A couple more things from morning stories and last night’s miserable defeat:

Lo Duca v. Zimmerman in Nationals Journal:

Barry pits the veteran hot head catcher against the young, even-keeled star third baseman.  Apparantly, Zimmerman is calm about the six game skid.  He pointed to the Tigers 1-7 record to say, essentially, the season’s still very young.  Relax.  Lo Duca, on the other hand, had a tantrum because he doesn’t really know how to lose.  Welcome to Washington, Paul.

Zimmerman’s attitude is the right one, for now.  For starters, the season is indeed quite young.  Last night was awful, but we’re Nats fans.  Last year was worse and despite the off-season changes, reality says we’re still on our way to building the team we’ll be in a few years. 

It’s actually an exciting time for us.  We have a new ballpark and lots of young talent.  I know I’m guilty of over-selling myself on this 2008 team, but I’m trying now to re-adjust my expectations.  I’m going to take comfort in watching these young guys learn the game.  Zimmerman said of Bergmann last night:

“He’s a good pitcher…He’s got good stuff. He’s young, like a lot of us are. He’s going to learn from his mistakes. He doesn’t want to go out and do that. We all think that he’s one of the best guys we have, and we still trust him. The next time he goes up on the hill and it’s his turn to throw, we’re going to go in there thinking he’s going to dominate like he did for four innings this time but learn from his mistakes.”

So?  Patience.  Let them learn.  The problem: mixed signals of the off-season and high ticket prices.  When you bring in old veteran guys “to teach” the young guys, don’t expect to have a winning season on their backs (and paychecks).  Lo Duca, Perez, Belliard, Young and Estrada are pieces that don’t fit long term, but were to serve as mentors to guide the young team or stopgaps to fill positions temporarily until prospects mature.  They aren’t a recipe for .500 ball and Lo Duca needs to come to terms with that.  Know your place, vet.  This is a re-building team.  Maybe we’re not here to win.  Maybe we’re here to learn.  Winning is nice.  If Milledge, Bergmann, Chico, Lannan and Dukes are learning in the majors, you’d think maybe our young catcher would be too.  Alas, the mixed singles.  A half-plan for the future and a half-plan for today.

As far as ticket prices, how much can you ask your fans to spend to see a re-building team?  How much do you spend to watch your team collapse 10-4?  When do you start to ask questions about why entire sections are empty on weeknights?  You’re asking a lot of fans while trying to build a stable fan base and that part is perhaps of more concern than the wins. 

Now, a second thought.  Within one day, MLB.com’s Bill Ladson and Washington Times reporter Dick Heller wrote dramatically different pieces on their expectations for Austin Kearns.  I want to see Kearns succeed as much as anybody and sometimes it seems I’m the only person complaining, but when (if ever) are we going to see the numbers that the organization predicted?  Heller writes, “Kearns is not a bad hitter, you understand, just depressingly average.”

“Part of the problem, his remaining advocates say, is that cavernous RFK Stadium turned many of his better belts into loud outs (Kearns batted .228 there in 2007). The club’s more intimate digs at Nationals Park are supposed to help increase his power numbers significantly, but the start of a new season has brought no dramatic upswing, if you’ll pardon the pun. Over the Nats’ first nine games, Kearns has batted .230 with no home runs and four RBI.”

Granted, the season is young.  But waiting for Austin to show up is getting old.  And his seemingly free pass by the media and the organization is getting old too.

Maybe it brings us to one more thought.  The super blockbuster trade for the Nats in July of 2006 that brought Kearns, Lopez and Wagner to the team has yet to really pay off in a monumental way.  Lopez’s struggles are evident and well documented.  The thinking with Kearns was — wait till you see his numbers at our new hitter friendly park.  We’re waiting. And Wagner — where is Wagner?  He had shoulder surgery last May after a rough couple of outings.  If anyone has read a single update on his injury, by all means, please send it our way. 

