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***OFFICIAL*** Washington Nationals ongoing thread (2 Viewers)
- Thread starter JZilla
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Swing 51
Footballguy
I was curious about how the Mormon issue would be handled - well played by Harp, didn't look like he had a drop on his person, the hat caught it all.Bryce in the fireman's hat.
Props to MASN Dan for doing a pretty good job in the locker room.
Now who makes the NLDS roster? Is Soriano out? Do they have Thorton, Blevins and Det in the bullpen (I think Blevins may be left off if they don't need 3 lefties). I assume they go with an extra bat on the bench with the need for only 4 starters and likely Roark in relief. Unless he looks completely terrible over the next two weeks, I would think Gio gets the game 4 start as the only lefty starter.
Now who makes the NLDS roster? Is Soriano out? Do they have Thorton, Blevins and Det in the bullpen (I think Blevins may be left off if they don't need 3 lefties). I assume they go with an extra bat on the bench with the need for only 4 starters and likely Roark in relief. Unless he looks completely terrible over the next two weeks, I would think Gio gets the game 4 start as the only lefty starter.
TobiasFunke
Footballguy
I didn't even think about that. Pretty funny. Last time he stood in the corner with Drake LaRoche and they had sparkling apple juice or something- of course he was also underage back then.I was curious about how the Mormon issue would be handled - well played by Harp, didn't look like he had a drop on his person, the hat caught it all.Bryce in the fireman's hat.
This Roark/Gio postseason rotation thing is a pretty awesome problem to have. Tanner was amazing last night. No walks, same as Stras the night before. Had they not decided to let Soriano try to work out his issues in the 9th last night the staff would have a three-game shutout streak.
TobiasFunke
Footballguy
I think you're dead on with the bullpen, although Roark isn't making it easy to not give him a start.
It would be totally unorthodox and I can't imagine they'll actually do it, but I think they should include Michael Taylor. Kills two birds with one stone- gives you a defensive replacement who can play all three outfield spots (Werth looks a few steps slow these days) and a quality pinch running option. Right now the only possible pinch runner is Espi, who is OK but not great, plus you might not want to burn him in an extra inning game in case there's a chance to pinch-hit against a lefty.
I think you will see four things now until the end of the season 1) Zim playing everyday once he comes back this weekend; 2) lots of days off for the position players; 3) no starter going past the 6th; and 4) a bunch of guys in the bullpen busting it to make the roster. Outside of Clip, Storen, and Stammen, no one else is guaranteed a spot.
Good call on Taylor making the roster. Maybe 3 lefties make it if they face a team like the Cardinals with all those LH batters at the top of the order.
Good call on Taylor making the roster. Maybe 3 lefties make it if they face a team like the Cardinals with all those LH batters at the top of the order.
ScoobySnack
Footballguy
I see they are resting all of the starters today but can't loose sight of the fact they are only 1.5 games up on the Dodgers for the top spot in the NL. Would think they would want to secure this spot. Luckily the Dodgers are getting killed by the Rockies today.
Swing 51
Footballguy
Probably just giving the regulars the day off after consuming many a Miller Lite Tall Boy.
Ramblin Wreck
Footballguy
Thornton is making the postseason roster for sure.
SP:
Strasburg
Zimmermann
Fister
Gio (But I think Roark has pitched better)
RP:
Storen
Clippard
Stammen
Roark
Thornton
Blevins or Detwiler or Soriano
Blevins or Detwiler or Soriano
Starters:
Ramos
Laroche
Cabrera
Desmond
Rendon
Werth
Harper
Span
Bench:
Lobaton
Frandsen
Espinosa
Hairston
R. Zimmerman
M. Taylor or S. Souza - I might take both and leave off Hairston
TobiasFunke
Footballguy
I don't think you can leave Aaron Barrett and his 11.2 K/9 ratio off the postseason roster. He's perfect for the postseason, where sometimes you just need a K and you don't need to worry about workload.
Ramblin Wreck
Footballguy
Ramblin Wreck
Footballguy
Forgot about him. So it's probably Det or Blevins and Soriano or Barrett. I would choose Blevins and Barrett and I'll believe Soriano is left off when I see it.
TobiasFunke
Footballguy
Also although I love the idea of Taylor or even Souza on the roster I would be stunned if they actually do it. They'll play it safe. Easier to carry terrible over-the-hill bench guys like Hairston and Schierholtz and avoid media scrutiny than take another risk and have to deal with the questions if the young guys come up short.
dgreen
Footballguy
TobiasFunke
Footballguy
Yup, I think you have to do it. The lineup with Zimm in there is just too good. They can yank him for a defensive replacement late when they have leads, and they can do it earlier than usual since Cabrera is solid, like maybe the 7th or 8th inning. But you gotta get Zimm's bat in there because the lineup is ridiculous when he's in it.
