May 24, 2019 – Nats 12, Marlins 10 – Nationals Park

https://www.mlb.com/nationals/news/nationals-bats-rally-in-win-over-marlins

 

Weather: 82 degrees, Partly Cloudy.

Wind: 14 mph, In From LF.

Umpires: HP--Winters, 1B--Timmons, 2B--Whitson, 3B--Muchlinski.

Time: 3:59

Attendance: 29,173

 

Section 312, Row C, Seat 19

 

You shouldn’t win a game when your starting pitcher gives up 5 runs in 4 innings. You definitely shouldn’t win when your bullpen gives up another 5 runs, somehow increasing its already dreadful 7+ ERA. And you certainly have no business coming out on top when you commit 4 errors (which would have been 5 if not for a questionable scoring decision).

 

The Nats fell behind by 3 early, came back to tie, fell behind by 4, came back to tie, and once again gave up the lead in the top of the 8^th. Nevertheless, they persisted.

 

Give credit to Anthony Rendon for his game-tying 3-run blast in the 3^rd. Give some to Victor Robles, whose 2-run double tied it again 3 innings later. And give a ton to Juan Soto, once again doing Juan Soto things, for finally putting the home team in front with a 3-run homer off a 101-mph pitch.

 

On the pitching side, Matt Grace and Tanner Rainey kept the visitors off the board in the 6^th and 7^th innings, respectively. With a 3-run lead to protect in the top of the 9^th, Doolittle allowed a homer on his first pitch, followed by 2 more hits later in the inning, but finally recorded the final out, allowing the crowd to exhale at last. We were also glad that they chose to play this marathon on a night that Metro kept going past 11:30.)

 

Musical footnote – kudos to Matt Adams for his use of Gary Clark Jr.’s “Bright Lights, Big City” to lead into his ABs, and to Brian Dozier for choosing the ubiquitous “Old Town Road” for some of his.

May 23, 2019 – Frederick Keys 8, Myrtle Beach Pelicans 7 (11 innings) – Nymeo Field at Harry Grove Stadium

https://www.milb.com/frederick/news/reyes-walks-it-off-for-frederick/c-307398486

 

Umpires: HP: Reed Basner. 1B: John Budka.

Weather: 71 degrees, Partly Cloudy.

Wind: 5 mph, Calm.

First pitch: 11:00 AM.

Time: 3:38.

Attendance: 6,232.

 

Section 204, Row K, Seat 17 – second section from the middle on the third-base side, second row below the concourse, on the aisle

 

It was a good news / bad news / good news kind of day at Frederick. It was all good for the first 5 innings, as Baltimore’s 2017 first-round draft pick, southpaw DL Hall, blanked the visitors in dominant fashion, allowing just 2 hits and 1 walk while fanning 10. Meanwhile, the Keys turned 4 straight singles into 2 runs in the bottom of the 2^nd, and added one more in the 5^th on a Trevor Craport RBI double.

 

Things quickly broke bad from there, when Travis Seabrooke relieved Hall to start the 6^th and allowed a pair of 2-run homers. The Pelicans then added single tallies in each of the next 3 innings, countered only by a single Keys run in the 8^th.

 

Trailing 7-4 in the bottom of the 9^th, however, Zach Jarrett (son of NASCAR legend Dale) hit a 3-run homer with one out to tie the game.

 

This was the first extra-inning minor-league game I had seen since the recent rules change that starts each half-inning after the 9^th with a runner on second base, to increase the chances of scoring (and thus ending the game more quickly). This didn’t particularly bother Frederick reliever Steven Klimek in the top of the 10^th, as he struck out the first two batters and retired the third on a grounder.

 

Frederick went for the jugular in the bottom of the frame, pinch-running Jake Ring at second base for Ryan Ripken (son of Cal Jr.). After Sean Miller failed to bunt him over, he got to third on a wild pitch, but was stranded there as the next two batters grounded out.

 

Klimek didn’t have it as easy the next inning, walking two batters with one out to load the bases, but escaped on a nicely-turned double play. Third-baseman Jomar Reyes, spending his 4^th consecutive season with the Keys, hit a ground-rule double with one out in the bottom of the frame to end it, sending the remnants of the STEM Day crowd home happy, at least until the torrential rains hit shortly thereafter.

May 19, 2019 – Cubs 6, Nats 5 – Nationals Park

https://www.mlb.com/gameday/cubs-vs-nationals/2019/05/19/565918#game_state=final,lock_state=final,game_tab=wrap,game=565918

 

Weather: 87 degrees, Partly Cloudy.

Wind: 7 mph, R To L.

Umpires: HP--Wolf, 1B--Lentz, 2B--Iassogna, 3B--Holbrook.

Time: 3:15

Attendance: 23,244

 

Things did not begin well.

 

Veteran Nats starter Jeremy Hellickson, who depends on command to make up for the lack of an imposing fastball, walked the first 3 Chicago batters he faced, throwing only 2 strikes in the process and generating early action in the home team bullpen. He hit Willson Contreras with a pitch later in the frame, but after a double play managed to escape with only a single run on the board.

