August 4, 2021 – Phillies 9, Nats 5

https://www.mlb.com/gameday/phillies-vs-nationals/2021/08/04/633040? bt_ee=EGAn80I0XyjDLY4u7DBeQ/M9yp7CJx4GJt5vemn3dN45hP6G+3lzyB6c7Il25xYM&bt_ts=1628169994742&partnerId=zh-20210805-448458-mlb-1- A&qid=1026&utm_id=zh-20210805-448458-mlb-1-A#game_state=final,lock_state=final,game_tab=wrap,game=633040

 

Weather: 78 degrees, clear.

Wind: 4 mph, in from center.

Umpires: HP--Muchlinski, 1B--Whitson, 2B--Wolf, 3B--Ceja.

Time: 3:10

Attendance - 18,482

 

The Washington Nationals are now 10 games under .500, having completed exactly 2/3 of their schedule. If the only baseball news you get comes from this blog, you almost certainly didn’t realize that, as the Nats did manage to win the last six games that I personally attended – until last night. So, I guess the three stars for the game belong to the visitors.

 

Trois étoiles:

#3 – Pitcher Matt Moore, who saved most of the Philadelphia bullpen (and was awarded his first W of the year) by pitching four effective innings in relief, giving up only a homer to Luis Garcia (his second of the game) and a relatively meaningless tally in the 9^th.

#2 – Rhys Hoskins, who had an RBI double in the 3^rd and a two-run homer in the 5^th.

#1 – Bryce Harper, “beloved” former Nat, who had two singles, a double, and a pair of RBI.

 

For two innings, it looked as though it would be a short night for Phillies starter Chase Anderson and a long night for the Phillies in general. Victor Robles hit Anderson’s first pitch of the evening over the left-field wall, and Garcia and Carter Kieboom went back-to-back an inning later. The lead did not last long, however, as the Phils rocked the normally-reliable Paolo Espino for 4 runs in the third and another pair in the fifth. In the meantime, Washington’s bats went silent until after a two-run HR by Didi Gregorius in the top of the seventh put the game effectively out of reach.

 

Despite Metro’s scheduled single-tracking on the Red Line, we had uneventful trips down and back, and we took advantage of the temperate August weather to enjoy outside dining from Wiseguy Pizza.

Biden doesn’t need to keep caving to the left

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/08/04/nina-turners-loss-ohio-means-biden-doesnt-need-keep-caving-left/

 

“Too many politicians, in both parties, promise to be “fighters” when they run for office. But the last thing Congress needs is more brawling.”

August 1, 2021 – Nats 6, Cubs 5

https://www.mlb.com/gameday/cubs-vs- nationals/2021/08/01/633044#game_state=final,lock_state=final,game_tab=wrap,game=633044

 

Weather: 76 degrees, cloudy.

Wind: 1 mph, out to CF.

Umpires: HP--Moore, 1B--Eddings, 2B--Knight, 3B--Morales.

Time: 3:20

Attendance - 25,520

 

Trois étoiles:

#3 – Center fielder Rafael Ortega (Cubs). Hate to recognize an opponent, but it’s difficult not to when he hit 3 homers and drove in all 5 Chicago runs.

#2 – Josh Bell. Drove in half of Washington’s runs with 3^rd and 4^th inning singles.

#1 – Yadiel Hernandez. Leadoff single in the 2^nd, RBI single in the 3^rd, solo homer in the 7^th to extend Washington’s lead to 5-3, and a leadoff dinger in the bottom of the 9^th for the walkoff win.

 

The Chicago offense was nothing if not efficient, as only 4 guys not named Rafael Ortega reached base all afternoon. Two of them got on while pinch-hitting for the Chicago pitcher, with both scoring on Ortega HRs. The Cubs left only one runner on base for the game. (The Nats stranded 10.)

 

The weather wasn’t great, but it could have been worse. The light rain as the game started soon got heavy enough to clear most of the fans (including us) from our seats, resulting in some extra grounds crew work on the infield but no actual interruption in play. Fortunately it lightened up relatively quickly, and the sun actually appeared late in the game.

 

Our early arrival once again resulted in free parking, and we took advantage of the extra time to wander down to TaKorean for lunch. (A couple sparrows who landed on our outdoors table looking for crumbs wound up disappointed, though.)