Sweepin' The Clouds Away
Other than half-an-inning of sprinkles, it was a beautiful day for a ballgame.
Greg Maddux was on the mound and pitched decently, if not briefly.
John Patterson opposed him and pitched decently, if not briefly.
Each team had a few rallies, and Chad Cordero's arm stayed attached for just one more inning, as our beloved Nationals won 5-4.
There were two key plays in the game.
With the recently struggling Luis Ayala on the mound, the hot-hitting (at least until this series) Derek Lee came up, as the tying run. He ripped one of those line drives to deep right that is accompanied by a murmur in the crowd, and Jose Guillen made a wonderful running catch, leaping slightly up against the wall. 'Twas A great play that would've been at least a double, if not a triple.
But, the key play was Nick Johnson's at-bat. Following a Jose Guillen walk on four pitches, Maddux was clearly agitated on the mound. He was unhappy with his landing foot, and in fairness, it was a legitimate criticism. From my distant perch, I could see that his front foot was sliding as he planted. Regardless, much of his trouble was in his head and he soon fell behind 3-0 to Johnson.
You know. I know. Greg Maddux knows that there's no way in hell that the Walking Stick is swinging there. Called strike, 3-1.
I turned to my friend in my lame non-denominational version of Nats Blog's 'Buck Sez' bets. There's no way he's swinging here either, I said.
I knew that. Greg Maddux knew that.
Nick Johnson didn't though.
Nick Johnson got a grooved fastball, which he turned on and absolutely crushed. It went high, just to the right of the power alley, hitting the mezanine level. Another 10 feet or so and it would've been an upper deck shot. I've seen a bunch of towering fly balls hit in that park, and they usually get knocked down as they reach the wall. This one kept carrying. And carrying. And carrying some more. Good for Nick. And it was good enough to be the Majority Whip.
Jamey Carroll gets bonus credits for making a few great plays at second, which I'm pretty confident in saying that Jose Vidro would not have come near. Jose Vidro's batting advantage outweighs the glove difference, but Carroll has certainly proven to be a valuable backup.
Homestand Goal: 5-2
Current Record: 2-1
Roll Out The Barrels, the Brewers are coming. And sans Sheets, they're going down!
Greg Maddux was on the mound and pitched decently, if not briefly.
John Patterson opposed him and pitched decently, if not briefly.
Each team had a few rallies, and Chad Cordero's arm stayed attached for just one more inning, as our beloved Nationals won 5-4.
There were two key plays in the game.
With the recently struggling Luis Ayala on the mound, the hot-hitting (at least until this series) Derek Lee came up, as the tying run. He ripped one of those line drives to deep right that is accompanied by a murmur in the crowd, and Jose Guillen made a wonderful running catch, leaping slightly up against the wall. 'Twas A great play that would've been at least a double, if not a triple.
But, the key play was Nick Johnson's at-bat. Following a Jose Guillen walk on four pitches, Maddux was clearly agitated on the mound. He was unhappy with his landing foot, and in fairness, it was a legitimate criticism. From my distant perch, I could see that his front foot was sliding as he planted. Regardless, much of his trouble was in his head and he soon fell behind 3-0 to Johnson.
You know. I know. Greg Maddux knows that there's no way in hell that the Walking Stick is swinging there. Called strike, 3-1.
I turned to my friend in my lame non-denominational version of Nats Blog's 'Buck Sez' bets. There's no way he's swinging here either, I said.
I knew that. Greg Maddux knew that.
Nick Johnson didn't though.
Nick Johnson got a grooved fastball, which he turned on and absolutely crushed. It went high, just to the right of the power alley, hitting the mezanine level. Another 10 feet or so and it would've been an upper deck shot. I've seen a bunch of towering fly balls hit in that park, and they usually get knocked down as they reach the wall. This one kept carrying. And carrying. And carrying some more. Good for Nick. And it was good enough to be the Majority Whip.
Jamey Carroll gets bonus credits for making a few great plays at second, which I'm pretty confident in saying that Jose Vidro would not have come near. Jose Vidro's batting advantage outweighs the glove difference, but Carroll has certainly proven to be a valuable backup.
Homestand Goal: 5-2
Current Record: 2-1
Roll Out The Barrels, the Brewers are coming. And sans Sheets, they're going down!
posted by Chris Needham at
5:38 PM
2 Comments:
If you get the chance and can find it (I'll see if I can find a link), you have to hear Ron Santo's reaction after the 2nd Perez error. It is classic homer color guy. Loose recreation:
"Awww. Come on."
By
Brian, at 5/16/2005 8:39 AM
If you have the MLB radio deal. Bring up the archived audio of the Cubs broadcast. At 2:10:00, the call happens (about 10 seconds).
By
Brian, at 5/16/2005 9:54 AM
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