Dan Snyder Will Win With Colin Kaepernick

Dan Snyder will win with Colin Kaepernick.  Not the Redskins, the Redskins are screwed.  They've lost all their quarterbacks, their defensive line still thinks they are at Alabama and are on break after Thanksgiving, and DJ Swearinger continues to surreptitiously call out the coaches for the team's lack of production on the field without looking in the mirror.  The Redskins probably will not win with Colin Kaepernick, but Dan Snyder will. 

All Dan Snyder ever wanted is for the Redskins to be at the forefront of the headlines.  If that means because they are winning that is great, but if they are not they need to do outrageous things in order to be at the center of attention.  Look no further than the Reuben Foster move last week to see Snyder's itchiness for being in the headlines.  Will Kaepernick help the Redskins win? That question is irrelevant to Snyder.  Snyder must see that the once promising Redskins season that brought him so many accolades is going down the toilet in a relatively inglorious and frustrating way.  To exacerbate Snyder's feeling of inadequacy, he must watch his hated rivals take over first place in the NFC East after being left for dead six weeks ago.  So with all the injuries to the OL and DL, a porous defense, and Mark Sanchez at the helm, what is Snyder to do?  Make the singing to end all signings.

If the Redskins sign Kaepernick it will put the Redskins at the top of the "All Time Controversial Signings List" forever.  Just think what will happen if the Redskins announce that Kaepernick will be starting this week for the team in our Nation's Capital with a racially charged nickname after being publicly called out by the President of the United States for his actions?  If Josh Norman wanted people in the stands at FedEx Field he will certainly get it with Colin Kaepernick, and Snyder could hype the situation to his benefit.  Do you support Kaepernick?  Come on down to Landover and kneel with him as he makes his triumphant return to the gridiron.  You hate Kaepernick's guts?  Hide your foreign objects in secret pockets and let him know just how you feel live at FedEx Field on Sunday.  The National Guard will need to run security, but who knows if they will show up to help a guy who has caused so much controversy within the armed services.  And knowing Donald Trump, there is no way he passes on the chance to show up Kaepernick by being at the stadium in person. 

The possibilities are endless and the coverage will be unstoppable.  "What?  Tom Brady killed a hooker, evaded police in a wild shootout in downtown Boston, and has Bill Belichick driving him to the Canadian border in a high speed chase with federal authorities?  That can wait. KAEPERNICK IS PLAYING IN FRONT OF DONALD TRUMP IN DC!"  OK, maybe that Brady situation is a little bit bigger, but sans that happening there is no denying the hoopla that will surround Kaepernick starting for the Washington Redskins, and the best part is they have nothing to lose.  They already lost the PR battle on the Foster deal, their season is in turmoil, and if there is any team that could absorb the media blitz that would come with the signing it is the Redskins.  And that is if Kaepernick is a bust.  Just think if the Redskins sign him and he starts winning.  The sports coverage.  The political coverage. The wave of support on the streets.  The level of hate throughout social media, all centered around the Washington Redskins and the biggest winner of them all in this scenario.  Daniel Snyder.

The Nats Craft Beer of the Week

Boy, does this Craft Beer of the Week fit with how the Nationals' week went.  Dark.  It is the Van Dammit Belgian Dark Ale from the Jailbreak Brewing Company in Laurel, Maryland, and while the color can be a metaphor for the week that was for the Nationals, the taste is one that will make you feel a little better.  It is a traditional Belgian Ale, with a sweet taste that comes from figs, raisins, plums, and a complex array of malts that gives it a nice clean finish.  Jailbreak says that this is one of their limited release beers, but it is also one that does not take too much looking around to find.  If you are of age, and you are going to continue to follow the Nationals season, the 9.0% ABV may come in handy, but please drink responsibly and try to only imitate the man on the cover in your head as I'm sure Davey Martinez did many times this week as he saw the Nationals season go off the rails.

The Nationals dug themselves into a hole early this past week, as they dropped the first three games against the Cardinals in depressing fashion.  They were walked off for the second straight game on Monday when they scored 2 runs to tie the game in the top of the ninth, only to see Koda Glover give up an HR to the first batter he faced.  Gio gave up 5 runs on Tuesday, 2 of which came on a 2 run HR to the pitcher (John Gant) who had been 0-30 in his career to that point, and Jeremy Hellickson was placed on the DL after spraining his wrist covering a wild pitch on Wednesday.  The end of the week was no better.  The Marlins broke a 12 game road losing streak and won their first series against the Nationals since 2014 after winning in 10 innings on Saturday, and crushing the Nats 12-1 on Sunday.  What is more depressing is that the Braves and Phillies lost on Saturday and Sunday, so the Nats also lost a golden opportunity to gain ground in the NL East, yet the continue to find themselves 7.5 games back of the Braves.  One big part of that has been the futility of the bullpen.

Koda Glover was the king of futility this past week as he twice lost the lead/game immediately after the Nats had tied the game the inning before.  He lost the game on Monday as stated above, and
on Saturday Adam Eaton hit a game tying solo home run in the bottom of the 9th, only to have Glover give up a two out, bases loaded single that drove in two runs in the 10th.  Glover did get a tough save this week, but he cannot give up those kinds of losses right after the Nats' lineup does their job.  Honorable mention for the futility crown go to Sammy Solis, who in his one appearance on Monday gave up 2 hits and 2 runs without registering an out, and to Tommy Milone who made the debacle on Sunday turn into a massacre as he went 4 innings with 6 hits, 4 ER, and he gave up 3 home runs.  All those number contributed to a collective bullpen ERA of 5.40 and a WHIP of 1.5 for the week, and with no end to this in sight the Nats' playoff hopes look dismal.

The Nats hitters were not immune to this sucking either, as their golden boy Juan Soto hit .181 this week, as did Trea Turner.  Soto salvaged a .344 OBP for the week with six walks, but the top of the lineup was not very productive with those two leading off.  Matt Adams has also cooled off the past few weeks, as he went 0-9 this week, with five of those at bats coming with runners in scoring position.  In fact, Matt Adams in only 9 for his last 57 at bats for a staggering .157 average.  To be fair, the past three weeks he has been put in mostly as a pinch hitter, but this is a far cry from what he was doing earlier in the summer and the Nats miss that big bat coming off the bench.  It was not all bad this week, however, and the Nats still have some ray of hope that they can get back into the playoff race.

Bryce Harper got his 500th career RBI this past week against the Marlins while hitting .379 (5-6 RISP), 8 RBI, and he had an OPS of 1.05.  Over the last month Harper is hitting .538 (14-26) with runners in scoring position, so do not be surprised if teams begin walking Harper in big siutations, especially teams with payoff aspirations like the Phillies.  Rendon and Eaton also hit over .300 this week, but the silver slugger of the week goes to Matt Wieters. He hit .368 this week with 4 RBI, and he had an OPS of .987.  Wieters is 13 for his last 33 at bats, and he is coming on right when the Nats need another bat to make a run at the NL East.  Max Scherzer also contributed by getting his 16th win this week while scoring 2 runs and hitting a double against the Marlins.  Max is now hitting .296 for the season. Not to be outdone at the plate was Tanner Roark who also scored 2 runs in his outing against the Cardinals while going 2-3 at the plate and getting the only win in the series against the Cards.

It will take a herculean effort from all to make up ground in the NL East, but the Nats will have their chance this week as they open up a three game series with the Phillies today, and follow that up with a three game road trip against the Mets.  Roark is pitching tonight, and Stephen Strasburg is set to make his comeback on Wednesday, so here is hoping the Nats can gain at least two games on the Phillies in the wildcard to start the week, and maybe, just maybe, they can start to gain momentum going into the last 30 games of the season.

The Nats Craft Beer of the Week

The play from the National's this week required a strong Russian Imperial Stout for this week's craft beer.  It is Stone Brewing's 2018 collaboration Stone Woot Stout, and it gets the job done in all facets of beer drinking.  The beautiful black color masks a dynamic taste created by pecans, wheat, and rye that gives it a sweet toasted type of flavor.  It was also aged in bourbon barrels, so you also get that bourbon aftertaste that makes you feel like you are having that special me-time moment.  At 11.5% ABV, though, you are definitely coming close to that, so please drink responsibly and if you are lucky enough to find this beer at your local craft beer store pick it up immediately because it will not be there forever.  The 11.5% ABV was necessary at times this week, as the Nationals kept themselves 5.5 games back in the NL East in the most soul crushing way.

The Nats were one out away from being 4.5 games back of the Phillies and Braves last night until Ryan Madson gave up a walk off grand slam to David Bote.  It was a microcosm of the Nats season as Wilmer Difo, who entered in the bottom of the 9th as a defensive replacement, bobbled the exchange from his glove to allow the first base runner and Madson hit two batters to load the bases.  Madson claims that he had back issues that caused his poor command, but that still does not remedy the fact that they squandered a 7 inning/0 ER performance from Max Scherzer.  This was the second game this week that Max had to endure a no decision based on a 9th inning, injury laden, let down from the bullpen.  Kelvin Herrera squandered a 7 inning/1 ER performance from Max in the second game of the double header against the Braves this past Tuesday, where Herrera gave up 2 runs in the top of the 9th and was relieved of duty after complaining of shoulder tightness and is now on the DL.  Hopefully the Nats' training staff can actually talk to the bullpen pitchers this week so they can trot out healthy pitchers to try and close out zero and one run outings from Max Scherzer in the future.

