Tag Archives: Washington Nationals

The Daily Feed
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Marquis Shuts-out the World Champions

Photo courtesy of
‘Nat’s-Phillies Marquis’ Premiere’
courtesy of ‘Tony DeFilippo’

It’s safe to say that any team facing Tim Lincecum and the world champion San Francisco Giants this season needs to take care when playing against such a strong competitor. But, for whatever reason, when the Washington Nationals face Lincecum … well, that’s a horse of a different color.

Lincecum made his fifth career start against the Nationals Friday night. The last time he faced Jim Riggleman’s lineup in 2010, he took a loss after allowing six runs in just 4.2 innings at AT&T Park.

Instead of Lincecum and the Giants pouncing all over the Nationals, Washington right-handed starter Jason Marquis was the better man on the mound. Continue reading →

The Daily Feed
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Burnett Implodes, Mets Beat Nats 6-3

Photo courtesy of
‘9TH’
courtesy of ‘MissChatter’

At the start of Wednesday’s game between the Nationals and Mets in Washington, the Nats bullpen had a 3.29 ERA. When compared to the 2010 equivalent that posted the fifth best bullpen ERA in Major League Baseball at 3.35, that 3.29 is an improvement. But after left-handed reliever Sean Burnett’s ninth inning collapse, the Nats bullpen ERA became nothing more than a number.

The Nationals entered the ninth inning up 3-2 and went on to lose the game 6-3 to New York. Washington’s left-handed starter Tom Gorzelanny went into the contest looking for his first win of the season but was left with a no decision.  Continue reading →

The Daily Feed
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Ramos hits a couple dingers but Nats dropped by Mets 6-4

Photo courtesy of
‘2ND’
courtesy of ‘MissChatter’

There is only so much that Wilson Ramos can do for the Nats. He catches pitches, he does not pitch. He has one bat, not eight. His glove is made for catching fastballs, not tracking down dying quails in the outfield.

Yet, he did what he could on Tuesday night for the Nats in a 6-4 losing effort to the Mets in the first of a three-game set at Nationals Park. He hit two home runs, had an RBI single and fielded his position well when New York went small ball bunting. His 3-4 night raised his average to .378 and the dingers were his first two of the year along with the first multi-home run game of his young career.

Continue reading →

The Daily Feed
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Werth gives cold Nats 4-3 win over Brewers in extra innings

Photo courtesy of
‘1ST’
courtesy of ‘MissChatter’

There was no heat at Nationals Park on Friday night.

Game time temperature was 56 degrees, decreasing with the breeze and as the sun went down. It was colder than the press box at Verizon Center where the Caps were taking on the Rangers in Game 2 of their Eastern Conference quarterfinals playoff series.

There was no heat in the stands, as maybe 15,000 loyal fans were at the park, dutifully cheering on the Nats against the Brewers and rewarded, with a 4-3, 10-inning win. By the end of the game, there were maybe several hundred customers looking for a Nats victory.

Perhaps the rest were busy watching hockey.

And, there was no heat on the mound as neither starting pitcher – Tom Gorzelanny for the Nats, Chris Narveson for the Brewers – came close to hitting 90 miles-per-hour on the radar gun on a consistent basis.

Continue reading →

The Daily Feed
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Zimmerman to 15-day DL

Photo courtesy of
‘Zimmerman Wins It’
courtesy of ‘Max Cook’

This was not the news the Nationals needed.  Ben Goessling of MASN has the full word, but yesterday’s absence in the lineup in New York appears to be the tip of the iceberg for the face of the Nationals’ franchise.  Without Zim, the Nats are going with Alex Cora and Jerry Hairston Jr. in the position, which is sorta like bringing in Jay Leno to fill in for Conan O’Brien, it just doesn’t look right.

The injury is one that Zimmerman sustained during Spring Training, and then aggravated during a slide on Saturday night in New York.  The placement will be retroactive to yesterday, which means he’s eligible to come off on the 25th of May.  I’m sure there’s an Easter joke in here somewhere.

Continue reading →

The Daily Feed
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Thunder and finesse from Ankiel and Nats power past Braves

Photo courtesy of
‘7TH’
courtesy of ‘MissChatter’

One swing of Rick Ankiel’s bat made John Lannan and the Nationals winners for the first time in 2011 on Saturday as Washington beat the Braves 6-3 in a soggy affair at Nationals Park.

