Cubs defeat Nationals 5-4 on August 24, 2010 at Nationals Park
What Went Wrong
John Lannan was unable to avoid the big inning as he gave up two homers in the game. One with two men on base and a second with one runner on base.
Did it Matter
Those two homers were all the runs that the Cubs got and without those it is more likely that the Nationals comeback bid would have been successful. The Nationals were down 5-1 most of this game and without a bit of a 9th inning rally capped off by an Adam Kennedy bases loaded base clearing double I wouldn't even be writing about this game.
Missed Opportunities
I am not sure how much of an opportunity not making an error is, but the second Cubs homer was of the two run variety and the only reason there was a runner on base was because of an Alberto Gonzalez error. Before checking the box score to see who played short that day and just seeing the E6 proceeding the homer I was ready to talk about Desmond's poor defense and how he needs to improve in 2011 or risk not being on the team. Either his errors were more costly or less costly, but I have not spent near the amount of time I thought I would recounting error after error from the young short stop. Back to the play on the field. If the play before the homer was an out like it should have been then more than likely the two run homer by Tyler Colvin would have been a solo homer or not have happened at all. Offensively the Nationals were able to load the bases in both the bottom of the 8th and 9th, but were only able to bring runners home in the bottom of the 9th. The real opportunity to score an extra run was way back in the first inning when Adam Dunn came to the plate with runners first and third and grounded into a double play on the first pitch he saw.
Difference Making
At the beginning of this little exercise I wrote a good bit about base running mistakes, blown calls, and costly errors. Now I am spending a lot of time looking and overanalyzing just to find little reasons the Nationals lost a game. Some games teams just lose and the Nationals made a good effort to come back in this game. This looks like a game that any team is going to lose now and again.
Marlins defeat Nationals 1-0 on August 31, 2010 at Sun Life Stadium
What Went Wrong
In the top of the 10th inning Nyjer Morgan decided it would be great fun to try and run over the catcher instead of sliding under him.
Did it Matter
The was the penultimate conclusion to the frustrating season of Nyjer Morgan. If he had slid and scored the run then maybe Storen is a little sharper in the bottom of the 10th and even if he slid and was out he wouldn't have fired up the Marlins. The last thing a player in any sport wants to do is fire up the other team. This game was made even more depressing by the fact the Jordan Zimmermann pitched so well and looked like the future Ace the Nationals desperately need.
Missed Opportunities
This game all boiled down to Nyjer Morgan standing 90 feet from home and trying to score on a groundout. It looked like Nyjer would have been safe if he had slid, but he didn't know that the throw was going to be high. He thought he was going to have to jar the ball loose in order to be safe, and that is why he ran over the catcher, but besides all this there is another option. He could have stayed at third. This doesn't seal the deal that the Nats could have gotten the needed hit to score him, but it gives them the chance, and in the very least it doesn't focus the Marlins after they had been demoralized by Jordan Zimmermann's nine strike outs.
Difference Making
Nyjer Morgan won't have as long of a leash in 2011 as he had in 2010. With both Rick Ankiel and Roger Bernadina on the roster and Corey Brown in the minors the writing is on the wall for Nyjer. Perform or be gone. In many ways Nyjer deserves a second chance. 2010 was a terrible year for him, and in my opinion a lot of it has to do with him trying to be a star. When he came to the Nationals in 2009 he was electric. He got on base, he stole bases, and he helped the team win. In 2010 he didn't get on base and when he did he didn't stay there for long. For the first time since coming to Washington he heard negativity from the fans and media. One of the reasons for hope had become a reason for frustration. Nyjer has had an entire offseason to cool his jets and realize what type of player he needs to be, and if he can't be that type of player then either Ankiel, Bernadina, or Brown will be playing center by the middle of the season.
Mets defeat Nationals 3-2 on September 8, 2010 at Nationals Park
What Went Wrong
Adam Dunn was unable to make a play or knock down a Nick Evans squibler that turned into an RBI double.
