SB Nation - Steven Shell

Monday's Frosty Mug

KLSnow — Mon, 04 May 2009 13:03:53 -0000

More photos » by Darren Hauck - AP

7 months ago: Milwaukee Brewers' Prince Fielder, left, is congratulated by Mike Cameron, right, after hitting a solo home run against the Arizona Diamondbacks' Yusmeiro Petit in the second inning of a baseball game Sunday, May 3, 2009, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Darren Hauck)

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Some things to read while getting an early start.

The Brewers overcame what Tom H. called a loud belch in church yesterday to salvage a split of a four game series with the Diamondbacks. As if a belch in church wasn't bad enough, Trevor Hoffman followed it up by messing with the D-Backs' heads in the ninth. It was game one of a rare four-opponent week: The Brewers open a two game series with the Pirates today, then another with the Reds on Wednesday, and will see the Cubs this weekend.

Carlos Zambrano will likely miss his scheduled start this weekend against the Brewers after leaving yesterday's game with a hamstring strain. Randy Wells is expected to be called up from AAA Iowa to make the start in his place. Wells pitched in four games for the Blue Jays and Cubs last season but has never made a major league start.

Hopefully Mike Cameron will still be this hot at that point. Cameron led all NL hitters in Value Runs in April. Tom Zeimer of the Wisconsin State Journal has a profile of Cameron, discussing his hot start.

Mike Rivera should be back before too long. He's expected to be activated on May 14, just in time to catch Dave Bush's start on that day.

Manny Parra still hasn't won this season, although he did get a no-decision over the weekend after losses in his first four starts. While many people are blaming Parra's lack of control and/or mental toughness for his struggles, In-Between Hops also notes that Ken Macha seems to be playing the bench players much more frequently on Parra's day.

A couple of minor notes:

The Huntsville Stars, never really a big attendance draw in the first place, are now dealing with a new problem: swine flu. The new hysteria has them struggling to draw 1000 fans to games.
Mark Rogers started Saturday for Brevard County but threw just one inning. The team is taking it slow with his rehab, and expects him to throw two innings next time.

Around the league:

Astros: Signed Brendan Donnelly to a minor league deal.
A's: Placed Eric Chavez on the DL with elbow discomfort.
D-Backs: Tom Gordon had to be carried off the field after suffering a hamstring strain, and will be placed on the DL.
Dodgers: Hong-Chih Kuo has been placed on the DL with elbow trouble.
Indians: Designated Tony Graffanino for assignment.
Mariners: Placed Brandon Morrow on the DL with biceps tendinitis. They also designated catcher Jamie Burke for assignment and signed reliever Steven Shell and outfielder Jerry Owens to minor league deals.
Mets: Oliver Perez has been moved to the bullpen, with the official explanation being a knee issue.
Nationals: Signed reliever Mike MacDougal to a minor league deal.
Orioles: Placed Dennis Sarfate on the DL with a circulatory condition causing numbness in his right middle finger.
Yankees: Signed Casey Fossum to a minor league deal.

In case you had forgotten, it's still not a very good time to be a newspaper writer. With more layoffs over the weekend, there are now just two full time beat reporters covering the Dodgers.

At this pace, baseball players could become Japan's biggest export: the Biz of Baseball takes a look at what the Seibu Lions did with the $51+ million they received from the Red Sox for the right to negotiate with Daisuke Matsuzaka. Those may be the nicest ballpark toilets on Earth.

Oh, and after a slow start, the Mets would like permission to fire Willie Randolph again.

Drink up.

M's sign Steven Shell

Adam J. Morris — Sun, 03 May 2009 17:35:30 -0000

Maybe it is just me, but every time I hear that name, I think of the character Kramer played on Murphy Brown, when he went out to L.A. and got a spot on the show as Murphy's new secretary.

Anyway, we've talked about Shell possibly ending up in Texas, but instead he's been signed to a minor league deal by the Seattle Mariners.

So so much for that.

Steven Shell Is On The Trolley

Jeff — Sun, 03 May 2009 03:16:12 -0000

Kirby Arnold:

The Mariners have added another arm to their system, signing right-handed pitcher Steven Shell to a minor league contract and assigning him to Class AAA Tacoma.

Shell's a 26 year old flyballing reliever with four pitches who became a free agent after the Nationals released him a few hey wait a second

Benson's start being pushed back

Adam J. Morris — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 19:35:36 -0000

More photos » by Paul Sancya - AP

8 months ago: Texas Rangers pitcher Kris Benson reacts after giving up a grand slam to Detroit Tigers' Miguel Cabrera in the fourth inning of a baseball game in Detroit, on Friday April 10, 2009. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

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Kris Benson was supposed to start Wednesday's game against the Blue Jays.

However, Anthony Andro reports that Benson is being bumped back to Saturday because of "elbow tendinitis," but that Jon Daniels says Benson's elbow is improving and he's not worried.

Presumably, Matt Harrison starts Wednesday, and everyone gets their spots bumped up by one date. And if Benson can't go on Saturday, well, I guess either Scott Feldman or Derek Holland takes that spot.

Personally, I'd be on board with Benson heading to the d.l., the Rangers picking up Steve Shell (just DFA'd by the Nats) for the bullpen, and plugging Feldman or Holland into the rotation right now.

Benson can rest his elbow, go do a rehab start or two, and then we can see how the rotation looks, and if we really want Benson back.

Monday's Frosty Mug

KLSnow — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 14:26:26 -0000

More photos » by Bill Kostroun - AP

He may not be so good at high fives, but Todd Coffey's other skills made up for it yesterday.

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Some things to read while playing D&D with Vin Diesel.

Jeff Suppan surprised many of us with a solid performance yesterday, but how much weight do you put on it? Tom H. called yesterday Suppan's "Redemption Day." Two-Fisted Slopper called Suppan's outing a "great success."

With that said, Citi Field is already being credited as one of baseball's greatest pitcher's parks. Buster Olney and Ryan Braun both noted how hard it is to hit the ball out. It's likely not a coincidence that the two teams averaged less than three runs per contest this weekend despite starts from Jeff Suppan, Livan Hernandez and Nelson Figueroa.

For context, Nelson Figueroa pitched at about the same level as Jeff Suppan yesterday, and after the game he was designated for assignment.

A couple of other Citi Field tidbits: Here's Brian Anderson's view from the broadcast booth and Cute Sports' rundown of complaints about the views from the visitors bullpen and radio booth.

There were, however, no complaints about the performance of Todd Coffey. Coffey recorded eight outs for the save yesterday. Even though a pitcher who completes the last three innings of a win is awarded a save regardless of the score, Coffey's 2.2 inning save yesterday was the 17th longest save since the start of the 2008 season, and the longest in a game decided by less than four runs. Michael Hunt thinks the Brewer bullpen may have reached a turning point. Certainly, Trevor Hoffman's projected Sunday return won't hurt.

So, having salvaged one win in New York, the Brewers move on to Philadelphia, where they're not looking to avenge their 2008 playoff defeat. That's a good thing, because trading a playoff series loss for a win in April wouldn't be fair anyway.

Jason Kendall might get more than his usual day off this week, as it's being reported that he's playing with a sore arm after being hit by a foul tip over the weekend. I don't think anyone around here will be too upset if Mike Rivera gets a few extra starts.