The loss last night also extended the Nats' futility as they have not won a series of three or more games against a team with a winning record since May 10.  Madson's woes also extended the bullpen's woes this week, as his performance gave the bullpen a collective 7.16 ERA and 1.65 WHIP for this week.  The cherry on top was that the Nats' old buddy Brandon Kintzler was let off the hook, as he pitched the 9th inning last night for the Cubs and gave up a two run single to Ryan Zimmerman that extended the Nats' lead to 3-0.  Suffice to say that last night sucked, but all the news was not horrible for the Nats this week.

Ryan Zimmerman came alive this week as he hit .476 with 3 HR, 12 RBI, was 4 for 7 RISP, 1.04 SLG%, and a 1.56 OPS.  Grab a Stone Woot Stout to celebrate the return of Ryan Zimmerman just when the Nats need his bat to try and cut into their deficit in the NL East.  There was another National who hit over. 400 this past week, and the name may be surprising.  Matt Wieters hit .428 this past week, including an OPS of 1.02, and in the second game against the Cubs he reached base in all five of his plate appearances.  The Nats as a team actually out hit the combined efforts of the Braves and Cubs as the Nats' .271 team average outpaced the combined .244 average of the Braves and Cubs.  Contributing to this average were the five Nats hitters who all hit over .300 this week in Zimmerman, Wieters, Daniel Murphy (.370), Anthony Rendon (.315), and Trea Turner (.344).  This was also helped by the Nats' starting pitching that had only Tommy Milone give up more than 2 ER's in their appearances, and Max Scherzer continues to dazzle as he gave up only 1 ER in 14 innings of work this week.  Also, have a Stone Woot Stout for Gio Gonzalez as he got his first win in 11 starts this week, and Tanner Roark is also on a come back tour as he won his fourth straight start.  In those starts he has averaged 7.2 innings with a 1.21 ERA and a 0.91 WHIP.  The Nats will need to keep that kind of streak going as they will continue to face stout competition this upcoming week.

The Nats continue their tour of the midwest as they are in St. Louis in the beginning of the week for the "Battle of the teams that are 5.5 back in the division" series as the Cardinals are also 5.5 games back in the NL Central.  The Marlins come to town to close out the week, and hopefully the Nats can gain some ground in the NL East come this time next week.  There is still time being only 5.5 games out of the division, but time is running out.

The University of Maryland Needs to Get Out of PR Mode And Do What Is Right

No matter what the outcome of the investigation into Jordan McNair's death comes out to be, one thing is for certain.  It will not end well for the University of Maryland.  The ESPN article that came out on Friday, describing an alleged culture of bullying and intimidation by the coaching staff within the Maryland Football Program that may have contributed to McNair's death, ensures that The University has already lost in the arena of public opinion.  What needs to come from officials at the University of Maryland now are steps to do right by the McNair family.  Placing DJ Durkin on administrative leave is a start, but President Wallace Loh sending out emails to the fan base with a bunch of PC quotes does nothing.  Here are excerpts from his email to the Maryland Community:

"I [Wallace Loh] am profoundly disturbed by the media reports yesterday about verbally abusive and intimidating conduct by Maryland football coaches and staff towards our student athletes on the team"

"Our responsibility as teachers is to inspire and enable students to perform at their best and expand the boundaries of their potential, in the classroom and/or on the athletic field.  Humiliating and demeaning a student is not only bad teaching and coaching, it is an abuse of the authority of a teacher and a coach."

"The University of Maryland is committed to a football program that is safe and humane, and where our student-athletes are successful in their academic and athletic endeavors.  This commitment will be carried out with accountability, fairness, and transparency."

While these words are nice, all of them ring hollow in the face of the allegations put out by the ESPN article and the fact that the McNair family lost their son under the watch of this commitment to a "safe and humane" football program.  What needs to happen is what is stated at the end of the last quote, and it needs to happen now rather than a month from now.  That is accountability and transparency.

The University already lost the chance to come out and be accountable, and understandably so.  In these cases it is hard to be open due to the fear of lawsuits, but what is right in this situation is to be penitent.  The University has to anticipate that lawsuits are coming, and more than likely they will lose if any part of the ESPN article is accurate.  Wallace Loh's words of commitment to safety and responsibility smack of a futile effort to try and paint the values of the University as contrary to what is coming out about the football program in order to mitigate the impact of inevitable litigation.  In the court of public opinion, however, those values will be one and the same for the near future, and Loh would do well to be accountable in the form of contrition.  

The University should have come out and said something to the effect of "We failed in our commitment to Jordan McNair and his family in providing a safe and secure environment, and the University's ongoing investigation will be looking into the specifics of how that failure manifested itself".  This would have shown remorse for the loss of Jordan McNair and accountability in the form of a collective dereliction of duty without giving any specific culpability until the investigation is completed.  It is not too late for Loh and the University to show accountability through contrition, but it should be done now rather than waiting until a report comes out that could force the University into situations where they have to publicly espouse sorrow and remorse.  By that point, an act of contrition would seem like a disingenuous tactic to save face.  Being accountable now would go a long way with the fan base, and with the people who are most important in this case; Jordan McNair's family.

Loh's remarks also talk about commitment to transparency, but really the only people that they need to be transparent with are the McNair's.  The public is owed nothing in this situation other than a more contrite message of accountability and a statement that the University is working with the McNair's in this investigation.  To be transparent, Loh could come out and say "We are working with the McNair's in this situation because to us this is not about winning a lawsuit.  This is about doing right by a family who lost their son".  This would be transparent without admitting guilt.  It would show that the University places their students and their families above their bottom line.  They could communicate this publicly, while any specific information can be shared privately with the family.  Again, this kind of transparency flies in the face of trying to be discrete in order to head off possible litigation, but the University needs to be worried about doing what is right rather than following protocol in order to mitigate the possible perils that lie ahead.

The litigation is coming.  If there is a shred of truth to the ESPN report, the University of Maryland is more than likely going to come out on the losing end, and possibly in a criminal manner if the allegation that McNair suffered a seizure an hour before the EMT's were called is true.  What the University needs to be worried about now is trying to come out of this with moral character rather than trying to win PR battles.  They need to show true remorse through admitting some form of institutional failure now, rather than spouting off carefully worded PR statements.  They need to show that they truly care about the McNair family, and the passing of their son, by working with them throughout this process, rather than conducting a unilateral investigation in order to save the most jobs possible for all those who could be implicated in a possible case of negligence.  The University of Maryland needs to do what is right in this case, and that may not be what keeps the most money flowing into the University.  But Jordan McNair's death should be about morals, not money.  

The Nats Craft Beer of the Week

Can You Fig It?  A proper play on words for this week's craft beer as the Nats are rolling on the field, and this beer is made on the remains of a baseball field.  It comes from Peabody Heights Brewery that is located on the site of Old Oriole Park in Baltimore, but do not let that dissuade you from trying this masterpiece of body and flavor.  As the name implies, Can You Fig It is a German-style dark beer with dried figs and caramelized malts added to give it a smooth sweet taste that any beer drinker can enjoy.  It also has a lighter body than you would expect for a dark beer, and with only a 5% ABV this beer should be enjoyed year round even though it is billed as a winter warmer.  If you catch it at your local beer store (or MOM's Grocery) I highly suggest you try it as a nice way to celebrate the Nats' new found winning ways.

Crack open a Can You Fig It for the Nats winning their series against the Reds this past week.  It was the first time the Nats had won a series of three or more games since the July 5th series against the Marlins, and the Nats have now won 8 of their last 11 games.  Hopefully, the Nats will not have to wait another month for their next series win, and if the starting pitching can keep up the pace they set this week that is a definite possibility.

The Nats starters went 4-1 over the past five games, with Tanner Roark leading the way yet again with another 7 inning 1 run performance.  That makes Roark 3-0 over his last three starts going 22 innings and giving up only 2 earned runs.  Not to be outdone this past week was Tommy Milone who also gave up only 1 earned run in 7 innings while striking out 9 and getting his first win in over a year.  Max Scherzer had another 10K performance while driving in an RBI and improving his season batting average to .292, and Jeremy Hellickson gave the Nats 5.2 solid innings that probably could have been a full six if not for opposing teams hitting over .400 against him the third time around the order.  Which brings us to the black sheep of the rotation this week in Gio Gonzalez.  Gio was looking for his first win since May 28th, but alas he now has ten straight starts without a win.  In those starts he is 0-6, the Nats are 3-7, and he has averaged only 5 innings per start with a 6.20 ERA and a 1.78 WHIP.  If this trend continues, and Tommy Milone can give a few more quality starts, do not be surprised if Strasburg takes Gio's spot when he comes back and Milone replaces Gio as the lefty in the starting rotation.  That maybe a little far fetched but Davey Martinez needs to do something about Gio not being able to generate wins when he takes the mound, and maybe a nice little stint in the bullpen will help clear Gio's mind.  Despite Gio's struggles, the Nats starters set the winning pace this week, and the Nats hitters followed.