Tonight, we took a little road trip south to catch the Potomac Nationals’ opening day and Shawn Hill’s rehab start. The start was monitored by a small crowd of 1300, plenty of bloggers and our Nats’ manager and his coaches. Look for all of the other bloggers’ re-caps and interviews shortly.

Not privy to that kind of access tonight, we just took in the game and watched Hill. Although several radar guns were positioned near Manny Acta, Pat Corrales and Rick Aponte - the rest of us couldn’t see pitch speed. Hill looked great in the first few innings, but gave up a few hits as the game went on. After his 5 innings, he threw for a few more minutes in the bullpen. In his start, Hill gave up 4 hits, struck out 4 and walked one.

Jordan Zimmermann, a draft choice from last year, pitched the remaining 4 innings and ended up collecting the save. Impressively, he struck out 6, but he also issued 3 walks.

Chris Marrero didn’t have the best night in front of team officials. He went 0 for 4 with 2 strike-outs.

Photo Gallery

Tonight, the Nats finally put Dmitri Young on the DL with a back sprain.  They activated catcher Johnny Estrada.  No word on pending roster moves. 

Back to Big League ball tomorrow. Bergmann will face lefty Scott Olsen for the 7:10 start.

On a night perfect for watching a baseball game, the defenses for the Columbus Clippers and Durham Bulls did just that. 

Sloppy fielding and a shoddy third inning for the Clippers led to an easy 11-5 win for the visiting Durham Bulls.

A relatively small crowd (considering it was the first dime-a-dog night) watched starter Jason Stanford give up a quick five runs in the third and another two followed after Dennis Tankersley replaced him just an out into the inning.

The Clippers fought back in the seventh when Ryan Langerhans hit a three-run homer deep to right field followed immediately by a Kory Casto homer to the same spot.  But it wasn’t enough for the home team to come back as the Clippers’ offense faltered in the eighth, leaving the tying man at the plate before ending the inning.

Thank goodness for ten cent hot dogs.

Box Score
Photo Gallery

Ed. note:  Johnny Estrada was 1 for 4 with a strike out.  He left 3 men on base.

So rumors are circulating that the Nationals are considering moving Felipe Lopez to left field, at least until Wily Mo Pena and Elijah Dukes work through their injuries.  The potential move is interesting.  Okay, and Jim Bowden just confirmed on MASN that Lopez will start in left field tomorrow.  

Lopez told Debbi Taylor that he’d pitch if he had to, to be a starter.  So, it’s no surprise that he’s open to moving to left field.  Barry says he was seen taking pop-ups out there today.

It gives Felipe a chance to play everyday, for awhile, to see if he can bust the slump with a change of scenary.  The obvious comparison is to Alfonso Soriano — a move that turned out well for the team and Soriano.  He’s a young guy now, with tons of potential, but as Lopez gets older it will certainly help to be able to play multiple positions.  His good attitude about the move is a great sign that this could work - at least for awhile.

Lopez is fast and his speed should help him out in left field.  I’m just surprised the Nats would get this creative.  Alright, I guess the GM is all about finding places for pieces that don’t fit, so it’s not that big of a stretch. 

I hope he just explodes at the plate and finally looks like he’s alive out there and loving every minute of the game, the way you want to believe he does. 

What do you think?

It’s a great time to be a Nationals fan.  After Sunday’s dramatic victory and the offensive show yesterday, the Nationals are in first place. Flying high with a 2-0 record, a feat that hasn’t happened in DC since the Senators opened RFK in 1962. There is plenty to be excited about.  We are impressed with Lastings  (note - no antics after he hit his first home run in a Nats uniform). Both his on field performance and his comments after yesterday’s game make it pretty clear that this kid plays to win. How about having Nick Johnson back and in great form? He’s knocking out doubles and racking up the RBI’s like crazy.

