While it may sound kind of obvious considering where you're reading this, I have to say that one of the great pleasures of Major League Baseball's return to D.C. has been the ability to follow the Nationals' progress and the variety of Nats information and opinion that's available -- and continually updated around the clock -- on the internet.

The sheer volume of information and the frequency with which it is refreshed is a marked change from the daily newspaper and TV / radio coverage of a couple of decades ago. And both old and new sources have helped fulfill fans' hunger for information by exploring teams' player-development organizations and keeping readers up to date on their activities.

One of the finest such sources, Nationals Farm Authority, made its debut in 2005 at about the same time as Nationals Daily News (then NationalsPride). Over the past six seasons, NFA editor Brian Oliver has maintained a commitment to keeping his readers up to date on the goings-on of the Nats' minor-league system.

That's not all he's been doing. Like most of the rest of us, he's also been holding down a day job. And, on the side, he's been going to school to obtain his certification as a high-school mathematics teacher.

Having fulfilled the latter goal, Brian has sadly -- if probably wisely -- concluded that there's not enough time in the day for classroom teaching and NFA, and has therefore announced that he's shutting down the site. While he does point his readers to other Nats farm-system websites, Brian's reports and insights as well as the Big Board and other good things at NFA will be awfully hard to replace.

We wish Brian success and fulfillment as he embarks on his new journey.

      

I made an appearance late Monday evening on Bill Ivie's I-70 Baseball Radio program.  We reviewed St. Louis' just-completed series at Nationals Park and pondered the future of right-hander Stephen Strasburg after his upcoming Tommy John surgery.

You can access the recording of the show via this link.

      

After a week of good news (the introduction of Bryce Harper) and bad news (the probable loss of Stephen Strasburg to Tommy John ligament-reconstruction surgery), the Washington Nationals hit the road on Monday for a pair of three-game sets against Florida and Pittsburgh.

If the Nationals are looking to make the news balance come out positive, they can be consoled not only by their just-completed series victory over St. Louis -- the first time in the month of August that the club has won three games in a four-game stretch -- but also by some past and approaching milestones.

• On Sunday the Nats won their 56th game of the season.  They didn't manage to do that in 2009 until October 1.


• The club needs just four wins to improve on its record from both 2008 and 2009.


• It's still mathematically possible for the Nats, who have lost 75 games, to finish at or above the .500 mark this season.  Granted, that would require a 25-6 finish -- but it's still a possibility, one from which the 2009 Nats had eliminated themselves by August 26.

Another consolation of sorts is that all three of this week's Washington pitchers have successfully recovered from stints on the disabled list at some point this season.

In Florida on Monday evening, right-hander Jason Marquis (0-7 win-loss record, 8.79 ERA) will be looking to continue his steady, if bumpy, improvement since his return from the disabled list on August 8.  Tuesday's starter will be righty fireballer Jordan Zimmermann (0-0, 11.25) in just his second start since his August 26 return from rehabilitation for Tommy John surgery.  He'll be followed on Wednesday evening by left-hander Scott Olsen (3-7. 4.91) whose shoulder, surgically repaired in the 2009-10 offseason and tweaky enough earlier this season to send him to the DL, was sufficiently strong on Friday to let him turn in a first-rate six-inning performance in a tough-luck loss to the Cardinals.

Meanwhile, the Nats will be seeking to arrest the winning skeins of three Florida right-handers, each of whom has won his two most recent starts: rookie Alex Sanabia (3-1, 3.62) on Monday, Anibal Sanchez (11-8, 3.29) on Tuesday and Chris Volstad (8-9, 4.61) on Wednesday. 

      

As the Washington Nationals approach the end of yet another also-ran season, they haven't forgotten the contributions made by pitcher Livan Hernandez.  The team announced Sunday afternoon that the right-handed starter has been signed through the 2011 season.

Hernandez, 35, who threw both the first pitch in Nationals history after the franchise's relocation from Montreal (at Philadelphia on April 4, 2005) and the team's first pitch in RFK Stadium, has logged a 9-9 record and 3.49 ERA this season in 175 1/3 innings over 27 starts.  Originally acquired by Montreal in a 2003 preseason trade with San Francisco, Hernandez has pitched all or part of six seasons in the Expos / Nationals organization, accruing a 61-56 record and 3.89 ERA over 162 games.

While terms of Hernandez' 2011 contract were not disclosed by the team, MLB.com's Bill Ladson tweets that the deal includes a base salary of $1 million plus incentive bonuses.  Hernandez was signed as a free agent to a one-year, $900,000 contract before the beginning of the 2010 season.