For some, though, it's a story when their arm isn't sore. Mark Rogers hit 97 on the gun in his second outing back with Brevard County. He's on a 50 pitch limit for the first half of the season, but has pitched two trouble-free outings. (h/t FanShot)

Across the league:

Angels: Vladimir Guerrero has a torn pec muscle, will miss at least a month and may not play the field again in 2009.
Astros: Scheduled a press conference for tonight and are expected to announce they've picked up Cecil Cooper's option for 2010.
Blue Jays: Placed Michael Barrett on the DL with a torn muscle and possible fracture in his shoulder.
Braves: Designated Blaine Boyer for assignment.
Mets: Placed Brian Schneider on the DL with a strained muscle in his back.
Nationals: Placed CF Roger Bernadina on the DL with a broken ankle and Cristian Guzman on the DL with a hamstring strain. They also designated Wil Ledezma and Steven Shell for assignment and signed Ryan Zimmerman to a five year deal worth $45 million.
Padres: Placed Walter Silva on the DL with a forearm strain.
Rangers: Designated reliever Josh Rupe for assignment.
Red Sox: Brad Wilkerson, who had been playing in AAA Pawtucket, has decided to retire.
Twins: Designated Phil Humber for assignment and claimed Juan Morillo off waivers from the Rockies. Humber was considered a key part of the deal that sent Johan Santana to the Mets.

This is small sample size in all of its glory, but there's a lot of early talk about home runs flying out of New Yankee Stadium, and phrases like pitcher's nightmare are being thrown about. Maybe someone is already doing this, but it certainly doesn't look like it: If you can design a system that analyzes new ballparks and estimates their park factor before they open, you might be in line to make a lot of money.

Oh, and Mr. Met has an office at Citi Field.

Drink up.

Phillies vs Nationals: April 13, 15, and 16

Matt Swartz — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 04:21:23 -0000

More photos » by Alan Diaz - AP

The Phillies head to Washington to face the Nationals this week (AP Photo/Alan Diaz)

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We know who the Phillies are, but in case you need a recap of our splits, check out the article from the opener here.

As far as the Nationals, they are 0-6 so far, and the Phillies hope they can make them 0-9. They have a few solid players but are definitely a beatable team overall. Their pitching is really suspect, and none of their pitchers really seem likely to dominate us. Here is my preview of the splits and breakdowns of the Washington Nationals:

LINEUP

The Nationals have a decent lineup, but they have not exactly managed their resources perfectly meaning that they have five guys who could legitimately play LF/RF/1B, and two are on the bench. They have two solid lefties with great eyes right in the middle of their lineup, and it will be important for the Phillies to get past them. The Nationals do not have much power outside of these guys and Zimmerman though and they don't have very good contact hitters either. Other than Johnson and Dunn in the middle of their lineup, the rest of their lineup is actually right-handed or switch-hitters.

CF Lastings Milledge (R)

projection average (proj): .280/.350/.435
projected BB/PA (bb): 7.5%
projected K/AB (k): 20%
career gb% (gb): 46%
career infield flies/flyball (iff): 15%
career infield hits/groundball (ifh): 11%
batting average on balls in play tendencies (babip): average in general
swing/contact/zone facts (s/c/z): tends to swing at pitches out of strike zone more than others
righty/lefty (r/l): 3.2 k/bb vs rhp, 2.3 k/bb vs lhp; otherwise similar
home/away (h/a): .793/.657; 2.3 k/bb at home, 3.7 k/bb on road
pull/opposite (p/o): slight pull hitter
anything else (other): struggles a lot against power pitchers

SS Cristian Guzman (S)

proj: .295/.335/.420
bb: 5%
k: 12%
gb: 55%
iff: 11%
ifh: 8%
babip: solid ground ball rate puts him around .315-.320
s/c/z: fair strike judgment but plus contact skill
r/l: poorer strike zone judgment as rhb but more power
h/a: .743/.645 career
p/o: more of a pull hitter against rhb, but some pull tendencies against lhb too
other: none

3B Ryan Zimmerman (R)

proj: .285/.350/.475
bb: 8.5%
k: 17.5%
gb: 44%
iff: 11%
ifh: 8%
babip: tends to hit around .315 on BIP since he hits a lot of groundballs in the whole
s/c/z: about average across the board
r/l: .758/.931; 2.6 k/bb vs rhp, 1.2 vs lhp; and slightly more power against lhp too
h/a: nothing abnormal
p/o: slight pull hitter but spreads ball around pretty well
other: none

LF Adam Dunn (L)

proj: .245/.380/.490
bb: 17.5%
k: 31%
gb: 34%
iff: 11%
ifh: 4%
babip: somewhat low, around .290 career, mostly bc of low babip on groundballs due to the shift
s/c/z: good eye, laying off pitches out of the strike zone; poor contact skills but not as bad as you might expect; sees few strikes
r/l: .932/.833; biggest difference is 1.4 k/bb vs rhb and 2.0 k/bb vs lhb
h/a: nothing abnormal
p/o: definitepull hitter
other: nothing abnormal; power lefties tend to do better with men on, but he hasn't in his career

1B Nick Johnson (L)

proj: .270/.410/.470
bb: 17%
k: 21%
gb: 44%
iff: 9%
ifh: 3%
babip: doesn't tend to do well on groundballs in general, but does decently otherwise, about average
s/c/z: does not swing much, but especially good at laying off balls; contact rate about average though
r/l: no major split at all
h/a: no major split at all
p/o: spreads ball around pretty well but slight pull hitter
other: much better babip with runners on thus far; probably hooks ball in hole a lot

RF Austin Kearns (R)

proj: .260/.350/.410
bb: 11%
k: 21%
gb: 46%
iff: 10%
ifh: 6.5%
babip: average all around
s/c/z: very good eye with average contact skill
r/l: 2.2 k/bb vs rhp, 1.1 k/bb vs lhp; only .775/.827 split overall career though
h/a: no major split
p/o: spreads ball around pretty well but slight pull hitter
other: better against power pitchers

2B Ronnie Belliard (R)

proj: .270/.330/.420
bb: 8%
k: 17%
gb: 46%
iff: 11%
ifh: 7%
babip: below average by a little due to lack of power
s/c/z: average across the board
r/l: .727/.828
h/a: .773/.739
p/o: slight pull hitter
other: none

C Jesus Flores (R)

proj: .245/.305/.410
bb: 6.5%
k: 26%
gb: 42%
iff: 17%
ifh: 5%
babip: has been above average but will probably fall due to high popup rate
s/c/z: hacker but pithchers still challenge him
r/l: 5.1 k/bb vs rhp, 3.5 k/bb vs lhp; .633/.802 ops split but mostly due to very high babip vs lhp that probably won't persist
h/a: struggles more at home so far in career but probably just noise
p/o: very distinct pull hitter; only rarely goes the other way at all
other: far more successful against finesse pitchers thus far with lots of trouble against power pitchers

BENCH

The Nats should have a solid couple of hitters on the bench every day, so they do have some pinch hitting threats.

