2017 Washington Nationals: Wash, Rinse, Repeat

[CRobi21]

 

Disaster. 

 

 

[Cooleyfan1993]

of course we'd score 10 but still lose. cause, ya know, DC sports...

[Mr. Sinister]

re Dusty: You can only look on the bright side and pump up pros that collect checks and screw up to a point, before everyone should just throw up their hands and call it what it is. G;lad he finally did it.

[StillUnknown]

 

[CRobi21]

 

Pretty much this... 

[Bacon]

Perfect reaction tbh. I hope he sticks around.

[TimmySmith]

My kingdom for Drew Storen.  Has a GM, ever, in the history of baseball, done a worse job of getting and keeping closers. 

[Riggo#44]

38 minutes ago, TimmySmith said:

My kingdom for Drew Storen.  Has a GM, ever, in the history of baseball, done a worse job of getting and keeping closers. 

This answer to this question is always Jim Bowden.

[@DCGoldPants]

39 minutes ago, Riggo#44 said:

This answer to this question is always Jim Bowden.

 

Yep.

 

Rizzo made attempts for BP arms and they signed elsewhere or turned out to be bums. Is it on him? Yes. He also built a team that wins its division regardless of manager. He also made the moves that brought in Trea/Roark. He got Max. He extended Stras. Made the move for Wieters when we are all like WTF?

 

So...I think he has a lot more great moves than bads ones. 

 

Does he need to do something now? Yes. We are seeing this mess with the guys who produce on the field. Waiting until the deadline is an awful idea.

[Riggo#44]

6 minutes ago, @SkinsGoldPants said:

 

Yep.

 

Rizzo made attempts for BP arms and they signed elsewhere or turned out to be bums. Is it on him? Yes. He also built a team that wins its division regardless of manager. He also made the moves that brought in Trea/Roark. He got Max. He extended Stras. Made the move for Wieters when we are all like WTF?

 

So...I think he has a lot more great moves than bads ones. 

 

Does he need to do something now? Yes. We are seeing this mess with the guys who produce on the field. Waiting until the deadline is an awful idea.

 

No GM is perfect, there are only 2, maybe 3 GMs I'd take over Rizzo--Theo Epstein being #1 on that list. That being said, this bullpen is complete ****, and something definitely needs to be done. When is a different story--mostly because it take two to tango--and there doesn't seem to be anyone willing to make a trade right now. Although, Chelsea Janes was just on 106.7 saying she expects moves by the end of the week--last night apparently accelerated the timeline, so we'll see. 

Janes said there are guys teams like for middle relief--Bautista, Stevenson, Difo even Treinen. So we'll see. I have been in the wait-until-closer-to-the-deadline, but last night was awful.

[@DCGoldPants]

Can't wait. Too many loses on the pen. Teammates are showing frustration with them. Damage is done. Need to replace those guys. 

[Riggo#44]

Nats 2nd rounder Wil Crowe scouting report:

 

Part of the same Tennessee prep class of 2013 that included the likes of Nick Senzel, Will Craig, Dakota Hudson and more, Crowe was on the outside looking in last June, sidelined by Tommy John surgery. While the rest of that Tennessee prep class heard their names called in the draft, Crowe made clear he'd be returning to South Carolina for another season. The thickly built righthander had the misfortune of tearing his UCL late in his sophomore year, wiping out almost two seasons for Crowe, who was the Game****s' Friday ace and a freshman All-American in 2014. Crowe reclaimed his place in the Game****s rotation this spring and dominated early, showing the kind of stuff that made him a hot commodity before the injury. At his best, Crowe can touch 96-97 mph, sitting 91-94, with a sharp upper 70s curveball and a tighter, more horizontal slider. Crowe has shown improved feel for his 83-85 mph changeup this season, using it effectively against lefthanded batters. However, there's been some inconsistency in the quality of Crowe's stuff and sharpness, particularly late this season--perhaps the result of fatigue from his time on the shelf. He's been tasked with leading the South Carolina pitching staff since ace Clarke Schmidt went down with a torn UCL of his own.

6 minutes ago, @SkinsGoldPants said:

Can't wait. Too many loses on the pen. Teammates are showing frustration with them. Damage is done. Need to replace those guys. 

 

I don't disagree--but what move is there to make? The panicked "JUST MAKE A MOVE!!!" thought process causes teams to trade Trea Turner and Joe Ross for Steven Souza Jr.

[Dan T.]

^^^

Mini rant coming...

 

Game****

****tail

****pit

**** your gun...

 

The effort here to shield us from bad words warms the ****les of my heart, but censoring "****" is just too much. 

[TimmySmith]

59 minutes ago, @SkinsGoldPants said:

Rizzo made attempts for BP arms and they signed elsewhere or turned out to be bums. Is it on him? Yes. He also built a team that wins its division regardless of manager. He also made the moves that brought in Trea/Roark. He got Max. He extended Stras. Made the move for Wieters when we are all like WTF?

 

So...I think he has a lot more great moves than bads ones. 

For all that not a single appearance in an NLCS, much less a WS.  We can agree that Rizzo is great at assembling a team and manager for a regular season. The trade deadline is where he loses it.  Best 2 closers available last year went to Cleveland and Chicago.  How did that work out?

[Riggo#44]

1 minute ago, TimmySmith said:

For all that not a single appearance in an NLCS, much less a WS.  We can agree that Rizzo is great at assembling a team and manager for a regular season. The trade deadline is where he loses it.  Best 2 closers available last year went to Cleveland and Chicago.  How did that work out?

