https://www.washingtonpost.com/books/2024/09/04/donald-trump-save-america-book/
Ron Charles goes through Trump’s new picture book so we don’t
have to. 😊
[T]he overwhelming visual evidence of the book implies that what will really save America is Donald Trump in a blue suit. … the book should really be left alone to enjoy itself in private.
https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/WAS/WAS202409010.shtml
Time: 2:42
Attendance: 31,086
Start Time Weather: 81° F, Wind 5mph out to Leftfield,
Cloudy, No Precipitation.
Ineffective pitching + porous defense (Manager Dave Martinez
after the game: “It was awful”) + anemic offense = this afternoon’s debacle.
The carnage started in the top of the 3rd, when
defensively-challenged Washington starting pitcher Mitchell Parker committed
his 5th error of the season by sailing an attempted pick-off throw well past
its target, sending speedy Cubs CF Pete Crow-Armstrong all the way to third base.
After he scored on Ian Happ’s single, a double and a walk loaded the bases, and
a two-out hit by Isaac Paredes plated the second and third runs of the frame. An
inning later, Nico Hoerner reached base on a grounder to CJ Abrams that was
charitably scored as a base hit, then scored all the way from first when third
baseman José Tena airmailed a throw on Crow-Armstrong’s bunt. Parker managed to
finish six innings without further damage, but the visitors added another
three-spot in the 7th off Jacob Barnes, aided in no small part by a ground ball
that second baseman Luis GarcÃa Jr. failed to come up with.
Meanwhile, Washington’s batters were extremely effective at
making quick outs, as Chicago starter Jordan Wicks breezed through five innings
without a single walk or strikeout. Even the Nats’ lone run was a mixed
blessing, as it scored on a bases-loaded double play in the 2nd inning.
With the game pretty much out of hand, the only suspense was
whether and when the team’s two brand-new members would make their major league
debuts. Pitcher Zach Brzykcy (BRICK-see) was first, entering the game to pitch
the 9th inning. He started out reasonably well, allowing hits to two of the
first three batters he faced but then fanning Cody Bellinger for the second out
of the inning. Unfortunately, things went downhill from there, as he walked the
next two batters to force in one run before allowing a two-run single that
ended his outing. Fellow rookie Orlando Ribalta poured kerosene on the fire, as
the next five Chicago batters reached base before he could record the final
out.
The pinch-hitting debut of Darren Baker went better, as he
lined a single up the middle on the first pitch he saw in the bottom of the inning.
His father (former Nats manager Dusty) and mother were both there to witness
the event.
We somehow managed to make our usual one-hour trip down on Metro in a mere 45 minutes, with so little company that we were completely alone when we started our escalator ascent to ground level. With plenty of time after lunching at SeoulSpice, we decided to hike across the three-year-old Frederick Douglass Memorial Bridge, which spans the Anacostia River. With another large crowd, the concession lines at the park were almost unbelievably long, but the afternoon once again was rain-free.
https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/WAS/WAS202408310.shtml
Time: 2:38
Attendance: 32,995
Start time: 4:05
Start Time Weather: 83° F, Wind 5mph out to Centerfield,
Cloudy, No Precipitation.
Seats: 314 E1-2 – Just one section away from our usual
location
For the second game in a row, one big inning by the red-hot
Chicago Cubs was enough to doom the Nationals. DJ Herz, pitching for the first
time against the team that drafted him and then traded him away, dominated for
the first four innings, allowing only one runner (on a walk). Things fell apart
in the top of the 5th, however, as the Cubs began by loading the bases on two
singles and a walk. The first run scored on a sacrifice fly, while the next two
came across on another base hit and an infield grounder, with an error by normally-reliable
CF Jacob Young thrown in. Jacob Barnes promptly served up a double to the first
batter he faced, allowing another run to score. The visitors added an insurance
run in the 7th when a throwing error by Washington catcher Drew Millas allowed
Nico Hoerner to score from second base.
The Nats’ offense was not completely AWOL, managing 10 hits,
but it was not particularly efficient either. The home team notched single runs
in the 2nd (two-out RBI single by Joey Gallo), 4th (Andrés Chaparro homer), and
5th (Young doubled, advanced on an infield grounder, and scored on a wild pitch).
They started the next inning with consecutive singles, but José Tena was thrown
out trying to stretch his into a double, while CJ Abrams was caught attempting
to steal second. They had one last chance when Millas and Young reached base
with one out in the bottom of the 9th, but Dylan Crews and James Wood each
fanned to seal the defeat.
With the Cubs always a big draw, and others attracted by the CJ Abrams bobblehead giveaway, the crowd was large and effectively bipartisan. We picked up subs before the game, then waited at least 20 minutes in line – it seemed much longer – until the gates opened and we could collect our promotional items. It was quite humid and stuffy in our seats, although there was a nice breeze going in the concourse. At least the rain held off until later in the evening.
