Blog post

July 8, 2024 [LINK / comment]

High heat hinders Herz, Nats fall

My first baseball game this year was quite an ordeal to endure, and it wasn't any easier for the players on the field. Temperatures soared into the mid-90s once again, no doubt raising beverage sales at the concession stands in Nationals Park. (I tried a tasty and refreshing "Dr. Juicy IPA," made by the Silver Branch Brewing Co. of Silver Spring, Maryland.) I was joined by my wife Jacqueline, for the first time in several years! She thought I should have chosen seats in the shade, and indeed I should have known better that there is more sun on the first base side in the afternoon. In the latter innings, we "retreated" to the upper gallery level, where the small roof at Nationals Park shielded us from the sun.

It was a beautiful day in the ballpark ... if you like sun, at least!

D.J. Herz, who was called up from the minors and joined the Nats' rotation on June 4 after Trevor Williams went on the injured list, got outs from the first five batters he faced. Then he walked Brendan Donovan and induced Nolan Gorman to hit a high pop up to short left field. It looked like an easy out, but James Wood took his time getting there, and the ball dropped right in front of him for a "double." It may have been that he couldn't see the ball because of the sun, and in fact he wasn't wearing sunglasses. As you can see from this composite photo, almost all his team mates were. In any case, the result was a run scored, and then the next batter, Dylan Carlson, singled to bring in a second run.

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: James Wood* (LF), Jesse Winker* (DH), C.J. Abrams (SS), Trey Lipscomb* (3B), Lane Thomas (RF), Juan Yepez* (1B), Luis Garcia (2B), D.J. Herz* (P), Jacob Young* (CF), and Riley Adams (C).

* Asterisks denote new Nationals players this year.

The Nats quickly shook out that setback as two of their first three batters doubled in the bottom of the second inning: Jesse Winker and Juan Yepez, just called up from the minors to replace Joey Meneses. Two more Nats hit singles in that inning, thus tying the game, 2-2. In the fourth inning Paul Goldschmidt hit a leadoff double and later scored on a single by Nolan Gorman. D.J. Herz was getting through some tough situations, but his pitch count rose 102 and the heat was really getting to him. (Weather often cuts both ways in sports competition; it imbues both teams with a "brittle" quality such that the slightest misfortune causes the unlucky team to crack under the strain.) After a weird play in which Alec Burleson was awarded first base on catcher's interference, following a strikeout and a walk, Davey Martinez decided that enough was enough.

Manager Davey Martinez takes the ball from starting pitcher D.J. Herz, who exits the mound after getting one out in the [fifth] inning.

Unfortunately, the relief pitcher, Dylan Floro, was not effective at all. The first batter he faced, Wilson Contreras, hit an RBI single, as did the third batter, Nolan Arenado. After he gave up a third single, he was replaced by Robert Garcia, who finished the fifth inning and then the sixth inning without further damage. In the sixth inning the Nats loaded the bases with nobody out, but only managed to score one run. In the top of the seventh, the next Nats pitcher, Derek Law gave up a leadoff single and then a home run (to Wilson Contreras), as the Cardinals took a five-run lead. In the bottom of that inning, the Nats loaded the bases with two outs, but failed to score. Their only base runner in the last two innings was C.J. Abrams, who was hit by a pitch. Final score: Cardinals 8, Nationals 3. Attendance was only 19,782, negatively affected by the heat but boosted by a special promotion giveaway: free baseball hats to kids 12 and under. All the extra youthful enthusiasm was nice to see.

It should be noted that D.J. Herz struck out 13 batters in his third-ever MLB appearance on June 15, and 10 more on July 2. He thereby joined Stephen Strasburg, becoming the only other rookie pitchers in history (since 1901) to strike out at least ten batters in two of their first six MLB starts without giving up a walk. That is just incredible! Unfortunately his efforts yesterday were thwarted by defensive miscues and lack of clutch hitting.

In the final game of the series this afternoon, the Cardinals scored first (in the third inning) on a throwing error by C.J. Abrams, and later added solo home runs by Paul Goldschmidt and Alex Burleson, etc., etc. Final score: 6-0.

Tomorrow the Nats begin a three-game series in New York against the Mets, who will remain in [sole possession of] third place in the NL East unless the Nats somehow sweep them, followed by a three game series in Milwaukee against the Brewers. Then comes the All-Star break!

All-Star picks are announced

The 2024 All-Star rosters were officially unveiled over the weekend. In the American League, four teams got two starting players each: the Baltimore Orioles, the New York Yankees, the Cleveland Guardians, and the Houston Astros. Aaron Judge and former Washington National Juan Soto will represent the Bronx Bombers. As for the National League, the Philadelphia Phillies dominated with three All-Star starting players: Bryce Harper (1B), Trea Turner (SS), and Alec Bohm (3B). The first two are former Nationals, of course. The Milwaukee Brewers and San Diego Padres also two All-Star starters each. The Midsummer Classic will take place eight days hence in Globe Life Field, in beautiful Arlington, Texas.

C.J. Abrams is an All-Star!

Washington Nationals shortstop C.J. Abrams was chosen for the All-Star Game for the first time, somewhat to my surprise. He excels in certain statistical categories, but he is still lacking in experience, as evidenced by his repeated base-running blunders.

Nevertheless, two obvious choices for the All-Star team were overlooked: starting pitcher Jake Irvin (whose WHIP* is 4th best in the NL) and closing pitcher Kyle Finnegan (whose 23 saves are tied for 3rd best in all of baseball). What a ripoff! Mark Zuckerman explains the anomaly at masnsports.com. Selections are based in part on popularity (votes by fans), partly on the players themselves, and partly on MLB insiders. NO Nationals players were selected by either of the first two methods, and since there were only eight remaining slots to fill by MLB, and all 30 teams had to be allotted at least one All-Star player, there just wasn't much "wiggle room." IMHO, they should have picked Irvin over Abrams. Oh well.

As a public service, I have compiled the records for the Nationals's regular starters this year, as well as their closer, ranked according to ERA. It includes Trevor Williams, who has been on the injured list for over a month, as well as the guy who replaced him, D.J. Herz, mainly because of his recent spectacular strikeout performances. Notably absent is Josiah Gray, who has been out since the early part of the season.

* WHIP = Walks plus Hits per Inning Pitched.

Indianapolis stadium stuff

In my post last Tuesday, I should have explained the significance of Bush Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Otherwise, who cares?) It was called Perry Stadium from 1931 through 1942, and then Victory Field from 1943 through most of 1967, and finally Owen J. Bush Stadium from then until 1995, after which it was replaced by a new Victory Field, which I visited in August 2017. The old Victory Field served as the home of various Negro League teams, including the Indianapolis ABCs and the Indianapolis Clowns. (See the Negro Leagues page, which is in need of updating.) Another big reason for this venue's interest to baseball fans is that it was where most of the game scenes in the movie Eight Men Out (1988), starring Tom Cusack, was filmed. People in Indianapolis are to be commended for helping to preserve a small but significant piece of baseball history. (See the Baseball movies page.)

"Stadium Lofts and Flats," a couple miles northwest of downtown Indianapolis, converted into apartments in 2013.

Also of possible interest to stadium buffs is the nearby Indianapolis Motor Speedway, a.k.a. "The Brickyard," with a seating capacity of about 250,000.

And finally, I've been working on a new diagram of Birmingham's Rickwood Field, which should be ready in the next couple days.