      

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- If you were paying attention at all on Saturday night -- or at least closer attention than Washington Nationals center fielder Nyjer Morgan was -- you couldn't have failed to notice that, in the middle of the Nationals' big six-run eighth inning against the Cardinals, Morgan failed to touch home plate after a Willie Harris double sent him around the base paths from first.

Catcher Ivan Rodriguez didn't fail to notice: having scored his own run, he pushed Morgan back toward the plate, which nullified any chance of Morgan's run counting.

Nor did Nationals manager Jim Riggleman fail to notice either Morgan's missing the plate, or Morgan's apparent need along the way to vent frustration on St. Louis catcher Bryan Anderson, whom Morgan elbow-blocked at the end of his detour away from home.

When asked before today's game at Nationals Park about his decision to omit Morgan from the Sunday lineup, Riggleman at first didn't have much to say about it:  "Just a manager's decision to go a different way today. I think Nyjer's playing fine."

It didn't take long, though, for Riggleman to reveal his true feelings about the incident.

"I think it was just a culmination of Nyjer's anger from not hitting first," Riggleman said. "[He] did an unprofessional thing. He went after the catcher. I certainly don't condone that."

"That's not Nyjer's style of play to do something like that," Riggleman said, while revealing that Morgan was unhappy about being moved to the eighth position in Saturday's lineup.  Morgan has batted leadoff in almost all of the 113 games he has played for the Nationals this season.

"I called him in and told him I was gonna hit him eighth instead of leadoff," Riggleman said. "I think [Morgan's frustration] just was building up all day. I think he thought I was wearing that [catcher's] equipment there at home plate."

"I'm sorry it happened," Riggleman said. "I apologized to [St. Louis manager] Tony [La Russa] and I apologized to Bryan Anderson," Riggleman added, indicating that the apologies were accepted.

Even so, inserting Morgan into Sunday's lineup at any position could have been hazardous.

"I can't minimize [the incident], because if I take the approach that there's nothing wrong with it, we're gonna get people hurt on the field," Riggleman said. "There's gotta be retaliation."

"If Nyjer was playing today, he'd get hit [by a pitch]," Riggleman said. "If an opposing player did that to my catcher and came to the plate, he'd get hit."

Riggleman expressed confidence that the incident was an isolated one.

"You've never seen that before [from Morgan]," Riggleman said. "You'll never see it again."

      

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- If, as a Washington Nationals fan, you think it was tough watching Stephen Strasburg depart suddenly from last Saturday evening's game in Philadelphia with symptoms of what turned out to be a career-derailing elbow ligament tear, imagine how it must have felt to his teammates.

Such as, for instance, catcher Wil Nieves.

"Scary, you know?" Nieves said Saturday when asked to describe his feelings at the time the event occurred a week before. "You're hoping it's nothing serious.  He's been throwing so good, his velocity was there.  It's just scary to see one of your pitchers come out from a game."

The worst news -- that Strasburg would need Tommy John ligament reconstruction surgery -- was yet to come.  Nieves tried to remain philosophical about this latest setback to the Nationals' rotation-building plans.

"We just gotta keep going," Nieves said. "Obviously we lost a great pitcher. But we're just gonna keep battling."

"You've got the other guys," Nieves said. "Like [Jordan] Zimmermann and those guys."

Nieves, however, harbors no illusions about the impact of Strasburg's absence from the Nationals' pitching staff.

"When you lose a guy like [Strasburg], it always hurts," Nieves said.  "But this is a team. We've just gotta win without him. And when he comes back, it's gonna be even better."

      

August 28, 1924 - The Washington Senators win the first game of a four game series against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium by the score of 11 to 6. The Senators were led by Goose Goslin who hit for the cycle and went 4 for 5 and knocked in 6 runs during the game.

The victory put the Senators (72-54) a half game ahead of the Yankees (70-53) in the chase of the American League pennant. With a little more than month left in the season each game is critical, especially the games against the Yankees. 

The first game of the series did not lack excitement as the Yankees and Senators combined for 17 runs and 31 hits. The great Babe Ruth improved his batting average to a league leading .392 and hit his league leading 41st and 42nd home runs and knocked in his league leading 105th. 106th and 107th runs, as he powered the Yankees to a 6 to 3 lead going into the eighth inning. Goose Goslin and Sam Rice who went 5 for 6 at the plate led the pesky Senators to an eight run top of the eighth inning and gave the Senators an 11 to 6 lead going into the bottom of the eighth inning.

The Senators star relief pitcher Firpo Marberry gives up one hit and strike outs three as he registers his 10th save of the season. The Senators' pitcher Allen Russell gets the win as he improves his record to 4-1 and the Yankees' pitcher Milt Gaston (5-3) gets the loss.

Quick Facts - Goose Goslin

~Goose Goslin becomes the first player to hit for the cycle at Yankee Stadium.

