The Impact of the Beast

May 31, 2012/ David Huzzard

In as little as one day Michael Morse could be returning to the Washington Nationals outfield and more importantly, much more importantly, the line-up. In some ways Morse is returning at the perfect time. The Nationals offense has already improved from a unit that scored 3.36 runs a game in April to one that scored 4.21 in May.

Much of that improvement has to do with the emergence of Bryce Harper as not just one of the best rookies this season, but perhaps one of the best 19 year old rookies to have played the game of baseball. In 30 games Bryce Harper has hit .274/.357/.504. Compare those numbers with what the Nats were getting from Xavier Nady as an everyday outfielder and it is obvious that Harper isn't just an upgrade but a vast improvement.

iTunes Update!

May 31, 2012/ TJ Landwermeyer

We're very excited to announce that before we even recorded our first show for the new site, we are approved and ready to go for iTunes. Please unsubscribe from the old feed as it will no longer be updated, and subscribe to the one below. I can assure that any changes we makes from here on out will have no effect on the end-user. I will be going back through the old podcast posts this evening and posting the iTunes link to complement the direct download and stream options.

Be sure to look for the next episode of the Citizens of Natstown podcast TONIGHT!

EJax Lacks Wins...But Why?

May 30, 2012/ Stuart Wallace

Edwin Jackson - 2009 All Star, member of the No Hitter Club, master of Kung Fu, and a model American, even if he was born in Germany*. A man of many pitches, and many, uh, outcomes to those pitches. As many a writer has eloqently put it, our man EJax can be a bit statistically absurd.

One of the more absurd stats coming out of Jackson's maiden Nats voyage this year is the overall record of the club while Jackson is toeing the rubber - 2-8. Overall, he has a 1-3 record after 10 solid starts, one of which was his complete game win over the Cincinnatti Reds back in April. This little stat got Nats-centric Twitter feeds in a bit of a frenzy, with supporters and detractors of EJax coming out in equal numbers. While the season is still young, I think there's no better time to have a peek under the statistics 'hood' of Edwin's car, to see how he's faring, and see if some of the virtriol towards him for a subpar team record in his starts is warranted.

Game #50 Preview: Nats vs. Marlins

May 30, 2012/ TJ Landwermeyer

Game 3 of 3: Wednesday, May 30, 7:10 EDT, Marlins Park

The Nats are looking to salvage a win from this series after wasting a strong outing by Edwin Jackson last night, giving away the game on a costly error. The lack of run support didn't help either. Tonight Chien-Ming Wang faces off against Josh Johnson. Let the puns ensue.

Game #49 Preview: Nats vs. Marlins

May 29, 2012/ TJ Landwermeyer

SanchezJackson

Game 2 of 3: Tuesday, May 29, 7:05 EDT, Marlins Park

After a tough loss yesterday in which the entire team was going on short rest, the Nats send Edwin Jackson (1-2, 3.38 ERA) to face Anibal Sanchez (2-3, 2.87 ERA).

The Long Sad History of Nationals vs. Marlins

May 29, 2012/ David Huzzard

A real marlin, the fish with the long protruding structure on the end of its nose, is prey. It is hunted by man and shark for sport or sustenance. The baseball playing Marlins however have never been prey to the Washington Nationals. In fact it has worked out the other way around so often that it feels like some type of curse exists.

This curse is so bad that it has to be imagined that if a person wearing Nationals gear were sport fishing in South Florida and happened to hook a Marlin not only would they fail to land that fish, but they would be pulled over the side of the boat and to the depth of Jeff Conine's locker.

Footloose: The Resurgence of Sean Burnett's Career

May 28, 2012/ Stuart Wallace

If there’s one word that succinctly describes Sean Burnett’s career, it’s enigmatic. It’s been a long and windy road from his days as a first round draft pick pegged as one of the future mainstays of the Pirates starting rotation to his current residence in the Nationals bullpen. From his piercing blue eyes hiding under the rakish tilt of his cap, to his oft maligned relief appearances, it’s easy to say Burnett has broken a few hearts during his DC tenure. In 2012, Burnett has seen a renaissance of sorts; a return to bursts of dominance that he has flashed in previous seasons, with an added component missing from those seasons -- consistency.

Tracy To DL, Corey Brown Gets The Call

May 28, 2012/ TJ Landwermeyer

I'm sure you all saw Mark Zuckerman report this morning that Tracy is headed to the DL and Corey Brown was flown to Miami yesterday to take his place. Mark covered the news angle, so this is just a quick post on Brown statistically.

Brown is currently in the midst of the best year of his minor league career with a slash line of .297/.399/.584. In short he's doing everything right at the plate: he's hitting for power + average and he's getting on base at just under a .400 clip. To give you some reference, he's getting on base more regularly than the two top Nats regulars in OBP: LaRoche and Harper.