I'd also consider sitting LaRoche vs lefties and putting Zimm at 1B, if they think he can handle the position defensively- although I have no idea if he can. As good as LaRoche has been he's still been awful vs lefties, especially lately after a hot start. He certainly shouldn't be batting cleanup against lefties, that's for sure. Of course I'd also play Espi over Cabrera against lefties.
dgreen
Footballguy
With Zimmerman, you're looking at Ramos at 8 and a 7-hole hitter like Desmond or Harper or Rendon. That's scary. Ramos at 7 and Cabrera at 8 is good, but Zimmerman should make that lineup even better.
I'd probably go:
CF Span
2B Rendon
RF Werth
1B LaRoche
3B Zimmerman
LF Harper
SS Desmond
C Ramos
Not too much luck on the insider sale. Home game 3 in section 241 is all I got. Picked up two seats for game 2 in the front row of 306 for $95 a piece through stubhub. I could probably get a better deal closer to the game but that looked ok to me as they go for $63 including fees through the club. Anyone recall what tickets went for day of last time? I got my NDLS and NLCS 
tickets through the insider sale then.
I'm in a new season ticket holder group that didn't want to front the $8000 to get the 4 strips for our club seats
tickets through the insider sale then.I'm in a new season ticket holder group that didn't want to front the $8000 to get the 4 strips for our club seats
TobiasFunke
Footballguy
You did better than most on the insider sale, a lot of people got nothing.Not too much luck on the insider sale. Home game 3 in section 241 is all I got. Picked up two seats for game 2 in the front row of 306 for $95 a piece through stubhub. I could probably get a better deal closer to the game but that looked ok to me as they go for $63 including fees through the club. Anyone recall what tickets went for day of last time? I got my NDLS and NLCS
I'm in a new season ticket holder group that didn't want to front the $8000 to get the 4 strips for our club seats
I think you'll be OK waiting on Stubhub for a while, I think they went down to not that much over face last time. Although the fan base has obviously grown in two years and the games will be on weekends this time, so that's not working in your favor.
Why didn't you all do the season ticket holder presale on Wednesday? You don't need to front vast sums of money for that, it was only for the NLDS and only for the tickets you actually get.
TobiasFunke
Footballguy
So do we want the Pirates or the Giants here? I'm thinking Giants. Don't want to spend a week in constant fear of McCutchen, plus once the Giants burn a Bumgarner start in the wild card game their rotation doesn't look particularly intimidating.
fred_1_15301
Footballguy
I'm a Pirates homer but a Pirates/Nats series would be very good. The Pirates have a very good lineup (even outside of Cutch). I believe they have 9 guys with 10+ homers this years. You could maybe make a case that Cutch isn't even the team MVP. They also have 2 very good starting pitchers and a lights out bullpen (now that Holdzkom can man the 7th). Since their 10-18 start, they've simply been one of the best teams in baseball. I don't know if they'll beat the Giants in a one game playoff but I'm confident they're the better team right now.
TobiasFunke
Footballguy
Yup. Think this is why I'd rather see the Giants. 36-25 in the second half with no losing months since April vs. 32-28 in the second half for SF. I think it's pretty clear the Pirates are the better team; the Giants are actually under .500 since June 1. Also, although Liriano has been very good lately he's not a top of the rotation ace type guy like Bumgarner. Since both would be burned in the wild card I think the Giants lose more by relegating their ace to only one start in a five game series.
On the other hand, the deadline addition of Peavy complicates things. Peavy-Hudson-Vogelsong-Bumgarner is still more intimidating than Volquez-Cole-Morton-Liriano.
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fred_1_15301
Footballguy
I think Morton is done for the year so you would likely see Locke or probably Worley as the 4th man. The Giants definitely have a deeper rotation but their lineup is not nearly as good as the Pirates. Although I'm a little nervous the Brewers may have laid out a blueprint on how to pitch the the Pirates but we shall see.
Ramblin Wreck
Footballguy
Magic number for homefield advantage should be down to 3.
What's the pitching rotation this week going to be? I assume Strasburg won't pitch again (or will be limited to like 3 innings) so he's ready for Game 1?
What's the pitching rotation this week going to be? I assume Strasburg won't pitch again (or will be limited to like 3 innings) so he's ready for Game 1?
Ramblin Wreck
Footballguy
Zimmerman played Saturday but then sat out on Sunday. He's sitting out again today with Frandsen playing instead of Rendon. I don't think he's going to be an every day player in the playoffs or they would be getting him a lot more playing time this week.
