We missed much of the beginning of the game last night.  Sometimes, it’s better that way.  The Angels batted around in the first, sending 10 men to the plate and securing a 6 run lead.  When they scored 2 more runs in the third, Manny handed the game over to the bullpen.  The combination of Shell, Colome, Hanrahan and Manning put up 6 zeroes with 5 strike outs, 3 hits and only 1 walk.  But the damage was already done.

Errors proved costly in the game and yielded 2 unearned runs to the Angels.  Hill balked and Lo Duca, Young and Harris all had a hard time making routine plays.  Lo Duca’s left field experiment was cut short by a bout of light-headedness.  He left in the second and was taken to the hospital for precautionary reasons.  His replacement, Wily Mo Pena, surprised everyone by going deep in his first at bat to give the Nats their first run.  It was only his second home run of the season.  An inning later Elijah Dukes would collect his third, a homer to left field.  The only other run came in the 5th when pinch hitter Kory Casto singled to score Ronnie Belliard.

As if it couldn’t get any worse, there’s more injury news.  Nick Johnson underwent surgery at the Mayo Clinic and will likely be out for the season.  That’s a big loss and very disheartening because he worked so hard to get healthy for this season.  Shawn Hill, who has been experiencing pain all season, will also head to the Mayo Clinic for another evaluation.  Hill will likely end up on the disabled list and probably should have been put on it awhile ago.  We admire his desire to battle but wonder if the Patterson release motivated Hill to fight through the pain more than he should have.  When he’s sharp and effective, he’s a treat to watch.  We wish him a speedy recovery, but you know how those things go.

Some other news:

Zimmerman has a new blog post up, but it’s rather dull.  The team announced a partnership with the Spanish Beisbol Network.  Games will debut on WZHF 1390AM on Friday, June 27.  Select games will be broadcast on WMET 1160AM and XM Radio Channel 174, MLB en Español.  The team also announced plans to build a Washington Nationals Youth Baseball Academy.  From the release:

In partnership with the District Government, The Washington Nationals Dream Foundation has committed to building a Youth Baseball Academy that will engage inner city youth in the sport of baseball, along with providing after-school educational programs.  Slated as a 12,000 square foot facility with three fields on 10 acres, the Academy will be a year-round youth development program committed to equipping youth with the life skills necessary to succeed in life and to become responsible, productive citizens in their community.

Chico Harlan’s chatting at 2 pm, Mark Zuckerman’s chatting at 1 pm and Jim Bowden’s chat yesterday was utterly useless.

Tim Redding (6-3, 4.12 ERA) takes on Ervin Santana (9-3, 3.17) tonight.

I really thought we had them last night.  It’s been a while since I have had my hopes up for a win.  During the rain delay the fans in Nationals Park were treated to an amazing double rainbow.  It was pretty unique - I’d never seen anything quite like it.  I was hopeful that the rainbow, and the fact that the messy thunderstorms never materialized, would be a good omen for the team. 

Things went well for the first seven innings.  Jason Bergmann had another great outing.  It’s good to see him getting his confidence back.  He pitched seven one run innings and threw only 82 pitches.  The game which started about 8:30 moved very quickly until about the fifth inning.  As great as Bergmann’s performance was, he still only had one run to work with.  It’s starting to sound like a broken record I know, but our offense has got to start giving their pitchers something to work with.  I’m beginning to wonder if the point of the game is unclear to the line up.  I’m not sure they know that the pitcher that is supposed to put up zeros during the inning, not the offense. Once again the excuse for the line up not producing was the prowess of the opposing pitcher.  I’ve heard Manny say something like this about a hundred times already this season, 

“He was tough as usual. That’s why he has an ERA below 2.00,” Acta said about Lackey. “We had a chance to get a hit and pull away, but we couldn’t get that hit with the bases loaded.”

The Nationals seem to make every single opposing pitcher look like an ace. They had no clutch hits again last night, only one person, Willie Harris, hit for extra bases.  The bats aren’t coming alive, and that affects everything.