Ankiel took a 91 mile-per-hour four-seam fastball from Braves starter Tommy Hanson to right field above the out-of-town scoreboard in the third inning to give the Nats a 4-1 lead, all they would need to sink Atlanta on another chilly day at the ballpark.

Ankiel also layed down a perfect squeeze bunt in bottom of the seventh inning with the bases loaded to score third baseman Ryan Zimmerman and make the score 5-2 Nats. Catcher Wilson Ramos (three singles) and right fielder Jayson Werth (two doubles and an infield single) both had three hits to pace the Nats 10-hit performance.

Continue reading →

Sports Fix, The Features
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Nats starting pitching: Yes, as bad as you think

Photo courtesy of
‘1ST_4709’
courtesy of ‘MissChatter’

Cherry blossoms have come to D.C. and with them the idea that it should be Spring here in the nation’s capital. Yet, the weather does not seem to agree with a patina of chill and frost still clinging to the ground every morning as we wait for the bright sun and temperatures of April to finally melt away the doldrums of winter.

Nevertheless, it is time to play baseball.

The Nationals start their regular season tomorrow with the general hope that today will be better than yesterday. That is not a hard hope for a team that has averaged 62.33 wins a year over the last three years. Nats fans have had a dismal time of it and late-season empty stadiums have been the proof that baseball in Washington is not yet a full-fledged member of the city’s pastime.

Well, here at WeLoveDC, WeLoveBaseball.

Tom Bridge, Rachel Levitin and I are all credentialed for Nats home games this year and will bring you the blow-by-blow of how the Nats fare, through the hope of spring into the eventual doldrums of another losing summer. Belief me this: it will be another dismal year.

But there is hope.

Continue reading →

Sports Fix, The Features
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Spring Training through the eyes of the fans

Fans watch practice at Space Coast Stadium in Viera FL

Spring Training is always an optimistic time in baseball.  Fresh off a cold winter, and usually full of fresh faces, it’s easiest to have hope for even the most doomed club.  Look at the throngs that travel from Chicago to Mesa, Arizona to HoHoKam Park and swear that this will finally be the year for the Cubbies.  Sorry Rachel, I don’t think they’ve got it this year. The Nationals probably don’t either, but you wouldn’t know it to talk to their fans.

Nationals fans flocked by the hundreds to Space Coast Stadium in Florida this February and March to watch the Nationals take the field with unusual lineup combinations and positions, as they try to figure out what the team will look like come Opening Day on March 31st.  The sunny picture in their minds may still be brought down to Earth by May, but for now, these are some happy and optimistic fans.

Continue reading →

Entertainment, Fun & Games, Night Life, The Daily Feed
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“How Do You Know”: The D.C. Premiere


Photo by Rachel Levitin

The first-ever portrayal of a Washington Nationals player on the silver screen opens in theaters this Friday (December 17) in the form of the latest James L. Brooks film “How Do You Know” starring Reese Witherspoon, Paul Rudd, Owen Wilson (who plays a relief pitcher), and Jack Nicholson. As a fun, holiday “thank you” to season ticket, premium ticket, and re-newed ticket holders in 2011, the Nationals Dream Foundation — led by Marla Lerner Tanenbaum — hosted a unique holiday season film screening at E Street Cinema Wednesday night.

Nats pitcher Craig Stammen and team manager Jim Riggleman were in attendance and able to catch up for a minute on the red carpet E Street rolled out for the occasion. Fans mingled while cocktails were delivered by an event staff decked-out in the team’s new uniforms. And — most importantly — Batolin creator and player Glenn Donnellon was there to provide a wide-range of musical entertainment featuring hits by The Beatles, Lady Gaga, and more. Continue reading →

Special Events, The Features
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The Nationals Get New Uniforms


Photo Courtesy of the Washington Nationals

Clean-cut and no frills – that’s what the Washington Nationals new set of uniforms for the 2011 season are. The fan-favorite curly W that is predominately displayed as an integral logo of the Nationals organization is now the cornerstone of the front office’s attempt to provide their players and fans with a sense of baseball identity.

According to Nationals Chief Operating Officier Andrew Feffer, the organization spent the entire season getting the feel for what District baseball fans would like to see if any changes to the uniforms were made. A combination of focus groups, surveys and casual conversations brought the Nats uniforms to where they are and will be for the duration of 2011 – a red, white, and blue palate of patriotism garnished with a curly W.