TobiasFunke
Footballguy
Supposedly his hamstring was really bothering him after the Saturday game. I'm starting to get that feeling too. Which is fine, really. Bench bat against righties, start him at 1B against lefties if Williams actually looks at the splits instead of continuing to think LaRoche can hit them.
Doctor Detroit
Please remove your headgear
I'll be at game 2 of the NLDS. 
I think you want to play Pittsburgh, the Giants experience and the travel are two things not to like about a five game series with them.
I think you want to play Pittsburgh, the Giants experience and the travel are two things not to like about a five game series with them.
TobiasFunke
Footballguy
I'm torn between those reasons on the one hand and the fact that the Pirates have been the clearly better team since June 1 on the other hand. Another thing is that Hudson has owned the Nats for many years. Obviously he's not the same guy any more but it's still a little disconcerting.Doctor Detroit said:I'll be at game 2 of the NLDS.
I think you want to play Pittsburgh, the Giants experience and the travel are two things not to like about a five game series with them.
I saw some mention that the Giants possibly couldn't or wouldn't be lining up Bumgarner to pitch the Wild Card? I can't imagine that actually happens, but if it's true it would certainly change things a little.
fred_1_15301
Footballguy
Wow that would be nuts if Bumgarner isn't lined up for the WC. However, his only outing against the Pirates was his worst start of the year. I still don't see any reason why they wouldn't line him up. If the Pirates get that home WC game, I'm extremely confident they win. Dr. D brings up good points about the experience and travel factors but the Pirates are simply the better team right now. Their lineup is better and their pitching from top to bottom has been on fire. Also, PNC is going to be a very difficult environment for a visiting team. It's been such a long and futile 20+ years for this franchise that this fanbase is literally out of control with excitement and the players feed off of that (as ridiculous as that sounds). That WC game last year against the Reds was special.I'm torn between those reasons on the one hand and the fact that the Pirates have been the clearly better team since June 1 on the other hand. Another thing is that Hudson has owned the Nats for many years. Obviously he's not the same guy any more but it's still a little disconcerting.Doctor Detroit said:I'll be at game 2 of the NLDS.
I think you want to play Pittsburgh, the Giants experience and the travel are two things not to like about a five game series with them.
I saw some mention that the Giants possibly couldn't or wouldn't be lining up Bumgarner to pitch the Wild Card? I can't imagine that actually happens, but if it's true it would certainly change things a little.
With all of that said, I'm also pretty certain that the Nats are far and away the best overall team in the NL. Obviously anything could happen but you really shouldn't be "worried" about either the Pirates or the Giants.
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Ramblin Wreck
Footballguy
Magic number for homefield advantage down to 1. Gio was dominant tonight
TobiasFunke
Footballguy
None of the four major professional sports teams in DC has made it to even the semifinal/conference championship round of the playoffs since 1998. We'll be worried about anyone and everyone. If we were playing the Diamondbacks I'd be panicked.Wow that would be nuts if Bumgarner isn't lined up for the WC. However, his only outing against the Pirates was his worst start of the year. I still don't see any reason why they wouldn't line him up. If the Pirates get that home WC game, I'm extremely confident they win. Dr. D brings up good points about the experience and travel factors but the Pirates are simply the better team right now. Their lineup is better and their pitching from top to bottom has been on fire. Also, PNC is going to be a very difficult environment for a visiting team. It's been such a long and futile 20+ years for this franchise that this fanbase is literally out of control with excitement and the players feed off of that (as ridiculous as that sounds). That WC game last year against the Reds was special.I'm torn between those reasons on the one hand and the fact that the Pirates have been the clearly better team since June 1 on the other hand. Another thing is that Hudson has owned the Nats for many years. Obviously he's not the same guy any more but it's still a little disconcerting.I'll be at game 2 of the NLDS.
I think you want to play Pittsburgh, the Giants experience and the travel are two things not to like about a five game series with them.
I saw some mention that the Giants possibly couldn't or wouldn't be lining up Bumgarner to pitch the Wild Card? I can't imagine that actually happens, but if it's true it would certainly change things a little.
With all of that said, I'm also pretty certain that the Nats are far and away the best overall team in the NL. Obviously anything could happen but you really shouldn't be "worried" about either the Pirates or the Giants.
ScoobySnack
Footballguy
I know it's a great problem to have but with the way that everyone is currently pitching. It's going to be a tough decision for Matt Williams to decide his rotation for the NLDS.
TobiasFunke
Footballguy
Not gonna be a problem. They're all pretty great but only one of them (a) is well past his previous high for innings pitched in a single season and (b) has pitched out of the bullpen in a middle relief role as recently as last season.
If Gio had really struggled last night they might have briefly considered giving Roark a start over him, but he look incredible so I would assume that sealed the deal.