 

Hellickson then stopped walking people and started allowing extra-base hits, allowing single runs in the 2^nd and 3^rd. Kyle McGowin made his season debut for the Nats in the 4^th and continued the trend. Meanwhile, Washington didn’t get a runner on base against Kyle Hendricks until Rendon drew a four-pitch walk with 2 outs in the bottom of the 4^th.

 

Things started to look up an inning later, as McGowin retired the visitors in order and the Nats ended the no-hitter and shutout on singles by Suzuki and Parra followed by a Dozier groundout. Unfortunately there would be no shutdown inning, as the Cubs responded with 2 runs in an ugly top of the 6^th, during which McGowin uncorked two wild pitches and was charged with an error on Hendricks’ bunt. This was especially painful since Washington finally figured out the Cubs’ starter in the bottom of the inning, but they still trailed by 2 runs after Rendon’s 3-run blast.

 

Howie Kendrick cut the deficit to one with a leadoff HR after the seventh-inning stretch, and the Washington bullpen blanked the Cubs over the final 3 innings, but they were matched by Chicago’s Steve Cishek, who notched a rare 7-out save, allowing only one hit in the process.

 

While we were not happy earlier in the week to hear that the game had been chosen by ESPN for its Sunday night broadcast, the decision worked out well, given how hot it was in the afternoon. Things were much more comfortable for the 7:05 start, especially in the shade.

May 15, 2019 – Nats 5, Mets 1 – Nationals Park

https://www.mlb.com/gameday/mets-vs-nationals/2019/05/15/565914#game_state=final,lock_state=final,game_tab=wrap,game=565914

 

Weather: 72 degrees, Sunny.

Wind: 6 mph, Out To RF.

Umpires: HP--Blaser, 1B--Diaz, 2B--Randazzo, 3B--Nelson.

Time: 2:28

Attendance: 29,673

 

Patrick Corbin seems to be Washington’s designated bobblehead-game pitcher this season. Like the last time we saw him pitch, he turned in a top-notch effort, both times fanning 11 while allowing only a single run. Fortunately for the Nats, a few things were different this time, resulting in a 5-1 victory instead of an agonizing extra-inning defeat.

 

While in our April encounter the Nats scored only 2 runs while Corbin was in the game (one of which he had to drive in himself), tonight they exceeded that total by the end of the first inning. Perhaps inspired by Corbin fanning the side in the top of the frame, Eaton walked, advancing to second on a Robles bunt single. That was followed by consecutive RBIs by Rendon (double), Soto (ground out), and Kendrick (single). They added two more in the third, on a Robles homer and doubles by Rendon and Kendrick.

 

Meanwhile, Corbin sailed through the Mets’ lineup, with the 3^rd inning being the only time he allowed a runner past first base. Most importantly, he had a quick 1-2-3 inning in the 7^th, allowing him to pitch the 8^th before having to turn the game over to Washington’s bullpen. With the team badly needing a victory, Davey went to Doolittle to close things out in the 9^th, despite having a 4-run lead.

Richard Thompson – Rams Head on Stage, 5/13/2019

Table 102, Seat 4 – front and center, 4-person table. Oddly, 2 of the seats remained vacant, although the show was sold out.

 

As usual, Thompson mixed it up nicely in his 21-song, 110-minute show, with just two songs from his latest album 13 Rivers (plus “They Tore The Hippodrome Down” from the slightly-less-recent Acoustic Rarities). He went back 50 years to Fairport Convention for “Genesis Hall” (which I hadn’t heard before) and Sandy Denny’s classic “Who Knows Where The Time Goes”, and did 4 songs from the Richard and Linda Thompson days, ending the main set with “Dimming Of The Day” as he did last year at The Birchmere. Naturally, the usual crowd favorites were all there as well.

 

The high point for me came with the first encore, when a guy from the next table requested my all-time favorite, “Al Bowlly’s In Heaven”. RT hedged a bit, saying that he was more used to doing it with a band, but proceeded to crank out a great rendition. I also particularly enjoyed the hilarious (but unfortunately never-recorded) “Crocodile Tears” and the somber wartime ballad “Woods Of Darney”.

 

Setlist

Alexa has been eavesdropping on you this whole time

https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2019/05/06/alexa-has-been-eavesdropping-you-this-whole-time/?utm_term=.56e1b607120a

 

"I listened to four years of my Alexa archive and found thousands of fragments of my life: spaghetti-timer requests, joking houseguests and random snippets of “Downton Abbey.” There were even sensitive conversations that somehow triggered Alexa’s “wake word” to start recording, including my family discussing medication and a friend conducting a business deal."

 

Not for me, thank you very much.

Serendipity #77

Fire Away – Dawes

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SygYNsTFk10

Heard 5/7/2019 around 12:15 at Zoe’s Kitchen (Germantown)

‘Free tuition’ is the opposite of progressive policymaking

https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/free-tuition-is-the-opposite-of-progressive-policymaking/2019/05/03/4767edc8-6c1b-11e9-a66d-a82d3f3d96d5_story.html?utm_term=.299ccc80efa2

Favorite Musical Artists: Bruce Springsteen

I guess in some ways it’s appropriate that I post this just a few days after The Boss announced the upcoming release of his 19^th studio album, and dropped its first “single”, “Hello Sunshine”. I like the song, but it’s not nearly as upbeat as the title might suggest. Rich Russo played it on his syndicated radio show this weekend, immediately followed by the Beatles’ “Good Day Sunshine”, and the contrast was pretty striking. (What it REALLY reminds me of is Danny O’Keefe’s 1972 hit “Goodtime Charlie’s Got The Blues.”)

