Ny-jer! Ny-jer! Ny-jer!

by NatsFaninAtl on Jul 22, 2011 9:24 AM EDT

For those keeping score at home…

Nyjer Morgan is hitting .333 with 3 HR’s, 22 RBI’s and an On-Base % of .366 and 31 Runs Scored in just 62 games for the Brewers.

He does not have enough AB’s to qualify leaders because he was hurt some in the first half, but if he had enough AB’s to qualify, he’d be 4Th in the league in hitting.

He’s hit .361 in his last 10 games and .329 in his last 30 games.

Ummm...Rick Ankiel has almost the same exact number of AB’s and is hitting.230 with 3 HR’s, 13 RBI’s and an On-Base % of .298 and 22 Runs Scored in 65 games for the Nats.

Good job Rizzo. Glad we ditched a fan favorite.

Tweet Comment 23 comments | 0 recs |

Do you like this story?

Comments

A fan favorite? Nyjer Morgan?

He was a fan favorite … in 2009. By the middle of 2010 he had burned through all of that goodwill and then some. A sampling of any fan site would show that (conservatively) 3:1 of the postings were “get this guy off the team!” His low batting average and OBP were only further undermined by his bonehead plays in the field and on the bases. There is a reason that every time a Nats player gets picked off or does something stupid or careless on the basepaths, we say that player got “Nyjer’d.”

Nyjer is having a fine season in Miwaukee – partially because he is being platooned in CF and so doesn’t have to face LHP. If his getting dumped got his head back in the game, good for him – I hope that he keeps his head on straight this time. Because there were plenty of times last year that watching Morgan made it harder to root for the whole team.

by d_c_guy on Jul 22, 2011 9:37 AM EDT reply actions 6 recs

Nice Response.....

I was a HUGE Nyjer fan when we got him, and I wish he had played to his potential last year, and been a Nat for a very long time….but I fully echo your sentiments and rec’d your post. Best of luck to him whever he plays, but glad he is done in DC. Is it possible that he put too much pressure on himself here in DC, to help this club excel? That is also possible.

"Integrity First, Service Before Self, Excellence In All We Do" - USAF Core Values

by sullyzz on Jul 22, 2011 11:09 AM EDT up reply actions

Two questions:

(1) Are we any better with Ankiel?

(2) Then why do they love Morgan so much in Milwaukee? I watched the Brewers broadcast last night and their announcers were gushing over him. The fans love him. NO ONE has a bad word to say about this guy. So, maybe it’s us…

At least Nyjer played hard and played with some passion. Just my opinion, but I thought he played like a fan would want a Big Leaguer to play: He played hard every day and he gave everything he had.

Yes, he made some mistakes. No, maybe he wasn’t what some Nats fans wanted THEIR team to LOOK like. But, I really think he played hard because he didn’t want to accept losing and he played with a chip on his shoulder about it.

We didn’t want to keep Bonifacio. .290 & .366 with 43 runs scored.

We let Willingham go. But we signed Werth?

At some point, I think this organization has to admit they’ve made some mistakes.

by NatsFaninAtl on Jul 22, 2011 10:10 AM EDT reply actions

I guess you could say.....

……that we actually traded Bonifacio for Henry Rodriguez?

The Bonifacio trade made sense…..we needed a SP and OF, and getting Willingham and Olsen was a good trade at the time. I think nearly everyone was excited to get Willingham and Olsen in that deal. I don’t remember though…..who else did we give to the Marlins in that trade? Yes, I’m too lazy to look it up.

As for trading Willingham…..I was a really big Josh and Dunn fan, but I felt that we needed to move in a different direction, and getting H-Rod in return was worth the effort. Remember, Josh was actually replaced in the OF by Morse…..LaRoche was suppose to be at 1B. Also, we acquired Laynce Nix, who has essentially the same stats this season as Willingham, so really, no loss whatsoever. I think most would agree that Laynce is also more durable, and athletic than Josh. In return, we received H-Rod who can throw some serious heat, even though he sometimes scares the daylights out of the front row with the wild pitches…..those folks are fortunate the net is there. Still, that guy has some serious stuff.