Some fans and critics of the team have already expressed their disdain for a lack of the team’s name being prominently displayed on the front of the home jersey but that’s the thing about uniform changes … not everyone’s always going to fall in love at first sight. Continue reading →

Special Events, The Daily Feed
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The Nationals’ New Uniforms: In Pictures

Ian Koski / Nationals Daily News

The Washington Nationals debuted their new set of uniforms for the 2011 season Wednesday night from the Stars and Stripes Club at Nationals Park with an invite only fashion show event. Six Nats were in-house as make-shift models for the evening — Ryan Zimmerman, Drew Storen, Tyler Clippard, Ian Desmond, Jordan Zimmermann, and John Lannan.

There are four new jerseys and one new cap — all of which display a red, white, and blue palate of colors. They include: a white home jersey with red and blue trim and a curly W, a red alternate home jersey with white and blue trim and a curly W, a special occasion alternate blue uniform with old glory waving from inside a curly W and a red/white trim, and the gray away jersey with Washington spelled out with a curly W to round out the set.

You can check out the Nats new game day threads after the page break. Continue reading →

Adventures, capitals hockey, Entertainment, Essential DC, Fun & Games, Life in the Capital, People, The Daily Feed
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Ryan Zimmerman Plays The Jazz Kazoo

Ryan Zimmerman (aka Zimmersapien) loves baseball. He apparently also loves kazoos, berets and jazz.

The Zimm also spends his weekends dancing with Caps coach Bruce Boudreau. No word on if Zimmerman will be teaming up with Ron Burgundy and his “yazz” flute.

Interviews, People, The Features
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Nats Fans Are People Too: Laura Murphy

Photo Compliments of Laura Murphy

There’s one thought that never crossed Jennifer Coffey’s mind as a mother raising her family in West Chester, Pa. — that her daughter would grow up to be a Nats fan.

“The whole family is perplexed because we’re a family that enjoys sports but especially enjoys the local sports teams,” Jennifer said of her daughter Laura Murphy.

Murphy grew up in West Chester, about 45 minutes outside of Philadelphia, and fondly remembers her family attending Phillies games during the ’93 season when “the team was awesome.”

Then Major League Baseball went on strike. Continue reading →

The Daily Feed
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Yunesky Maya Makes His Debut

Yunesky Maya / Photo by Cheryl Nichols / Nationals News Network

The Mets must hate Willie Harris. Well, maybe not hate. They just didn’t like him for all of one minute in the sixth inning on Tuesday night when he broke up Dillon Gee’s no-hitter with a lead-off solo shot to the centerfield bleachers.

What was supposed to be a duel between two young pitchers debuting on the same night turned out to be a one-sided show.  Gee, 24, wasn’t a head-turner per se, but the Mets lineup made him look way better than the Nats’ Yunesky Maya for the first two innings.

One day after a 13-3 offensive pounding of New York must have left the Nationals tired. Poor Maya. The sleepy bats in this 4-1 loss couldn’t wake from their sweet slumber. Continue reading →

Interviews, Life in the Capital, People, The Features
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Living in DC: The Nationals’ Perspective


Nationals Park / Photo by Max Cook

If you’re an outsider looking in then it’s easy to paint each resident of the greater D.C. metropolitan area with a political brush. People living in Maryland, Virginia or D.C. know the District is widely regarded as being the epicenter of the American political spectrum.

In anticipation of Glen Beck’s “Restoring Honor” rally at the end of August, We Love DC author Ben H. Rome emphasized that Washington’s culture remains as diverse as its people. The interests of people who live here go beyond day jobs and politics. Living in D.C. is a catalyst for an active and intellectually stimulating lifestyle. Not only do the Washington Nationals know this, but they embrace it.

When they’re not at Nationals Park or on the road, Nationals players take advantage of their new home.

“It’s definitely a fun place to be. There’s always a lot going on in this place whether it’s professional teams or politically. There’s always something you can pay attention to in the news. It’s kind of the center of a lot of things so you always feel like you’re in an important place,” Nationals pitcher Craig Stammen said. Continue reading →

The Features
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Tips For Discouraged Nats Fans

Photo by Max Cook / We Love DC

NatsTown, we know you’re down in the dumps. Dibble’s gone, which in the eyes of some is a victory in itself, but so is that other guy. You know, that guy everyone was taking about for a year and needs Tommy John’s surgery? Yeah, that guy.