 

Although I do own all 18 of Bruce’s previous studio recordings, plus some (but not all) of his live and/or previously-unreleased stuff (yes, I have the four-disc Tracks set), I’ve been a relative slacker compared to the true diehards in terms of seeing him live, with a modest total of five shows to my credit:

 

October 20, 1974 – Dickinson College (Carlisle PA)

November 11, 2007 – Verizon Center

September 14, 2012 – Nationals Park

April 20, 2016 – Royal Farms Arena (Baltimore)

September 1, 2016 – Nationals Park

 

I decided to see if I could find out a little more about Jon Landau’s legendary “rock and roll future” comment. A slightly longer excerpt is below; you can find the entire (lengthy) column from which it was taken here.

 

But tonight there is someone I can write of the way I used to write, without reservations of any kind. Last Thursday, at the Harvard Square theatre, I saw my rock'n'roll past flash before my eyes. And I saw something else: I saw rock and roll future and its name is Bruce Springsteen. And on a night when I needed to feel young, he made me feel like I was hearing music for the very first time.

 

Favorite songs:

 

Thunder Road

Jungleland

Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)

Hungry Heart

The Price You Pay

 

My City Of Ruins

Jersey Girl

4th Of July, Asbury Park (Sandy)

Dancing In The Dark

Darkness On The Edge Of Town

 

Blinded By The Light

Stolen Car

Born To Run

Pink Cadillac

Shut Out The Light

 

Kitty's Back

The Promised Land

Spirit In The Night

Wrecking Ball

One Step Up

 

And of course there’s his classic cover of “Santa Claus Is Comin’ To Town”

 

April 28, 2019 – Nats 7, Padres 6 (11 innings) – Nationals Park

https://www.mlb.com/gameday/padres-vs-nationals/2019/04/28/565908#game_state=final,lock_state=final,game_tab=wrap,game=565908

 

Weather: 70 degrees, Sunny.

Wind: 6 mph, Out To CF.

Umpires: HP--West, 1B--Cooper, 2B--Fletcher, 3B--Little.

Time: 4:03

Attendance: 30,186

 

To put it kindly, things did not start out well for the home team this afternoon.

 

Noted San Diego “slugger” Greg Garcia homered off Nats starter Jeremy Hellickson in the top of the first, and the visitors pushed across another run an inning later. Things really went south in the 3^rd: infield single, error, RBI single, 3-run 1-out homer by Eric Hosmer.

 

With a 6-0 deficit and an overworked bullpen, the initial plan seemed to be to let Hellickson absorb a few more innings, so he was allowed to hit for himself to lead off the bottom of the 3^rd. After Robles beat out an infield single (the Nats successfully challenged the initial “out” call) and Dozier singled, Juan Soto changed the course of the game with a 3-run shot to center. Washington pushed across another run and loaded the bases with 2 out, leading Davey to pinch-hit Adam Eaton (who struck out) for Hellickson the second time around.

 

With Hellickson now gone after just three innings, the Nats turned to Erick Fedde, who had been called up earlier in the day for just this sort of emergency. He more than rose to the occasion, pitching four scoreless frames while facing only one batter over the minimum.

 

Meanwhile, Washington completed its comeback on solo HRs by Robles in the 4^th and the recently-promoted Carter Kieboom in the 5^th, making MLB history along with Soto as the only trio of teammates under 22 years old to all homer in the same game.

 

With men on first and second and one out in the bottom of the 7^th, Martinez rolled the dice by pinch-hitting for Fedde, who had thrown only 49 pitches, far fewer than the 88 he tossed in his minor-league start 5 days earlier. Unfortunately, Yan Gomes and Robles fanned to end the inning, meaning that the Nats weary (and largely ineffective) bullpen guys would have to cover the rest of the game.

 

Kyle Barraclough, Joe Ross, and Tony Sipp kept the visitors off the board for the next 3 innings, although Ross had to retire Manny Machado with the bases loaded and 2 outs. Washington missed a great scoring chance in the bottom of the 10^th, when their first two batters reached base and the Padres were forced into a makeshift defensive alignment after shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr. had to exit due to injury. San Diego reliever Matt Wisler, however, retired the next 3 Washington batters to keep the game going into the 11^th.

 

Fortunately, there would be a happy ending, as Justin Miller retired the side in the top of the inning, and Matt Adams led off with a massive homer to right field to send what remained of the crowd home happy.

 

A cluster of dark clouds passed ominously over the field in the middle innings, but there was no rain, and much more sun that we had expected. For the last several innings, the wind was blowing hard from left to right, knocking down several fly balls hit to left and almost blowing Adams’ game-winning shot into foul territory.