As for signing Werth and letting Josh go…..those two facts really have nothing to do with one another. I think that Werth was going to be signed regardless of whether the Josh trade happened or not.

At some point, all organizations make some mistakes, but in the examples you have used, I don’t believe so.

"Integrity First, Service Before Self, Excellence In All We Do" - USAF Core Values

by sullyzz on Jul 22, 2011 11:24 AM EDT up reply actions

No organization doesn't make mistakes

Think that the Yankees wouldn’t rather have Tyler Clippard than (now out of baseball) Jonathan Albaladejo? Think that the Mariners wouldn’t rather have Michael Morse than Ryan Langerhans? Think that the Twins wouldn’t rather have Wilson Ramos than Matt Capps (who just lost the closer’s job – again)?

As for Morgan love in DC – were you paying attention in 2009 after the trade? Fans loved Nyjer here – he was regarded as a revelation, a breath of fresh air, an exciting player making an impact at the top of the lineup. He WAS what the Nationals wanted their team to look like in 2009 – you know, a good ballplayer. A large reserve of support that he slowly deflated through last year. Like I said, it got hard to watch. He wasn’t just bad last year, he was awful; his leadoff spot was an anchor in the lineup all season. He combined a low OBP (.319? for a leadoff hitter with no power?). He made that OBP even worse by leading the league in caught stealings (17) AND getting picked off another ten times. And that’s not counting other miscellaneous but memorable outs that he made (such as deciding to take out a catcher instead of touching home plate). The reason that he lost fan support here was because he dragged the team down last year. The reason that fans love him in Milwaukee is because Morgan hasn’t been epically awful for their team. Right now Morgan is being used as a platoon OF (only 28 of his 209 plate appearances have been against LHP) in a limited role. He has been effective in that role in Milwaukee – but there’s no guarantee that he would have been as effective if he had stayed here.

Some other points:

(1) You are mad at the Nats for trading Bonifacio – who was pretty lousy for the last two years in FL (OPS+ of 61 in 2009, 74 in 2010; 100 is league average) before being moderately successful this year. So you’d rather have had two years of suckage from Bonifacio rather than two years of Willingham?

(2) You then manage the nifty jiu jitsu of in turn also being mad at the Nationals for trading Willingham (who apparently you didn’t want them to pick up in the first place, preferring Bonifacio). You may not have noticed this, but Willingham has only been OK for the A’s this year. He got off to a hot start, cooled off and got injured. He’s picked it up recently, which is good for the A’s (who are looking to dump him and Hideki Matsui basically for anything they can get). AND if they still had Willingham, they would not have Nix – who has had a better season than Willingham. In addition to not having Henry Rodriguez (or Corey Brown, who has been a disappointment so far).

(3) If you’re going to be angry at the Nationals for souring on Morgan after one year of lousy performance, you really shouldn ‘t be angry with the results they’ve gotten from Werth for less than one year of lousy performance.

by d_c_guy on Jul 22, 2011 11:45 AM EDT up reply actions 1 recs

2010: epic blowups, meltdowns, bonehead plays, and poor BA

yup, just what the fans want…
There’s a reason why the official FB name for getting picked off first is “Nyjer’ed”.