There have been a few setbacks in the last two games. The bullpen - the supposed strength of the team - has blown both games.  With the Chief out for the next couple of days Chris Schroder has been called up.  Hanrahan, who was lights out during spring training pitched for the first time this season yesterday and he had a little bit of trouble. Ray King pitched on Sunday and Monday, and struggled during both appearances.  We hope the bullpen gets into the groove here soon, they all have a lot of talent.  

Also, having both Wily Mo Pena and Elijah Dukes out with injuries puts a damper on the offensive production. Hopefully Lopez and Young get some useful tips from Lenny Harris quickly and produce off the bench. Dmitri showed he was more than capable yesterday with his RBI double.  Calling J Max up might not be a bad idea. He was having a great spring, and I like what he brings to the line up. We’ll see what Manny decides.

We are feeling a little teased with the new park. We got to spend two fantastic days there, and then the team headed off for a long road trip.  We were kinda bummed we had to wait a whole week before another game there. However, that’s not the case now. In an attempt to continue the celebration for the Nats Opener, the team has announced a special event this weekend for Nationals Insider members. Nationals Park will be open this weekend for Insider fans to tour on Friday. On Saturday, they will show the game against St. Louis on the beautiful new scoreboard.

Check it out -

The Washington Nationals are happy to continue the party by inviting all Nationals Insider subscribers to their exclusive Friday April 4th and Saturday, April 5th Welcome Home Nats Open House! In our effort to help Welcome Home all Nats fans to Nationals Park, DC’s newest majestic monument, we are opening our doors for a Nationals Insider members-only Open House and the opportunity to stroll through your stunning new stadium featuring:

The enormous high-definition scoreboard
State-of-the-art sound system
Strike Zone, featuring the Sony Playstation Pavilion, Build-a-Bear Workshop, Geico Racing Presidents photo station and interactive games
Our luxurious Stars and Stripes, PNC Diamond, and Lexus Presidents Clubs
The delectable ballpark fare with great local flavor

That’s not all, in addition to getting to experience this remarkable new park, we will also be showing Opening Night hero Ryan Zimmerman taking on Albert Pujols and the St. Louis Cardinals on Saturday the 5th at 1:05 PM ET LIVE on the immense 5,000 square-foot high-definition video screen.

Register to become a member of Nationals Insider on the Nationals homepage, and RSVP for this event.  We think this is a fantastic idea. It’s a great way to show off the park and the new screen while the team is away.  Personally, I think it totally beats watching the game on a big screen TV.  We’ll be there to watch the game on Saturday.  We hope the team does more of these this season.

Alright - Lo Duca thinks he’s better.  He played in one game, went 1 for 3 and actually caught Reyes stealing.  Fine and good.  So, we have a catcher to fill in until Jesus Flores is ready.  Manny suggested today that Estrada will start the season on the DL. The backup will be Wil Nieves.  Flores will still likely start in AA Harrisburg.

So two questions:  Why is Lo Duca talking about his long-term future here? (There isn’t one, is there?) And why is Bill Ladson STILL picking fights with Brian Schneider? (It seems personal and it’s getting old)

Between the underage women, gambling, attitude issues, heavy steroid use (and his inability to face up to it until months later) oh and the recent injury - we’re supposed to cheer for this guy, re-think our real long term plan for catcher and forget that Brian Schneider was a good guy.  Yea, Paul, you can bet we’re skeptical, but at least there’s a beat writer on your side.

Take Bill’s great example of clubhouse leadership:

Early this week, for example, an upset Lo Duca didn’t see his name in the starting lineup against the Mets, so he went into manager Manny Acta’s office for an explanation. Lo Duca calmed down after Acta told him the team wanted Lo Duca to be in a “more controlled environment” and make sure that his left knee was OK when he is hitting and catching behind the plate.

That’s leadership?  Demanding an answer when your name isn’t in the line-up?  Storming into Manny Acta’s office for an explanation? That’s respect?

Are we even in the clear for no suspension or is that yet to be determined?