Bryce Harper continues to lead the Nats hitters as he is hitting .470 over the last five games with an OPS of 1.39.  Maybe the Home Run Derby did have an effect of Harper because since the All-Star Break he is hitting .367 with 14 RBI, 3 HR, and a 1.15 OPS.  The Nats will definitely need those numbers going forward if they want to catch the Phillies. Then again they will also need Juan Soto to get his third straight rookie of the month in August, as he has won that award for both June and July.  They need Trea Turner to continue to be the league leader in stolen bases as he upped that number to 30 this week.  And finally, they need their big guns in Anthony Rendon and Daniel Murphy to continue to produce in the middle of the lineup.  Murhpy  went 5 for 14 (.357) over these last five games, and since July 8 Murphy is hitting .406 with 3 HR and 13 RBI.  Rendon has been the most consistent hitter for the Nats over the course of this summer, and this week was no exception.  While his average was nothing special, Rendon managed to keep his OPS at 0.772 this week with 5 RBI and going 3 for 6 in RISP situations.  Since July 8 Rendon's numbers in those areas are even more impressive with 17 RBI, an .877 OPS, and 8 for 22 (.363) in RISP situations.  Here's hoping the Nats big guns can continue to bring the wood as they face a tough stretch ahead that will define their season.

It will be the battle of the division races this week as the Nats face the Braves for a four game series at home that includes a double header today, and then it is off to Chicago for a three game series with the Cubs.  Both of these teams are in the thick of their division races with the Nats trailing the Braves by 4.5 games for second in the NL East, so grab some Can You Fig Its and settle in for a season defining week of baseball for the Nationals.

The Nats Craft Beer of the Week

This week's craft beer hails from DuClaw Brewing Company in Baltimore and it is their limited release Incognito Pilsner.  The tag line is "mysteriously familiar" and when you taste it you will know why.  It has that Miller Lite pilsner taste to it with a 5.4% ABV, but with a more bold flavor and crisp finish that makes it perfect for a hot summer day.  It is definitely worth a purchase if you are into subtle differences in beer taste, or if you're looking for an enhanced classic tasting beer at a barbecue that everyone can enjoy.  Incognito is a limited release so get it while you can, but DuClaw has an extensive selection which I highly encourage you to check out if you are over 21 and have the time.  Hopefully you enjoyed some of DuClaw's finest as you watched some mediocre baseball from the Washington Nationals this past week and a half.

Mysteriously familiar was the tagline that could be applied to the Nats' past nine games coming out of the All-Star break.  A split with Atlanta, one win against another division chasing team in Milwaukee, and just when you thought the Nats were going to sweep their old whipping post the Marlins hold the Nats to one run in the last two games of the series to force a split.  Luckily the Phillies and Braves could not get out of second gear either, and the Nats still find themselves only 5.5 games back in the NL East.  It was still disconcerting that the Nats squandered a stout outing from Gio Gonzalez this past Saturday (7 IP, 3 H, 1 ER) which has been rare over the past month and a half.  Gio still struggles with WHIP (1.42 since the break) and he issued 9 walks in 12.2 innings of work his last two starts, which indicates that he is asking to get shelled yet again, but here's hoping Gio can get out of jams and produce more one run games.  It was not just Gio that shined in the starting rotation.  Tanner Roark had his two best start of his career throwing 8 scorless innings in a 7-3 win in Miami and only giving up one run in 7 innings in the rout of the Mets last night.  Max Scherzer does what he does best pitching 14 total innings since the All-Star Break and giving up only 2 ER.  The bullpen had a little bit of a post All-Star hangover as they gave up two walk off wins in extra innings and amassed an ERA of 3.90 and a WHIP of 1.44 since the All-Star break.  They were not helped by Hellickson, Strasburg, and Tom Milone combining for only 19.1 innings over 4 starts, but they need to come up big in some of those close games.  But there may be some addition by subtraction as Brandon Kintzler was traded yesterday to the Cubs.  Have an Incognito for him as Rizzo added insult to injury as he alluded to  the idea that Kintzler may not have been the best locker room presence.  There was one person who was not traded yesterday, though, and maybe for good reason.

With all the trade hype surrounding Bryce Harper, the Nats decided to stand pat and ride or die with Harper for the rest of this season.  That may not look so good when taking in Harper's season stats, but a look at his stats since the All-Star break should give Nats fans hope that Harper can lead this team to the playoffs.  Since the All-Star Break Harper is hitting .312 with an OPS of 1.03 (that includes a SLG% of .593), he has 10 RBI (6 of which have come with 2 Outs), and he is 6 for 12 in RISP situations.   Granted it is a small sample size, and last night's offensive explosion enhanced some of those stats a tad, but Harper has come alive since the All-Star Break and he may vindicate Rizzo's choice to keep him on by keeping this kind of pace throughout the rest of the season. It was not just Harper that has turned it up since the All-Star Break.  His other struggling counterpart in Daniel Murphy may be rounding out into form at just the right time as well.  Murphy has a team leading 11 RBI since the break and is hitting .371 with an OPS of 1.10 and is 5 for 10 in RISP situations.  The whole argument was that once the Nats' big guns got going they could start making a run.  It looks as if both Murphy and Harper are doing just that, and it may be rubbing off on the other players.

The Nats have 9 hitters (Turner, Soto, Difo, Zimmerman, Adams, Rendon, Harper, Eaton, and Murphy) who have an OPS of .700 or higher since the break, and 6 of those nine hitters (Turner, Soto, Zimmerman, Rendon, Harper, and Murphy) are all hitting over .300 since the break as well.  The Mets game did buttress those stats somewhat, but the offense the Nats have been searching for this whole season may be arriving when the Nats are really are on their last chance to make it to the playoffs.  There were negatives over these last 10 games such as the mighty Juan Soto only going 1 for 11 in RISP situations, Harper striking out nearly every other time he comes to the plate (15 K's in 40 plate appearances), Daniel Murphy having three errors since the break, Matt Wieters hitting .178 since the break, and Trea Turner joining the "Oh shit, you found THOSE tweets?" club.  But despite all of this the Nats are still alive and it seems like they are coming to life to try and make a run.  With nine games left against the Phillies, and seven against the Braves, they will have more than enough opportunities to get backto the top of the NL East.  Lets just hope these trends since the All-Star Break continue.

It all continues with one more games against the Mets today, and then a four game series with the Reds to finish out the week.  Hopefully, the Nats can keep it going and get even closer to the NL East lead.

The Nats Craft Beer of the Week

In honor of the MLB All-Star Game and festivities being held in DC this week, SweetDCSports is keeping the Nats Craft Beer of the Week local with this wonderful pick from Denizens Brewing Company in Silver Spring, Maryland.  It is their Macadocious Maibock and it has all you can ask for in a summer beer.  It is hoppy for the IPA lovers out there.  It has malts for those who don't want to have that hoppy aftertaste in their mouths, and it has subtle floral hints with a light body that makes you feel like you are drinking summer in a can.  There is a little something for everyone in this beer, so if your're over 21 please support local breweries and pick up a 6-pack as you try to enjoy watching the Nationals who had a little something for everyone this week as well.

If you wanted to see futility there was certainly enough of that to go around.  The Nats split their four game series with the last place Mets, and during that time they gave the Mets their 7th win in 27 home games and allowed Mets pitcher Zack Wheeler to get his first home win in over a year.  Speaking of pitching, most of the Nats starting pitching had a rough week.  The quintet of Scherzer, Gio, Roark, Rodriguez, and newcomer Austin Voth combined for one win, four losses, 24.1 innings, and a 8.14 ERA.  To be fair, Scherzer got the lone win and his 11th hit of the season (tied for first among pitchers), Gio lost a 2-0 decision, Roark hit the first triple by a Nats pitcher since 2007, and 13 of the 22 runs given up were from Rodriguez and Voth, but there needs to be more consistency within the rotation if the Nats intend to make up ground on their new NL East overlords to the north.  The Nats hitters had their own problems, as the Nats saw the return of Matt Wieters this week only to have him reaffirm that the catcher position will be a perpetual black hole this year as he was 2 for 18 with a .150 OBP.  Not be outdone was Trea Turner, who had to face a little bit of regression to the mean this week as he he was only 3 for 26 with an OBP of .178 and an OPS of .331. Those are not the numbers of a lead off hitter, but Turner's OBP each of the last four weeks was over .300, and two of those weeks it was over .400.  Let's just hope this is the universe playing cooler to Trea Turner and he can get back on track after the All-Star break.  It was not all bad news, though, as Nats fans who are fond of relief pitching, dominant starts from pitchers returning from the DL, OPS, and Daniel Murphy were treated this week.

The Nats bullpen has been much maligned since the beginning of June, but this week saw a reversal of fortune.  The Nats bullpen threw 20.2 innings and only gave up 2 earned runs while incurring no losses. Special nods go out to Ryan Madson, who in his three appearances gave up only one hit, one walk, and got the Nats' only save this week, and to Shawn Kelley who had his third straight week of shut out relief.  Kelley has only allowed 3 earned runs in his last 18 innings, and his ERA has dropped from 4.4 in the beginning of June to 2.54.  The Nats also had a pitching bright spot in Jeremy Hellickson.  Hellickson redeemed himself from his 4 inning nightmare last week to give up only 1 run in 2 games and get two of the Nats 3 wins this week.  Have a Maibock in hopes that Hellickson can lock down his starting position as Strasburg continues to rehab. The Nats hitting also had their bright spots as three Nats had an OPS over 1.0 this week.  Anthony Rendon (1.07 OPS), Adam Eaton (1.04 OPS), and Daniel Murphy (1.29 OPS) combined for 11 RBI, 4 doubles, and three home runs (all from Rendon), and honorable mentions go to Matt Adams whose SLG% was a .521 this week with 2 home runs.  Daniel Murphy also gets kudos for going 8 for 15 this week, and getting his 2 RBI's in a bases loaded pinch hitting situation against the Mets.  Now, let's see if he can do that against teams that didn't foolishly let him go in free agency.

