Washington, D.C. Trip/Nationals Game

For those of us in the New York metro area, going to a baseball game can be extremely expensive and, if you have a family, almost a wallet busting adventure. However, only a short train ride away lies the Washington Nationals in our nation's capital. You can get amazing seats for a fraction of what it would cost to sit in those same seats in Yankee Stadium or Citi Field. My wife and I and her parents travelled down to D.C. and got seats behind the home dugout for $74 a pop. Those same seats can run from $375-1,000 for Yankee Stadium. That is just insane for a baseball game. So, for $74 we settled into our seats and watched the Nationals take on the Padres. This was my second time I have attended a Nationals game, having watched the Nationals beat the Orioles last year on May 22nd where we sat one section over to the left, closer to home plate.

Aside from the inexpensive tickets, Nationals Park is a clean, fan-friendly environment. They have several mascots, "Screech" is the main mascot but there are four others that greet fans as they enter the park. Those four are Teddy, Tom, Abe, and George. Of course they are named after the four most famous Presidents in history, Teddy Roosevelt, Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Jefferson, and George Washington. With cartoonishly big heads, they interact with fans, pose for pictures, and all. My wife showed up wearing a Yankee jersey and hat and for the second year in a row Teddy gave her a hard time. He was much more cordial to me because I was wearing a Nationals t-shirt. Sometimes, you gotta make a sacrifice and, after the Yankees of course, I root for the Nationals, mostly because they have zero chance of winning but there is a bright future there with Stephen Strasburg and Bryce Harper.

Once inside the stadium, the fans have plenty to do. There was a live band in right field belting out some decent renditions of some classic rock songs. There is a play area for kids. There was also a booth set up to encourage fans to vote for the All-Star game. If a fan filled out 10 ballots they would be entered into a drawing to win autographed Nats memorabilia. If you filled out 100 you automatically won a Pudge Rodriguez bobblehead. Just across the street from the stadium there is an area for fans to gather before and after the game to have a few brews. I didn't get in there but after the game it was bumpin' with music blaring and people hanging around not wanting to go home. There are plenty of places to grab some food, mostly your standard ballpark food. Most ballpark food, however, is not conducive to those who are gluten intolerant, or suffer from siliac (spelling?) disease. For them, going to a ballpark can be torture. However, Nationals Park has a gluten free stand that includes gluten free beer and hot dogs among several other choices.

When we went it happened to be freezer mug giveaway night sponsored by Miller Lite. The mugs are pretty nice, and I will be using them this summer to down a frosty beverage or two. There was also a stand run by Chevrolet that gave those who filled out a card a chance to win a Camaro. I filled one out and walked away with a free t-shirt. It has a small Chevy symbol on the left sleeve but for a giveaway it was actually pretty nice.

As for the baseball, it was actually pretty good. We witnessed a gem tossed by John Lannan who carried a no-hitter into the 5th and left with two outs in the 8th after allowing two consecutive singles. Manager Jim Riggleman brought in his closer, Drew Storen who got the final out. Offensively for the Nats, Danny Espinosa's solo home run was all the offense for the game until the 9th inning. In the 9th, Jason Bartlett hit his first homer of the year off the first pitch of the 9th inning off of Drew Storen. Storen settled down and retired the next three men but the game was tied and seemed destined to go into extra-innings. However, Michael Morse, the Nats first baseman hit the first pitch he was off of Padres reliever Mike Adams into the right field bullpen and the Nats were walk-off winners. During his post-game interview, Morse was treated to the customary pie in the face and was also given a Gatorade bath.

Overall, Nationals Ballpark is one of my favorite destinations. How can you beat walking around our nation's capital, going into all of the landmarks and visiting all of the memorials which are all free and going to a Nationals game to cap off your day? We stayed in D.C. from Thursday until Sunday evening. Train fare wasn't bad, we got $49 each way on a deal through Amtrak which they do every so often. So, for $172 we got transportation and a great seat. Oh, and add in a couple of bucks for the Metro Ride which is D.C.'s subway system. Beers cost me $8-8.50 a pop which is still cheaper than Yankee Stadium and hot dogs were, I think, $5 but were huge. Still an all around cheaper experience than one game in those same seats at Yankee Stadium. Plus, you never know who you might run into at a Nats game. You could be sitting next to a retired general, as we were, or a Congressman or Senator. You just never know. Oh, and another great thing about the Nats is they give you a small program/scorecard as you enter which they don't do at Yankee Stadium. I saw a bunch of people around me keeping score, something I rarely see anymore. So, even if you are just going down for the day, check out some of the landmarks and then head to a Nats game. You'll have a blast, but don't forget your camera!

