Baseball by the Anacostia River
I've been away from Blogland for a few days to take in a pair of games between my childhood team (Phillies) and my hometown team (Nationals) at RFK Stadium in D.C.
Habit and instincts took over as far as rooting interests, but it really was great to see MLB back in Washington for the first time since '71. There's nothing special about RFK, which was a great football venue but is pretty boring for baseball (too darn round and symmetrical). We'll see what they come up with for a new ballpark in 2008, assuming D.C. politics don't doom or severely delay that project.
One thing's for sure, RFK is cavernous and the ball wasn't carrying at all. It'll probably fly out of there during the peak heat and humidity of summer, but not on chilly April nights. That said, Brad Wilkerson did crank one into the upper deck, the first of the new era. Wilkerson, by the way, is the oddest choice for leadoff hitter since Jeremy Giambi with the A's. Has power, no speed.
I'd like to give advice to those who want to take in a Nats game and would like to know the best way to get to the ballpark: Metrorail or Car? But I'm undecided. Took the Metro on Monday from Arlington, Va. It took about an hour to get there and an hour back. Major throngs on the subway but only $4 round trip. Drove over the next night. Ample parking, $10. Crowd thinned pretty quickly after the game. Traffic going in for a night game is rough b/c of rush hour but not unbearable.
As for the Phillies, it was same old, same old. I got to see firsthand this ill-conceived assemblage of talent that should have had GM Ed Wade fired years ago. The lineup looks good on paper, but they can't hit with two outs, can't hit with runners in scoring position, collectively strike out way too much. And still no ace starting pitcher. If you're spending $95 mil, you'd think you'd fill some of the glaring holes.
But I'm done with that rant. I'll let ESPN.com's Jayson Stark take it from here.
Comments (2)
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Sounds like you had a great time, Jeff. I don't have any connection to the D.C. area, but it's great to see baseball back there.
And while I feel bad for Montreal Expo fans (as a former Charlotte Hornets die-hard, I can empathize), it's also good to see this franchise gain some stability. The Expos had become the biggest joke in pro sports, with MLB actually owning the team and "home" games in Puerto Rico. The Expos almost were a Triple-A club; they had some great young players like Larry Walker, Marquis Grissom, Vlad Guerrero, Pedro Martinez, Cliff Floyd, Moises Alou, even Randy Johnson, but they couldn't afford to keep any of them. The Nationals, on the other hand, should be able to field a competitive team just about every year.
The Phillies? Well, I'm not sure they have the pitching - starting or relief - to win. Some of their key players (Thome, Lofton, Lieberthal) aren't getting any younger, either.
Posted on April 29, 2005 4:12 PM
Jose Vidro could have walked away from the Expos, too, for a lot of money. He and Brad Wilkerson seem to be the heart and soul of a team that loves coming to the park every day, knowing they're not playing in empty, echo-chamber Stade Olympique or playing a quarter of their home games in Puerto Rico. That travel absolutely decimated what wasn't a half-bad team last year. If they could've just held on to Vlad, the Marlins and Braves would have a serious challenge in the NL East. I'd contend that Guerrero's the best player in the game right now.
Posted on April 29, 2005 4:35 PM