The Nationals Enquirer

Thanks, Bobby...

2010-10-12T06:41:54-04:00

(Above, a photo of the great Bobby Cox cake typo of 2010. Photo is from AJC.com.)

Bobby Cox's Last Stand

And so, the Braves fell in four games to the Giants, and now we doff our caps and pay respects to Bobby Cox for a great career. He had a fantastic run.

Still, nothing beats the work of that Senate catering service earlier this summer.

Thanks for the memories, Bobby.

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Bryce Harper, Homeward Bound (for now)

2010-10-11T22:13:12-04:00

That's no "oppo boppo": Above, Bryce Harper goes deep in an Oct. 1 instructional league game for the Nationals against the Tigers in Florida.

The Washington Post's Adam Kilgore reported Monday that Bryce Harper will be heading back home to Vegas with a month of instructional league ball under his belt, and will not report for Arizona Fall League duty -- at least not yet. Guess there's still an outside chance he'll end there, but it's not sounding likely:

Nationals Director of Player Development Doug Harris and General Manager Mike Rizzo will speak in the next few days to decide if Harper's next step includes playing in the AFL. For now, they want to give Harper time to relax and reflect in a comfortable setting.

"He's going to go home," Harris said. "Mike and I are going to talk about it. This is the first time he's really been away from home. He needs to go home."
(Doug Harris, via Nationals Journal, 10/11/2010)

What a difference a year makes: Seems like only yesterday Stephen Strasburg was making his AFL debut for the Nats/Desert Dogs, and Orioles' prospect and AFL teammate Brandon Snyder wore a Strasburg jersey on his way to the team bus, causing a mini-mini-riot. Guess this year an O's prospect in a Sammy Solis or Brad Peacock jersey isn't going to cause the same level of hysteria. Guess we'll have to wait until next October for a Bryce Harper AFL debut. Oh well.

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p.s., This Sucks

2010-10-11T19:34:14-04:00

(The Phillies broke out the champagne on Sunday night. Reuters Photo by John Sommers II.)

No, not that the Nationals are bringing back their entire coaching staff for (at least the start of) the 2011 season. That's fine.

Just the Phillies.

Because the thought of having no choice but to root for the Yankees at some point in the near future is almost too much to take.

Heck, even the columnists in Philly are noting that the "novelty of October baseball in Philadelphia is a distant memory." Sort of captures the whole spirit of baseball fans in that hellhole of a city.

And it doesn't look like there's anybody around to take 'em down.

Boooooo! Or should that be: boo hoo?

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BOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!

2010-10-08T22:47:22-04:00

(Welcome back to the City of Brotherly Love: Phillies fans heckle Scott Rolen. Photo byTim Shaffer/Reuters.)

"Thank you, Jay Bruce!" (Phillies fans, 10/8/2010)

First no hits, then no defense.

Also, Reds can't catch Phils.

That seventh inning was awful.

But despite his contribution to the hellish 7th, we still wish Aroldis Chapman was a National. Also, Jay Bruce would fit right in around here.

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Stan Kasten's Glaring Omission

2010-10-07T21:37:11-04:00

If you watched, listened to, or read any of the various accounts of Stan Kasten's Farewell/Victory Tour through the Washington D.C. media on Wednesday, you'll notice that Stan expresses love and much thanks to many people. But there's one glaring omission -- evident within the first minute or so of the above interview between Stan and CSN Washington's Russ Thaler. And we quote:

"I'll always be a friend to this franchise. I love the players, I love the front office, I love the owners, and uh, that will continue. And most importantly, I love this city. I've had such a blast living here, working here, and I'll continue to spend lots and lots of time here. In the meantime, I'm also going to remain an owner at least for the forseeable future so yes, I will continue to be pulling for the Washington Nationals."
(Stan Kasten, via CSN Washington, 10/6/2010)

MASN's Ben Goessling posted a complete transcript of Kasten's Wednesday afternoon press conference at the President's Club at Nationals Park. Interestingly, unless we missed it: not once does Stan offer even a scintilla of a gesture of thanks to Nationals fans. Instead, Stan keeps his razor focus on a vague concept of fans who will eventually be there in the future; fans who don't actually exist in the here-and-now. Take this Q & A snippet, via Goessling's transcript:

When the team came here, you had 22,000 season ticketholders. Now, it might be half that, based on estimates of some of the late-season crowds. Do you think you have squandered goodwill with the fans?