Brain: "Pinky, are you pondering what i'm pondering?"
Pinky: "Yes, but isn't a cucumber that small called a gherkin?"

by jbg2772 on Jul 22, 2011 11:50 AM EDT up reply actions

And what about that trade that sent Hanrahan to the Pirates for...

oops…. never mind

by PerryMason on Jul 26, 2011 7:19 AM EDT up reply actions 1 recs

With a quick look at FanGraphs for WAR,

2009 – Morgan +5.2 Burnett -0.1 Hanrahan +0.9 Milledge +0.3; advantage Nats (stats for entire year, although most of Morgan’s WAR was with the Nats IIRC)
2010 – Morgan +1.0 Burnett +1.4 Hanrahan +1.4 Milledge +0.5; slight advantage Nats
2011 – Burnett -0.6 Hanrahan +1.5; advantage Pirates (Hanrahan), so far

Morgan has a +2.6 WAR for Milwaukee as a platoon CF; Milledge had a -0.2 WAR for the White Sox before being cut.

As I said earlier, I’m glad Morgan’s gone, since I think what Milwaukee’s experiencing is what the Pirates and Nats both experienced when he first was on the team. We’ve seen some incidents starting up recently; for his sake I hope history doesn’t repeat itself, but the trend’s against it. I liked the trade when it happened (unless the memory of Hanrahan imploding’s been wiped from people’s memories), would make it again in the same situation, but don’t want Morgan back.

Brain: "Pinky, are you pondering what i'm pondering?"
Pinky: "Yes, but isn't a cucumber that small called a gherkin?"

by jbg2772 on Jul 26, 2011 12:32 PM EDT up reply actions

Ha, ha.

I don’t regret the deal, but man, Hanrahan has really prospered in greener pastures.

Souldrummer twitters at @souldrummer25
If Sammy Solis would just learn Satchel Paige's "hesitation pitch", he'd be in DC right now.

by souldrummer on Jul 27, 2011 7:39 PM EDT up reply actions

dude nyger morgan was terrible last year he barely got on base and when he got on base he would get picked off stealing second base. he was not that good a fielder and a horrible attitude. he couldn’t hit a beach ball as for what he is doing in Milwaukee great for him i am glad he is gone i don’t want to mention the rallies he must have killed. Ankiel has a better arm and some more pop in his swing.

by Benson L on Jul 22, 2011 10:41 AM EDT reply actions

dude, learn to spell

it’s “Nyjer”, not “Nyger”.
Ankiel is not a major league starting outfielder, but neither was Morgan last year. Both are 4th/platoon starters, at best. I hope for Nyjer’s sake he keeps playing well, but history (DC and PITT) is against him…

Brain: "Pinky, are you pondering what i'm pondering?"
Pinky: "Yes, but isn't a cucumber that small called a gherkin?"

by jbg2772 on Jul 22, 2011 11:46 AM EDT up reply actions

Nyjer Morgan has good numbers because he has been being platooned.

His platoon partner broke his collarbone yesterday though, so let’s see how he does when he has to hit lefties.

Aim for the head baby Jesus

by Doncosmic on Jul 22, 2011 11:34 AM EDT reply actions

Yep.

Not platooning Morgan last year was probably the bigger sin. If we could find a way to get Gomes this year, there was a way to find a platoon partner for Morgan.

Souldrummer twitters at @souldrummer25
If Sammy Solis would just learn Satchel Paige's "hesitation pitch", he'd be in DC right now.

by souldrummer on Jul 27, 2011 7:41 PM EDT up reply actions

2010 Stats

Fielding %: Morgan: .986, Ankiel .973 (Win goes to Morgan. Best OF Fielding % on the 2010 Nats.)

Avg: Morgan: .253, Ankiel .232 (Again, win goes to Morgan.)

A/B to S/O’s: Morgan: 5.78, Ankiel 2.97 (Again, win goes to Morgan. Ankiel struck out twice as often. Rally killer.)

SB’s: Morgan: 34, Ankiel 3 (Again, win goes to Morgan.)

SB’s / AB: Morgan: .067, Ankiel .014 (Again, win goes to Morgan.)

SLG: Morgan: .314, Ankiel .389 (Win goes to Ankiel but Morgan made up for loss of power w/ XBH’s)

Agreed, Morgan has no pop and Ankiel hit 5 bombs in 74 games, but the numbers just don’t prove out that Ankiel is a better overall player – especially for a CF/Lead off guy.