Speaking of Willie Harris, he had a great game last night.  He hit a solo home run, followed that up with a triple, made some great defensive catches (ones that Wily Mo sure wouldn’t have been able to make) and scored both of the teams runs.  Willie’s speed came in handy in the seventh inning last night, he hit a long ball to right field, and easily advanced to third base. Pinch hitter Paul Lo Duca, knocked a line drive right back at the pitcher, who tried to double up Harris at third, but was unsuccessful thanks to a poor throw.  Willie was able to advance to home to score the tie breaking run on the play, and the Nats led 2-1.

In order to win the game, the Nats needed to protect their one run lead for just two innings. Protecting a lead should be a simple task, but lately its been an impossible feat for the boys.  The defense feel apart in the eight inning with Saul Rivera on the mound.  When Chone Figgins bunted Saul tried to field the ball, but was just about pummeled by Pete Orr who was playing third base.  Pete ran right into Saul and sent him flying across the field, Figgins was safe at first.  Rivera appeared to be uninjured after the play.  Figgins then took off, stole second and advanced to third on a poor throw by Jesus Flores.  The ball bounced out of Lopez’s glove and kinda sat behind him in center field for a few seconds.  Guzman, who is usually behind Lopez to protect on such a play, was still standing at short.  Milledge charged the ball and threw to third, but Figgins was safe by a long shot.  Erick Aybar then hit a grounder right to Lopez who let the ball slide under his glove and into right field, for a two base error.  Figgins scored on the play and the Angels tied the game 2-2. Right after Aybar scored on a single by Anderson and the Angels took the lead 3-2. 

Watching that inning, was like watching a calamity of errors.  After those three plays, the guys kind of gave up.  Any hopes of a win just seemed to blow away at that point.  It’s pretty sad when the fans can tell that even in a one run game, a rally just isn’t going to happen.  Lots of Nats fans left disappointed last night after sloppy baseball ended the promise of solid pitching.

Don’t forget to chat with Jim Bowden today online at 11am.  Anyone think he is going to say anything useful?

The series between the Harrisburg Senators and the Reading Phillies will be televised on MASN this week including a live game on Thursday night.   Here’s the schedule and the probable starters. 

Monday, June 23 vs. Harrisburg, 7:05 PM, televised at 11:30 PM
Harrisburg: RHP Bobby Brownlie (5-0, 3.51)
Reading: RHP J.D. Durbin (1-3, 2.45)

Tuesday, June 24 vs. Harrisburg, 7:05 PM, televised at midnight
Harrisburg: RHP Jordan Zimmermann (2-1, 3.24)
Reading: RHP Tyson Brummett (1-0, 3.12)

Wednesday, June 25 vs. Harrisburg, 7:05 PM, televised at midnight
Harrisburg: RHP Adrian Alaniz (0-0, 1.50)
Reading: RHP Kip Bouknight (3-8, 6.28)

Thursday, June 26 vs. Harrisburg, 7:05 PM LIVE
Harrisburg: LHP Mike Hinckley (2-2, 5.11)
Reading: LHP Fabio Castro (4-0, 4.91)

Lannan pitched 6 innings and gave up 2 runs on 4 hits.  He collected 6 strike outs.  You think one day, just maybe, his teamates will help him get a win?  He’s 4-8 with a 3.34 ERA.  In his last 5 games, he’s given up 2 runs per game, all in 6 or 7 innings of work.  Two no decisions, three losses and no wins to show for it.

At least after this typical Lannan outing someone else took the loss. Luis Ayala has had an up and down season, but he continues to struggle. In one inning of work he gave up two runs and two walks.  Hanrahan too had a tough time today.  A few days ago we mentioned that people don’t really care when the bullpen does well.  When they blow it late in the game, there’s really not much you can do to get the lead back.  Today, the bullpen indeed failed us.  They were widely expected to be the strongest component of this 2008 team, yet they continue to perform inconsistently.  They aren’t young or injury-plagued like the other struggling parts of the team, so their plight concerns us.

One bright spot out of the bullpen today was the major league debut of Steven Shell.  He recorded three outs on eight pitches.

The Nats didn’t show a ton of offense, but a few good swings put some runs on the board.   Willie Harris had a pinch hit solo shot on his 30th birthday.  Belliard followed it up with a 2 run homer in the 7th to tie the game before Ayala and Hanrahan would handover the win to the Rangers.