Not catching in major league games. Paul Lo Duca played three innings on Saturday in minor league camp. He will play again in a minor league game today. He isn’t scheduled to play a major league game until Thursday against the Astro’s. He says he’s feeling good though. I wonder how good the potential rotation feels about it. It sure doesn’t give the pitchers much time to work with Lo Duca before the season officially starts. Along the same lines, Estrada is still suffering from tendinitis in his elbow, he’s begun a throwing program, but Manny says he won’t be ready for opening day…

 Cue the understudy.  The team still says it won’t be Flores playing backup unless he can play more than 3 games a week.  So his role is dependent on the health of Lo Duca. Flores has had a great Spring and clearly wants to stay in the majors for the ‘08 season.  That leaves Wil Nieves and Humberto Cota to fight for the spot. We’ll cast our vote for Nieves, who acted as a backup last year for the Yankees.

Still lots of questions with Opening Day quickly approaching. Happy St. Patrick’s Day everyone. Hopefully the Nats get some luck from the Irish as they take on the Mets this afternoon!

With WMP out for about a month with a grade 2 strain of the left oblique, this is a bad break for the outfield situation.

If you’re not listening to the game — Charlie just reported that Dukes will be day to day with a strained right hamstring, after a play where he slid hard into 2nd base.  Barry has another update and an untimely Manny Acta quote about outfielders getting hurt.

We’re almost there - nearly two weeks away from Opening Night. 

The Post has a cool piece today by Fred Bowen interviewing Jim Chibnall, an architect who helped design the new ballpark.

But the most important thing is to come down and experience the building. I think people will like this building and call it their home away from home for years to come.

Metro has released special plans to accomodate the Papal Mass at new Nationals Park in April including extra trains, shuttles from RFK Stadium, extra staff and a commemorative Metro pass for $9 good for the entire day.

WMP strained his left oblique muscle.  According to Barry, “club officials were preparing for the possibility that Peña could be out as many as six weeks.”

Dmitri looked good in his debut in Grapfruit League action (2 for 3 and a walk).  Austin came alive with a double and Aaron Boone hit in the only Nats run.  Schroder, who now seems to be fighting for a spot in the bullpen with Hanrahan, gave up two inconsequential hits and Saul Rivera collected a rare blown save.  Saul hadn’t given up a home run since last April.  He would have been out of the inning without Kasto’s costly error.

Dave and Charley have the Cleveland game at 1 and the Dodgers game Saturday.  The Nats are on MASN on Sunday, but with the O’s broadcast team.

And it’s not going to be Johnny Estrada anytime soon.  Estrada’s elbow and arm problems appear to be getting worse, not better.   Estrada received a cortisone shot and he’s pretty much shut down.  Lo Duca is taking BP and catching bullpen sessions now and still on route to be ready for opening night.  That leaves the Nats searching for an alternative backup to Lo Duca, since the Flores plan is still in place.

From Bill Ladson:

“We don’t see Flores as a backup here unless Paul is not ready from the get-go to catch four or five times a week,” manager Manny Acta said. “That doesn’t mean we can’t change our mind, and we reserve the right to do it. We said all along that if Flores can go and play every single day in the Major or Minor Leagues, we don’t mind that. We just don’t want the kid to play twice or three times a week.”

The two catchers that will battle for the back-up spot include Chad Moeller and Wil Nieves.

There’s no doubt that we’re Flores fans.  While we hope the team does whatever is best for the young catcher, it would be nice to see him playing in the new park this year.  As far as back-ups to Lo Duca go, Nieves impressed us a lot last week.  His past numbers aren’t so great, but he’s only played in 63 games.  His double against the Marlins on the 29th helped produce the only run that day.   He seemed to be getting along great with our pitchers (afterall, someone’s gotta catch bullpen sessions and BP since the others are hurt) and he was really good with fans. 

There’s still lots to be determined before we have answers on the catcher situation, but it continues to be a topic of concern for us.