Here are the facts: You’re fans of the newest team in Major League Baseball. In the inaugural 2005 season, you were ecstatic, vibrant, and full of hope. Now, much like the team on the field, you’re feeling deflated and flat. That jolt of energy experienced in June has escaped and all because of a silly elbow tendon.

It’s times like this that try the fan’s soul. Hence, a friendly reminder: One man doesn’t make a team.

It’s easy for outsiders to say, “Nats fans dropped like flies once Stephen Strasburg got called in for surgery.” Don’t give them that chance.

Here are some suggestions on how to handle the rest of 2010 and how to cope with young Stephen out of the lineup: Continue reading →

The Daily Feed
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Stephen Strasburg Goes Back To The 15-Day Disabled List

Photo courtesy of
‘Strasburg’
courtesy of ‘Max Cook’

Strasburg is currently experiencing pain in his forearm and flexor muscle, which differs from the shoulder inflamation he experienced earlier this season. Rizzo assures that these types of issues previously arose during Strasburg’s career at San Diego State.

The first time around, Strasburg had a dry MRI which showed some red lights that have the Nats paying attention. The Nats have decided to have Strasburg go in for a second MRI called an Arthogram to find out what the problem is and get the full story on his arm.

Strasburg showed up to the park today wanting to throw the ball around but the Nats choose to err on the side of safety and had him sit this one out.

“I think he’s anxious to find out what’s going on,” Rizzo said. “He felt good today. His elbow felt good. He’s anxious. He wants a resolution to find out what’s going on. [He’s] a little anxious, a little emotional, that would be fair to say.

Rizzo expects results within a 24 hour time frame after the MRI takes place. In the mean time, RHP Jordan Zimmermann will make his 2010 debut with the Nationals in Washinton on Thursday against the St. Louis Cardinals.

The Daily Feed
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What Bryce Harper Means For The Nats Fanbase

Young Fan
Photo by Rachel Levitin

The Washington Post’s Thomas Boswell raised a pretty good point this morning. “Baseball fans can win two ways,” he wrote. “Their team can be great. Or a player can be so sublime that his performance, year after year, almost every day for six months at a time, gives so much accumulated pleasure that his individual art actually rivals victory.”

Bryce Harper signing with the Washington Nationals is just one of a few ways Nationals fans will find victory while cheering for a team who has yet to contend in post-season play.

“Just five years after getting a team back after a 33-year absence, Washington fans are getting a reward that, while perhaps not as cherished as a World Series, ranks enormously high,” Boswell wrote.

What’s the reward? A team that went from hopeless, having lost over 200 games in two seasons, to a team full of hope. Continue reading →

Adams Morgan, Entertainment, The Daily Feed
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Owen Wilson A Nats Pitcher In DC RomCom With Rudd & Witherspoon

Hey remember last year when that romantic comedy was filming around Adams Morgan and everybody was trying to get a look at Paul Rudd & Reese Witherspoon?

Well that film, How Do You Know, is slated to be released the day after my birthday (December 17th, 2010) and the first trailer has been released.

The film stars Paul Rudd, Reese Witherspoon, Owen Wilson, and Jack Nicholson. According to IMDB the film is described as, “a romantic comedy centered on the love triangle between professional softball player Lisa Jorgenson (Witherspoon), a corporate executive (Rudd), and a major-league pitcher (Wilson.)”

Continue reading →

Special Events, The Features
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The Nationals Honor Their Heritage


Pictured: Andre Dawson waving and Gary Carter (on the right).  Photo by Ian Koski / Nationals Daily News

Gary Carter showed up at Nationals Park Tuesday to help the Washington Nationals honor his former teammate. Much to his surprise, the Nationals hadn’t reserved all of the night’s festivities for 2010 Hall of Fame inductee Andre Dawson – he too would be recognized.

The Hall of Fame Ring of Honor is a display of player’s names atop the Lexus President’s Club seats behind home plate. It was installed this week as a reminder of baseball days gone by and a step toward ensuring that Nationals fans of the future know where their beloved team came from. Dawson and Carter are just two of the names inscribed inside that ring.

“Anytime someone extends that effort and pays homage to your career it’s very gratifying,” Dawson said after seeing the ring in person. “It doesn’t necessarily mean that I had to play for the organization. I never played here, but I understand the history and the connection and I’m most grateful.” Continue reading →