Bloop Singles

Sorry it has been so long between posts. I moved this past weekend and I'm sure most of you know how that is. Tomorrow I leave for Washington, D.C. where I will be taking in a Nationals game. They are playing the Padres so the Nats should win even without Ryan Zimmerman who remains out until mid-June with an abdominal tear. Nationals Park is an extremely fun place, not only for adults but the whole family. If you ever get a chance I suggest you go check it out. Tickets are not expensive and are available.

-Former Cavaliers coach Mike Brown has agreed to a contract to replace Phil Jackson. It should be interesting to see how well he does in Los Angeles.

-The Yankees claimed Kanekoa Texeira (no relation to Mark, hence the different spelling) off waivers from the Royals. Texeira was a member of the Yankees minor league system but was shipped off to the White Sox as part of the Nick Swisher deal. He was picked up by Seattle in the Rule 5 draft before finding his way to the Royals where he was mediocre. This is strictly a depth move. Phil Hughes was moved to the 60-day DL to make room on the 40-man roster for him.

-Zack Greinke hit what turned out to be the game winning homer off of Jason Marquis for the Brewers today against the Nationals. He also struck out ten.

-Congratulations to Mariano Rivera who became just the 15th player to pitch in 1000 games and becoming only the first player to do it for only one team. Amazing.

-The Canucks are in the Stanley Cup Finals for the first time since they lost to the Rangers in the 1993-94 season. They will wait to see if the Lightning or Bruins will be their opponent. The Bruins currently hold a 3-2 edge going into tonight's game. Either way, I am having a hard time seeing the Canucks losing this thing.

-Speaking of hockey, it appears as if Doug Weight of the Islanders is going to be retiring. Weight was an excellent playmaking center who made his NHL debut with the Rangers in 1991. He was traded off to Edmonton for Esa Tikkanen who was traded by the Rangers following their Cup Victory to the Blues with Dougie Lidster in exchange for underachieving Petr Nedved. The Rangers could sure use someone like Doug Weight in his prime these days to set up Marian Gaborik.

-Even if Rafael Soriano doesn't need major surgery (again, he already had Tommy John before) he is further proof that you don't spend big money on relievers not named Mariano. David Robertson and Job Chamberlain are doing a good enough job bridging the gap to Mariano to further prove there was no need for Soriano to begin with. Maybe this will teach the Yankee brain trust once and for all that you don't break the bank open for anyone to be a middle reliever. In house options are always the best bet.

Well, that's all I got for the moment. I'll be back when I get back from good ol' D.C. Gonna see where all our taxes are and aren't going.

Suicide Squeezes

-The New York Mets Dillon Gee had a no-hitter broken up in the 6th inning by Nationals pitcher Livan Hernandez. Actually, Hernandez, despite being a pitcher, is a pretty good hitter, for a pitcher. Last year, at Nationals Park, I actually saw Hernandez pinch-hit. Gee, though, is emerging as arguably the Mets best starter. Today he threw 7.2 scoreless innings, allowing two hits and three walks while striking out three. His ERA now sits at 3.44 for the season.

-Francisco Rodriguez now sports a 0.79 ERA to accompany his 14 saves on the year. If the Mets do decide to deal him they should find some takers without a problem. In fact, he might even be the Mets best trade chip.

-Speaking of Mets relievers, how can you not feel good for Jason Isringhausen? The guy is doing well in Queens where his career began.

-I think it is now safe to call Jason Bay and John Lackey free agent busts. I would be willing to bet the Mets and Red Sox respectively would love to find takers for these duds. Bay, however, did collect three hits today, one of them a double. I doubt he is turning it around though but you never know. Lackey, meanwhile, sits on the DL in Boston.

-Last night the Yankees-Orioles game was a marathon that should not have gone 15 innings but both teams had an allergy to hitting with RISP. That is, however, until Robinson Cano took an Allegra and hit a 2-run double in the top of the 15th. Sooner or later, the Yankees are going to have to start hitting with RISP. Right?