I think squandered is probably too strong of a word. Clearly, some of it has dissipated. But let me tell you, I've lived through this before and I've seen it many, many times before. It's going to come back if you have the right market, and this is the right market. A huge fan base. A good mix. A diverse fan base with good demographics. And much better in terms of the economy and disposable income that most other markets. As soon as we get our product to where we've always wanted it to be but haven't gotten it yet, this is going to be great. And there will be a day, hopefully in the not-too-distant future when we shoot past 22,000 season tickets. But first we have to get our jobs done. The fans will come if we do that.

Build it and they will come. Until then, you get the attendance you deserve. Right, Stan?

Best of all, Kasten implied that Nationals fans (current and future?) should be thankful that the team essentially tanked the 2008 and 2009 seasons, allowing the organization to land a pair of once-in-a-generation prospects in Strasburg and Harper. Indeed, the Nationals tanked it. And we should all be thankful that they got lucky. More from Kasten, via Goessling's transcript

Is the reason for not having success quicker because of farm system not producing or because didn't spend to add?
I think both of those, and probably other reasons, are behind it also. What I tell people, because I think it's a fair question and a fair criticism, but the past is the past, and I tell people this. Yes, it might have been done quicker. But then the finished product would not have had a Strasburg in it, and would not have had a Harper in it. And remember, when they get here, not only will we be a good team, a winning team. We'll also have something teams go decades without having, and that's real marquee star power. In addition to quality product on the field that can really help make this the marquee franchise we thought it should be. So don't minimize the importance of that. Yeah, it might have been successful, but it would have had a different look and a different feel. And I think you're all going to be really happy about a successful team that also has that star quality.

It's seems like that's always been the way with Stan Kasten -- the grass will always be greener at some vague, to be determined point in the future. And when that time comes, NatsTown will be eternally grateful, Stan. And we will remember to thank you.

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Silver Elvis Has Left The Building

2010-10-06T07:37:07-04:00

(Great moments in Silver Elvisdom. Photos of TV by Nationals Enquirer staff.)

For a little while there in 2010, it seemed like the Nationals were onto something with that whole Silver Elvis (Silver Fox) gimmick, an unexpected and fun little sidebar after wins; wins which piled up sort of unexpectedly in bunches in April into May. And then the wins stopped showing up so frequently, and sadly the Silver Elvis wig started showing up less frequently on the heads of Nationals players during post-game interviews on TV. Of course, the wig made an unexpected curtain call in August, co-opted by Stan Kasten for his own nefarious purposes (see below).

And so, since the popular thing to do these days is to post best-of lists and 2010 recaps, we thought we'd offer up the First (and Probably Last) Nationals Enquirer Silver Elvis Awards.

But first, before we get to that, be sure to head over and check out the DC-Internet Baseball Writers Association 2010 Player Achievement Awards. We're card-carrying members ourselves, don't you know.

And now, without further ado, the First (and Probably Last) Nationals Enquirer Silver Elvis Awards:

Best Silver Elvis Appearance: June 8, Strasburg's debut, of course:

Runner up, Best Appearance: April 16, Josh Willingham also shushes his kid during post game interview. Also, Most Frequent Silver Elvis: Josh Willingham (4 appearances on TV, by our count).

Second Runner up, Best Appearance: July 1, Nyjer Morgan finally does something right on the field, then goes berserk during his post-game interview:

First Appearance on TV, on a player: Willie Harris:

Last Apperance on TV: Stan Kasten gives Rizzo the shaving cream pie/Silver Elvis Treatment in the wee hours after signing Bryce Harper, August 17:

Only 130-something days until Nationals pitchers and catchers report...

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About Stephen Strasburg and a little old lady from Syracuse...

2010-10-05T17:01:32-04:00

(Blame this little old lady for blowing out Stephen Strasburg's elbow on this handshake? Photo by Jim Commentucci of The Syracuse Post-Standard.)

Our anonymous sources with no knowledge of the situation have found another scapegoat for Stephen Strasburg's elbow blow out in August. The moment was reportedly captured by Jim Commentucci of The Syracuse Post-Standard on May 7, the day Strasburg arrived in Syracuse after being called up to AAA.

Forget that final changeup on August 21, the "inverted W" talk, Steve McCatty, or Jim Riggleman. That little old lady from Syracuse had a hell of a handshake.