Elijah Dukes had some dedicated fans in the crowd.  Those boys sat just above right field and received a wave from Dukes.  Unfortunately, their hero went 0-3 with 2 strike outs.

We had the pleasure of meeting quite a few dedicated baseball fans this weekend.  Last night, we met three Cubs fans who had traveled to Yankee Stadium, Fenway Park, Camden Yards and Nationals Park within the past week, all on their own.  Maybe we’ll be seeing them when the Nats head to Chicago in August.

Today, we met John from ESPN Radio 1050 in New York.  He was taking in a few games on vacation and checking out our park.  His blog is called The View from the Suite Seats.  You can check it out here.

I’m embarrased to report that my Dad made the trip down from PA to watch a 13-3 loss at our new park.  For Garrett Mock, things started rough in a 3 run first inning, but he settled down, found his groove and completed his outing five innings later by collecting 8 strike outs.  It’s not like he can run out to left field and do WMP’s job for him too, right.  He pitched alright, but he was promptly sent back to Columbus.   

Through the sixth inning, the team was fighting and staying alive, in part thanks to Lastings Milledge.  His web gem catch and solo home run were a necessary jolt of energy in an otherwise lifeless team.

In the 6th ining, we loaded the bases with a 4-3 score and 2 outs with a great opportunity to take the lead.  Kory Casto came in to pinch hit, another indication of how thin our bench truly is.  I remarked to my Dad that Kory was anti-clutch and never performed well under pressure.  One-run game, two outs, bases loaded…ain’t gonna happen.  Then it became a 3-2 count.  Then the fans started standing and yelling.  More pressure.  As expected, Casto couldn’t deliver.  He lined out to end the inning.

The Nats brought Charlie Manning in for the 7th.  Manning faced four batters and recorded only one out, loading the bases for Brian Sanches.  Three singles, one walk and one double later, the Rangers had recorded only one additional out.  They had put 7 runs on the board.

With a eight run deficit, the team completely lost energy.  Fans left, a slow light rain moved over the stadium and the lethargic team moved through the motions with no life.  It didn’t help that slower than slow Jesus Colome finished the game.  You know it’s a bad night when Colome gives up 2 walks, 2 wild pitches and 2 runs, and you don’t even care.  (Oh, and either the radar gun is a little bit screwed up, or Colome consitently, for over two innings, pitched 98-99 mph).

After the game Brian Sanches was sent back to AAA, along with Mock, to make room for Steven Shell and Pett Orr.  Orr will serve as a utility infielder.  Shell will work out of the bullpen.  This will be Shell’s first time in the big leagues.

Odalis Perez, who made a rehab start at Potomac yesterday, pitched well for four innings (56 pitches).  He gave up one run on two hits and struck out five.  Nick Johnson is still having pain in his wrist and will seek another opinion at the Mayo Clinic.

Other News:

It looks like the Nationals have decided to (finally) put some baseball movies on the HD screen.  The movies will run after selected Saturday night home games.  The first one is scheduled for next Saturday, June 28.  They’ll air Rookie of the Year after the last out. 

Dukes seems to have really turned the corner on that sub-.200 batting average.  Last night’s show of defense, offense, speed, clutch hitting and good baseball instincts was a treat to watch.  Dukes went 5 for 6 with an assist, a stolen base, a double, a home run and a walk off RBI single in the 14th inning.

I think Saul Rivera was also a key component of this win, though I know relievers garner attention only when they fail.  Rivera came off some recent shaky outings with three scoreless frames.  He was personally involved in 4 of the 9 outs — 3 by hustling to first base.  Saul Rivera too had a fantastic night, one that shouldn’t go unnoticed.

While Redding had a good night (6 innings, 3 runs, 2 walks, 5 strike outs), just look at what happened when he left the game.  The combination of Manning, Ayala, Rauch, Rivera and Hanrahan together gave up one hit and one walk.  Together, they put up eight zeroes and had a great night.

The bullpen and the early clutch hitting by Jesus Flores (3 for 6, 2 RBI) laid the groundwork for the win.  But Dukes was quite clearly the star.

A quick note on the bad stuff.  Guzman went 0 for 7.  Kory Casto went 0 for 6 with 4 strike outs, but somehow managed to avoid the bus to Ohio.  Langerhans was sent down to make room for Garret Mock.