The_Man
Footballguy
What's to worry about? How often has a Washington team had a disappointing post-season result against a team from Pittsburgh?
Just saw this stat - with today's shutout, the Nats' team ERA dropped to 2.99861. No team has finished under 3.00 since the 1989 Dodgers. Wow.
Fairly charming Q&A on the Post's website between the Mayors of DC and Baltimore about a potential World Series match-up.
Good luck - I'll be rooting for you. Until you face the O's in the Series, of course.
Just saw this stat - with today's shutout, the Nats' team ERA dropped to 2.99861. No team has finished under 3.00 since the 1989 Dodgers. Wow.
Fairly charming Q&A on the Post's website between the Mayors of DC and Baltimore about a potential World Series match-up.
Good luck - I'll be rooting for you. Until you face the O's in the Series, of course.
ScoobySnack
Footballguy
All very good points. I guess it's just a shame as Roark has certainly pitched well enough to earn a spot in the post-season rotation. But I guess it's a problem that anyone would love to have.
Don Quixote
Footballguy
That was incredible. Maybe my favorite moment as a Nats fan so far.
Much credit to Williams with the defensive replacements in the 8th and 9th.
Much credit to Williams with the defensive replacements in the 8th and 9th.
TobiasFunke
Footballguy
It would take some kind of horrific playoff meltdown for this not to be the greatest season in Nats history. Even if they go out meekly in four games or something this still takes the cake. What a fun couple of months.
Staff is peaking at the right time:
Adam Kilgore @AdamKilgoreWP 7m
This is absurd. The Nats' likely four playoff starters, combined, in their last turn through: 31 IP, 0 ER, 38 K, 4 BB, 6 H.
The_Man
Footballguy
I was thinking that has to be the greatest moment in Nats history since they moved from Montreal.
Don Quixote
Footballguy
The only one that I think comes close is Game 4 versus the Cardinals. But I was out of town at a wedding without a television when that happened (still bitter), so the no-hitter is an easy pick for me.
TobiasFunke
Footballguy
Definitely Game 4 and not close. This might be #2 ahead of the Zimm walkoff at the opening of Nats Park, tough call.
TobiasFunke
Footballguy
Of the many things I've loved about this year's team- my favorite of all time- maybe the best is that there was a struggle to find an all-star representative. They won 96 games and had the best run differential in the NL by 30 runs, and yet Matheny struggled to find a rep for the game as if they were a 70 win team or something.
It's awesome that they were so disrespected by Matheny and the rest of the league and also pretty awesome that they are so good 1-40 that they don't need an MVP or Cy Young candidate in order to be the best team in the National League.
It's awesome that they were so disrespected by Matheny and the rest of the league and also pretty awesome that they are so good 1-40 that they don't need an MVP or Cy Young candidate in order to be the best team in the National League.
TobiasFunke
Footballguy
It was inevitable. Not really sure what choice they had. Unless someone sweeps one of the AL series Monday will be ugly too.
Noon start is a little weird though. Just one more reason to root for the Giants tomorrow night. Would mean a 3 PM start Friday and a night game Monday ... and more importantly the Pirates are way better than the Giants and they aren't burning their ace tomorrow night either.
TobiasFunke
Footballguy
It's a business. I assume they have looked at it and found that they get better ratings this way than from two games airing simultaneously.
As far as the channels go, that's not really MLB's call. I guess they could hold out and demand that ESPN or a major network air the playoff games as a condition of the auction for the rights, but they'd lose a fortune in the process.
This happens every year in baseball. I don't know why people keep acting surprised about it. Especially since it's only for three games max. Everything from Game 4 of the NLDS to Game 7 of the World Series would happen at night (Game 4 in 2012 was an afternoon start because the schedule was compressed due to the late format change). And the Nats got a pretty good slot for Saturday- I like the 5:30 start.
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dgreen
Footballguy
I'm definitely not surprised by it. Just find it stupid to play playoff games during the day on a weekday. I agree there's likely some kind of numbers behind the decision. I'd be interested to know what they are. I just find it hard to believe that they'll gain more viewers this way than just splitting the tv markets up between 2 games during primetime.
Of course I don't want them to start too late either. I gotta to get up early. Basically, I want them to schedule the Nats games around my schedule.
Oh, who am I kidding? I'm drowning in use or lose leave, so I can just sleep in an extra hour or two and go in late if I need to.
Of course I don't want them to start too late either. I gotta to get up early. Basically, I want them to schedule the Nats games around my schedule.
Oh, who am I kidding? I'm drowning in use or lose leave, so I can just sleep in an extra hour or two and go in late if I need to.
Swing 51
Footballguy
Two LA teams hosting and they want the viewers/market. I understand it, just bitter I can't go on Fri. I'm going Sat tho so all is good.