Finally, this week saw the return of the legend of Bryce Harper as he won the Home Run Derby in dramatic fashion. Whatever this does for the Nationals season going forward, it has to show the Lerners that they need to start doing inventory on their assets to see how much they can offer Harper at the end of the year.  He is the straw that stirs the drink for the Nationals, and despite some of his numbers being down this year, he will be able to buoy the Nationals in times of need as he showed on Monday night.  It also showed that he wants to be here if given the opportunity, he will play his heart out for this city, and The Home Run Derby also showed that they cannot just let Harper walk without proposing a competitive offer if they want to save face with the fan base.  Harper wore his heart on his sleeve for the first time in a while, and he showed a glimpse of what he could give this city if he is locked up for the long term.  For now, though, lets just hope this inspires the Nats to close the 5.5 game gap with the Phillies once the season gets going on Friday.  Three games with the Braves this weekend and then it is off to Milwaukee to face the Brewers for a four game stretch. 

The Nats Craft Beer of the Week

This rendition of The Nats Craft Beer of the Week stays close to home with 16 Bar Stools from the Brookeville Beer Farm in Montgomery County, Maryland.  This is Brookeville's version of a Belgian Tripel, and while it has the signature sweet taste at the end that all Belgian Tripels have, Brookeville puts their own stamp on this beer to make it great for drinking in the summer.  There are tangy citrus notes to go along with a rich flavor and smooth body that masks the fact that it has an 8% ABV.  Please drink responsibly as the high ABV is coupled with high volume units (it is only sold in 16 oz. cans), and enjoy a unique Belgian Tripel in the hot DC sun.

The Nats certainly could have used a nice refresher early in the week as they were swept by the Red Sox and fell 7 games behind the Braves in the NL East.  The Nats were only able to score 7 runs in that series, which included a shutout in the last game, that led to Max Scherzer calling a players only meeting.  The meeting must have worked because the Nats went 3-1 against the Marlins in their next series scoring a total of 37 runs and coming back from the largest deficit in Nationals history (9-0) in the first game of the series.  The Nats hitters woke up against the lowly Marlins pitching staff, and there were some hitters who had an absolutely monster week at the plate.

Trea Turner and Mark Reynolds both had 2 home run games this week, with Trea Turner doing it in the comeback game on Thursday.  Turner hit his first career grand slam in that game that put the Nationals ahead 10-9, and he registered 8 RBI's in that game.  Turner's weekly OPS continues to be respectable at a .833, and he was even able to go 3 for 7 this week with runners in scoring postion. Not to be outdone was Mark Reynolds who hit 2 home runs this past Saturday in an 18-4 drubbing of the Marlins.  Reynolds also went 5 for 5 in that game with 10 RBI, which is only the fourth time that has happened in MLB history.  Reynolds was not a one hit wonder this week, however, going 10 for 14 (5 for 6 with runners in scoring position) with 12 RBI, 3 HR including a walk off HR on Friday Night, an OPS of 2.26, and he even pitched and got the last out for the Nats in a 10-2 loss on Sunday.

Turner and Reynolds were the leaders of an offensive explosion as all players were able to get at least one RBI this week, except for Michael Taylor, there were five Nats who hit over .300 (Reynolds, Turner, Adams, Goodwin, Taylor), and there were five players who had an OBP of over .400 this week (Reynolds, Adams, Soto, Goodwin, Taylor, Harper).  Harper's OBP this week should be a sign that he needs to be hitting higher in the lineup.  In his last 57 plate appearances he has an OBP of .473, but he has only hit .210 in that same sample size.  Bryce should be hitting either first or second in the lineup in order to get on base for the likes of Matt Adams, Mark Reynolds, and Anthony Rendon who should be in the three or four spot whenever they are in the lineup.  Reynolds' sample size maybe small, but his slugging percentage was a 1.5 this week, and Adams was 0.533.  The Nats will need to generate more runs as the pitching staff continues to suffer; Literally and figuratively.

Erick Fedde had to leave the 3-0 loss to Boston in the first inning with shoulder soreness, and while the MRI came back negative it is not a good sign for the Nats starting pitching when Strasburg's timetable for return in unknown.  That led to a week where the Nats bullpen threw a whopping 29.2 innings this week with some good and some bad.  The bullpen threw four scoreless innings on Friday Night in the 3-2 walk off win, but they also gave up 6 runs in 5 innings in a 10-2 loss on Sunday.  Ryan Madson was the leader in futility going only 0.2 innings with 4 ER on Sunday, and he got the loss on Wednesday against the red Sox.  Since June 4 Madson has thrown 10 innings of relief with an ERA of 8.44 and a WHIP of 2.15.  Madson may have been the works offender this week, but most of the Nats pitching took their lumps this week in their appearances.  Evidence of this was the fact that Shawn Kelley was the only Nats pitcher, starter or reliever, to throw 5 or more innings this week and not give up an earned run.  This may say more about the bullpen than the starting pitching, but the starters were OK at best this week.  Of the three wins the Nats had this week only one went to a starter and that was Max Scherzer on Saturday.  The other starters this week were shaky at best with Gio needing 114 pitches to get out of 5 innings in the 3-2 win on Friday, Jeremy Hellickson made his return this week and was responsible for all 9 runs in the comeback win on Thursday, and Tanner Roark pitched 11 innings this week giving up 20 hits, 13 ER, and he was charged with 2 losses.

Here's hoping that the Nats starters can get it together this coming week considering they are still 5 games back of the Braves, but with Jeffrey Rodriguez getting the start tonight expect a high flying affair.  In Rodriguez's last two starts he threw 9 combined innings and gave up 9 runs, but the Nats won both games.  Lucky for Rodriguez that the Nats have the Pirates for a three game series, and then travel to the Big Apple to face the bottom feeding Mets.  After this week the Nats will have not had a day off since June 27, so grab some 16 Bar Stools and have one for the Nats as they continue to grind and get back into first place in the NL East.

The Nats Craft Beer of the Week

A more familiar face graces this week's Nats Craft Beer of the Week because in times of turmoil you need a friend to tell you everything is going to be OK.  Sierra Nevada's Sidecar IPA does just that.  Sidecar is a variation of Sierra Nevada's classic Pale Ale, but it tones down the hops a tad in favor of a subtle orange flavor that is complimented by hints of malts that makes this a perfect summer beer.  You'll get a little bit of everything without having to be bombarded by an overwhelming hop flavor, and with a 6.8% ABV it will also get the job done where it counts so please drink responsibly.  Hopefully you grabbed a Sidecar while hugging a loved one this past week as you watched a mostly depressing week for the Nationals.

This past week saw the Nationals go 1-5 on the road against the Rays and Phillies, which increased their deficit in the NL East to 6 games.  The Nats also find themselves three games back in the NL Wildcard race, and with a 6-15 record in their last 21 games things are starting to get a little worrisome for the defending NL East Champions.  This week, especially, saw some team stats that are quite depressing.  The Nats had 238 plate appearances counting walks and HBP's.  They struck out in 60 of those plate appearances, which means that every time the Nats went through the order this week they struck out about twice on average.  Those whiffs at the plate were complimented by a .173 average with runners in scoring position this week.  The Nats had their lowest weekly total RISP at bats (46) in June, their lowest weekly RISP hits (8) in June, and four of those 8 hits came in one game, so you can see how the Nats were shut out twice again this week which brought the total number of times the Nats were shut out in June to seven.  The RISP hitting was a symptom of the Nats hitting under .200 in three of the six games this week, and in two of the remaining three games they could not crack .250.  Usually the Nats pitching gets them out of these kinds of funks, but aside from Max Scherzer and Tanner Roark the starters were less than impressive this week.

Scherzer pitched an absolute gem against Tampa on Tuesday, but he felt the Nats hitting futility first hand as the Nats were only able to muster three hits in a 1-0 loss.  Tanner Roark also had a fine outing giving up two runs, one earned, in six innings only to lose 4-3.  Other than those starts, the Nats went from mediocre to horrendous.  Jeremy Hellickson made his first start since being put on the DL June 4th and he gave up 3 runs in 4.2 innings, which is not bad but not great either due to the fact that the Nats could not drive in runs this week.  Even in their massive 17-7 win on Friday, Erick Fedde gave up 5 runs in 5 innings.  Gio Gonzalez, though, had the worst week of them all.  Gio collected two ugly losses this week that saw the return of the classic Gio Gonzalez meltdown.  He had two 40 pitch innings this week where he issued 7 total walks and gave up 9 earned runs.  In fact, over his last 5 starts Gio has pitched only 19.1 innings with a WHIP of 2.12 and an ERA of 9.31.  Lets hope he can get back on track this week because the bullpen also did not do the starters any favors.  Kelvin Herrera was the only reliever to not give up an earned run this week, and have a Sidecar for Justin Miller who gave up the walk off home run to the Phillies on Saturday that capped off a week where he threw 121 pitches in 6.2 innings of relief.  The only Nats pitcher to throw more pitches this week than Justin Miller was Gio Gonzalez, so maybe we see a little more of Kelvin Herrera this week to give Miller a break.  The Nats pitching, though, put them within one run four times this week, but the bats just could not get it done.