We had the pleasure of taking in the game from Coach’s territory last night, and we noticed a few things.  I don’t know what it looked like on tv or what Don Sutton had to say about it, but fans at Nationals Park really grew tired with home plate umpire Ed Rapuano early in the game.  The only gift appeared to be - well, putting the winning run on base in the 14th inning.  Felipe sure didn’t seem to know he got hit by Wright’s pitch, but the gift certainly made up for his questionable calls throughout the game.

Additionally, fans near the dugout do not like Paul Lo Duca.  He only made one plate appearance, a pinch hit walk, but during that at-bat, fans really let him have it.  Some suggested alternative careers.  Some yelled about wasting 5 million dollars.  Some had more creative ways to taunt him.  But, the sentiment was clear.

The Nationals also put together a moving tribute to Tim Russert early in the game.  Many stood and clapped.  The video tribute combined parts of a speech he gave when baseball first returned to DC.  It concluded with a message that read “You will always be our 10th man.”  After the tribute, fans were encouraged to wave their hats in memory of Tim.  It was a brief moment, but a fitting celebration for someone who really did love the game.   It was nice that the team managed a win for Tim too, even if it came some 10 innings later. 

Free baseball on a beautiful night with a win.  What’s not to love.

For those of you that live or work in the district, join Nationals pitcher at ESPN Zone on Tuesday for a q&a session moderated by Charlie Slowes.  The event begins at 12 noon, but doors open at 11 am.  If you’re into the mascot-gimmick thing, head back to ESPN Zone on Friday, June 27 for the Battle of the Birds.  Screech will compete with the Oriole Bird in anticipate of the weekend series.  That event begins at 4 pm.

If you can’t make the Tim Redding event, don’t worry.  There’s something even better in store.   Nationals GM Jim Bowden is having an online chat with fans on Tuesday at 11 am.  Now’s your chance to tell him what you really think of this on-field disaster and find out what plans he has, if any, to fix his recent mistakes.  Oh, how we love accountability in Washington DC. 

And don’t forget Baseball 101 is coming up next Saturday.  You can still register for the event here.

The next feature in our Women in Baseball series profiles Andrea Larson, Corporate Communications Manager for the Minnesota Twins.

Andrea Larson, the Corporate Communications Manager for the Minnesota Twins, has always been a baseball fan. Growing up in the Twins Cities area, Andrea has been a Twins fan since birth. She calls her parents “obsessed fans.” In fact some of her favorite baseball memories come from attending World Series games in 1987 and 1991 and several Breakfast of Champions events in the community where she would meet players get autographs as a child. Her parents actually went to all seven games of the ’87 series. Though she shares her passion for the game with her father (pictured below) and brother, the Larson family women know their baseball too. Andrea’s 89-year-old grandmother is also an avid Twins fan. “My Grandma is probably the biggest Twins fan I know, besides my mom. My Grandma still talks about the Twins all the time.” In such a dedicated family, it seems natural that Andrea would be raised a true baseball fan.

Andrea’s journey into the Twins Organization started after she graduated from the University of Colorado with a bachelor’s degree in communications. She then earned her MBA in Sports Management from the University of St. Thomas. Andrea started her career at public relations agencies like BSMG World Wide, and later Fleishman Hillard in Minneapolis. After a brief stint at United Health Group, Andrea read in the local paper that the Twins public relations manager was leaving the organization. “I thought that there might be a job opportunity and I applied. I heard there were 300 resumes or something like that, I didn’t know anyone or anything like that, but somehow I guess I had what they were looking for.” The 2008 season will be Andrea’s third season with the club.

A typical day for Andrea includes managing all media and community relations off the field, “the business side of things” as she calls it. She handles the promotions and plans events. In addition, Andrea is in charge of maintaining the Twins website. This season Andrea and her colleagues are all pretty busy with plans for their new ballpark, which opens in 2010.

Andrea feels lucky to be doing her dream job. She knew working in baseball wasn’t always glamorous, but it was a challenge she was ready for.

