The DC Sports Dread

I’m creating a new term today. I’m going to call it the DC Sport Dread, for lack of a better phrase (if anyone else has a better idea, please let me know in the comments section). It refers to that point in a game when a play happens that could only happen to a Washington sports team. Or even more generally, it refers to an event that makes you think, “Why am I a D.C. fan again? Why do I put myself through so much agony?” An easy example of this is after the Capitals lost to the Montreal Canadiens in the first round of the playoffs after being the top seed. Or that awful day when everyone woke up to see that Stephen Strasburg needed Tommy John surgery.

Unfortunately, we had another moment of the D.C. Sports Dread this past week. Just as the Nationals are looking to turn a corner in their perpetual rebuilding process (as I wrote about earlier in the week), they are dealt this gut-punch: the resignation of Jim Riggleman. My immediate thought was, “Only in DC would we finally get a winning manager, only to have him resign as SOON as the going was good because of a contract squabble.” I was frustrated not so much because I think Jim Riggleman is a great manager (I don’t, and his 662-824 career record would seem to offer support for that claim), but rather because I was concerned over how the clubhouse would handle such a shocking development. With such an influx of young players on the team, I was worried how their potentially fragile psyche would handle this twist of fate.

Well, if Friday’s marathon game against the White Sox (which I had the good fortune to attend), where the bullpen blew the lead THREE times, only to finally recover and scrape together a 9-5 victory is any indication, maybe that clubhouse isn’t so fragile. I have to admit, I thought the game was over when Drew Storen was brought into the game to close it out in the ninth. The game had followed the Nationals’ winning streak script so closely: no offense from either squad for most of the game, then beat up on some sorry reliever from the other team near the end of the game, and use our dominant bullpen to close out the game. Unfortunately, Storen, Toddy Coffey and Tyler Clippard all blew leads. So much for that theory.

I definitely thought the game was over when Coffey blew the lead on a wild pitch, then loaded the bases with one out, the Sox only needing one more run to end the game. Yet somehow Coffey came up with a clutch strikeout and groundout to allow the Nationals to fight another inning. The offense roared to life in extra innings, aided by the back end of the White Sox bullpen. Laynce Nix continues to have a very respectable season, smoking a home run to right-center. Back and forth the teams went, and with each White Sox rally, more and more of the DC Sports Dread crept into mind. Even when the Nats assembled a four-run lead in the 14th inning, I was still waiting for the other shoe to drop.

But it didn’t, and the Nationals came up with another victory, their 12th out of the last 13, pulling them to within 3 ½ games of the wild card. Yes, I know this is crazy talk. But it’s fun to think about.

Other Nats Notes

One big reason why I think the Nats don’t have enough steam to pull off a playoff push is Jordan Zimmermann’s innings limit. Zimmermann has developed into a true ace (yes I know Marquis has a better win-loss record, but let’s be real here. If you have one game to win, you are sending Zimmermann to the mound). Because of Zimmermann’s Tommy John surgery a couple of years ago, Zimmermann will probably be cut off around the middle to end of August (which incidentally is a pretty important time for teams if you want to make the playoffs). But if you are a Nats fan, you know that this isn’t THE year, and Zimmermann’s results this season are encouraging for the future. I have to be honest, I was always a little skeptical that Zimmermann could be a true No. 2 behind Strasburg. But after this season, I think he can be a top of division No. 2, no questions asked. If he had any sort of run support and bullpen help, Zimmermann would be an all-star this year. However, because of voters’ fascination with win-loss record, he won’t be. If you’re a fan, you have to like Zimmermann’s style. He pitches fast, he pounds the strike zone with heat, and he has an arsenal of nasty breaking pitches. He also isn’t a head-case (which, after years of following Daniel Cabrera on the Orioles, has taken on more significance for me in how I look at pitchers). I think the Nationals future rotation with Zimmermann and Strasburg at the top (and then some assortment of A.J. Cole, Alex Meyer, Sammy Solis, Robbie Ray, John Lannan, etc.) is shaping up very nicely.