The Nats had five hitters (Goodwin, Taylor, Harper, Murphy, and Severino) hit for under .200 this week. Taylor and Severino are the futility winners as they both hit under .100 for the week.  Even the mighty Juan Soto came down to Earth this week, as he hit only .250 with 8 K's and 4 walks.  He still was able to go 2 for 8 in RISP situations, the best average for the Nats, and his 2 home runs this week kept his OPS above .800, but he needs to pick up more of the slack from the struggling line up.  The only two hitters who kept up their hot pace this past week were Anthony Rendon (.333 BA, 1.12 OPS, 5 RBI, 2HR) and Trea Turner (.375 BA, .964 OPS, 2 RBI, 7 Runs), which should give Nationals fans hope that Davey Martinez can adjust the lineup to get more offense going.  Even Bryce Harper, despite his hitting woes, was able to lead the Nats this week with a .481 because of his 10 walks this week, so Davey needs to get these bats going by maybe shaking up the order a bit. 

My vote would be moving Bryce back to lead off and then going Turner (whose average and OBP has been one of the most consistent on the team), Rendon, Eaton (he has hit .333 with runners in scoring position this month), then Soto.  The six through nine hitters seem to be interchangeable, although I will continue to champion Kieboom over Severino at the catcher spot.

Whatever the lineup will be this coming week, the Nats better get in gear as the Red Sox come to town for a three games series followed by the Marlins. Hopefully the Nats can gain some ground on the Braves this week to stay within striking distance.

The Nats Craft Beer of the Week

SweetDCSports is taking a little bit of a detour from traditional summer brews with this beer in honor of a somewhat dismal week from the Nationals.  This week's beer comes from Deschutes Brewery in Bend, Oregon and it is their Black Butte Porter.  Do not let it's dark color fool you. This beer is surprisingly easy to drink and goes down smooth, with just the right hints of coffee and chocolate to give it a wonderfully unique roasted flavor.  At 5.2% ABV and a light, creamy body it is a wonderful addition to any summer barbecue, and it is surprisingly affordable for a beer that comes from so far away.  It's dark color outlines a week for the Nationals that saw a little bit of ups, mostly downs, rain delays, and time travel.

 The Nats went back to the future as they made up a game last Monday against the Yankees that got rained out after 5 innings on May 15.  Technically those stats retroactively count for May 15, so Juan Soto hit his first major league home run 5 days before his official major league debut.  Wild stuff.  Fortunately that home run proved to be the difference as the Nats were able to win that game, and Soto continues to be a terror within the Nats lineup.  Soto hit .360 this week with an OPS of 1.14, which includes an OBP of .500 due to his 7 walks this week compared to only 4 K's.  Soto is even gaining the respect of pitchers as he was intentionally walked to load the bases on Sunday night against the Phillies in tied game in the 8th.  Daniel Murphy made them pay for that with a go ahead two run single, and Michael Taylor drove in Soto on the following at bat to take an 8-6 lead that the Nats would not relinquish.  Soto also joins Trea Turner and Anthony Rendon as the Nats whose OPS were above 1.00 this week, with honorable mention going to Michael Taylor whose OPS was a .970.

Speaking of Rendon, pop some Black Butte Porters for the guy who single-handedly carried this team through the week with eye popping numbers. He hit .448 this week with 3 HR's, 7 RBI, an OPS of 1.36 that includes a slugging percentage of .896.  The guy is getting it done, especially in the absence of Bryce Harper and Daniel Murphy, but signs are pointing to those two coming around.  Murphy has 4 RBI in his last two games, and although Bruce only hit .240 this week, all of his six hits were doubles and he managed to have 3 RBI from the leadoff/second spot in the lineup.  Here's hoping those numbers increase for both Harper and Murphy, because if they can round out into form I pity the pitcher who has to face the Nats' 1-6 hitters, and Wilmer Difo is proving that he is not as easy of an out this week hitting .307.  While things may be looking up, there are a number of things that are keeping the Nats perpetually three games behind the Braves.

The Nats' woes this week start with the pitching, and send some Black Butte Porter to the bullpen who had major innings duty this week.  The Nats bullpen threw for a combined 30.1 innings of baseball and had a combined ERA of 4.15, with Sammy Solis contributing the lion's share of 5 earned runs in 3.1 innings.  Newcomer Kelvin Herrera was solid in his first relief appearance, but allowed 2 runs in the 8th to break a 3-3 tie on Saturday.  Let's just hope that is just not being familiar with the National League hitters.  The starters also had their foibles, with Tanner Roark giving up 6 earned runs in only 4.1 innings of duty. In fact, in is last 4 starts Roark's WHIP is a 1.83, meaning that he is allowing two base runners per inning over the last 4 games.  Not good.  But all the Nats starters were not that great, as no Nats starter was able to garner a win this week.  Jefry Rodriguez pitched in two unlikely wins as he gave up 9 earned runs in 9 innings this week, but the Nats were able to win both of those games.  Maybe he has an effect on the hitting, because outside of those two games the Nats batted .218 with an RISP average of .102 (4 for 39) this week.  The Nats could not give any run support to likes of Scherzer or Gio, and the main culprit is Pedro Severino.

With Matt Wieters out, Severino has been the guy at catcher but mainly because he is a warm body that takes up space.  Severino is a ripe 3 for his last 42 at bats (yes you are reading that right) with only 3 walks, 1 RBI, and he is 1 for 9 with runners in scoring position.  Compare those numbers to Spencer Kieboom who is 4 for his last 15 with 5 walks, 1 RBI, and he has scored 2 runs and it may be time to give the catching duties to Kieboom even if there are concerns about defense.  Severino has been a black hole over the last three weeks, and if the upper part of the order is going to get on base and create offense they need someone at the bottom to keep it going.  Here's to Kieboom getting more of the starts this week as Wieters continues to rehab.

The Nats squandered a home stretch as they will be on the road this upcoming week.  They have two games in Tampa with Gio and Max on the hill, and then they fly back north to face the Phillies for a four game series that will have major implications for the NL East standings as the All-Star Break approaches.  Hopefully the trio of Fedde, Roark, and Rodriguez can pull it together this week so the Nats can keep pace with the Braves.  Rodriguez's starts have been especially entertaining, so grab a couple of Black Butte Porters as you cheer on the Nats this week.

The Nats Craft Beer of the Week

This week's craft beer come from the Brawling Bear Brewing Company located right here in Maryland.  It is their Low Blow Blonde Ale, and it is the perfect compliment to watching baseball in the summer.  The beautiful golden color belies a crisp and refreshing beer that one would expect from a blonde ale.  What is unexpected is the malt undertones that gives this beer a wonderful flavor that is a welcome detour from the never ending dross of IPA's that show up at this time.  Low Blow also packs a little bit of a punch at 6% ABV, which is higher than a normal blonde ale, so please drink responsibly. 

Responsible drinking may have proven to be a difficult task this week as the Nationals went 1-4 and fell 3.5 games behind the Braves for the NL East lead.  This futility was fueled by a number of firsts for the Nats pitching staff.  Max Scherzer lost his second consecutive game on Saturday, which was the first time he had lost two consecutive games in over three years.  Justin Miller finally gave up his first run of the season in a 6-5 loss to Toronto, and Ryan Madson gave up his first home run on Sunday in over a year.  Unfortunately it took 5 minutes for Madson to give up another home run as the Blue Jays went back to back off of Madson in the 8th inning to break a 6-6 tie and send the Nats home without a win in their trip to the great white north.  Speaking of home runs, Nats pitching gave up 12 home runs this week, and they have given up 19 home runs in the last 11 games.  That is not a good recipe for success, and something the Nationals need to clean up going forward.  The Nationals' pitching firsts this week were a little depressing, but the hitting firsts were a little more joyus, even if it did not translate into many wins.

This week saw the return of Daniel Murphy to the lineup, and while he went 2 for 20 at the plate this week that second hit drove in a run on Sunday and it looks as if he is getting back into form.  Juan Soto made some firsts this week as well.  Soto hit two home runs against the Yankees on Wednesday making him the youngest National to ever hit 2 home runs in a game, and he is the youngest player to have a 4 RBI game since 1975.  Those two home runs also gave Soto his second consecutive week where his OPS was above .900 (.981), and while his batting average is nothing special over that same time frame (.264) he is proving to be the Nats' main producer of extra base hits.  If Soto was the extra base hit man then Michael Taylor and Adam Eaton were the ones that padded the Nats' average.  Taylor went 6 for 10 this week and had four stolen bases, and Eaton went 6 for 18 with an RBI.  Anthony Rendon also did a little bit of everything as he went 5 for 18 (.277), he had an OBP of .333, and he was 2 for 4 with runners in scoring position.  Speaking of runners in scoring position, who has had the most RISP at bats for the Nationals over the last two weeks?  That's right, it is Wilmer Difo. Difo has had 17 at bats over the last two weeks with runners in scoring position, and with those opportunities he has only mustered 2 hits and one RBI.  It may be time for Davey Martinez to move Taylor down to the 7-8 spot and have Difo hit earlier in order to drive in more runs.  Difo's struggles, though, are nothing compared to the Nats' biggest hole in the lineup this week.

Bryce Harper continued his hitting woes as he went 1 for 16 (.063), no RBI, and 8 strikeouts.  In fact, Harper has struck out 16 times over his last 38 at bats.  Luckily he was able to draw three walks, and get hit by two pitches, this week to make his OBP not suck, but Bryce is watching his $400 million pay day slowly slip away.  Hopefully he can get back on track this week as the lowly Orioles come to Nats Park for a three game series.  Following the O's are the Phillies as the battle for second place in the NL East will take place.  Kicking of the week, though, will be the Yankees, who come to town to make up the suspended game from May 16.  Hopefully, the Nats can right the ship and close the gap between them and the Braves this week, so enjoy a Low Blow Blonde Ale and hope the Nats can put up better performances this coming week. 

