Yes, it was really cold – good preparation for opening night in Washington. 

This afternoon, we drove 2 hours down the coast to see the Nats in their first spring training game of the 2008 season at Roger Dean Stadium.  After watching batting practice, we took our seats just a few rows behind the Marlins dugout, joining some DC folks that have transplanted themselves to Florida.  As such, they had no harsh words about the Nats.  We spent the next few hours reminiscing about past Marlins vs. Nats games and the trades, players and overall direction of both teams, while engaging in friendly banter.  At least we can all agree on our least favorite team.

There we were – surrounded by hard core baseball fans in a beautiful stadium for our first night game of 2008.  The stadium lights beamed brightly, ushering in a new season – a fresh start for our organization.

Christian Guzman entered the batter’s box and the season began with a quick at bat;  Guzman singled.  Felipe Lopez, with so much to prove, drove a ball to right field to put runners on first and second.   We now had the opportunity to see Lastings Milledge first at bat as a National.  Milledge was dramatic in trying to get balls called; he eventually hit into a 5-4-3.

Then came the moment we’ve all been waiting for – Nick Johnson’s first at bat since fall of 2006.  You’ve heard it before, but Nick is so much thinner than I can ever recall.  Believe it or not, Johnson gets hit by Marlins pitcher Scott Olson and takes his base.  Wily Mo hit a long ball to the centerfield wall to end the inning. 

Now the Nats take the field for the first time.  It’s hard to convey how great it feels (even if you’re freezing) to see your team on the field for the first time in almost five months.  Every hit, every at bat, every pitch – the long off-season was officially over.

Poor Nick Johnson.  In the second inning, a pop fly soars out to shallow right field forcing Dukes, Lopez and Johnson to all make a run for the ball.  Dukes ended up completing the catch but it had to make the Nats fans in attendance and GM Jim seated down by the dugout quite nervous.

Chico pitched just fine.  He struck out Mike Jacobs and later Luis Gonzales.  However, he did give up one walk during his two short innings.

Oddly, Marlins closer Kevin Gregg comes in to pitch the third – with no problems (just seemed strange) and Garrett Mock entered the game for the Nationals.

Lastings had a good fourth inning.  Milledge singled and then stole second and third.  Trust us when we say, you did not want to see his slide into third.  His face dug through the dirt head first, helmet flying off and landing harshly at the bag.  It wasn’t your typical dive.  Fans all around yelled that he needed more practice at sliding.  We’re just glad he didn’t jam his neck.  In the midst of Lastings speedy but scary base-running, Wily Mo Pena took a pitch to his biceps.  He stared down the young Marlin during his slow strut to first.  Escobar’s sacrifice fly sent Milledge home safely. 

Dukes hit a mammoth shot to centerfield bringing him to second base before Pena was thrown out to end the inning.

Things got a little rocky in the 4th inning.  Milledge bobbled a ball and was charged with an error.  Mock took a hit in the leg leaving Kory Casto to recover the ball and hold the runner at 3rd.  The Marlins end up getting their first run and the game was tied 1-1. 

Manny moved in a lot of replacements and put Rob Bell on the mound. 

In the 6th, Milledge doubled down the line.  Pena pulled maybe a dozen balls foul before hitting a laser down the right field line.  Milledge scored and the Nats led 2-1.

Bell then promptly gave up a home run to Mike Jacobs;  the Marlins led 3-2.  Hanrahan pitched an inning and had really improved his composure.  He looked like he knew that he was a major league pitcher.  He struck out two, walked one.

Schroder entered to pitch the 8th and looked super.  Chris struck out all three batters he faced.

In the top of the ninth, Josh Whitesell had a single, followed by a Padilla strike out and a DuBois hit.  Justin Maxwell would have hit into the next out but the Marlins pitcher was charged with a throwing error.  The bases were then loaded with nats.  Orr hit right at the second baseman, who instead of completing an easy out overshot the long throw to home, allowing the Nats to tie the game.

The Nats couldn’t get any more runs in, but Brian Sanches held the Marlins off to end the game with a tied score of 3-3.

We said goodbye to our new friends and look forward to their visit to our new baseball stadium in DC. 

It’s baseball season again.  Enjoy the photos! We will tag and title them tomorrow we promise.
 

This entry was posted on Thursday, February 28th, 2008 at 1:32 am and is filed under Game Recaps, Spring Training. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.