C Josh Bard (S)

proj: .265/.335/.390
bb: 10%
k: 15%
gb: 50%
iff: 6%
ifh: 4%
babip: about average overall; a little below average on groundballs since he doesn't get many infield hits and a bit high on flyballs since he doesn't pop out in the infield much
s/c/z: above average contact skill, average strike zone judgment
r/l: no major split
h/a: better k/bb at home (1.3 vs 1.8) and more power at home, but babip higher on road; probably still better at home despite babip causing reverse platoon split
p/o: spreads ball around as lhb but slight pull hitter as rhb
other: none

C Wil Nieves (R)

proj: .245/.290/.325
bb: 5.5%
k: 14%
gb: 53%
iff: 7%
ifh: 5%
babip: lack of power leads to it being below average since its low on flyballs; lack of speed leads to pretty low babip on groundballs too
s/c/z: poor strike zone judgment, but not terrible
r/l: seems typical but not enough info
h/a: not enough info
p/o: spreads ball around evenly
other: none

IF Alberto Gonzalez (R)

proj: .260/.310/.380
bb: 7%
k: 13%
gb: 46%
iff: 17%
ifh: 4%
babip: low due to high infield fly rate and low infield hit rate
s/c/z: patient but not especially good discipline; good contact skill though
r/l: not enough info
h/a: not enough info
p/o: tends to be a pull hitter but not much info
other: none

1B/OF Josh Willingham (R)

proj: .265/.355/.485
bb: 11%
k: 22%
gb: 39%
iff: 12%
ifh: 9%
babip: average all around
s/c/z: low swing rate in general, average contact skill
r/l: better k/bb and power numbers vs lhb but reverse babip split masks that
h/a: seemingly better on the road
p/o: definite pull hitter
other: better against groundball pitchers

OF Elijah Dukes (R)

proj: .265/.365/.465
bb: 14%
k: 23%
gb: 44%
iff: 12%
ifh: 5%
babip: has been low but seems to profile as about average
s/c/z: good eye but poor contact skill
r/l: more power against lhp but not much difference otherwisee
h/a: much better k/bb at home: 1.2 vs 2.0
p/o: definite pull hitter
other: none

UTL Willie Harris (L)

proj: .255/.345/.390
bb: 10.5%
k: 19.5%
gb: 48%
iff: 10%
ifh: 7%
babip: average all around
s/c/z: does not swing much
r/l: better vs rhp, primarily due to k/bb difference (1.5 vs 3.2)
h/a: not much difference
p/o: pull hitter
other:

ROTATION

The Phillies will need to stay patient against all three starters they face this series. John Lannan is probably going to be the hardest since he is better against lefties, and actually better all around. Daniel Cabrera has major control problems and major troubles with lefties. The Phillies should be able to hit him well if they are patient and wait on their pitches. Martis seems somewhat prone to wildness as well, and as a mediocre righty, he does not seem like a great threat to the Phillies. Lannan is actually a pretty decent pitcher, and as a groundball inducing lefty, he will be tough for the Phils to face. He does not strike out many guys and he does struggle a lot against righties.

MONDAY STARTER: Daniel Cabrera (R)

proj avg: 4.75 ERA, 4.7 BB/9, 7.1 K/9, 1.0 HR/9
gb: 47%
pitches: 72% fb, 24% sl, 4% ch
r/l: .681/.827; 1.5 k/bb vs 1.2
h/a: many more hr surrendered at home but slightly better k/bb

WEDNESDAY STARTER: Shairon Martis (R)

proj avg: 5.10 ERA, 4.2 BB/9, 6.8 K/9, 1.3 HR/9
gb: 37%
pitches: 60% fb, 20% ch, 10% sl, 9% cb
r/l: not enough info
h/a: not enough info

THURSDAY STARTER: John Lannan (L)

proj avg: 4.15 ERA, 3.6 BB/9, 5.6 K/9, 1.0 HR/9
gb: 54%
pitches: 60% fb, 16% sl, 12% cb, 11% ch, 1% ct
r/l: 1.2 k/bb vs rhb, 2.3 vs lhb; .719/.840 ops
h/a: slightly better on road but not much info

NOT FACING US THIS TIME: Scott Olsen (L)

proj avg: 4.75 ERA, 3.4 BB/9, 6.2 K/9, 1.3 HR/9
gb: 40%
pitches: 63% fb, 20% ch, 17% sl
r/l: 1.6 k/bb vs rhb, 2.8 k/bb vs lhb; .827/.686 ops
h/a: 2.0 vs 1.5 k/bb

NOT FACING US THIS TIME & STILL IN MINORS TIL 4/19: Jordan Zimmerman (L)

proj avg: 4.90 ERA, 4.1 BB/9, 7.0 K/9, 1.2 HR/9
gb: 48% in minors so probably about average in majors perhaps (?)
pitches: ?
r/l: better against righties in minors
h/a: ?

BULLPEN

The Nats lack a dominant arm in the bullpen, but their closer is Joel Hanrahan. He is a bit wild, and so the Phillies should be patient if he comes in. The Nats have three lefties in their pen, but none are all that fantastic. Beimel, a sinkerballing lefty, is probably the best of the bunch. The left-handed heart of the Phillies lineup will likely have to face these guys once the starters come out, but these are not the kind of lefties that will dominate them. The Nats bullpen overall is full of guys who induce groundballs, but are prone to wildness. None really has the kind of stuff that blows you away, but scoring off the Nats bullpen will be a matter of putting runners on and hitting line drives, while avoiding the double play ball.

CL Joel Hanrahan (R)

proj avg: 4.10 ERA, 4.5 BB/9, 9.0 K/9, 1.0 HR/9
gb: 38%
pitches: 67% fb, 31% sl, 2% ch
r/l: typical
h/a: much better at home: 2.6 k/bb vs. 1.3; .680/.842 ops

Joe Beimel (L)

proj avg: 3.90 ERA, 3.6 BB/9, 5.2 K/9, 0.6 HR/9
gb: 49%
pitches: 85% fb (sinkers coded as fastballs), 7% sl, 5% cb, 4% ch
r/l: 0.9 vs 2.3 k/bb, platoon splits not even as deep as would be give strength of lhb faced vs rhb
h/a: 1.5 k/bb at home 1.1 k/bb on road, but ops split not different

Saul Rivera (R)

proj avg: 3.90 EAR, 3.9 BB/9, 6.7 K/9, 0.5 HR/9
gb: 50%
pitches: 45% fb, 34% sl, 19% ct, 2% ch
r/l: not much of a split
h/a: much better at home (2.1 k/bb vs 1.2)

Michael Hinckley (L)

proj avg: 5.50 ERA, 4.7 BB/9, 6.5 K/9, 1.1 HR/9
gb: 44%
pitches: 67% fb, 33% cb
r/l: major loogy probably, but tough to tell from limited info
h/a: not enough info

Steven Shell (R)

proj avg: 4.20 ERA, 3.0 BB/9, 7.2 K/9, 1.2 HR/9
gb: 37%
pitches: 60% fb, 28% cb, 7% sl, 4% ch, 2% sf
r/l: not enough info
h/a: not enough info

Julian Tavarez (R)

proj avg: 4.60 ERA, 3.8 BB/9, 6.7 K/9, 0.8 HR/9
gb: 55%
pitches: 53% fb, 25% sl, 15% ch, 8% sf
r/l: 2.2 k/bb vs rhb, 1.0 vs lhb; .734/.827 ops
h/a: 1.75 k/bb at home, 1.3 on road

Wil Ledezma (L)

proj avg: 4.80 ERA, 4.7 BB/9, 7.3 K/9, 0.9 HR/9
gb: 37%
pitches: 68% fb, 18% sl, 14% ch
r/l: 1.2 k/bb vs rhb, 1.9 vs lhb; not much of a split on ops, but that's due to higher quality lhb faced
h/a: nothing abnormal

Washington Nationals Drop 4th Straight To Open Season...Nationals 5 Braves 6.

Ed Chigliak — Sat, 11 Apr 2009 07:11:38 -0000

More photos » by John Amis - AP

8 months ago: Washington Nationals Shairon Martis pitches against the Atlanta Braves during the first inning of their MLB baseball game, Friday, April 10, 2009, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/John Amis)

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6 Hours Later...(ed. note - "I know everyone's gonna go with the same title...")

In case you missed it or didn't stay up, check out last night's GameThread.