The Nats Craft Beer of the Week

SweetDCSports is bringing back posts that it started in its infancy.  There is nothing better in the summer than watching baseball and drinking beer, so we are bringing back the Washington Nationals Craft Beer of the Week.  Get your weekly Nationals update along with a craft beer suggestion that you can buy at your local stores.  Please note that these beers are my personal choice and in no way are endorsed by the Washington Nationals, and do not buy them if you are under 21.  So, without futher ado...

The first beer chosen is in honor of the Washington Capitals winning the Stanley Cup, and how that made everyone in DC feel about themselves.  Jovial is a Belgian Style Double Ale from Troegs Independent Brewing in Hersey, Pennsylvania, and it is a great alternative for those looking for relief from the unending parade of flavored IPA's that come out in the summer.  The chocolate, toffee, and molasses flavor will make you feel better about yourself, and the cork at the top will let everyone at the party know that you are better than them.  At 7% ABV please drink responsibly as you watch the Nationals try to hit the ball a little bit more consistently than they did this past week.

Not even Alex Ovechkin could make Bryce Harper feel more jovial as the Capitals descended on Nats Park on Saturday on their Stanley Cup Drinking Binge 2018.  Ovechkin raised the Cup every time Harper took the plate, but maybe his rooting for the Golden Knights gave him some bad juju.  Harper had 8 strikeouts this week to go along with a paltry .181 average and a .217 OBP that led the Nationals to a 3-3 record over the last 6 games.  Wilmer Difo may need a jolt as well, considering he led the team with 8 plate appearances with runners in scoring position and got as many hits as I did in those situations.  It may be time for Davey Martinez to look and see if the lineup can be switched to give someone more of an opportunity in those situations, but the Nats only hit .277 in RISP situations so the grass can only get a little greener.  And pass an old Jovial to Brian Goodwin and Pedro Severino who need to forget their 0 for 7 and 0 for 12 week and try to move on.  It also may be time to see more of Spencer Kieboom as he had a big hit in Saturday's win against the Giants, and went 2 for 6 overall this week with an RBI.  The pitching situation was just as depressing as the Nats saw Strasburg, Kintzler, and Hellickson go on the DL, and even the intrepid Max Scherzer gave up three walks in a 2-0 loss on Monday.

Not all was doom and gloom this week.  Juan Soto continued his sensational season this week with a .934 OPS (including a .434 OBP), 5 runs, 3 RBI, and drawing a whopping 5 walks.  Michael Taylor and Matt Adams also gave the Nats some on base help as they both had OBP and batting average's above .400 this week, with Taylor also having an OPS above 1.  Anthony Renson also chipped in with hitting close to .300 this week, and he was 3 for 6 in RISP situations.  There was even an Adam Eaton sighting as he went 1 for 4 and scored 2 runs in Saturday's win against the Giants.  Most of the bullpen was on point, and Sean Doolittle was 2 for 2 in save situations this week, but there just needs to be more consistency across the board as the Nats continue on a tough week ahead.

First up are the Yankees, as the Nats begin a road tour of the AL as they will spend two days in New York and fly further north for a three game series against the Blue Jays.  Hopefully, Matt Adams gets the lion's share of the DH duties as the Nats try to stay atop the NL East with the Braves this week.  Pop a couple of Jovials and enjoy the week to come.

The Caps Winning The Stanley Cup Has Killed DC Fandom

What are DC Sports Fans supposed to do now?  The Capitals historic win on Thursday Night eradicated all of what being a fan of DC Sports is all about.  Pain.  Misery.  Self Loathing.  Getting high off of crazy preseason optimism knowing that it will all come crashing down in some horrible self fulfilling prophecy in the playoffs.  Doing simple arithmetic to show others how you have never seen, or were too young to remember, a professional championship in DC.  All of that is gone now.  What is left is something that will define the type of fan base this city truly has and whether it is ready to support sports teams through genuine fandom, or if their support only goes as far as frenzied feelings of FOMO.

DC Fans seemed to take the frivolous statement from Michael Wilbon, that Washington DC was a "minor league sports town", a little too much to heart, and they were a little too quick to point to the outpouring of fans at the Caps viewing party Thursday night as evidence to the contrary.  While it was amazing to see how many people came out to support the Caps, many of those people were there to be a part of the scene rather than show their enduring support for a team they have cheered for for years.  Stories were abound about how these Stanley Cup Playoff Games were the first hockey games that a lot of these people watched, and they went down to Capital One Arena on Thursday simply because they did not want to miss out on the festivities.  But winning a championship does not instantaneously turn these people into regular fans.  Just ask the Carolina Hurricanes how many interlopers from their 2006 Stanley Cup Championship are still there.  Or look at the Miami Marlins, who would kill for a quarter of the people who jumped on their bandwagon in 1997 and 2003 to still be there today.  DC Sports fans now find themselves in a similar situation.  The Capitals have drawn in multitudes of fans to their cause, but mostly due to fear of missing out on a social scene.  It will take more than that to prove Michael Wilbon wrong, and now it is time to see if DC Fandom truly has what it takes to foster a genuine "sports town" atmosphere.

The Capitals have removed the security blanket from DC Fans by winning the Stanley Cup.  For so long the narrative has been that it is hard to develop a genuine sports culture in DC because of so much ineptitude, impotence, and playoff tragedies galore from all the DC professional sports teams.  Most of that has been washed away by the Capitals victory on Thursday night.  Fans were witness to a team that was intelligently put together and mentored throughout the season.  They saw the likes of Max Scherzer, Ryan Zimmerman, and Derrius Guice show their support for the Caps on their run to the Cup.  The teams are doing all they can to create a unified sense among all the different teams and superstars, and now they have at least one championship to show for this shared unity.  It is now on the fans of Washington DC to show that they will show long term support for a team like the Capitals because they love the sport, and not because they love the number of Instagram likes they get when they post stuff with #ALLCAPS.  DC Fans now must show that they can evolve from a fan base of self loathing to one that can legitimately support their teams by watching games and becoming informed fans, and not just jump on every time a championship rolls around.  The Capitals have put the onus on DC Fans to prove that this city can be more than an event driven town that fluctuates based on the level of attention each sport will bring to the individual.  DC fans need to show that this city can be one with an informed fan base that will continue to grow in mass no matter what time of year it is.  If this does not happen, then maybe DC is just a minor league sports town, but we know now that it is not because of the nature of the teams.  It is the nature of the fans.  

The Capitals Exposed the Golden Knights

As Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Finals looms on the horizon, there are still some people who continue the narrative that the Golden Knights are the literal incarnation of the cosplay character that adorns their home pregame festivities.  But that Golden Knight is just a guy in a suit, and the Las Vegas Golden Knights unfortunately have to play a real hockey game against a team that showed they are not afraid of the tall tales that have vaulted Vegas into an almost mythic realm.  Washington's win in Game 2 very subtly exposed some of the weaknesses in the Las Vegas's style of play, and it showed that the Capitals have the ability to match the one thing that makes the Legend of the Las Vegas Golden Knights live.  Relentlessness.

All the Golden Knights have going for them is they are relentless.  Nothing else.  This relentlessness is predicated on a few misinterpreted qualities that have been attributed to them throughout the playoffs that the Capitals exposed as dubious in Game 2.  

First, Vegas is not fast.  They are quick.  The Golden Knights are quick in short spaces which allows them to close the distance to the puck better than the other team and cause discomfort in their opponents when they are trying to exit their defensive zone.  Their speed is questionable, however, due to the Capitals dominating them in odd man rushes in Game 2.  If the Knights are so "fast" how can they let those odd man rushes be so lop sided?  It is because The Golden Knights are not fast in the open ice, they are quick to hound the puck within smaller zones.  Their overly zealous forecheck leaves the susceptible to teams getting behind them in transition and the Capitals exploited that in Game 2.

Second, Vegas's lines are all second line quality, except they lack the skill necessary to play under a controlled pace.  Watch the 4v4 play from Game 2.  Everyone was expecting the Knights to run the Caps with more open ice in 4v4 but that was not the case.  Vegas backed off on their relentless forecheck that allowed the Capitals more breathing room in their exits out of the defensive zone, and when the Knights tried to get aggressive in 4v4 play it led to a wide open goal by Lars Eller.  The Capitals also exposed this lack of skill when they went down 5v3.  The Knights looked lost when they actually had to create plays that require deft passing and the time to develop open shots, and their lack of high quality scoring chances with a 1:09 5v3 advantage shows that their lines lack the skill to play in a controlled environment.  If they cannot generate quick chances off of their forecheck, which they are very good at, then their offense seems to sputter and the Capitals exposed that fact in Game 2.

Finally, the notion that Vegas's zeal could not be replicated (or that Washington's could not get any greater) is a crock.  The Golden Knights are seeing that the Capitals can match the vigor with which they play, and the Capitals add an extra piece of perseverance to the table that Vegas seems ill equipped to handle.  The Capitals are proving that their journey through the Eastern Conference Playoffs has prepared them for the relentless style of play that the Golden Knights bring, and that they will not be bullied by a team of lower ability and skill.  Vegas's success is predicated on the notion that their relentlessness will eventually wear the other team down to the point where they will make a mistake, but the Capitals showed that they can overcome that style of play and counter with a type of play that the Golden Knights cannot match.  It remains to be seen who comes out on top, but the Capitals have shown that the Golden Knights are no better than any other show in Las Vegas.