Game #48 Preview: Nats vs. Marlins

May 28, 2012/ TJ Landwermeyer

After the sweep of Atlanta last night the Nats head to Miami for a three-game set. This series is just as important as the one with Atlanta, if not more, because the Marlins are playing much better baseball than Atlanta (18-8 in May) and with a series win the Nats can continue to extend the gap between themselves and the rest of the NL East. While the Marlins have consistently owned the Nats since 2005 (78-49), the Nats took both games played against Miami earlier this season (with the third being a rainout).

Game 1 of 3: Monday, May 28, 1:05 EDT, Marlins Park

ZambranoZimmermannJordan Zimmermann (3-4, 2.47 ERA) faces off against Carlos Zambrano (2-3, 2.85 ERA).

How Good Was Harper's Homer

May 28, 2012/ David Huzzard

To understand just how good Bryce Harper's solo homer last night off of Livan Hernandez was it is important to understand the entirety of the situation. Bryce Harper is a 19 year old rookie who got a GED so that he could get drafted a year early just two seasons ago. Livan Hernandez is a veteran pitcher who for years has made many an aggressive batter look foolish, and that is exactly what happened during their first encounter last evening. Harper came out of his shoes to swing at a slow breaking pitch and fouled it back into the screen. On the very next pitch Livan threw one even slower and Harper took one of the ugliest swings a baseball fan will ever see. Livan had abused Harper like he has many a batter for many a season, but that wasn't to be the final meeting of the evening.

Nats vs. Braves LiveBlog

May 27, 2012/ TJ Landwermeyer

Join us tonight at 745, first pitch is at 805!

<a href="http://www.coveritlive.com/mobile.php/option=com_mobile/task=viewaltcast/altcast_code=d5f738f459" >Nationals vs. Braves LiveBlog</a>

Triple-A Syracuse

May 27, 2012/ Matthew Davila

Good evening and welcome to the Citizens of Natstown page. I am both happy and excited to write my first post on the new website pioneered by TJ and staffed by so many excellent writers and knowledgeable individuals. Citizens of Natstown is an exciting and fun program to be a part of and I am hopeful that we can keep on improving and having fun.

That being said, I will get right into it!

For my Memorial Day weekend, I had decided to take a trip I had always wanted to take in visiting the Nationals Triple-A affiliate, the Syracuse Chiefs. The drive seemed like it would be long and arduous, but I have to admit it was long, but not horribly painful. I left early Saturday morning and arrived at the City of Syracuse in the late afternoon. I was able to check in at the hotel, then was determined to find a place to refuel and sample a fine brew.

Welcome Home Natstown!

May 27, 2012/ TJ Landwermeyer

Hello Nats Fans!

Welcome to the new home of Citizens of Natstown! A project that started in a Fairfax, VA bar just over three months ago has gone from a way for a couple of guys to talk baseball once a week to the best source of Nats talk around. Expanding on the notion, I wanted Citizens of Natstown to become more of a one-stop shop when it comes to Nationals organizational news, analysis, opinion and draft coverage. You’re looking at the result of that expansion.

In addition to the podcast regulars of David, Matt and I, who will contribute here, we have added two phenomenal writers in Sean Hogan, who specializes in draft and prospect coverage, and the elusive SlatenWorshipper (aka Stu...But let's be honest, SlatenWorshipper has way more Natitude). We will also be on the lookout for any new talent to bring on and improve our coverage.

While we are leaving BlogTalkRadio the podcast will continue to run every Thursday night, but will not be a live broadcast. On the bright side, the audio quality of the show will dramatically improve with this departure. Live broadcasts may return as the season goes on, but we need to clear a few hurdles and gauge interest before committing to anything concrete. I'm in the process of switching over the iTunes setup, in which you may have to unsubscribe from the old feed and subscribe to the new, but I'll put up more information on that once I have it. Until iTunes is sorted out you can stream and download every episode right here on CitizensofNatstown.com.

We hope you’re as excited as we are about the new site and look forward to bringing you the absolute best in Nats coverage!

Citizens of Natstown Podcast Episode 14: NL East Roadtrip→

May 24, 2012/ TJ Landwermeyer

After more than a week off we had lots to talk about. We cover the week in Nats news, upcoming games, more Espinosa, increased offense, trade potential and much more.

Nationals 101 Episode 4: Mathmatica and Bat-batica

May 21, 2012/ Nationals 101

Episode 4 Frank & Susan disuss a beginner's guide to batting. Math Problems, Batting Orders and Types of hits-Learn to tame the Triple Slash, and your bunts from your bombs. Plus a Nats Recap and a Adam LaRoche is our Nat of the Week!

Citizens of Natstown - A Washington Nationals Blog