only to come up short handed and staring the end of their season in the face. But, hockey is a game played by grown men. In the grand scheme of things, it is almost a trivial pursuit.

At the same time, it is anything but.

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