A storm descended upon Atlanta in the fourth inning of tonight's game, and what had been a steady drizzle all night erupted in a rather violent combination of large hail, high winds and tornado warnings, bringing not only the game but all of Fulton County, Georgia to a standstill for close to two hours...Then it passed. The Washington Nationals, who went into the delay trailing 4-1 battled back with a three-run sixth to tie it 4-4.

The Atlanta Braves took the lead back in the seventh when Brian McCann doubled off DC reliever Saul "Sa-ool" Rivera, and scored on a Jeff Francoeur single to make it 5-4 Atlanta, and the Braves would've had a two-run lead after the eighth if Elijah Dukes hadn't thrown Braves' second baseman Kelly Johnson out at the plate when Johnson tried to score from second on a Yunel Escobar single to right...Dukes' outfield assist kept the Nationals close enough that Lastings Milledge's bases loaded infield single in the ninth off ATL closer Mike Gonzalez's glove allowed Nick Johnson to score from third and send the already five-and-a-half hour old game into extra innings.

In the bottom of the 10th, the Braves got a leadoff single from rookie center fielder Jordan Schafer. Omar Infante failed at two sac bunt attempts, but ended up getting the job with a groundout to advance Schafer to second, bring the left-handed hitting Kelly Johnson to the plate to face DC lefty Joe Beimel. Johnson lined to right, Elijah Dukes cames charging in and threw on the run, but Schafer scored from second of the walk-off win and the end of a very long night. 6-5 final, Braves win.

Nationals now 0-4.

-- Shairon Martis gave up 5 hits, 3 runs, a HR and a walk in the abbreviated 3.0 inning outing. The Braves' didn't bring starter Derek Lowe back out after the delay either, and the Nationals eventually got to the Braves' bullpen after Lowe had held them to 1 run on 4 hits with 6 K's in his own 3.0 innings of work. In the top of the sixth, Buddy Carlyle gave up three-straight two-out hits to Cristian Guzman, Ryan Zimmerman and Adam Dunn, which scored three to tie the game at 4-4.

-- In all, both teams combined to use 15 pitchers last night. Wil Ledezma followed Martis, and Julian Tavarez, Steven Shell, Mike Hinckley, Saul Rivera and Joe Beimel followed. The Braves replaced Derek Lowe with Buddy Carlyle and then turned to Peter Moylan, Eric O'Flaherty, Jeff Bennett, Rafael Soriano, Mike Gonzalez and Jorge Campillo. Campillo took the win, Beimel the loss.

-- According to Washington Post writer Chico Harlan's post game wrap-up at the Nationals Journal entitled, "Six Hours Later, Another Loss", Elijah Dukes, who seemed to injure himself throwing in from right on the game-ending hit, "...has a tender groin." Dukes finished the night, 3 for 6 with one briliant outfield assist.

-- How about Lastings Milledge with the game-tying, two-out, bases loaded, infield single in the 9th. That's the kind of luck that could give Milledge some of his confidence back...

-- Update: According to MLB.com's Bill Ladson's blog post entitled, "Will Obama be at home opener", the Washington Times' report yesterday may have been premature, as Mr. Ladson quotes Nationals' team President Stan Kasten saying:

"'We just don't know. We would love for him to come whenever he can,' Kasten said before the Nationals faced the Braves on Friday. 'I do not know if he is coming on Monday. He is a busy guy. His schedule is subject to change.'"

-- The Nationals and Braves meet again tonight at 7:00 pm EST with DC lefty John Lannan taking on ATL right-hander Kenshin Kawakami.

For the Completists, Full Game Report After The Jump...

Game 4 of 162. Washington Nationals at Atlanta Braves.

Adam Dunn is up with two outs in the first and Cristian Guzman at first after having singled in the game’s second at bat. Dunn stares a two strike fastball inside all the way in and K’s looking to end the Nationals' first....(Let’s catch up...Lastings Milledge K's swinging, Guzman singles, Ryan Zimmerman K's swinging then Dunn)...Shairon Martis starts Kelly Johnson with two fastballs up high, and ends up allowing an infield single on a 2-2 pitch. Yunel Escobar helps Martis out, grounding to Cristian Guzman at short, Guzman steps on second and fires to first. Chipper Jones rolls over the first pitch, grounding out to second.

89 mph with a letter-high fastball inside and Derek Lowe gets Nick Johnson looking to start the DC second. Elijah Dukes takes the first pitch he sees and flies out to right. Jesus Flores’ grounder to third skips on Chipper Jones and bounces off his glove for an infield single/error. Willie Harris grounds to Kelly Johnson to Casey Kotchman at first to end the inning...Brian McCann starts the Braves’ second with a double off the wall in center. Shairon Martis fields his position on a weak grounder and looks the runner back to second before throwing out Casey Kotchman. Jeff Francoeur pushes a slider outside out to right for Elijah Dukes to play and fire in. Matt Diaz, with McCann on second, flies out to center, Milledge catches it coming in...

Derek Lowe gives up a single to the opposing pitcher. Lastings Milledge gets hit on the hand with a fastball. Cristian Guzman lays down a perfect sac bunt bringing up Ryan Zimmerman. Zimmerman goes the other way with an outside pitch and gets it over Jeff Francoeur’s head and into the scoreboard, Martis scores. 1-0 Nationals. Adam Dunn gets the intentionals from Lowe. Bases loaded for Nick Johnson, who works the count full. Nick Johnson K’s swinging at a sinking fastball inside. Elijah Dukes K’s chasing an 82 mph slider off the plate. 0-0...Jordan Schafer gets a sharp grounder by Nick Johnson at first for a leadoff single. Zimmerman charges in and takes his time throwing Lowe out at first after a sac bunt that drops in front of the plate. Randy St. Claire comes out to talk to Martis after he walks Kelly Johnson, and Yunel Escobar gives a 2-0 fastball a ride, deep to left center and gone, 3-run HR. 3-1 Braves. Martis gets Chipper Jones swinging. Brian McCann pops up the first pitch he sees and Ryan Zimmerman, Guzman and Dunn all lose the ball and let it drop to the ground for an embarrassing McCann double. Zimmerman barehands a weak grounder from Kotchman and throws out the runner to end the Braves’ third.

Jesus Flores takes a patient leadoff walk to start the fourth in a downpour. Willie Harris K's looking. Josh Bard singles so hard to right that Flores almost gets nailed at second by a hard-charging Francoeur. Lastings Milledge rips a single through second to load the bases. Cristian Guzman pops out unproductively to left. Ryan Zimmerman rips a grounder to third, Chipper takes the force at second...Wil Ledezma takes over on the mound for Martis. Francoeur swings through a two-strike heater. Ledezma walks Diaz. Jordan Schafer swings over a heater inside. Buddy Carlyle K’s to end the fourth.

Adam Dunn takes a leadoff walk in the fifth when Buddy Carlyle won’t come near the plate. Nick Johnson hits a perfect DP grounder to Yunel Escobar, Kelly Johnson and Kotchman. Elijah Dukes tears the cover of a single through short. Carlyle throws a high outside fastball by a swinging Jesus Flores who K’s to end the fifth...Kelly Johnson grounds the first pitch to Willie Harris at second. Willie Harris knocks down Yunel Escobar’s grounder behind second, but that’s all he can do with it, infield single for Escobar. Escobar takes second on a pitch in the dirt that gets away from Flores. Chipper takes ball four and it gets away from Flores, letting Escobar take third. Brian McCann gets one deep enough in left that Dunn doesn’t even try. Escobar scores, 4-1 ATL. Casey Kotchman gets jammed but singles up the middle. Ledezma’s out for Julian Tavarez. Tavarez gets Francoeur swinging at a slider outside to end the inning.