After a game like last night, it might be instinct to be discouraged about the bullpen, given that they did blow the lead THREE times. However, I actually took the opposite away from the game. Yes, the Nationals’ best relievers didn’t come through in the clutch. But the fact that guys like Ryan Mattheus and Collin Balester were forced into action and were able to come up with valuable innings makes me feel better about the bullpen. And aside from an atrocious call at first, Henry Rodriguez would have had an easy 1-2-3 8th inning in a high-pressure situation. Look, Tyler Clippard and Drew Storen can’t pitch EVERY game. At some point, other relievers are going to have to step up and pitch in (forgive the pun). And judging from Friday’s game, there should be enough candidates. And don’t forget that Cole Kimball could be back up in a few weeks.

Wizards Draft Notes

I have to admit, I had a little of the DC Sports Dread when the Wizards grabbed Jan Vesely also. And before everyone starts talking about how awesome his kiss and draft interview was, remember that Oleksiy Pecherov was a hoot also. Almost as comical was his attempt to play professional basketball. I know that Vesely is supposed to be the “anti-Euro,” in that he attacks the basket, can play average to above average defense, and can’t make an outside shot to save his life, but I’m still skeptical. If you’re telling me that we couldn’t find an American guy to run fast and catch alley-oops from John Wall, I’m calling bullshit on that. I love the second pick in Chris Singleton, because the Wizards defense was a sieve last season. Singleton can defend four positions, and better yet, he takes PRIDE in doing so. My dream scenario would have been pairing Singleton with Kawhi Leonard to form a dominant defensive tandem. I think Leonard might have been the steal of the draft, falling to No. 15. He can defend, rebound, he plays hard, and by all accounts is a great locker room guy (which reminds me: I’m so glad we took Shelvin Mack instead of Josh Selby. Mack might not have the upside of Selby, but his locker room presence will more than make up for it in my mind. The last thing the Wizards need is another nitwit). And what’s so bad about a solid rotation player? Given that this draft was awful, I would have looked not for the superstar, but for the 6th-10th man on a championship team. I think Singleton and Mack certainly fit that bill, but I’m not sure about Vesely. He could easily be just another Euro out of the league in a couple of years. But I will say this: I like him better than either of the Lithuanians, so if we were going to venture down that avenue, Vesely was one of the better options.

Capitals Draft Notes

Or lack thereof. The Caps traded their first-round pick to the Blackhawks for forward Troy Brouwer. Even though I have lived in the Chicago area for the last four years, I have to confess that I don’t have a great scouting report on Brouwer. From what I can gather from the internet, he is a strong power forward with a knack for scoring around the net (he sounds like a Mike Knuble/Tomas Holmstrom-type…Well, except for the fact that there is really only one Tomas Holmstrom). He is only 25, and he is set to be a restricted free agent. I’m really pretty ambivalent about this trade, but I trust George McPhee’s draft sense implicitly. He maneuvers the NHL draft the way that Belichick maneuvers the NFL draft. There’s a reason that the Capitals have been able to find players like John Carlson and Mike Green at the end of the first round. Braden Holtby was a later round pick. And it sounds like other later-round picks, like Dmitri Orlov and Cody Eakin, are set to make a big impact in Washington, possibly as soon as this season. So if McPhee says he wasn’t enamored with any player who could have been there at No. 26, then I believe him. We basically took a Redskins-style draft-punt this year, but because of the depth of our farm system (and McPhee’s restraint in not surrendering top prospects at last year’s trade deadline), I think we will be okay. On another note, if I were Eric Fehr, I would be a little worried by the acquisition of Brouwer. It sounds like they are basically the same type of player, and Caps management could finally be fed up with Fehr’s injury struggles. It’s not Fehr’s fault in the slightest, and he certainly is a talented player when healthy, and it sounds like he does great work in the community, but at some point he might be the result of a numbers crunch. Or it’s possible that Brouwer is an insurance policy in case Brooks Laich leaves via free agency. It’s a weak free agent crop, and someone might want to spend a lot to get Laich, a true top-six forward. Laich doesn’t seem like the kind of guy who would bolt for the money, but you never know. Brouwer could end up playing an even bigger role in such a scenario.

Redskins News

Uhhhhhh……….

Until next time folks.