• Programming Notes: 10-8 against the Mets. 10-8 against the Phillies. 9-9 vs the Braves. 5-10 vs the Marlins. &%^^$*# Marlins. The Washington Nationals finish up their 2011 schedule this week with three more games against the Florida Marlins which will be the last three games in Sun Life Stadiu_, or whatever they call it now. Luckily they'll be facing Mike Stanton in Florida instead of Nats Park where the 21-year-old slugger has a .410/.471/.934 slash with 8 doubles and 8 HR's in 15 games and 70 plate appearances. Only one of Stanton's career HR's against the Nationals have come in Florida. So it should be fine. Tommy Milone vs Anibal Sanchez. Werth vs Florida Pitchers Check - vs Sanchez: 3 for 25, 2 2B, 0 BB, 17 K's. MASN 2 HD, MLB.tv, 106.7 the FAN in DC, 1500 WFED, no Sirius/XM? Who's Watching The Nationals?
• LINKS AND LINKS AND...
• NATS BEAT:
• "In conditioning area, Sox need to shape up" - Nick Cafardo, Boston.com
"The Nationals do have a logjam at first base, where Michael Morse will likely end up because he’s not a very good left fielder. They probably will deal Adam LaRoche. They also have Chris Marrero, one of the organization’s top prospects, who has looked good during his September call-up."
• "And for the past three days, the Nats went all-out on the weirdness. This was Washington Wizards circa 2006 weirdness, and yet the Nats kept winning..." - "The Nats are so weird" - Dan Steinberg, DC Sports Bog - The Washington Post
• "Shirley Povich, for whom the press box at Nationals Park is named, had a friendly admonition for new baseball writers at The Post: 'Don’t trust September.'" - "Washington Nationals have plenty to look forward to as 2011 season ends" - Thomas Boswell, The Washington Post
• "'I think we’re an outfield bat away and a starting pitcher away from really being a contender in the division,' Rizzo said Sunday afternoon..." - "Nationals GM Rizzo addresses offseason needs" - Amanda Comak, Washington Times
• "'Because we've done this exercise before, we've got a very streamlined group of high quality candidates that we're going to talk to,' Rizzo said..." - "Nats' managerial search will be brief" - Mark Zuckerman, CSNWashington.com
• "That kind of a record would give the impression that they're only a player or two away from challenging for a playoff spot. General manager Mike Rizzo certainly believes that." - "Rizzo says Nationals are an outfielder and pitcher from contention" - Ben Goessling, MASNSports.com
• "'I love Davey,' Rizzo said. 'He is going to be back next year in some capacity. He is either going to be the manager of the ballclub or have a say on who is the manager of the ballclub.'" - "Johnson, Rizzo mum on manager's future" - Bill Ladson, nationals.com: News
• "General Manager Mike Rizzo expects a relatively quick resolution to the Nationals’ open managerial situation..." - "Nationals’ manager search, Davey Johnson’s status will be decided quickly" - Adam Kilgore, Nationals Journal - The Washington Post
• "'It was a pretty special experience, coming in and getting that kind of an ovation,' Storen said. "I've been saying all year - we've just got to show them we can win.'" - "With shutout win over Braves, Nationals provide a glimpse of better times" - Ben Goessling, MASNSports.com
• "Best as I can tell, the 2011 Nationals' receivers - Ramos, Pudge Rodriguez and Jesus Flores - are No. 1 all-time, but not by a lot." - "A milestone, however minor" - Phil Wood, MASNSports.com
• "Monday marks the beginning of the end for the Marlins' era at Sun Life Stadium." - "Washington Nationals at Florida Marlins: Marlins face Nats in final series at Sun Life Stadium" - Joey Nowak, MLB.com Preview
• "'I told him today: How he pitched, nobody can hit it,' catcher Wilson Ramos said. 'You keep doing that, nobody can hit it."" - "Henry Rodriguez: Throwing ‘Nintendo’ pitches and taking names" - Adam Kilgore, Nationals Journal - The Washington Post
• "As the ball cracked off Michael Morse’s bat and began its flight into the right field seats, the crowd at Nationals Park started to erupt." - "Optimism after Nationals' home finale ends in victory" - Amanda Comak, Washington Times
• "That's an 11-pitch inning, nine of them strikes, seven of them reaching triple digits (all consecutive). Wow." - "Henry's sheer dominance" - Mark Zuckerman, NatsInsider.com
• "If the Nationals sweep the series, of course, they'll finish 81-80, ending the year with their first winning record since moving to Washington..." - "Nationals' September surge comes with a grain of salt" - Ben Goessling, MASNSports.com
• "'We would discuss trading some of our pitching to fill some of our needs, if the trade makes sense to us,' Rizzo said." - "Rizzo pleased with young players' progress" - Bill Ladson, nationals.com: News
• "'When you get a catcher to bunt on you 0-2, with nobody on base, that's a pretty good sign that your stuff is working that day,' said shortstop Ian Desmond..." - "Henry Rodriguez's 'nintendo' pitches and how important it could be to the Nationals bullpen" - Amanda Comak, Washington Times
