Some ?'s...
Does Francisco Rodriguez celebrate like that after every save? How is Gary Sheffield still winning games for people? When a home fan interferes with a play how do you end up giving the call to the home team? What the heck were the Umps looking at for 15 minutes on the replay? Why won't the Nationals support John Lannan? Seriously? Is Daniel Cabrera still on the roster? Washington drops first of three in Citi Field. 5-2 final.
The End...
The NY Mets' $37 million dollar closer Francisco Rodriguez threw both arms skyward in celebration after Willie Harris popped out to the infield to end a ninth inning which saw Nick Johnson lead off the with a single before things got real interesting, with a one-out walk to Adam Dunn, and Austin Kearns, the tying run, at the plate with one down and the score 5-2 in favor of New York. K-Rod, sorry, Frankie Rodriguez got Kearns to chase a full-count change out of the zone, and got Willie Harris to swing at a two-strike fastball up high that wasn't going anywhere even if TAWH(The Amazing Willie Harris) had gotten all of it. The Mets win for the third time in four games against DC this season, with two more to come tomorrow and Wednesday before Washington moves on to Philadelphia.
Sheffield's HR...
John Lannan wasn't himself. Unable to locate his pitches, Lannan threw 92 in just 5.0 innings, 53 for strikes, walked 4 and gave up 8 hits and 5 ER before he was lifted following a leadoff double by Luis Castillo, a walk to Carlos Beltran, the disputed HR by Gary Sheffield in the sixth, and then another walk to David Wright. Sheff got hold of a first pitch fastball up high from Lannan, there's no disputing that, and I'm not saying it wasn't either on or over the line on the wall used to call HR's in left, but a fan reached over and kept the flight of the ball from continuing, so there was no way to tell where it would have landed...and since it was a home team fan who interfered, call it a double, two runs score, and it's done with...But taking fifteen minutes, which means they obviously just couldn't tell if it would've gone out, is inexcusable, and more importantly a complete waste of time...
(ed. note - "Washington Post writer Chico Harlan has a post at Nationals Journal that contains a great screen shot of the disputed call, entitled, "The Reviewed, Debated HR"...uh, and he says, it was only a six minute delay, but fifteen sounds more dramatic...would you buy, "What felt like 15 minutes?")
And Speaking Of Complete Wast...
Can we all just agree that the Daniel Cabrera Experiment is over. If he can't throw the ball over the plate, his velocity is significantly decreased and he's incapable of even reliably reaching the catcher's mitt...Someone just tell me what the Nationals are expecting to happen when he's put in a game? The title of MLB.com's Bill Ladson's post game article says it all, "Work not on the horizon for Cabrera". In his first appearance as a reliever after he was lifted from the starting rotation, the 28-year-old right-hander came out of the bullpen, (Duck Pond) struggling, issuing a leadoff walk to Angel Pagan and two outs later walking the bases loaded, throwing 25 pitches, 10 for strikes, with one wild pitch before he's lifted so Jason Bergmann can get the Nationals out of the jam.
In Mr. Ladson's article he quotes DC Manager Manny Acta, who says that the team is trying to find place they can use Cabrera, "...in a situation where he can have success," --(ed. note - "I'm not sure such a situation exists.")--, and Mr. Ladson writes, that, "Cabrera is not frustrated and plans to be professional," but when a major league player is quoted saying, "I want to be in there, but I can't control it..."
--(ed. note - "Oh, sorry, I thought he was talking about his fastball, but he's talking about getting into games...")--
The Nationals and Mets meet again tomorrow night at 7:10 pm EST with Craig Stammen making the second start of his professional career against the Former Mr. National Himself, Livan Hernandez, who'll be making his three-hundred and ninetieth...
Mets win, 5-2 final.
Missed The Game? I Missed Some, The DC Faithful Were Watching...
For The Completists, Game Report After The Jump...(currently unedited)...
Nationals now 13-31.
Washington Nationals at New York Mets. Game 44 of 162.
Both teams are wearing red Memorial Day caps with a stars and stripes take on their logos, though they still wear the usual home and away uniforms. Cristian Guzman sends a chopper out to Luis Castillo at second for the first out of the game. Nick “Two-Spot” Johnson has a Discerning Eye and he uses it to draw a one-out walk. Ryan Zimmerman lifts a 1-1 pitch to Angel Pagan in right. The Big Donkey flies to left and Gary Sheffield gets under it...Angel Pagan tests Anderson Hernandez with a groundout to second. Ryan Zimmerman charges in on weak grounder from Luis Castillo and throws to first in time. Carlos Beltran beats Zimmerman to the line with a sharp grounder for a double. Gary Sheffield rips a 3-1 pitch through second, Austin Kearns fields it charging in and throws home, way ahead of Beltran who gets nailed at home for the final out of the first.