Willie Harris vs Carlyle to start the sixth. Harris works a walk. Fielder’s choice on a Josh Willingham grounder to third with Harris running. Lastings Milledge rips a grounder to first, Kotchman handles it. Guzman battles Carlyle and gets his pitch, going back up the middle with a single to score Harris, 4-2 Braves. Carlyle’s out. Peter Moylan and Ryan Zimmerman renew their rivalry. THE KIDS CALL HIM ZIM!! THE KIDS CALL HIM ZIM!!! RBI double to center to score Guzman, 4-3 Braves. Eric O’Flaherty takes over against Adam Dunn. Dunn bounces one off Kotchman at first, and Zimmerman comes round, 4-4 score. Nick Johnson grounds right to the second base bag, Escobar fields and tags it....Steven Shell vs Diaz to start the Braves’ sixth. Shell walks the leadoff batter. Jordan Schafer pops up a bunt attempt for the first out. Greg Norton skies one to Milledge in center. Mike Hinckley comes on to face Kelly Johnson. Hinckley gets a weak fly ball to left, Dunn’s got it.

Jeff Bennett throws Dukes a fastball that gets lined to center. Jesus Flores bunts Dukes over to second. Bennett hits Willie Harris in the thigh. Austin Kearns works a one-out walk. Lastings Milledge hits a 3-1 pitch to third, Chipper to Johnson at second, to Kotchman, double play...Saul “Sa-ool” Rivera vs Yunel Escobar to start the Braves’ seventh. Escobar grounds out to short. Chipper Jones pops out to his counterpart at third. Kotchman gets the intentionals to bring up Francoeur, who singles up the middle, McCann scores, 5-4 Braves. Diaz takes strike three.

Rafael Soriano vs Guzman to start the eighth. Guzman flies out to right. Soriano throws a 92 mph heater by Zimmerman up high. Dunn grounds into the dramatic shift to end the eighth...Jordan Schafer gets called out on strikes. Garret Anderson tops one off to second for out No. 2. Kelly Johnson strokes a two-out hit to left and takes second on Dunn’s arm...Yunel Escobar lines to right, Dukes comes up throwing and nails Kelly Johnson at the plate, 5-4 Braves after eight.

Braves’ closer Mike Gonzalez gets a line drive to left from Nick Johnson, but Matt Diaz just misses it, and it goes to the wall for a double. Elijah Dukes singles Johnson over to third. Jesus Flores flies out unproductively to right. Pinch hitter Alberto Gonzalez walks to load the bases. Wil Nieves swings at a high full count fastball. Strike three. Lastings Milledge swings at an 0-2 pitch and bounces it off Gonzalez’s glove. Johnson scores from third, 5-5 ballgame. Cristian Guzman K’s swinging. Braves get one more shot...Joe Beimel on to hold it. Chipper Jones singles to center on the first pitch he sees. Jones takes second on a fly ball to left from McCann. Casey Kotchman takes one in the ribs from Beimel. Kotchman flies out to Milledge. Matt Diaz flies out to center, and it’s going to be extra innings at 1:00 am...

Ryan Zimmerman starts the 10th against Jorge Campillo. Ryan Zimmerman smokes a line drive to third for the first out. Adam Dunn takes a one-out walk in front of Nick Johnson. Johnson K’s chasing junk off the plate. Elijah Dukes grounds out to third...Beimel’s back with Jordan Schafer up first...Schafer goes the other way on an inside pitch for a leadoff single. Omar Infante tries to bunt, but can’t and ends up just grounding out to advance the runner. Beimel vs Kelly Johnson. Johnson lines to left, and Elijah Dukes’ throw is too late...Braves win. 6-5 final.

Nationals now 0-4.

Nationals Drop Opener To Marlins, 12-6 Final. Adam Dunn As Advertised...

Ed Chigliak — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 00:03:40 -0000

More photos » by Alan Diaz - AP

8 months ago: Washington Nationals' Adam Dunn (44) is congratulated by teammates Cristian Guzman (15) and Ryan Zimmerman (11) after hitting a three-run home run against the Florida Marlins' in the sixth inning of a baseball game in Miami, Monday, April 6, 2009. Guzman and Zimmerman scored on the home run. The Marlins won 12-6. (AP Photo/Alan Diaz)

Browse more photos »

(ed. note - "New post scheduled for 9:30 am EST - 4/7/09...")

Shake 'N Bake...

Adam Dunn did not disappoint in his first regular season appearance with the Washington Nationals. Dunn ended his DC debut 2 for 4 with 2 runs scored and 4 RBI's on a double and a HR the likes of which hasn't been seen by DC baseball fans since...Well...But, Adam Dunn was also as advertised on the defensive end, misjudging a fly ball off of Florida catcher John Baker's bat in the first for what was kindly ruled a double by the Marlins' scorekeeper, but the bad first step Dunn took allowed the Marlins' first run to cross and Baker himself scored two outs later...

The HR by Dunn will overshadow all that, however, and with good reason...well over 400ft, the 3-run blast Dunn hit off Florida starter Ricky Nolasco had fans 20 rows up in right ducking for cover...

Unfortunately, it was a former National who outdid the new one...

The Marlins' Electric Third Baseman Emilio Bonifacio, acquired by the Nationals from Arizona for Jon Rauch last season and then flipped to Florida (with prospects) for Josh Willingham and Scott Olsen this winter, ends the day 4 for 5 against his former team-for-a-minute with 4 runs, 2 RBI's and an inside the park 2-run HR, scoring Cameron Maybin from third when a line drive sails over a pulled-in Lastings Milledge's head in center...Bonifacio was around the bases and sliding into home before the throw in passed the pitcher's mound, and Bonifacio's effort got what's considered a large crowd in Florida off of its feet...

Hanley Ramirez's Grand Slam in the 6th off of Steven Shell put an end to any thoughts of a Nationals' comeback. Ramirez ends the day 2 for 3 with a double, a HR and 5 RBI's. Jorge Cantu puts one into the empty orange seats above the scoreboard in left. The Marlins score 12 runs on 12 hits.

DC lefty John Lannan allows 6 runs on 6 hits, 2 HR's in 3.0 IP...Marlins win, 12-6 final.

John Lannan might want to just pretend his '09 debut never happened. Just pick up where he left off last season as the Nationals' unflappable left hander, because he looked nervous out there for the first time I've seen, and his trademark control was nowhere to be found...58 pitches, 30 for strikes, when he got outs he was getting the groundouts he wanted, with 7 ground balls, 1 fly out and 1 K in 3.0 innings, but he gave up 2 HR's, 2 doubles and 6 runs on 6 hits.

DC reliever Julian Tavarez replaced Lannan in the fourth and gave up 2 runs on 2 hits including a HR though it's hard to blame Tavarez for Bonifacio's inside the park homer...Nationals' lefty Wil Ledezma gave up 2 hits, 3 runs, 2 ER and 2 walks, but an error by Ryan Zimmerman, and a missed attempt at fielding a Bonifacio bunt by the Nationals' third baseman led to a lot of Ledezma's issues...Enter Steven Shell...who serves up a hanging supposed-to-be-a-slider to Hanley Ramirez that clears the scoreboard in left for Ramirez's first Grand Slam...at that point it was over...

Marlins' right-hander Ricky Nolasco throws 6.0 innings, allows 6 hits and K's 6 in the win...Nolasco allows 5 runs, 4 earned, and gives up the HR to Dunn and doubles to Dunn and Kearns. Kiko Calero and Dan Meyer each threw scoreless frames. Florida righty Logan Kensing gives up a run on 2 hits when Nick Johnson singles and scores on a Jesus Flores' hit in the ninth to draw the Nationals within 6...that's as close as they'd get...12-6 Marlins win.

