April 4, 2014 – Braves 2, Nationals 1 – Nationals Park (home opener)

Some excitement, same old result

Weather: 55 degrees, overcast.

Wind: 5 mph, R to L.

T: 3:03.

Att: 42,834.

Umpires: HP: Cory Blaser. 1B: Jim Joyce. 2B: Doug Eddings. 3B: Marvin Hudson.

Section 129, Row TT, Seat 17 (decided to splurge on lower-level seats for the home opener – 4 seats on the aisle in the next-to-last row of Section 129, on the first-base side behind the Nats dugout) 

In what was becoming a theme, the weather forecast for Friday’s home opener was unsettled at best for most of the past week. By Thursday, it seemed that there might at least be a window of dryness in the afternoon that would allow the game to be played. Things actually turned out for the best, as there was no rain until much later in the day. It wasn’t exactly warm, but the lack of wind in our seats made for a reasonably comfortable experience, although it felt chillier in the more-exposed lower concourse.

Since we were planning to meet at Nando’s Peri-Peri at 11:00 for an early lunch, I headed down early on Metro, beating the big rush. The Weekend section of the Washington Post featured a nice write-up (and map, although unfortunately the latter didn’t appear in my browser) of area dining options, so I strolled around for a bit checking out the neighborhood to the east of the Park.

Tanner Roark was originally scheduled to start the home opener, but he was moved up to start (and win) the Thursday game with the Mets, as Jordan Zimmermann was scratched with flu-like symptoms. (Hopefully I will get to see Tanner pitch sometime this year.) Fortunately Jordan felt much better on Friday, turning in 5 strong innings highlighted by 9 strikeouts, with the only damage being an Evan Gattis homer leading off the 5^th.

Things got more interesting in the bottom of the inning, when Ian Desmond led off by hitting a shot that got stuck under the padding on the left-field wall. The play was initially ruled an inside-the-park home run, but on replay was changed to a ground-rule double. Desmond didn’t improve the situation by getting tossed out attempting to steal third base with no one out, one of three Nats baserunners erased on plays that were not particularly close. (While smart aggression is a good thing, cavalierly giving away precious outs is not.)

Tyler Clippard joined Desmond in violating a fundamental baseball maxim by walking the leadoff batter in the 8^th inning, who naturally came around to score, giving the Braves (and their outstanding bullpen) a 2-1 lead. (The Nats had tied the game in the sixth on a Ryan Zimmerman sac fly, after Atlanta second baseman Dan Uggla misplayed what was likely a double-play ball off the bat of Adam LaRoche.)

Given the near-unhittability of Braves closer Craig Kimbrel, it behooved the Nats to get at least one run in the bottom of the 8^th before he came into the game. They started off well against David Carpenter with a Rendon single and a four-pitch walk to Jayson Werth, with the heart of the batting order coming up. Things deteriorated quickly after that, as Carpenter fanned LaRoche, Zimmerman, and Harper. Against Kimbrel in the 9^th, Desmond and Lobaton extended the string of consecutive Ks to 5 before pinch-hitter Kevin Frandsen popped out to end it.

A big part of the Nats underachievement in 2013 was their inability to beat division rival Atlanta (13 losses in 19 games). One game does not a season make, but the loss in the home opener certainly magnifies the importance of Stephen Strasburg’s start on Saturday. Despite Washington’s apparent improvements and Atlanta’s currently-crippled starting rotation, the Braves are still the kings of the NL East hill until the Nats prove otherwise.

Hoping to beat the worst of the crowd, I headed straight for Metro the second that Frandsen’s foul pop settled into Freddie Freeman’s glove – being near the back of a section in the lower level helped considerably. As I had hoped, the crowd waiting to get into the station was quite manageable (actually better than at many night games with much smaller crowds). The trip back was relatively pleasant – I didn’t have to wait more than a couple minutes for either train, and had a seat for the entire trip on the Red Line. I got back to Shady Grove around 5:20, which certainly beats the toxic traffic mix of a normal Washington rush hour with a sold-out Nats crowd.

Although forewarned, I was still surprised that in the top of the seventh I had to wait in a 5-minute line for the men’s room, which represents a personal Nats Park record for me. I was also surprised that the much-promoted “G at Nationals Park” sandwich shop was closed up at that point – not sure whether it may have been open earlier, although it was at the canceled March 29^th exhibition game.

And there was a foul ball into our section (although nowhere near us) very early in the game, which is something that we don’t get in our usual Section 416.