-Great game last night by Bartolo Colon who threw 87 pitches in 8 innings of shutout baseball. Colon did everything he could possibly do to ensure the Yankees got the win, even striking out the side in the 8th. However, and I can't fault Joe Girardi for doing this, he was pulled for Mariano Rivera to close it out. Rivera, as we know, gave up the tying run and the Yankees had to go into the 15th before getting the go-ahead runs. I can't dream of pulling a pitcher, no matter who he is, when you are bringing in the greatest closer the game has ever seen. I would have done the same thing.

-Complete games are a rare thing these days. Seven teams do not even have 1 complete game from their pitching staffs. Those teams are Boston, New York Yankees, Chicago Cubs, Cincinnati, Houston, New York Mets, and San Diego. Philadelphia leads the majors in this category with six.

-Everyone made a big deal about the Phillies pitching staff this offseason. However, Atlanta actually has a better team ERA. Atlanta has a 2.92 team ERA while the Phillies are sporting a 3.06 team ERA. But the Braves have played three more games than the Phillies. Atlanta pitchers are also holding batters to a .220 AVG while Phillies pitchers are holding opponents to a .240 AVG.

-Kareem Abdul-Jabbar recently whined to The Sporting News about not having a statue outside the Staples Center. Umm, Kareem, the Lakers apparently told you you were going to get one. Guess you forgot. Either way, this is not something you whine about, it makes you look like a self-centered...oh wait.

-To all LeBron bashers out there, take a break. Michael Jordan had his Pippen, Shaq had his Kobe, Kobe had some good players around him. Who did the Cavs have when James took them to the Finals? They had James and nobody else. So what if James hasn't won a championship yet, you can't take away the fact that he has taken over games in the playoffs this year. He and Dwayne Wade are playing well together and it looks like its going to be a Heat-Mavs final. I can say this now after my hatred toward LeBron has gone away after he spurned my two basketball team, the Knicks and Nets, by signing with the Heat. I've moved on, perhaps other just need to do the same.

-I'm actually a little upset that Kobe is out of the playoffs. How awesome would a Lakers-Heat match-up have been? Kobe and Gasol vs. LeBron and Wade.

-Dirk Nowitzki's 48 points was impressive. I don't know if it answers all the questions about his game though. I still need a bit more defense and toughness from a 7-footer. Still, there is no question he is the best big-man shooter in the NBA. He is also one of the top ten players in the NBA without question.

-Jorge Posada to start at first base tonight for the Yankees. Wow. It is his 16th careerstart at first and first since 2008.

-The Rangers signed 2010 Second Round Pick Christian Thomas, son of ex-NHL'er Steve Thomas, to an entry level contract. Thomas scored 54 goals last season in Juniors. He is still Junior eligible so he might not make his debut next year. If he is anything like his dad was, the Rangers should have an added boost on the offense in the coming years.

-Is anybody else jonesing for some NFL offseason free agent movement? Man, I can't wait for this lockout to be over.

Theeeee Yankees Finally Win! And Other Short-hops from Around Sports

-The Yankees have snapped the longest losing streak of the Joe Girardi era, six games. Ivan Nova pitched well enough to get the win and Alex Rodriguez busted out of his slump with two homers. Even Jorge Posada joined in the action, going 2 for 3 with a double. David Robertson saved the Yankees bacon though after Ivan Nova got into a bases loaded jam in the 6th inning. With the bases loaded and only one out, Robertson slammed the door shut on the Rays fingers by striking out B.J. Upton and Casey Kotchman to end the inning. Where would the Yankees be this year without David Robertson?

-The Cleveland Cavaliers "won" the NBA Draft lottery. Kyrie Irving, welcome to Cleveland.

-Speaking of the NBA Draft, do you think the T'Wolves draft another point guard? Kemba Walker should be there and the T'Wolves did draft about 40 PG's a year ago. I wonder if Ricky Rubio will make his NBA debut next season or if he will hold out until he goes to a better team.

-The death of Harmon Killebrew is a blow to Major League Baseball. He was truly a remarkable man and exceptional player, he will be missed.

-Errors by Carlos Pena, Matt Garza, Welington Castillo, and Kerry Wood led to a total of seven unearned runs for the Reds. The Cubs lost 7-5.