FIRSTS...

First Nationals' Hit of '09: Jesus Flores' line-drive single in the 3rd.

First Nationals' Run Scored of '09: Cristian Guzman on an Adam Dunn RBI double in the 4th.

First Nationals' HR of '09: Adam Dunn - 3-run HR in 6th off Ricky Nolasco.

First Nationals' Error of '09: Ronnie Belliard on grounder from Cameron Maybin in 2nd.

First Nationals' K of '09: Cristian Guzman in 1st.

?'s For The DC Faithful...

Did you still enjoy watching the first game of the season even though the Nationals got hammered?

Was Adam Dunn's HR power all you hoped it would be?

Did anyone else cover their eyes when that Emilio Bonifacio fly ball got over Lastings Milledge's head?

A healthy Jesus Flores...Nice, right?

Are you worried about John Lannan at all? Or was that just Opening Day issues?

Are the Marlins for real?

Will you be back tomorrow?

Nationals now 0-1.

For the Completists, or Anyone Who Missed The Opener...Full Game Report After The Jump...

Opening Day...Washington Nationals at Florida Marlins: Game 1 of 162...

Lastings Milledge grounds the first pitch of the season weakly to Dan Uggla at second. Cristian Guzman swings a foot over a cutter outside and falling fast from Florida righty Ricky Nolasco. Ryan Zimmerman takes a big cut at a fastball outside but comes up empty, swinging strike three to end the first...Emilio Bonifacio reaches out for a fastball and pushes it over second for a leadoff single. Bonifacio is running and safe. Florida catcher John Baker flies out to left, and Adam Dunn completely misjudges it...Bonifacio scores, Baker in at second, 1-0 Fish. Hanley Ramirez bunts Baker over to third. Jorge Cantu drives in a run with a groundout. 2-0 Fish. Cristian Guzman backhands a grounder from Dan Uggla and fires to first, in time.

Adam Dunn takes a low 1-2 bender and get called out on strikes. Nick Johnson takes a 2-2 curve for a full count, but flies out to right on the payoff pitch. Ricky Nolasco dials it up with three straight strikes, the last a 94 mph heater upstairs to get Austin Kearns swinging...John Lannan comes back from 3-0 to a full count, and gets a grounder to first from Jeremy Hermida, Nick Johnson fields and steps on the bag. Guzman fields running toward second, spins and throws to first for out No. 2. Marlins’ CF Cameron Maybin grounds ou...Ronnie Belliard gets shorthopped and drops it, Maybin safe. Lannan wastes a few fastballs on the pitcher and gets a swinging K to end the second.

Ronnie Belliard pushes a liner out to right fielder Cody Ross. Jesus Flores rips a line drive to left for a one-out single and the Nationals’ first hit of the season. Emilio Bonifacio’s charging as John Lannan pops up a bunt and a diving Bonifacio makes the grab. Lastings Milledge flies out to center to end the third...Emilio Bonifacio lines another single out to right. John Baker moves the runner over with a groundout. Bonifacio steals third. Hanley Ramirez slices a line drive right over Nick Johnson’s head at first to score the third run of the game. 3-0 Fish. Jorge Cantu’s swinging 3-0 and he got what he was looking for and put it in the empty orange seats high above left. 5-0 Marlins. 2-1 fastball to Hermida, and it leaves quicker than it came in, first row in right, 6-0 Marlins. Guzman fields and throws out Cody Ross to end a looong third.

Guzman starts the fourth with a single under a diving Dan Uggla at second. Ryan Zimmerman sends a 91mph fastball out to center for Maybin. Adam Dunn goes the other way with a fly ball off the big scoreboard in left for an RBI double and the Nationals first run of ‘09, 6-1 Fish. Nick Johnson slaps a slider to Cantu at first that moves Dunn to third. Austin Kearns lines a full count fastball over third and into the left field corner for an RBI double. 6-2 Marlins. Ronnie Belliard lines out to end the DC fourth...Julian Tavarez takes over on the mound for the Nationals. The first pitch from Tavarez is smoked by Cameron Maybin, who doubles off the wallboard in right. A sac bunt by Nolasco moves Maybin to third. Bonifacio lifts one...over...Lastings...Milledge’s...head in center and it’s to the wall, Bonifacio’s flying...and he beats the throw home...Inside the park, 2-run HR...8-2 Fish. John Baker grounds out to Guzman. Hanley Ramirez pops out to Dunn...8-2 Fish.

Jesus Flores grounds to Bonifacio at third for the first out of the fifth. Josh Bard pinch hits for Tavarez and battles but eventually grounds out. Lastings Milledge goes down swinging. Nolasco’s through five....The first pitch from Wil Ledezma gets hammered to center by Jorge Cantu, who comes in standing up at second. Dan Uggla walks to put two on for Hermida. Hermida swings over a nasty 0-2 bender from Ledezman, strike three swinging. Cody Ross pushes Austin Kearns back to the track in right. Cameron Maybin goes down swining, and the Nationals head in for the sixth.

Leadoff Guzman gets a line drive by Jorge Cantu at first. Ryan ZImmerman bends a liner around Bonifacio at third, who loses it in the shadows, Guzman takes third. Adam Dunn UNLOADS on a fastball down the pipe and puts it 20 rows back in the right field stands, 3-run blast, 8-5 Marlins. Nick Johnson grounds back to the mound for out No. 1. Austin Kearns grounds out to Bonifacio at third. Nolasco gets Belliard swinging at a curve, and gets out of the sixth with the lead....Wil Ledezma’s back on the mound...Ryan Zimmerman eats up a grounder from Brett Carroll and throws it away...Carroll to second. Zimmerman charges on a Bonifacio bunt and comes up empty with the swipe of the glove...first and third for John Baker. Bonifacio steals second...Baker walks, bases loaded, 0 outs. Ledezma’s out in favor of Steven Shell. Hanley Ramirez gets a hanger, and de-stroys it...Grand Slam, 12-5 Marlins. Jorge Cantu lines one right at Adam Dunn in left for the first out. Dan Uggla takes a called strike three at the knees. Jeremy Hermida flies out to Milledge, who shields his eyes from the setting sun and runs in after catching it...

Jesus Flores grounds weakly to short. Willie Harris grounds out to Cantu at first. Lastings Milledge chases a two-strike slider off the plate, strike three, Stand Up and Stretch...Steven Shell’s back for the bottom of the seventh. Cody Ross swings through a high two-strike fastball. Brett Carroll spins one out to second and beats Willie Harris’ throw to first. Emilio Bonifacio grounds out to first to end the seventh....

Cristian Guzman faces Florida lefty Dan Meyer to start the eighth. Guzman skies one to the track in left, where Brett Carroll catches it. Ryan Zimmerman takes a fastball inside that is called strike three, and Zim doesn’t like it. Adam Dunn flies out to Maybin well short of the track...12-5 Marlins, middle of the eighth...Mike Hinckley takes the mound in the Marlins’ eighth. John Baker grounds weakly to Willie Harris at second. Hanley Ramirez accepts a one-out walk. Jorge Cantu walks. Two on for Dan Uggla. Uggla rips into a 3-1 pitch and pops out to center. Wes Helms gets a hold of one, Kearns back to the wall...makes the grab as he hits...

Cameron Maybin dives for a liner off Nick Johnson’s bat, but comes up empty, single to start the ninth. Austin Kearns is up when a wild pitch moves Johnson to second. Kearns chops one to short, Hanley Ramirez guns him. Elijah Dukes gets fooled by a two-strike-Logan-Kensing-curve. Jesus Flores strokes an RBI single to left. Johnson scores. 12-6 Fish, Willie Harris grounds to second, Uggla to Cantu, it’s over. Marlins win. 12-6 final.