Ovechkin's Legend Continues To Grow

Very few fan bases get to witness a legend being made right before their eyes.  Even fewer get to see that happen to someone who has already established themselves as one of the greatest players to ever play their sport, but that is what Capitals fans have witnessed over the last two playoff series.  Alex Ovechkin continued his march out of his stat compiler purgatory on Wednesday Night by winning a Game 7 on the road to win the Eastern Conference Championship.  That win caused a frenzied scene in DC that was a personification of the frustration that DC Sports Fans have felt over the last 25 years without cheering for a team in a championship capacity.  DC fans, though, should not see Ovechkin's feats this year in the playoffs as merely a necessary means to break an arbitrary curse.  They should appreciate it for what it is; one of the greatest players of his generation finally getting the chance to fulfill his destiny in a Washington Capitals uniform.  Few fan bases get to see something like this because it is not the normal way that sports legends are made.

When a player gets drafted to be the savior of a franchise it usually does not take them as long, or go through as arduous of a career, as Alex Ovechkin has to make good on that promise.  Usually the savior comes in and within 5-8 years they lead their team into a position to win a championship.  Look at Jordan, Lebron, Gretzky, Bonds, Kobe, Crosby (sorry Caps fans, but its true), or Peyton Manning.  These greats had early growing pains, but within a short time frame they were able to lead their teams to the championship rounds, and most of them were able to win it all.  Even stat mongers like Dan Marino and Karl Malone were able to get to the gates of promised land early on, even if they were never able to finish the job. Capitals fans, though, are watching a unique career arc that has made this Stanley Cup berth all the more special.  For twelve years Alex Ovechkin has garnered numerous individual accolades without even having a chance to compete for a Conference Championship.  He has had to persevere through numerous coaching changes, accusations of lax work ethic, yearnings from the fan base to trade him from Washington, and countless epithets about  how his time to win a championship had passed.  He now finds himself with a new centerpiece for his dining room table and chance to give Caps fans a storied career that no other fan base has witnessed.

This blog has written about Alex Ovechkin's championship futility time and again, and what it means for his place in the annals of DC Sports History.  If Ovechkin is able to win the Stanley Cup this year it will solidify him as the greatest athlete the DC area has ever seen.  Ovechkin has become one of the greatest goal scorers of all time, and he has taken a niche franchise and made it the toast of the town.  Even the Redskins are taking a back seat for the next two weeks as the Capitals try to bring the first professional championship to Washington DC in a quarter century.  Ovechkin has ignited the entire city, and he has drawn even the most novice of DC Sports fan into the Capitals' orbit through his perseverance through adversity.  No other major sports figure played 12 years in the same city and fought through countless write offs to finally deliver their fan base from misery.  Now he has the chance to achieve a level of greatness that no other sports figure has attained within the DC area, and he could give DC Fans a storied career that is unique to the DC Fan experience.  As the Caps take the ice in Las Vegas on Monday Night, Caps fans should keep in mind that Ovechkin has already made them privy to a unique making of a hockey legend and bringing a Stanley Cup to Washington will make them witness to the crowning of the new king of DC Sports. 

Legalized Gambling Will End the NCAA

The title of this article may be misleading, but there is no denying what came out of the Supreme Court's decision on last Monday.  The State of New Jersey won it's case against the NCAA, and now the legalization of sports gambling is in the hands of state legislatures.  What once was a vice that everyone tacitly accepted, despite it's resounding illegality in most parts of the country, could be as American as apple pie within a matter of months depending on the vigor with which each state decides to pursue the issue.  Hanging in the balance is the dogma of amateurism that the NCAA continues to crusade under despite rapidly changing times and lingering PR issues.  People have always bet on college sports, but the illegality of the enterprise made it taboo and harder for people to try and fix the outcome of games.  Now with the decision left to the whim of 50 state legislatures, the NCAA finds it's amateurism in peril because legalized gambling will eventually tear down the NCAA's money making monopoly through the inevitability of point shaving.  To understand why this will happen, let's look at how the Supreme Court came to their decision in this case because it outlines the NCAA's quest to bar state's from legalized sports betting.

The heart of the lawsuit brought by the state of New Jersey is centered around the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA).  PASPA was passed by Congress in 1992, and it was intended to stem the tide of sports betting.  Sports betting that had existed prior to PASPA was grandfathered into legality, i.e. sports books in Las Vegas, but PASPA made it unlawful for any future State, its subdivisions, or private entities “to sponsor, operate, advertise, promote, license, or authorize by law or compact ... a lottery, sweepstakes, or other betting, gambling, or wagering scheme based ... on” competitive sporting events.  This makes it sound like PASPA made it a crime for a state to legalize sports betting, but the funny thing is that it didn't.  PASPA only allowed the Attorney General, as well as professional and amateur sports organizations, to bring civil actions to prohibit violations.  And sue they did.  New Jersey tried to legalize sports betting in 2012 and 2014, even going so far as to put language in the 2014 bill that narrowed sports betting "only to wagers on sporting events not involving a New Jersey college team or a collegiate event taking place in the State", but that was not good enough for the NCAA.  They sued New Jersey under PASPA both times and won.  New Jersey appealed to the Supreme Court after the 2014 decision, and the Supreme Court on ruled in favor of the State of New Jersey.  Their reasoning was that PASPA violated the 10th Amendment, which states that the Federal Government cannot intervene in State Legislatures' decisions so long as they do not violate standing Federal Statutes, due to the ambiguity of what States were allowed to pass into law regarding sports betting.  If you're really interested you can read the entire Supreme Court Decision here, but this decision has massive ramifications for the NCAA that will lead to only one conclusion if they continue to be steadfast in their defense of amateurism.  Point shaving.

The idea that point shaving could be more prevalent in college sports with the legalization of sports betting has been met with vehement scoffing from those in the gaming industry.  The idea has been passed off as absurd, and that legalization will weed out the shadier side of sports betting and allow legitimate businesses to increase their already extensive policing apparatus for identifying point shaving scandals.  But why then put the language in the original bill that wagers on New Jersey college teams, or college events happening in New Jersey, would not be permitted?  Because the state of New Jersey knew that athletes making no money for an institution that makes billions would be ripe for bettors to influence if their actions were legalized.  The same people who scoff at the notion of point shaving are leading the charge for college sports to be put on the books for everyone to place bets, and therein lies the problem for the NCAA.  There are about 130 major college football teams and 351 basketball teams.  Until now all legitimate betting had to go through Las Vegas.  The Supreme Court now gives license for all states to have sports betting, and the NCAA now has some serious oversight issues on their hands.

The reasons that Las Vegas was able to identify point shaving schemes in the past was they had a monitoring system in place that was designed to notice irregularities with money coming in on certain games.  If there was a large sum of money coming in on Ohio State vs. Michigan football that may not be as unusual as a large influx of money for Akron vs. Eastern Michigan.  That is how they were able to bust point shaving scandals in the early to mid 90's.  But now the influx of money will increase everywhere, and the number of places those bets could be placed could grow exponentially.  A large increase in betting for an Akron football game may be odd in Las Vegas, but it may not be in Ohio.  Therein lies the problem for the NCAA.  They now have to worry that their almost 500 teams with tens of thousands of athletes will be susceptible to people placing bets all over the country.  And the bettors can now spread out their bets over multiple areas.  Hopefully legislatures think about that when they develop their gambling laws, but now some nefarious entity engaging in point shaving does not have to place $50,000 on one game in Las Vegas and arouse suspicion.  They could spread that out over multiple states to gain the same amount of money and not raise any red flags at any one casino.  I know, that is assuming that they get the same line in all places, but that goes to the point.  There will be so much betting to monitor that it is only a matter of time before the NCAA has a major point shaving scandal on their hands.  Think about how much money will be coming in on things like the National Championship games in football and basketball, and all the prop bets that surround those games.  Is it unreasonable to think that some bettor may offer money to a player in the National Championship to make sure that there are no more than 10 three pointers made in the first half so he can win his prop bet?  Or maybe there is a bettor in Mississippi who got a different prop bet and wants to make sure it pays off.  The idea is that betting will become so prevalent that it will be harder for casinos, especially ones nascent in the realm of sports betting, to pick up on the irregularities that are the initial indicators or point shaving scandals.  This difficulty will allow point shaving to occur, and it is only a matter of time before it occurs on a grand stage a la the Black Sox Scandal.  That is unless the NCAA is willing to lay down the sword of amateurism.

The longer the athletes in the NCAA don't get paid while the institution they play for, and now the fans that come to see them, make billions of dollars off of their talents, the higher the level of point shaving will occur.  The NCAA has to see that the legalization of sports betting all but eradicates the idea that amateurism is a viable vessel for college athletes to take them on their journey through their sport while keeping everyone's integrity intact.  The NCAA should finally look to paying these athletes in a manner that would hedge against the money that could come in to try and fix their games.  Give all schools a percentage of the money that the NCAA makes and place it into an account that cannot be accessed until they leave school.  The NCAA could give incentives for students to stay in school longer, get their degree, and maybe make it so that they can only receive the money if they achieve a certain GPA upon their exit.  Whatever the solution is, the NCAA should be coming up with ideas on how to get money to all of their athletes as quickly as possible. Because someone who has $100,000 on Maryland -7.5 at home against Rutgers may want to purchase some insurance on their 10 different bets they placed legally in 4 different states.  And with no compensation coming from the NCAA, they may find more than one player willing to accept.