• "Under the radar, Ramos has become one of the best things that’s ever happened to the Nationals." - "Wilson Ramos’s outstanding rookie season" - Adam Kilgore, Nationals Journal - The Washington Post
• "A near-capacity ballpark had been cheering all afternoon, applauding Ross Detwiler for pitching out of a couple of jams..." - Nationals leave fans wanting more" - Mark Zuckerman, NatsInsider.com
• "Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo said Sunday the team continues to speak with pitcher Chien-Ming Wang's representatives as they look to nail down a contract extension." - "Rizzo: Nationals have ongoing dialogue in pursuit of re-signing Wang" - Byron Kerr, MASNSports.com
• "Detwiler had been in the Nationals’ organization since 2007, their first-round draft pick that year, and had shuttled back and forth between the minors and the majors for much of that time." - "The maturation and evolution of Ross Detwiler" - Amanda Comak, Washington Times
• "It was a game in which Johnson said Detwiler grew up as a pitcher. Detwiler had another solid outing, pitching six scoreless innings and allowing just four hits." - "Atlanta Braves at Washington Nationals: Detwiler, Nats blank Braves in home finale" - Bill Ladson, MLB.com WSH Recap
• Your Daily Message From The Dalai Lama On Twitter (@DalaiLama): "The nature of our motivation determines the character of our work." -
• NATS MINOR LEAGUES?:
• "From walk-off blasts to inside-the-park dashes, playoff winners to light-tower shots, this is your chance to select from among nine of the best home runs in Minor League Baseball during the 2011 season." - VOTE HARP HR!!: "2011 MiLB Awards - Home Run of the Year" - MiLB.com News
• Tommy Milone? Triple-A Starter of 2011? Brad Peacock, Erik Arnesen? Double-A Pitchers of the Year? - "2011 MiLB Awards - Starter of the Year" - MiLB.com News
• Triple-A Syracuse: "2011: A Chiefs Odyssey: Jason’s #11 " Inside the Chiefs"
• NATSTOWN:
• "If this team is going to progress from near-.500 to a playoff contender, it's going to happen because of the young nucleus that Rizzo has put together." - "Dawn of a new era for baseball in the District" - MASNSports.com, Nationals Buzz: Dave Nichols
• "It was at that point that the Nationals management wondered if taking Morse off of first base was that good of an idea after all." - Washington NationLOLs
• "12:01am Thursday night, myself and 6 other brave souls made our way to our local theater to see the first general public showing of 'Moneyball.'" - "Moneyball: Through the Nats Looking Glass" - Sean, Capitol Baseball
• "Here’s the status of the Auburn pitching staff at the end of the season..." - "Auburn/Short-A Pitching Staff year in Review" - Nationals Arm Race
• "The Nats now stand three games away from a .500+ record (remember it's only above .500 or below, they can't hit it exactly)." - ".500 dreams vs the Nats' arch enemy" - Harper, Nationals Baseball
• "Ross Detwiler walked away from the mound yesterday after completely dismantling a wild card caliber team in the midst of playoff race." - "Ross Detwiler Slams The Door Shut On A Tremendous September" - Will Yoder, The Nats Blog
• "September 26 - Boston, MA: The Boston Red Sox beat the first place Washington Senators 2-1 in front of 12,000 spectators at Fenway Park." - "This Day in D.C. Baseball History - 1924 Pennant Race - 1969 Senators' are Winners" - Washington Nationals Daily News
• "The Nationals now stand 2 1/2 games above the New York Mets, with three games remaining, for third place in the N.L. East." - "GAME 158 REVIEW: Detwiler Strong Again in 3-0 Win Over Braves" - Dave Nichols, Nats News Network
• "After Werth proclaimed that 'If Teddy can’t win, then no one wins,' speculation was rampant that one of two things would happen." - "Jayson Werth: 'It’s bigger than me, man. It’s bigger than me.'" - Presidents Race Fan, Let Teddy Win!
• NL EAST UPDATES:
• Phillies: "Hunter Pence sat in front of his locker before Sunday's game, fending off barbs from his teammates with cheerful determination." - "Phillies end their longest losing streak in 11 years, defeat Mets 9-4" - David Hale, courierpostonline.com
• Mets: "On October 3, 2004, the stadium was the venue of the last game in the history of the Montreal Expos when the Mets defeated them 8-1." - "Top 10 Things You Didn’t Know About Shea Stadium" - Marc Hofstatter, Mets Today
• Braves: "The top four hitters in the Braves' lineup, including Chipper Jones and Dan Uggla, went a combined 0 for 16 with five strikeouts Sunday in a 3-0 loss to the Washington Nationals..." - "Nationals cut Braves' wild-card lead to one" - AP/St. Louis Today.com
• Marlins: "How significant was the absence of Josh Johnson from the starting rotation for the bulk of the season?" - "Josh Johnson’s absence had severe impact on Florida Marlins" - Clark Spencer, MiamiHerald.com