Game Thread: Washington Nationals at Arizona Diamondbacks- 2008 Game 58 of 162..."Hill vs Haren."

On the Hill...

Shawn Hill and Dan Haren square of on the mound in the finale and rubber match of this three game series in Phoenix, AZ's Chase Field between Hill's visiting Washington Nationals and Haren's home town Arizona Diamondbacks. 

The Nationals' right-handed starter Shawn Hill has pitched against the D-Backs just once in his injury-plagued 4-year MLB career, back on April 8th of '07 at home in RFK, where Hill suffered a loss in a 3-1 game in which he pitched 6.2 innings, allowing 6 hits, 2 ER, and 2 walks with 2 K's in Hill's second start, and loss, of the season. 

So far in '08, Hill's (0-1) in 7 starts, with a 4.02 ERA and 26 K's in 40.1 innings. The Nationals are just (2-5) in the games Hill's started, having lost the last four straight with Hill on the mound. 

Arizona righty Dan Haren, acquired from the Oakland A's in a 2 for 8 player deal last December, is (5-4) with a 3.75 ERA in 11 starts as a D-Back, improving his career marks in the Majors to (54-48) with a 3.82 ERA over 132 starts and 851.0 innings in six seasons since he was drafted by St. Louis out of Pepperdine University in the 2nd Round of the '01 MLB Amateur draft. 

Haren's (1-3) in his last five starts, with the D-Backs also losing the fifth start, though Haren earned no decision, and Haren's allowed 17 hits, 9 runs and 2 HR's in his last two trips to the mound. 

Nationals' #'s Against Dan Haren...

Aaron Boone - 4 for 8, .500 AVG, 1 2B, 1 HR, 2 RBI's. 

DY - 1 for 3, .333 AVG, 1 RBI. 

Elijah Dukes - 3 for 7, .429 AVG, 1 HR, 2 RBI's. 

Rob Mackowiak - 2 for 6, .333 AVG, 1 2B, 1 RBI.

Wily Mo Pena - 1 for 3, .333 AVG, 1 HR, 1 RBI. 

"Zimmerman Watch" - Federal Baseball's 24-Hour, 22 Hou...12 Hour... Intermittent Coverage of the BREAKING NEWS! And ACTION!!......

According to MLB.com's Bill Ladson's latest reporting in an article entitled, "Zimmerman still sore after Saturday BP", Ryan Zimmerman stated that after taking batting practice:

"...he still felt soreness in his shoulder, and was not sure he would play in Nats' third game against the Diamondbacks on Sunday."

And it sounds like Ryan Zimmerman's getting antsy on the sidelines as he recovers from the shoulder injury, as Mr. Ladson quotes the Nationals' third baseman stating:

"'...We have an off-day on Monday. We are not going to let this linger on forever. We are going to have to make a decision soon. I think tomorrow will be a big day, kind of, see how it feels after I hit. We have to do something about it if it doesn't continue to get better.'"

It's Hill vs Haren at 4:05 pm EST in the last of the six-game western road swing for DC. A win and the Nationals break even on the road, a loss and it's a 2-4 trip, and either way it's the Cardinals on Tuesday, but first, how about a win, as the Nationals play one more at Phoenix's Chase Field...