Austin Kearns K’s swinging to start the second. Willie Harris sends a liner pinballing off the stands and out into right as Harris slides in headfirst at second. Anderson “Elvis” Hernandez shatters his bat grounding out to Fernando Tatis at first. Wil Nieves gets an RBI with a two-out single under a diving Luis Castillo at second, Harris scores from third, 1-0 Nationals. Lannan K’s swinging and heads back to the hill...David Wright draws a leadoff walk off Lannan. Fernando Tatis lines into Zimmerman’s (gold) glove. Omir Santos grounds to Anderson Hernandez to Guzman at second and back to Johnson at first, double play.
Cristian Guzman shoots a line drive to left, Sheffield handles it. Nick Johnson pops a 2-0 pitch out to third, David Wright makes an awkward catch. Ryan Zimmerman sends a one-hop liner into left for a two-out single. Adam Dunn pops out to Wright foul of third...Willie Harris sprints over in time to catch Ramon Martinez’s fly ball to center. John Maine grounds out to second. Angel Pagan draws a two-out walk. Luis Castillo singles through second, Pagan takes third. Carlos Beltran makes Lannan pay for the walk with an RBI liner to left, Pagan scores, 1-1. Sheffield flies out to left, Dunn closes his glove on the third...
Omir Santos lines to Nick Johnson...
(ed. note - "Driving to friend's house to watch game...and...")
...Cristian Guzman leads off the fifth with a fly ball out to Beltran in center. Nick Johnson follows suit. Ryan Zimmerman K’s chasing a two-strike slider into the dirt...Carlos Beltran grounds out to short. John Maine singles to right and Austin Kearns tries to get the pitcher at first, firing way over the bag. Angel Pagan chops one back to Lannan, to second, Guzman to first, double play to end the fifth.
Adam Dunn leads off the sixth with a high fly over Citi Field and back into Beltran’s glove in center. Austin Kearns gets as far as the warning tack with a fly ball to right that Angel Pagan handles. Willie Harris works a two-out walk. Anderson Hernandez slices a grounder to short, Ramon Martinez steps on second...Luis Castillo lines to left and into the gap for a stand-up double, when Dunn throws in quickly. Lannan walks Beltran to put two on for Sheffield. Shefflield explodes on a high heater and flies to deep left and GONE!! 3-run home ru...wait, a fan touched it...going to review...and the call on the field is upheld. Lannan walks Wright and DC Manager Manny Acta lifts him in favor of Jesus Colome. Fernando Tatis K’s swinging over two-strike slider. Omir Santos lines a single to short right, Kearns comes up throwing but too late to get Wright at third. Ramon Martinez hits a sac fly to left, and Dunn doesn’t bother throwing it in, Wright tags and scores, 5-1.
Bobby Parnell takes over for Maine. Wil Nieves draws a leadoff walk. Justin Maxwell swings through a full-count fastball up high. Cristian Guzman lifts a hanging slider into right for a one-out single. Nieves to second. Nick “Two-Spot” Johnson takes a four-pitch walk to load the bases for Zimmerman works the count full and takes a bases loaded walk, 5-2 Mets. Adam Dunn will face Pedro Feliciano. Dunn flies harmlessly to right. J.J. Putz replaces Feliciano. Austin Kearns grounds to Wright at third, who throws to first, in time....Daniel Cabrera, of course, walks the first batter he faces, Angel Pagan. Sac bunt by Luis Castillo moves Pagan to second. Austin Kearns catches Carlos Beltran’s line drive to right. Ball four to Gary Sheffield, is also a wild pitch. FIrst and third for Wright. Wright walks, Manny Acta has seen enough. Jason Bergmann comes on to face Ferndando Tatis, who grounds into a force at second.
Willie Harris walks to leadoff the eighth.TAWH steals second with Anderson Hernandez at the plate against Putz. Hernandez walks. Wil Nieves flies out to Sheffield in left, Harris takes third. First and third for Josh Willingham. Putz gets the Hammer swinging at a two-strike splitter inside. Cristian Guzman flies to center, and Beltran catches up to it for the final out of the frame...Kip Wells vs Omir Santos. One pitch, one out, on a grounder to the mound. Ramon Martinez K’s swinging at a sinking fastball that drops out of the zone. Jeremy Reed gets called out on a fastball outside.
Nick Johnson vs K-Rod. Trademark single drops in in left. Ryan Zimmerman pops out over first. Adam Dunn takes a full-count pitch in the dirt and takes a one-out walk to bring Kearns up with two on. Kearns swings at ball four on a full-count change that drops out of the zone. TAWH pops a 1-2 fastball up to second, and it’s over. Mets win, 5-2 finals.
Nationals now 13-31.