Baseball, food, drinks, music, and giveaways made yesterday a day to remember. The Nationals hosted a Ladies Night before Thursday’s series opener against the Rockies. Lindsey from Rise Up Cleveland and I decided to go on a whim. For $25 we were treated to a home run happy hour and a Terrace Box seat. We weren’t sure what to expect when we entered the tent, but when a server immediately offered me a glass of wine I knew the event was worth it, and the game was going to be great.

The Nationals did a great job with Ladies Night. Numerous companies set up tables for giveaways and raffles, waiters brought around trays of food and wine, and the bar was stocked with a nice selection of drinks. Live music was provided by the Silent Critics, they played some awesome covers. Even the Racing Presidents showed up to dance with ladies. Lindsey and I were joined by Kristen a bit later; she didn’t think she would be able to make it originally, so having her there was a pleasant surprise. We were also treated to a few player appearances. Saul Rivera, Jason Simontacchi, and Jesus Flores, volunteered to take one for the team, take pictures, and sign autographs for the lady Nats fans. The girls and I got our pictures taken with Rivera and Simontacchi. (Pictures to follow soon!) We just missed Flores, he left early to prep for the game. The gentlemen were friendly and didn’t seem to mind spending time with all the ladies. It was a really great event. I hope the turn out was good enough for the club to host them with some regularity.

We were perfectly content when we headed into the stadium for the game; we had already had such a great time. Who would have guessed it would get even better. The game got off to a bit of a rough start. The Rockies lead the Nationals for five plus innings with a score of 4-1. Chico did pretty well considering, he pitched six innings and allowed four runs on seven hits. Unfortunately, he was given a no-decision again. We held out hope for the whole game, our boys are the come back kids. An usher asked us if the Nats were going to win the game and we happily answered of course! We predicted a rally in the bottom of the 8th and a win for the Nats. The girls and I were a little nervous about our predictions when Dmitri got ejected for arguing with the umpire about his called strikeout. We knew we would surely miss his bat during the game. However, we were pleasantly surprised when all of our guys started producing. Robert Fick had a great double and a fantastic catch.

We enjoyed the game in Terrace seats by the Nats bullpen. It was fun to watch the kids going after foul balls. One Zimmerman fan and budding photographer was taking some great shots our pitchers warming up. We also met some great Nats fans sitting behind us. The group of guys were celebrating their friend’s birthday (I can’t think of a better way to celebrate than a game at RFK). They knew a lot about the game and our team and it was fun to talk baseball with them. When our rally started in the 8th inning they joined us in wearing the rally cap! Thanks guys, for sharing the game with us.

The 8th inning proved to be the comeback the Nats needed. Coming off a not so good outing the other night, Luis Ayala was fantastic tonight and pitched two scoreless innings. Then the Rockies closer allowed Austin Kearns and Ryan Church on base, Jesus Flores came in to pinch-hit with two outs. I was relieved to see Flores at the plate, he is a great young player and my confidence in him has grown steadily. Our number 3 hit a beautiful single to right field, but was able to advance to 3rd base on a two base error and scored both Kearns and Church to tie the game! The girls and I went crazy as did everyone in our section. It was a great game moment. The Chief entered to preserve the tie in the 9th. He made quick work of the Rockies, and kept the Nats in the game and sending us into extra innings. Jon Rauch pitched cleanly in the 10th giving our boys another chance to come back. With Austin Kearns safely on second base Manny Acta selected D’Angelo Jimenez to pinch-hit for Rauch. Jimenez was due for a hit and worked the count well. Jimenez knocked a great single up the middle to score Austin Kearns. The Nats won the game 5-4. Jimenez was mobbed on the field by his happy teammates. Its gotta feel good to come from behind like that and to drive in the winning run…amazing. We had a great time at last night with Ladies Night and an exciting extra innings game was just about perfect! 40 wins for the Nats now, not to shabby…

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