-Braves catcher Brian McCann had a game kids dream about. He entered the game in the 9th as a pinch hitter and hit the game tying home run. Then in the 11th inning, McCann hit the game winning homer. Talk about a good day! And to think, this was his off day!

Well, that's it for now on this late-night edition of Sportsaholics Anonymous. Have a good night.

Intentional Walks

Sorry I am not posting as much as I should but I am currently moving to a new house this weekend and there is a ton of stuff to be done beforehand. Now, to get to some of the sports stuff.

-Royals relief pitcher Vin Mazzaro allowed 14 runs in 2.1 innings as Kansas City fell to the Indians 19-1 on Monday.

-The Yankees losing streak is now at 6 after A.J. Burnett blew the lead in the 6th inning last night. Nothing is going right for the Yankees. Wild pitches, poor throws, poor defense, an almost complete lack of hitting, yeah it is ugly. This is the longest losing streak of the Joe Girardi era.

-The Red Sox are now over .500 for the first time this season after coming back against the Orioles last night. As bad as the Yankees are playing, the Red Sox are the complete opposite right now.

-How far has Jason Bay's stock with the Mets fallen? He was asked to bunt to bring up Daniel Murphy and Justin Turner. Wow.

-Jon Niese, Mets relief pitcher, hit a triple last night, in the same inning that Marlins relief pitcher Burke Badenhop drove in what turned out to be the game winning run.

-Arnold Schwarznegger admitted that wife Maria Shriver left him after learning that Arnold fathered a child with a staffer. So, I guess the steroids didn't affect his package.

-Michael Dunn, former Yankee prospect, struck out 5 Mets in 2 innings. He now carries a 1.96 ERA and .98 WHIP. I'm going to go out on a limb and say Dunn, a lefty reliever who was included in the Javy Vazquez/Boone Logan trade, is just a bit better than Boone Logan at this point.

-The Mets have no luck. They started winning so what happens? They lose Ike Davis to injury, Carlos Beltran to pink eye, and David Wright to a stress fracture in his lower back. If I am Jose Reyes I am wrapping myself in bubble wrap.

-The Yankees have only one more win than the Mets.

-The Nationals and Yankees have the same amount of wins.

-Prior to last nights game, the Tampa Bay Rays had not scored more than 5 runs in a home game this year. They scored 5 runs in the 6th inning alone last night as they came back to beat the Yankees.

-Last week Melky Cabrera homered against the Yankees. Last night Johnny Damon homered against them. Coming up, Hideki Matsui as the Revenge of the 2009 Yankees continues.

-Alex Rodriguez is hitting .180 over the last 23 games. He has not hit well since an issue with his oblique.

-Hector Noesi has spent 14 days on the Yankees in two separate call-ups this season and has not faced a single batter. Umm, why is he on the team then?

-So I guess it is safe to say that the Blue Jays' Jose Bautista is for real. He only has 63 homers in his last 162 games. The guy is like Albert Pujols from a couple of years ago. Just a monster.

-Kyle Farnsworth got the save against the Yankees last night, setting them down 1-2-3 last night.

-Cliff Lee walked 6 Cardinals last night to raise his season total to 13. He walked only 18 men all of last year.

-If Shane Battier doesn't re-sign in Memphis the Knicks should go after him. The stats aren't superstar quality but the guy is a leader and plays both offense and defense. Just sayin'.

Well, break out your umbrellas people. It is like an episode of "The Killing" out there, raining and gloomy. Enjoy the sports today if there is any you wanna watch, or isn't rained out.

Penalty Shots

-Eric Hosmer, aka The Wizard of Hoz, hit his first major league home run at Yankee Stadium with his family in attendance. This kid has it.

-Twins great Harmon Killebrew is losing his battle with cancer. Killebrew, 74, announced today that he is no longer plans to fight the esophageal cancer that he was diagnosed with last December. Killebrew currently ranks on 11th on baseball's all-time home run list with 573 homers. He appeared in 11 All-Star Games and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1984. This is sad news for baseball.

-The Conference Finals have arrived in hockey and I am picking San Jose and Tampa Bay to move on and face each other in the Stanley Cup Finals. Having said that, put your money on Vancouver and Boston.

-In the NBA I am betting on a Dallas-Miami Finals. I don't see anyone beating Miami right now either.

