September 10, 2006 [LINK / comment]

Another rocky series for Nats

Just like in mid-June, a promising winning streak by the Nationals has been ruined by a four-game sweep inflicted upon them by the Colorado Rockies, who have thus become the only National League team that has not been beaten at all by the Nationals this year. (The Washingtonians lost three games against Toronto in inter-league play in late June.) All four of the games in Coors Field were high-scoring, as is often the case there, but the extra run production does not seem related to the thin air, as there were no more than the usual number of home runs. In the finale game this afternoon, Pedro Astacio lasted only two and a third innings, giving up six runs. In his defense, however, he did get a hit and score a run. Somehow, the Nats managed to get 17 hits but only 9 runs, while the Rockies got 13 runs off only 12 hits. Bad base-running? Twice they had the bases loaded with no outs, but only got two runs combined out of those situations. One faint glimmer of hope in the midst of late-season gloom is the new provisional center fielder Nook Logan, who got a triple and a home run. Friday night's game was especially wild, with eight errors altogether (six by Washington), and three straight innings of lead switches, from the sixth through the eighth. Too bad Denver couldn't muster more than 23,000 or so fans to witness all the excitement. A year ago, I would have been happy to see a game end with Jamey Carroll throwing the ball to Vinny Castilla for the final out. This year, however, they are both playing for the Rockies, so I was sad when it happened. I wonder if Vinny's family in Oaxaca has been affected by the recent violence there?

Construction zips along

Work on excavation and putting in the foundation pilings for the new stadium in Washington is just about done. "Clark Construction has said the ballpark likely will be completed on time as long as the steel framework is in place by October. The project is on target for that goal, officials said." The question of what kind of parking facility has not been resolved yet, so the April 2008 target completion date is not at all certain. See Washington Times. (via Mike Zurawski)