Nationals now 0-1.

The 2009 Washington Nationals: What "They're" Saying...plus Sunday Game Thread.

Ed Chigliak — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 03:09:04 -0000

As of 11:00 pm EST on Saturday March 28, 2009...

The 2009 Washington Nationals' Lineup Takes Shape...

DC Starting Rotation:

John Lannan - LHP (Opening Day)
Scott Olsen - LHP
Daniel Cabrera - RHP

Shairon Martis - RHP

Jordan Zimmermann - RHP

DC Bullpen:

Jason Bergmann* - RHP

Garrett Mock* - RHP

Steven Shell* - RHP

Saul Rivera* - RHP

Wil Ledezma - LHP

Kip Wells - RHP

Jesus Colome - RHP

Julian Tavarez* - RHP

Ryan Wagner - RHP

Joe Beimel *- LHP

Mike Hinckley - LHP

Joel Hanrahan* - CL

DC IF:

1B - Nick Johnson

2B - Anderson Hernandez/Ronnie Belliard

SS - Cristian Guzman

3B - Ryan Zimmerman

Extra IF: Kory Casto, Alex Cintron, Alberto Gonzalez, Willie Harris, Dmitri Young.

DC OF:

LF - Adam Dunn

CF - Lastings Milledge

RF - Elijah Dukes/Austin Kearns

Extra OF: Josh Willingham, Willie Harris.

DC Backstops:

C - Jesus Flores

C - Josh Bard

C - Wil Nieves

The Infield Situation...

We know who's starting in the DC infield, (with Ronnie Belliard in until Anderson Hernandez returns and barring a last minute trade of Nick Johnson, which seems less and less likely each day), but what we don't know is what Washington will do with the rest of the infielders still in camp. Nationals' Manager Manny Acta told Washington Post writer Chico Harlan this afternoon, in a Nationals Journal post entitled, "Nats Win, Astronauts Return, Dmitri Speaks", when asked whether Alex Cintron had earned a place on the roster:

"We haven't made a decision yet on Alex. He's a guy who has been up for a while. He's valuable as a utility infielder. We just continue to evaluate him and see where he fits for us...How many extra guys can we have? It's a numbers game. We just have to wait one more week and see. We have Ronnie [Belliard]; we have Willie [Harris]; we have [Alberto] Gonzalez. So, it's going to be a numbers game."

You'll notice there's no mention of Kory Casto there. MLB.com's Bill Ladson wrote recently, in an article entitled, "Nats have decision to make on Casto", that without any options left, Casto must either be placed on the 25-Man Roster come Opening Day, or he must clear waivers in order to be sent up to Syracuse.

Manny Acta told Mr. Ladson that the Expos' 3rd Round Pick in '03 might not be a prospect anymore:

"'[Being a utility player] could be his job,' Acta said. 'We have an interesting decision to make. We have seen him in the last two years -- on and off. We have seen him this year in Spring Training. He has played third and first. He is doing well defensively. He still hasn't hit the way we expect him to hit up here.'"

The decision on Casto will come next week.

Further Reading: Washington Times' writer Mark Zuckerman's "Casto still without a role".

The Outfield Situation...

Don't tell Josh Willingham he's ready for a bench role. Washington Post writer Chico Harlan asked the Hammer what he thought about possibly being a bench player, and the quote from Willingham in Mr. Harlan's Nationals Journal post entitled, "The Outfield Squeeze", hints at the 30-year-old outfielders' dissatisfaction with the situation, as he's quoted stating:

"'I'll answer that question if it happens. I won't answer it now. We'll see how I feel. But I know that's definitely not going to be alright with me.'"

And why shouldn't Willingham be mad, he was acquired in a trade by a team that then went out and signed a 40 HR, 100 RBI outfielder who plays the same position he does, and have so far done nothing to remedy the situation by moving one of the players in the overcrowded outfield...

Lastings Milledge is Acta's man in center. Adam Dunn will play almost every day and he's a nightmare at first so they'll play him in left, and it's Elijah Dukes and Austin Kearns in right until someone wins the spot or is possibly traded. 9 days and counting...

Is there any chance that the rumors of Washington Nationals' President Stan Kasten and "Acting" GM Mike Rizzo wanting to keep all of the outfielders on the roster are true?...Manny Acta did tell Florida Today.com writer Mark Decotis, as quoted in a 3/11/09 article entitled, "Outfielders work to catch on", that he thought he could get all of the outfielders on the roster enough time, saying, "'We can rotate them and get enough at bats for all of them once we get that number down to whoever's going to come with us to D.C.'"

At the time of Mr. Decotis' article, however, Roger Bernadina and Wily Mo Pena were still in the discussion. Bernadina was optioned on 3/19, and Wily Mo Pena was placed on waivers Saturday morning. Pena can now be had by any team in baseball for $2M...either that or he clears waivers, goes to Syracuse and the entire outfield of Roger Bernadina, Leonard Davis, Justin Maxwell and WMP can tear up Triple-A and give the Chiefs a special inaugural experience...while also challenging the outfielders on the MLB roster for their spots and filling in when necessary, which it certainly was last season...

Rotation and Bullpen ?'s...

In MLB.com's Bill Ladson's article entitled, "Nationals to carry extra position player", Mr. Ladson announced that the Washington Nationals would carry four starters and seven relievers for the first two weeks of the season, when off days would allow for them to properly rest the top four arms, John Lannan, Daniel Cabrera, Scott Olsen and Shairon Martis. The decision was made today, as Washington Times' writer Mark Zuckerman reported, in a Chatter post entitled, "Martis, Zimmermann make rotation, Pena on waivers", to start Martis in DC and, as Mr. Zuckerman writes, have Zimmermann, "...(open) the season in the minors before his spot comes up on April 19."

(ed. note - "I'd just like to point out the wisdom of the Federal Baseball.com readers, who voted 69% to 30% back on January 22, 2009 in favor of 22-year-old right-hander Jordan Zimmermann making the Nationals' '09 rotation.")

(Federal Baseball.com's Predictions: "Collin Balester, who entered Spring Training pencilled into the starting rotation, and was sent to Triple-A Syracuse today, will be back as soon as Daniel Cabrera is moved to the bullpen.")

As for the DC Bullpen...as Mr. Ladson reported, the Nationals will start the season with seven relievers...at the Nationals' official site right now, the team's Depth Chart has seven pitchers listed (from the active roster, no invitees)...Joel Hanrahan (CL), Joe Beimel (who has had the words "primary set-up man to Hanrahan" follow or precede his name in every mention by the Nationals since he was signed), Saul Rivera, Jason Bergmann, Steven Shell, Garrett Mock and Julian Tavarez. As I wrote yesterday, I wouldn't be surprised if Mike Hinckley or Wil Ledezma stuck on as the go-to-lefty, with Mock dropping off of the list... Does Ryan Wagner stay this time? Kip Wells? He still here? Has Jesus Colome earned a spot?

?'s For The DC Faithful...

1) Who stays in the DC Bullpen? Mock, Hinckley, Ledezma, Wells, Wagner, Colome?

2) Does Anderson Hernandez being out help you decide which backup infielder to keep? Do you prefer one of Willie Harris, Alex Cintron or Alberto Gonzalez over the other as a backup at second if Hernandez can't return?

3) Where will Kory "Limbo" Casto end up? Oakland? (ed. note - "That's just always been my guess...no reason...") Syracuse? DC?