-On Thursday night @NFL on Twitter posed the question "If Tony Gonzalez isn't the best tight end currently playing in the NFL right now then who is?" I responded, "No tight end is currently playing in the NFL." Damn this lockout.

-Speaking of Twitter, Chad Ochocinco has announced he is going to try Professional Bull Riding as he waits for the lockout to end. I guess he grew accustomed to BS from being around Terrell Owens.

-If the Mets want to secure a solid future they are going to have to sacrifice the present. This means getting something in return for Jose Reyes, Francisco Rodriguez, Carlos Beltran, and Jason Bay among others.

-Nationals top prospect Bryce Harper looks like the real deal. In 32 games for A Hagerstown he is hitting .395 with 8 homers and 30 RBI, 6 SB's, 17 BB's, 27 K's, an OBP of .473, 11 2B's, and has an OPS of 1.175. Sure, its only 32 games but he is just 18 years-old!

-Boxer Bernard Hopkins ripped into Washington Redskins QB Donovan McNabb on Tuesday. Hopkins said of McNabb, "Forget this. He's got a suntan. That's all." Basically, Hopkins thinks McNabb's being raised in a Chicago suburb disqualifies McNabb from being black. Really? I didn't know there were certain criteria individuals needed to meet in order to be a member of a race.

-I don't know what is wrong with the Yankees lately but I haven't seen them play such bad all around baseball since 1990-91. Bad fielding, poor hitting, forgettable pitching, nothing is going right for the Yankees right now. Even when they get good pitching, like A.J. Burnett's 7 inning 1 hitter, they don't hit. Last night was the worst. The errors, poor pitching, and the lack of hitting resulted in poor showings against the Tigers and Royals over the past week. Terrible, just terrible.

Wrist Shots

Hello everyone, my name is Chris and I am addicted to sports. Here are some stories from around the sports world.

-Rangers forward Sean Avery recently came out in support for gay marriage. Hockey agent, Todd Reynolds took to Twitter to announce his support against it. Personally, I think both men are correct in airing their opinions. Reynolds didn't get crazy and did support equality among all people but believes in the sanctity of marriage. Personally, I don't see how this makes ESPN but it did. I think both men are entitled to their opinions and as long as everything remains civil I don't see why either should be crucified for their beliefs.

-There is a story circulating around Detroit and on NY's sports talk radio station WFAN about a possible trade between the Tigers and Mets. The trade, from what I am understanding, is David Wright to the Tigers for Max Scherzer, Austin Jackson, and Brandon Inge. If I'm the Mets I do the deal. Now before you get upset, hear me out. I know Wright is the face of the Mets franchise but he is not as good as Reyes, who is the real spark plug of the Mets offense. Wright is a good player but its the following numbers that scare me about him: 113, 113, 115, 118, 140, 161. Those are Wrights strikeout totals from 2005 to 2010. They have gone up every year. Another number that causes me concern: 72, 66, 94, 94, 74, 69, the number of walks for Wright during those same years. His batting average has also taken a nose dive during that span. Beginning in 2005 Wright hit .306, then .311 in 2006, .325 in '07, .302 in '08, .307 in '09, .283 in '10 and is currently batting .241. Something isn't right. This year he currently has 38 K's and 22 BB's in 35 games. The Mets need to ask themselves is Jose Reyes a better player at 29 than Wright at 28? Look at who is currently performing and who is not. Sure, Reyes is hurt a lot more than Wright but when Reyes is on the field he is one of the most exciting players in the game. With no big shortstops coming up in the free agent market (aside from Reyes), over the next couple of years the Mets need to ask themselves, can they afford to let Reyes leave via free agency or do they try to re-sign him and trade Wright, or keep Wright and trade Reyes for a reduced price? If I'm Sandy Alderson I trade Wright, especially if I can get that package from Detroit plus an extra prospect.

-It was nice to see Yankee fans give Melky Cabrera some love in his first game back to Yankee Stadium since the 2009 World Series. He was traded as part of the Javier Vazquez deal that offseason. He was included in the roll call which was classy.

-I am finding the NBA Playoffs to be exciting, but, and this kills it for me, I can't stand the officiating in the NBA. Stars get away with murder. They can travel, foul, and basically do anything they want. This makes it unwatchable for me.

Well, that's it for tonight. Be safe and enjoy the sports!