With Every Caps Win, The Redskins Lose

The Capitals Game 1 win over the Lightning is undeniable proof to all DC Sports fans that this team has what it takes to possibly bring the greatest trophy in all of professional sports to the Nation's Capital.  It is also proof that Caps are winning over a new generation of DC Sports fans at the expense of the Washington Redskins.  The Redskins are king when it comes to drawing the attention of DC Sports fandom, but for the first time their hegemony over the DC Sports landscape is under serious threat from a single entity.  The Washington Capitals have stolen the show this spring as they ended Washington's Conference Finals drought, and with every successive victory the Caps win over another portion of the fan base that has become disillusioned with the product coming out of Ashburn, Virginia.  The Capitals are winning over fans in all facets of the fan experience while the Redskins continue to rest on their laurels, and it begins with the team the Capitals have put together this season.

Everyone loves a winner, and the Capitals have certainly proven they can win, but people love a winner even more when they do it with resilience.  The Capitals have been one of the best teams in the NHL over the last decade when it comes to winning in the regular season, but those teams were more high flying flashy type teams that wilted under pressure.  The Caps this season have been more gritty.  No one expected them to do much, and yet they find themselves three wins away from playing for the Stanley Cup because they have proactively persevered through adversity.  They won the toughest division in the NHL this season.  They came back from down 2-0 in the First Round to beat the Blue Jackets.  They finally vanquished their nemesis without three of their top players playing for a majority of the series, and winning Game 6 on the road.  They won Game 1 against Tampa in a convincing fashion which no one thought possible.  The Capitals are winning with heart, but when was the last time that was said about any Redskins team?  RG3's rookie year?  Cousins' first year as a starter?  It is hard to remember a Redskins team that was called gritty or resilient, and no Redskins team has done that and reached the level the Caps have this season.  The Capitals are winning over fans by the level at which they play and the level they have reached in the playoffs, but signs of the Capitals take over of the Redskins' territory can also be seen in the fan experience over the past decade.

Forbes Magazine does an annual valuation of all professional sports teams, and a look at the Redskins and Capitals current value show signs that the Capitals are making headway into taking over a larger part of the DC Fan Base.  The Redskins are obviously worth more than the Caps in absolute value, but the Capitals have outstripped the Redskins in growth rate within the DC market.  Half of the Redskins value (54.5%) comes from the NFL revenue share, while only 19.9% can be attributed to market size and 7.3% can be attributed to their brand.  The last two percentages may be good indicators of how well a team markets themselves within their own city, and if that is the case the Capitals once again outstrip the Redskins.  The Capitals market size value is 41.3%, which makes sense considering they do not have a rival in Baltimore to contend with, but the Caps' brand value is also higher at 12.8%.  Wouldn't it make sense for the Redskins to have a higher brand value when they need to compete with a team that is a 90 minute drive away?  These values show that the Capitals are doing more to endear themselves to the fan base through promotion and savvy marketing techniques, and that they are making more of an effort to reach out to fans to try and draw them in.  DC fans have responded by spending more money at Capital One Arena than Fed Ex Field. 

Forbes Magazine also gives the numbers for net stadium revenue for each team, and the lack of growth in the net stadium revenue of the Redskins since 2010 is staggering.  The Redskins have only seen a 36% increase in revenue since 2010, which is the worst in the NFL since that time and it is not even close.  The Colts are the next closest to that number with a 45.1% increase, and the only other teams to have below 50% revenue increases are the Buccaneers and Raiders.  So the Redskins have shown poor growth relative to other teams in their sport, and it has nothing to do with the large amount of money they already made.  The only NFL teams in 2010 to have $300 Million or more in revenue were the Redskins, the Patriots, and the Cowboys.  The Patriots have seen an 80.8% increase in revenue for obvious reasons, and the Cowboys have seen a 100% increase in revenue.  The Cowboys increase has less to do with winning, and more to do with a new stadium being opened, but that goes to the notion that the Redskins stadium experience sucks.  Redskins fans are unwilling to spend money on the team and it shows in the Redskins' lack of revenue growth.  Compare those numbers to the Capitals who have seen a 78% increase in revenue since 2010 and it is not hard to see that the Capitals are providing a better fan experience at their stadium that fans have responded to in a more positive light through spending more money at Capital One Arena.  In fact, the Capitals 78% growth is fourth best in the NHL behind the Penguins, the Kings, and the Predators.  The Penguins and Kings have both won Stanley Cups in that time frame, but the Predators growth should be an omen to the Redskins of what could happen if the Capitals can just make the Stanley Cup Final.

Last year the Predators made the Stanley Cup Finals and put Nashville into a state of euphoria with their catfish and stadium experience.  They did not win the Cup, but that run created an organic frenzied scene around the Predators that carried over into this season.  Nashville was hungry for a winner and the Predators delivered, and the Capitals find themselves in a similar situation.  A generation of DC Sports fans have come and gone without seeing a winner, and they are finally getting one with the 2017 Capitals.  While the Capitals have slowly changed the gravitational fields within the DC Sports landscape through relentless marketing and a positive stadium experience, a Stanley Cup appearance would permanently draw the interest of everyone living in the DC Area.  The Redskins would no longer be the automatic choice for kids who grow up in this area because the Capitals win, and win with a style and stadium experience the Redskins cannot duplicate.  The Redskins have already been losing fans to the Capitals over this decade, and with every successive Capitals victory this year they draw more fans to a product that has a more likable team, a better fan and stadium experience, and a winning tradition.  Seven more victories, and the Redskins will need to share the spotlight with the new kings of DC Sports.

The Caps Have Earned the Right to End the Curse

Be it in Game 6, or in Game 7, the Capitals need to be the team that cures the DC Sports Plague (Its not a curse, its a Plague).  It seems counter intuitive, but the Capitals have done everything they can in order to earn the right to be the team that breaks the misery that DC Sports fans have had to endure over the past two decades.  If the Capitals are able to finally make it to an Eastern Conference Final, and god forbid a Stanley Cup Final, they would ignite a DC Sports renaissance because of what they have come to symbolize for the DC Sports landscape.  The Capitals have embodied all that is good and bad about DC Sports over their decade of resurgence, and it is this cornucopia of characteristics that gives them the right to be the ones to end the malaise that all DC Sports Fans have been under since 1998.  The evidence for this argument falls within the answer to the question; Why are the Capitals more special than the other DC Sports teams?  Let's answer that question in all of it's facets.

Because they were the last DC Sports team to make it to a Conference Final
It would be poetic justice.  The last DC Sports team to make it to a Conference Final is the one that ends the plague (its not a curse, its a plague).  The Caps need to win because it would connect the current sports fandom to DC Sports history, and in these times the average sports fan is not tied into what happened more than three years ago.

Because Alex Ovechkin was the original Chosen One
Before Bryce Harper, before John Wall, before Stephen Strasburg, there was Alex Ovechkin.  Ovechkin was taken number one overall by the Capitals in 2004, and it was not just because the Capitals were awful.  They had given up all of their major pieces from that 1998 Stanley Cup Finals team, including the franchise's all time scoring leader Peter Bondra, in order to find themselves in the position to draft Alex Ovechkin. He was brought in to be the next coming, and he has fulfilled those obligations except for the one about team championships.  It is time that he gets the right to play for one.

Because the Capitals have given hope to DC over the past decade
While the Redskins sucked, while the Wizards were dealing with the Gilbert Arenas fallout, and while the Nationals were reminding Washington DC what baseball looked like, the Capitals were putting together consistent playoff teams.  The Capitals have made the playoffs every year since the 2007-2008 season except for one.  No other DC Sports team even comes close to that consistency, and along the way they have built up their fan base organically through winning and savvy marketing.  The Capitals have ingratiated themselves to a city that wanted a winner and a hip sports scene, and got it with the combination of Alex Ovechkin's play and Ted Leonsis's business acumen.

Because they stupidly traded away a superstar.
See Filip Forsberg.

Because they smartly traded for another.
See TJ Oshie.

Because they have endured a disappointment that no other DC Sports team has over the past 20 years
The Capitals were literally 1:41 away from defeating the New York Rangers in 2015 and going to the Eastern Conference Finals.  Instead, the Rangers won three games in a row to defeat the Caps in seven games.  In fact, the Caps have been eliminated from the playoffs in a Game 7 seven times since 2008.  No DC fan knows playoff pain like Capitals fans.

Because they have tried to build a team of immeasurable talent and failed
See 2017.  That team was hailed as the best team that had ever been assembled around Alex Ovechkin and they still could not get past the second round. 

Because in the after math of that collapse they came out stronger
This year was supposed to be a rebuilding year at best, and some were heralding it as the beginning of the end for the Ovechkin era.  But then something strange happened.  Somehow these players that no one thought could come close to the accomplishments of 2017's super team began to gel.  They pulled out tough games in the regular season.  They fought through adversity.  They gave Capitals fans something they have never seen before; a team that wins based on grit and determination more than talent level. 

That determination was on full display Saturday night as the Capitals defeated the Penguins 6-3 in classic 2018 Capitals fashion.  They fell behind early in the first period but took the lead late on a PPG and a successive hard working goal.  They subsequently squandered that lead in the second period by taking massive penalties, getting horribly out shot, and looking like they had given up on life.  But the Caps would not be deterred by those set backs, and like they have done all year, they found a way to win.  The Caps once again find themselves in a position to end 20 years of DC Sports misery, and the Capitals have earned the right to be the ones to cure this DC Sports Plague.  Twenty years of evolution has provided DC Fans with a sports team that has rarely been seen in Washington during that time. One that will not back down, that will not give up, that has been built organically to come to this point.  The Capitals need to be the ones to end DC Fans' misery on Monday Night.