Shooting in the Outfield

What do you say about a situation like this? How do you comprehend it? Saturday night is one Nationals fans will remember for the wrong reasons. Later stages of the game, switching of sides for who will bat and who will field. Gunshots erupt. Chaos ensues. Players get their families into the clubhouses. Fans told to exit through center field and right field exits as the game got suspended. Scary situation.

Thankfully, Sunday went by without incident, but it makes you think. What is going on in DC? Has mayor Muriel Bowser lost control of keeping things from spiraling downward fast? Nationals Park isn't exactly in the greatest neighborhood from what I remember, but it wasn't like it was in the ghetto. People should be at ease when they go to a game. At least they think they will. Last week had an incident with three potential killers at a hotel near Coors Field. Though the All-Star Game was not their target, bloodshed did not occur.

I'm surprised this happened in DC and not a city like Chicago or Los Angeles. I don't know what can be done to prevent another incident like this from happening. Or at least you hope it doesn't happen again. I honestly think no one is putting any effort to stop crime. I feel like it's only going to get worse until an athlete gets killed. The time to really go after criminals needs to happen now before we see a tragedy amidst many tragedies that go unnoticed. 

Post 2019 World Series Thoughts

When the Washington Nationals swept the St. Louis Cardinals, I thought that they would win the World Series. I expected five games, but for the sport, seven. To see an underdog that never won anything, even in Montreal, is one of the biggest surprises to end the 2010s. It was a matter of going to their strengths in pitching and the bats coming in at the right time. They join the 1996 Yankees as a team that won eight on the road, including four World Series games.

You talk pitching, you got Stephen Strasburg. Capping off his postseason with phenomenal Game 6, there's a reason he won the MVP for the series Add in Max Scherzer and Patrick Corbin, and they helped bail out a struggling bullpen. Of course, you got Anthony Rendon and Juan Soto delivering at the plate. Howie Kendrick is a huge hero in Washington baseball lore. Lots of contribution. Keep in mind that near the end of May, the team was 19 and 31. The nation's capital gets its first baseball trophy since 1924 and it joins on the midst of last years Capitals hockey championship and the recent WNBA Mystics Finals win.

With Houston, they blew opportunities. The overuse of Justin Verlander was obvious. Why Zack Greinke was pulled, I don't know. Manager AJ Hinch blew his opportunity in managing what pitchers to use. The question will be asked about Gerrit Cole and if he could have been used. Starters in relief has been seen, but that quick in two days rest, who knows. With the Astros batting, they came at moments, but in the losses, they couldn't figure out the Nationals.

I think the Astros were distracted by the controversy regarding their fired assistant GM. Questionable choices in the games. Even the umpire issues on both sides. Either way, this is a special way to end the decade. The Nationals surprised many with defeating the LA Dodgers. Sweeping the Cardinals helped them and to pull off the upset. All DC needs now is the Wizards and Redskins to get into championship contention. Baseball's trophy gets its stay in a meaningful place until next year.

Geeks and Jocks Episode 18

The newest Geeks and Jocks episode.
https://anchor.fm/ryan-sullivan1gaj/episodes/Geeks-and-Jocks-Episode-18-Joke-Station-Twins-e7nfi9

You can find my podcast on these sites:

https://anchor.fm/ryan-sullivan1gaj
https://www.google.com/podcasts?feed=aHR0cHM6Ly9hbmNob3IuZm0vcy84YmFhZTg0L3BvZGNhc3QvcnNz
https://open.spotify.com/show/0ejDLYL3QCQslc1q25pRgF
https://www.breaker.audio/geeks-and-jocks
https://radiopublic.com/geeks-and-jocks-GKzY7Q

The National Dodger

The DC area may as well have those bandwagoners. Because the Nationals could ride their wave of success this year to a potential World Series.

It starts with the pitching. Stephen Strasburg is one of the better pitchers in the league. Max Scherzer may not have the stuff he has had the last few years, but can be guaranteed to grind out innings. Add in a decent bullpen and they were able to defeat the Los Angeles Dodgers.

There is power at the plate. Howie Kendrick's grand slam in game 5 is a great example. A lot of youth and prime veterans lead the way. Juan Soto and Anthony Rendon are an excellent one two punch. Rendon is in consideration for MVP in the National League. Trea Turner has speed. Complimenting the team includes Adam Eaton, Kendrick, and Kurt Suzuki. Anyone can deliver the fatal blow to an opponent on any given game.

A sense of success has propelled them to an even bigger level of success. With a two to nothing lead over the St. Louis Cardinals in the Championship series, the possibility to get the pennant on their own home turf would be extra special. The closest the franchise had to even sniffing a World Series was back in 1994 when they were the Montreal Expos before the strike damaged them for a lot of reasons.

Washington DC has something else besides the Capitals to be excited about.