And, where, exactly is the bad attitude? Morgan steals two bases to try to get his team fired up and back in a game that they fell down big (early) and the opposing Pitcher throws BEHIND HIS HEAD. There was a lot of game left. He showed some fire. As a fan, I want that. I want our guys showing that they’re not going to take crap from the other dugout. How about we fight back instead of accepting 4Th & 5TH Place every year?

But then, of course, our fearless leader Jim Riggleman calls him out. Nice job Jim. Quitter! Yeah, let’s hitch our wagon to THAT leader!

by NatsFaninAtl on Jul 22, 2011 11:46 AM EDT reply actions

I have no problem with fiery players - but they can't be baseball dumb

Taking out the catcher instead of scoring a run the team needs in a game = baseball dumb. Leading the league in CS and pickoffs strongly suggests baseball dumb. And throwing your glove on the ground and having a temper tantrum while the baseball sits next to you and opposing runners are circling the bases … well, you get the idea.

Your argument that Ankiel’s larger slugging % is made up for by Morgan’s extra base hits tells me that you don’t know how slugging % is computed. By definition, it takes into account Morgan’s extra base hits. You also nicely bootstrap Morgan’s stolen bases by including two metrics that are redundant when the players have the same number of at bats. I could counter by arguing that Nyjer’s CS/AB, picked off/AB ratios are higher, too, or get into a learned discourse on the weaknesses of fielding % as a measure of effectiveness.

But let that pass. The bottom line is that I’m not arguing that Ankiel is a better player than Morgan, in 2011 or otherwise. I’m arguing that you can’t assume Morgan’s performance in Milwaukee if he stays with the Nationals (Morgan’s “honeymoon pattern” of getting off to a fast start in a new city is noticeable, if not definitive). And I’m arguing that the team is a better team this year, and in particular the OF is much better with Nix, Bernadina and Werth than it was with Willingham, Morgan and … whoever happened to be playing in RF that day. Putting together a better team IS Rizzo’s job – and the team is better. So – nice job, Rizzo.

by d_c_guy on Jul 22, 2011 12:14 PM EDT up reply actions 4 recs

Why just the Ankiel comparisons? There is a lot more to it than just the acquisition of Rick Ankiel. And there is also a lot more to Nyjer than that one game against the Marlins….actions which INCLUDE the childish tirade of throwing his glove to the turf, and allowing Adam Jones to get an in the park HR, and the exchange with Philly fans in Philadelphia. No, he didn’t hit the fan with the ball on purpose, but he should not have had verbal exchanges with the fans beforehand at all anyway. His job is to play the OF…..not get into war words with Philly fans….even if in a joking manner. I would venture to say that 90% (or more) of Nats fans wanted to see Nyjer gone.

"Integrity First, Service Before Self, Excellence In All We Do" - USAF Core Values

by sullyzz on Jul 22, 2011 12:20 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs

I do NOT miss Nyjer Morgan

I am so glad he is gone, and we have seen this movie before, cant wait till he hits .250 next year. We got rid of Dukes, Milledge, and now Nyjer. Rizzo wont put up with there crap, nor should he.

by jeff550 on Jul 22, 2011 1:00 PM EDT reply actions

A Fan Favorite????? You must be that fan.

Come on, we’ve seen this show before…this is the good Nyjer and he only shows up for a couple of months with a team…his crazy alter ego is due up any time now.

by Dan Shields on Jul 23, 2011 10:18 AM EDT reply actions

I think it just did

http://twitter.com/#!/AdamKilgoreWP/status/94620727684247552

Washingtonian and Penn Stater -- My blog features the triumph of hope over experience that is being a DC sports fan (especially the Nats) as well as the Nittany Lions, life in BeltwayLand and other things I find interesting. @doubleuefwhy

by WFY on Jul 23, 2011 10:59 AM EDT up reply actions