4) Will Collin Balester be back?

5) Please tell me I didn't miss anyone? I stared at rosters for hours trying to find anyone I might be forgetting?

6) Reading Material: Read Dave Nichols At The Nationals News Network's "My Opening Day Roster" post and see what he thinks the recent cuts mean for the '09 Roster...Steven at FJB made bold predictions in, "FJB's Official 2009 Big Prediction Post" last Wednesday...(ed. note - "I think the 'F' stands for 'Forget' now!")...Brian Oliver at the Nationals Farm Authority wrote, "A point by point analysis" of Washington Post writer Thomas Boswell's recently published opinions regarding Stephen Strasburg in a post entitled, "To Draft or Not to Draft"...Mike Henderson at Nationals Pride.com, says goodbye to Wily Mo Pena in a quick post entitled, "Another Jim Bowden Love Affair Down The Tubes", I know this list of articles is not a question...

GAME THREAD...

(ed. note - "I'm not going to be home for today's game...I'll be in brand new Citi Field in Flushing, Queens, NY, watching St. John's baseball...wanted a chance to see the new park when it wasn't full of Mets fans...thankfully I can follow along on the trusty iPhone...")

The Nationals leave Space Coast for Jupiter, where they'll take on the Florida Marlins with Daniel Cabrera on the mound against the Fish's righty Chris Volstad. The game starts at 1:05-ish...

Who's Watching The Nationals? Who Read This Far?...

NEW POLL: WHO STANDS BEHIND JESUS...FLORES?

Poll

'09 Nationals' Backup Catcher? You Decide? Who Backs Up Jesus Flores?

Josh Bard?

62 votes

Wil Nieves?

62 votes

124 votes | Poll has closed

Spring Training - Game Thread: Washington Nationals vs New York Mets.

Ed Chigliak — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 15:36:24 -0000

The 2009 Lineup Takes Shape...

When asked, in his most recent edition of the "Inbox: What's different with Kearns?", whether Adam Dunn was second in line at first if Nick Johnson were to be injured again, MLB.com's Bill Ladson responded, "You are going to think I'm crazy, but don't count out (Dmitri) Young," (as Johnson's backup)...and a little less than three hours after Mr. Ladson published his article, Washington Post writer Chico Harlan checked in with a Nationals Journal post entitled, "Nats Intend To Add Dmitri Young To 40-Man Roster" which made Mr. Ladson's intuition appear possibly prescient.

(ed. note - "I'll hold off on commenting on giving a not-quite-ready-to-play DY this spot until the player who's left off the roster to make room is identified...")

In an article entitled, "Nationals to carry an extra position player", yesterday, which announced (in its title) the fact that the Nationals would carry an extra position player in place of a fifth starter due to the scheduling in the first weeks, which provides two off days, MLB.com's Bill Ladson speculated that the final roster spot could go to:

"Kory Casto, who is out of options...He can play the corner outfield and infield positions."

Does the decision to honor what is reported to be an agreement the Former DC GM had with DY, to bring him back from Triple-A, mean the end of Kory Casto's time with the Nationals then? If you believe the Nationals' Depth Chart as it's currently configured at the Nationals' Official site, Casto's third in line at third and fourth behind Nick Johnson, Josh Willingham and Adam Dunn at first, and not even on the map in the outfield, which doesn't bode well for the former Montreal Expos' 2003 3rd Round pick...

And What About The Bullpen...???

Here's how the Nationals' official site's Depth Chart has it:

"Wild" Joel Hanrahan (CL) - (WBC - (0-0), 6 G, 5.0 IP, 1.80 ERA, 3 H, 3 R, 1 ER, 3 BB, 4 K's)

Joe Beimel - ('08 - (5-1), 71 G, 49.0 IP, 2.02 ERA, 50 H, 11 ER, 21 BB, 32 K's)

Saul "Sa-ool" Rivera - (WBC - (0-0), 5 G, 3.2 IP, 0.00 ERA, 1 H, 1 K)

Jason Bergmann - (Spring - (0-0), 7 G, 9.1 IP, 7 H, 4 R, 0 ER, 1 HR?) (ed. note - "Someone tell me how that works...even if Bergmann came on with bases loaded and gave up a HR the 4th run would be the new pitcher's, right? I'll assume it's a rare MLB.com error.")

Steven Shell - (Spring - (0-0), 8 G, 10.0 IP, 4.50 ERA, 12 H, 5 ER, 1 HR, 3 BB, 4 K's.)

Garrett Mock - (Spring (0-0), 10 G, 12.0 IP, 1 SV, 5.25 ERA, 16 H, 9 E)

Julian Tavarez - (Uh...visa issues?)

Back in the article by Mr. Ladson entitled, "Nationals to carry extra position player", Mr. Ladson wrote that the roster decision meant that the Nationals would carry just 4 starters and 7 relievers on the Opening Day roster. That's seven above, with the four starters, John Lannan, Scott Olsen, Daniel Cabrera and...Jordan Zimmermann or Shairon Martis, presumably, but still undecided...and that leaves Ryan Wagner, Terrell Young, Will Ledezma and Mike Hinckley out of the picture, though I'd imagine one of the two lefties, Ledezma or Hinckley might step in for Mock, (who has struggled this Spring), as the LOOGY...

And Speaking of Stephen Strasburg...

Sports Illustrated writer Lee Jenkins' article entitled, "Stephen Strasburg Is Ready To Bring It", is now available online. (ed. note - "Mr. Jenkins was also kind enough to answer a few question I had about Strasburg the other day, you can view the email exchange HERE.")

ESPN's Baseball Tonight did a segment on Stephen Strasburg today with Buster Olney narrating a highlight package, and speaking in studio...some of the highlights: (paraphrasing of course)...

Buster Olney - "Strasburg is not like any other pitching prospect, this year or perhaps in any year...and according to scout's he's better than Mark Prior...David Price...Todd Van Popple or Brien Taylor...and better than A.J. Burnett is right now...Lots of movement on his fastball, a cutting action, above average slider and change. 74 K's and 7 BB in 34.1 IP so far with SDSU...Mr. Olney then calls Strasburg, 'The Lebron James of the upcoming baseball draft'...(but Mr. Olney cautions)..."This is going to be the toughest negotiation of the year in baseball...it's gonna be drawn out and it could get ugly."

ESPN's Peter Gammons - "My only question is, 'Is Strasburg gonna end up in the majors in Japan?'"

Strasburg's on the road against Texas Christian University Friday night.

You remember New York Newsday columnist Ken Davidoff right?

In a "Ken Davidoff's baseball insider" article with the SEO-friendly title, "Miguel Tejada, Johnny Damon, Derek Jeter, Pat Venditte, Jimmy Gobble and Anderson Hernandez", Mr. Davidoff writes that he:

" • Bought a copy of the Washington Post while in DC, and laughed when I read this story: Anderson Hernandez might be the Nationals' starting second baseman? Ay yi yi."

C'mon, that's 164 characters, trim it down a bit and save it for a Twitter post! Why the virtual eye-roll for Anderson Hernandez? Just because he never panned out in NY? Enjoy Luis Castillo...

Speaking Of New York's Hated Mets?

GAME THREAD - Washington at New York - 7:10 pm EST from Tradition Field, Port St. Lucie, Florida.

John Lannan vs Johan Santana. It's on MLB.tv. Friday night baseball...

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Doghouse, our in-house statistician just published the most recent edition of the Federal Baseball.com community W.A.R. Effort...and your participation is mandatory, by which I of course mean, welcomed and appreciated.

"IN AD 2009 W.A.R was beginning."

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