Did it Matter
Sometimes everything goes right and then nothing goes right. Sean Burnett was one of the Nationals best relief pitchers last year, and it was mostly due to the fact that he was a lefty that could get out righties. Sometimes I wonder if Adam Dunn's poor defense played more of an unseen game on the field. Not only for infielders nervous about having to fire balls right at his glove or for his inability to stretch for balls out in front of the bag, but to the pitching staff. Did the pitching staff locate their pitches in a way that took chances away from Adam Dunn? I doubt it, and I doubt it even entered their minds to try and avoid Dunn, but sometimes they say that the ball finds you, and on this day it found Adam Dunn, and it led to the Mets scoring the winning run and winning this game.
Missed Opportunities
The Nationals were not a good OBP team. Aside from the 3-4-5 spots in the order they lacked anybody that could be counted on to reach base consistently. That is why when the Nationals were presented with the opportunity to score runs they had to take advantage. With one out in the bottom of the 6th the Nationals loaded the bases and then failed to get a run when Bernadina fouled out and Morse grounded out. The Nationals overall as a team stranded too many runners and at the same time didn't get enough on base. It is not a good combination and an even worse one when combined with the Nationals starting pitching. The inability to get runs when they were offered hurt worse because the Nationals weren't able to prevent many teams from scoring.
Difference Making
There is no good stat to measure the defensive contributions of a first baseman. A first baseman is not a zone protector like most of the other defensive positions around the diamond, and there are so many little things a first baseman needs to do to be good at the position. Adam Dunn simply couldn't do the little things right, his footwork was poor, and his idea of the stretch was one foot placed two feet in front of the other. Balls that sailed over Dunn's head would have been in a stretching first baseman's mitt long before they had a chance to take off. I still think Dunn's offense will be missed, and that no amount of defensive short comings can counter balance what he provided with the bat, but the Nationals will be a better team in the field, and with Werth and LaRoche they have almost made up for the offense of Dunn and Willingham. This allows any growth from Ramos, Espinosa, Desmond, and Bernadina to be positive contributions instead of simply making up for what was lost.
Marlins defeat Nationals 6-5 on September 12, 2010 at Nationals Park
What Went Wrong
Jordan Zimmermann did not strike out nine Marlins. He instead gave up five runs in three innings pitched.
Did it Matter
Starting pitching is the most important part of the game, and when the starter is bad everything else that follows won't be good.
Missed Opportunities
All that being said the Nationals were still in this game. They only lost by one run after all. Of course this wasn't the typical Nationals loss full of RISP fail, but there is one moment that stands out. When a team can't do the little things right they will lose the close games where the little things matter that much more, and in the bottom of the 2nd inning Jordan Zimmermann grounded into a double play on a 2-2 pitch. The count should have never gotten that full, and in Spring Training in 2011 Steve McCatty needs to take all of his pitchers and make them learn how to bunt. Nationals pitchers at times looked beyond overmatched at the plate. At times they didn't even look like they could handle doing the one thing pitchers have to be able to do in the major leagues. I am sure it is easier for a pitcher to lay down a bunt when they are pitching well, but not every day is going to go their way and they have to be able to do what is needed to win even if they are doing more to hurt the chances on the other side of the ball.
Difference Making
Jordan Zimmermann won't be returning from Tommy John's Surgery in 2011. Pitchers struggle with control issues when they first come back and by May if not earlier most of the struggling should be out of Zimmermann's system. He will still have struggles in the majors. All pitchers do, but hopefully they won't be related to any type of surgery. In his three innings of work in this game Jordan Zimmermann only walked two batters, but he went to a three ball count on six of the batters he faced in those first two innings. He likely wasn't struggling with control outside of the strike zone as much as he was struggling with control inside the strike zone as he gave up two homers to Mike Stanton in his three innings of work. Jordan Zimmermann is known for his good control. The loss of it at times was most likely related to the surgery, and his control should be back in 2011. If one were looking for a breakout candidate for the 2011 season they should look no further than Jordan Zimmermann. He was off to a good rookie campaign in 2009 before getting hurt and showed flashes of brilliance in 2010. He is very likely to put it all together in the 2011 season.