Dave Sheinin's piece on Strasburg in Tuesday's Washington Post is required reading for any Nationals fan. Reflecting on that dark night in Philly is no fun, and not surprisingly we're reminded that the lowest of the lowlights of the 2010 Nationals season all feature the Philadelphia Phillies prominently. As Jim Bowden would say: Go Reds!

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The epitaph of the 2010 Washington Nationals reads as follows:

2010-10-04T07:12:40-04:00

(Here lies the body of the 2010 Washington Nationals. Image via www.tombstonebuilder.com*)

The 2010 Washington Nationals: It was the best of times. It was almost but not quite the worst of times. But it was pretty bad, most of the time. 69 wins, good for 6th worst record in baseball.

"I'm not happy with the year at all, I thought we should have won 75 ballgames. We didn't reach 70. So I'm certainly not satisfied with what we did. Now, am I satisfied with the effort we got and the intensity and the passion we played with? Yeah."
(Jim Riggleman, via Washington Post, 10/3/2010)

How can a team that looked so perfectly average at home (41-40) look so perfectly putrid on the road (28-53)? The world may never know.

Too many questions to ask heading into the offseason, starting with Adam Dunn. But instead, Nationals Enquirer staff would like to take a moment to give a tip of the cap and thank our loyal readers for stopping by all season.

Keep stopping by, and we'll try to keep the lights on for another season.

(*Inspiration for tombstone image via Boston Dirt Dogs dot com)

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Oliver Twist

2010-10-03T21:00:36-04:00

(Oliver Perez trots off the mound to a chorus of boos after walking Justin Maxwell with the bases loaded to drive in Adam Kennedy for the game winning run in the 14th inning. AP Photo.)

"The guys started telling me it's kind of becoming a tradition here. My first question was, 'Did you guys win?' I don't want to stay this long and lose."
(Miguel Batista, via Washington Post, 10/3/2010)

Thank you, Ollie Perez!

Nationals 2, Mets 1: Another season finale, another extra inning win. Another start by Livo, another no decision.

Now, raise your hand if around the bottom of the 12th you started worrying that this game had a good chance of ending after the playoffs start on Wednesday afternoon. It was pretty awful.

Nats bullpen: Fantastic, again.

Thanks for the memories, Adam Dunn. You'll be missed.

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One For The Road

2010-10-03T10:02:39-04:00

(Jim Riggleman, looking forward to 2011. Photo via picapp.)

"The one regret I have for the season is, I kind of fell into the trap of how hot Guzman was earlier in the year. We were winning ballgames when Guzman, Kennedy and Desmond were in a rotation. But Guzman was so hot, I just fell into that trap of, 'He is so hot, I can't sit him, and Desi is doing a good job at short. So I sat Kennedy for quite a bit."
(Jim Riggleman, via Nationals.com, 10/2/2010)

And then Jim Riggleman revealed biggest regret of 2010: Not playing Adam Kennedy more?

The Rigglemen limp to the finish line.

Mets 7, Nationals 2: Hopes of a 70-win season go down the toilet on Saturday.

Okay, one more game to go, let's just get this over with. 68 or 69 wins hanging in the balance. The suspense is killing us.

The Nationals Enquirer

Thanks, Bobby...

(Above, a photo of the great Bobby Cox cake typo of 2010. Photo is from AJC.com.)

Bobby Cox's Last Stand

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Bryce Harper, Homeward Bound (for now)

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p.s., This Sucks

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BOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!

First no hits, then no defense. Also, Reds can't catch Phils.

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Stan Kasten's Glaring Omission

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Silver Elvis Has Left The Building

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About Stephen Strasburg and a little old lady from Syracuse...

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The epitaph of the 2010 Washington Nationals reads as follows:

(Here lies the body of the 2010 Washington Nationals. Image via www.tombstonebuilder.com*)

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Oliver Twist

Thank you, Ollie Perez!

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One For The Road

And then Jim Riggleman revealed biggest regret of 2010: Not playing Adam Kennedy more?

The Rigglemen limp to the finish line.

Mets 7, Nationals 2: Hopes of a 70-win season go down the toilet on Saturday. Okay, one more game to go, let's just get this over with. 68 or 69 wins hanging in the balance. The suspense is killing us.

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First no hits, then no defense.

Also, Reds can't catch Phils.

Mets 7, Nationals 2: Hopes of a 70-win season go down the toilet on Saturday.

Okay, one more game to go, let's just get this over with. 68 or 69 wins hanging in the balance. The suspense is killing us.