“This is what you sign up for when you work in baseball. It was no secret when I signed up here, and they made it very clear, that it’s long hours and a lot of work. It’s fun but you spend a lot of time at it and you are very busy. It was definitely a challenge I was ready for.”

But that’s Andrea, a young woman who quietly works hard and gets the job done without focusing too much on the challenges. “You know I don’t really focus on the fact that I’m a female in the industry. I’d like to think that there aren’t issues, and if there are, I don’t pay too much attention to it. The people here are very fair and diplomatic.” Though Andrea hasn’t experienced many challenges in the baseball world, she still looks up to women that have had success in the industry, like Dodgers president Jamie McCourt.

As a female baseball fan herself, Andrea often considers the female demographic when planning events and promotions for the Twins organization. “Women I think appreciate the finesses of the game. It’s not a violent sport, it’s a structured game, and it’s fun to watch and cheer.” The market for the female baseball fan is continually growing and the Twins are trying hard to capitalize on that growth. “We are really trying to focus on that market. Baseball is very popular with women and I think it’s a market we can capitalize on even more.”

Because the Twins are such a big part of the fabric in the twin cities area, Andrea’s favorite part of her job is sharing the team’s community focus with the media. “I mean people are obsessed with the Twins, at every level, so it’s fun to be able to share that information via the media with all of the public.”

Some of Andrea’s favorite community events geared to women include the Mother’s Day festivities and the special Wine, Women and Baseball events. Mother’s Day is special for Andrea, not just because of the pink bats. “The Mom’s and wives are very involved in the community. It’s a very active organization.” This year, more than 35 of them participated in the Susan G. Komen Walk for a Cure, including breast cancer survivor Jan Guerrier, mother of Matt Guerrier.

The Twins will also hold eight or nine Wine, Women and Baseball events this season. The events are open to women only and include a pre-game happy hour and then tickets to that night’s game. “We have a tent and women come in and they get manicures, they can drink wine, they can have food and get their makeup done. We always have a special guest, either a Twins’ wife or someone from the community, that does a little Q&A with them. They are really fun; no boys allowed. It’s been a very popular event.” These events are so popular that the 250 available tickets always sell out fast.

Andrea counts herself lucky to be able to work for the team she grew up cheering on. She was working at various jobs for eight years before joining the Twins. Her advice to others is heartfelt,

Go for it, chase your dreams, but know you have to work hard. Just be patient and you will eventually find your niche… Don’t think just because you are a female it would be difficult for you; it’s something I don’t even think about.

A special thanks to Andrea for taking the time to speak with us, despite her busy schedule.

You gotta feel for John Lannan.  His 3.36 ERA in 14 starts is respectable.  His 4-8 win/loss record, on the other hand, belongs to his teammates.  They have averaged 2.5 runs a game when John takes the mound.  Last night, Lannan went 7 innings and gave up 2 runs on 5 hits.  In the 6th inning, he gave up a home run to Morneau that would be a costly mistake. 

The Nats managed to collect only 5 hits against former Nat Livan Hernandez.  Lo Duca re-joined the team and played DH.  He did hit a double and he scored the only run.  Belliard, Young and Lo Duca all grounded into double plays over the course of the game.  The Young vs. Young brotherhood showdown was strikingly uneventful.  Both brothers went 0 for 3.   

News:
Congratulations to Chartese Burnett for being named the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s National Capital Area Chapter’s 2008 Woman of the Year. Chartese raised over $79,000 during the ten-week fundraising competition.

Upcoming Promotions:
Fri - Sun, Texas Rangers Series
Thanksgiving in June
Working in partnership with Capital Area Food Bank for the third-annual canned food drive, the Nationals will host a collection of non-perishable food items at all gates and at the Community Kiosk.

Friday, June 20
BBQ Battle Night
Great seats available from $7 to $13 and proceeds going towards the Boys and Girls Club

Second Annual Stitch N’ Pitch
Knit, crochet, embroider, cross-stitch & needlepoint with friends throughout the game. The event is sponsored by the National NeedleArts Association.  Tickets are available here for $13.

Bang, Zoom Go the Fireworks - after the game

Sunday, June 22
Kids jersey give-away day on Sunday has been cancelled. The first 10,000 children 12 and younger will receive 2 ticket vouchers to an upcoming game.