 

"Team built for the regular season." What does that even mean? Is there some formula that you've figured out that professional GMs haven't?

 

Aroldis Chapman was just 4 of 7 in save opportunities in the playoffs last year. Melancon gave up no runs. The Cubs gave up the current #2 overall prospect in baseball per Baseball America. Chapman is back on the Yankees. The Cubs won in spite of him, not because of him. Giving up that kind of talent for a reliever is NOT worth it.

[TimmySmith]

6 minutes ago, Riggo#44 said:

 

"Team built for the regular season." What does that even mean? Is there some formula that you've figured out that professional GMs haven't?

 

Seems pretty self explanatory to me.  But for you, it's team that can win a division every couple of years, but that's it.  Some professional GM's have figured it out, some haven't. 

[Riggo#44]

Just now, TimmySmith said:

Seems pretty self explanatory to me.  But for you, it's team that can win a division every couple of years, but that's it.  Some professional GM's have figured it out, some haven't. 

 

So, what exactly are they missing? Bullpen? Storen had a 0.64 ERA down the stretch in 2012. Nats had the second best bullpen in 2016. On-base percentage and contact rates? Top 10 in both categories last year. Speed? Trea Turner. Starting pitching? Got that. Defense? They don't have a great UZR, but they make the plays they're supposed to make. So, please clarify.

[Riggo#44]

My latest, a little walk back from the ledge. Please tell me how much of a moron I am, in the comments section only, please.

 

 

[Dan T.]

Here's my temporary fix.  Name Blake Treinan, Matt Albers, Jacob Turner, and Enny Romero your starters.  Let them struggle through 3 innings.  Then bring in your regular rotation of "relievers" - Max, Stras, Tanner, and Gio.  They only have to go 6 innings and can end the game, rather than wondering about the fate of their efforts.  

 

We may start out behind in games, but it will be like the baseball equivalent of Mr. Freeze in Atlanta.  We  give them a head start, but the team has the bats to catch up and will also have the confidence to know the game won't be turned over to arsonists to burn their efforts down.

[Warhead36]

There is no such thing as a team built for the playoffs. How can a team built to win over 162 games not be built to win over 2-3 weeks? That makes no sense. The truth is October is just a reset button and there is no carry over from what happens in the season to what happens in the playoffs. Just keep getting there and hope that one year the stars aligh, the balls bounce your way, and you get a call or two in your favor.

[StillUnknown]

58 minutes ago, Dan T. said:

Here's my temporary fix.  Name Blake Treinan, Matt Albers, Jacob Turner, and Enny Romero your starters.  Let them struggle through 3 innings.  Then bring in your regular rotation of "relievers" - Max, Stras, Tanner, and Gio.  They only have to go 6 innings and can end the game, rather than wondering about the fate of their efforts.  

 

We may start out behind in games, but it will be like the baseball equivalent of Mr. Freeze in Atlanta.  We  give them a head start, but the team has the bats to catch up and will also have the confidence to know the game won't be turned over to arsonists to burn their efforts down.

 

 

i dont think he was joking though

[Mr. Sinister]

4 minutes ago, Warhead36 said:

There is no such thing as a team built for the playoffs. How can a team built to win over 162 games not be built to win over 2-3 weeks? That makes no sense. The truth is October is just a reset button and there is no carry over from what happens in the season to what happens in the playoffs. Just keep getting there and hope that one year the stars aligh, the balls bounce your way, and you get a call or two in your favor.

 

You keep saying this, and every year it proves not to be true, for this team at least. Glaring problems like this don't magically go away. We've been hopelessly  waiting for it for 5 years

[Warhead36]

13 minutes ago, Mr. Sinister said:

 

You keep saying this, and every year it proves not to be true, for this team at least

So what's the solution? We have the best win % in the NL since 2012. Baseball playoffs are the toughest of any major sport. Only four teams make it per league/conference so there is no watered down matchups. First round is also only best of 5 so its very easy for a better team to not win.

 

The Orioles had a great bullpen too...this year they've been just as bad as ours. The Royals had a great pen, and yeah they won the World Series two years ago, since then they haven't done jack and will be big time sellers at the deadline.

 

I want to cash in and win a ring as much as anyone, but there is no guarantee either way, so give me the route that gets me to the playoffs every year and we'll take our chances.. the Brewers traded for CC SAbathia midseason and didn't make it to the World Series. Ditto the Dodgers with Manny Ramirez. 

[TimmySmith]

1 hour ago, Riggo#44 said:

 

So, what exactly are they missing? Bullpen? Storen had a 0.64 ERA down the stretch in 2012. Nats had the second best bullpen in 2016. On-base percentage and contact rates? Top 10 in both categories last year. Speed? Trea Turner. Starting pitching? Got that. Defense? They don't have a great UZR, but they make the plays they're supposed to make. So, please clarify.

When they have had RP, they have not had SP.  When they had SP, they had no relief.  When they had both, they had no hitting.  Takes all 3, plus a good playoff manager, which they have never had.  Half the equation = ALDS losses. 

[Warhead36]

15 minutes ago, TimmySmith said:

When they have had RP, they have not had SP.  When they had SP, they had no relief.  When they had both, they had no hitting.  Takes all 3, plus a good playoff manager, which they have never had.  Half the equation = ALDS losses. 

I think we had it all in 2012. Unfortunately Davey went full senile in Game 5 and of course the ump wouldn't give Storen a half inch off the plate. We win that game we win the pennant.