~Goose Goslin will prevent Babe Ruth from winning the Triple Crown as Goslin leads the league in RBI's with 129.

~Goose Goslin hit more home runs (32) in Yankee Stadium than any other visiting hitters. *Goslin only hit 38 career home runs at Griffith Stadium. The great Babe Ruth only hit 34 home runs at Griffith Stadium.

Quick Facts - 1924 Washington Senators

~The Senators will go on to win this series three games to one and lead the Yankees by one and half games.

~The Senators will never give up the lead for the rest of the '24 season as they beat the Yankees by two games to win the '24 American League Pennant.

~The Senators will win the '24 World Series by beating the New York Giants 4 games to 3.

      

"Oh, Rob!"  And then the eye roll of disdain.  That's what Laura Petrie used to say and do when hubby Rob had done something pretty dumb.  Somehow that image comes to mind when pondering MASN broadcaster Rob Dibble.  Oh, Rob, you didn't really say that, did you?  

Dibble's recent trevails have been well chronicled (here and here).  And there's been no shortage of judgment to said actions (here, here and here, among others).  Many want the Nats to fire Dibble for recent comments that, among others, questioned Stephen Strasburg's toughness.  With Strasburg now sidelined for at least a year due to arm injury, Dibble's comments look even more crass.  But do they warrant his firing? 

As with all people, Dibble has his strengths and he has his weaknesses.  Among Dibble's strengths: a real passion for all things baseball.  He loves talking baseball, and isn't shy about his opinions.  Among his weaknesses:  he tends to talk before his thoughts are fully formed.  If you listen to his radio show, you might catch Dibble drifting from one topic to another and, in some cases, contradicting an opinion he had stated just minutes before.  In other words, he lacks an internal modulator.  (If you had asked Dibble about his Strasburg comments an hour or so after the game, my guess is that he would have felt badly about making them.) 

In contrast, as I write this blog, I go back and forth, change it a bit, and later see the main point I'm heading to.  Before I hit the "publish" button, I get comfortable with the logic flow of the piece.  In talk radio, Dibble has none of these benefits.  

You might think that the lack of such a safety net would make a talk-show host a bit more modest and couched in his or her views.  Well, that's not our Rob.  In many ways, he reminds me more of a football commentator, sharp elbows and all, than one who works in the milder sport of baseball.  

In my car on the way to work, I don't mind Dibble's style so much.  When I get home and turn on the baseball game, though, that's another matter.  There, I am putting the broadcasters in my family room almost every night for six straight months.  Sometimes I watch the game solo.  Sometimes with my wife or kids.  Sometimes the game is background noise while we do something else.  

But to leave the game on, I need to feel comfortable that those doing the talking won't rub us the wrong way, such as offensive comments about women, picking a verbal spat with a colleague, and questioning the manhood of a player whose arm just totally collapsed.  In others words, my litmus test is: would I enjoy having the person sit in my family room?  Sharp-elbowed talk show hosts seldom qualify.  

But of course the Nats knew all this when they hired Dibble.  They knew that Dibble would bring his radio persona to TV and they didn't seem to care that it might rub some fans the wrong way.  The family room test was not on their mind.  So wouldn't be it a tad hypocritical for the team to throw Dibble under the bus now?  The image of the corrupt cop in the movie Casablanca -- "I'm shocked, shocked, that there's gambling going on in this establishment" -- comes to mind.  

So as the Nats and Dibble discuss their respective futures, here are a couple thoughts to keep in mind.  First, Dibble.  Many of the great baseball broadcasters worked well into their senior years, and refined their styles along the way.  If he wants to broadcast 162 games every year, is he willing to change and adapt his style?  Is he willing to drop the sharp elbows?  After all, he is still a young man.  Since I don't know Dibble personally, I have no idea whether he wants to change, or even sees the need to.  But it does seem that he has better sides to him, such as a deep affection for those who serve in the military.  Maybe that's a start.  

As for the Nats, they have to decide what kind of brand they want their franchise to represent.  Do they see Washington baseball like Washington politics, with an emphasis on sharp elbows and the pursuit of power?  Or do they see baseball as something better that transcends all that and builds loyalty among a fan base?  Frankly, this is an issue that this franchise has struggled with for a while now.  But like Dibble, maybe they can change, too.  

Maybe the change involves asking Dibble to stay with the broadcast team.  Maybe it involves a parting of ways.  But for both Rob Dibble and the Nats, let's hope things work a bit differently from here on.

      

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Washington Nationals pitcher Stephen Strasburg spoke to the media this afternoon at Nationals Park and expressed confidence that his forthcoming Tommy John elbow ligament reconstruction surgery, and subsequent rehabilitation, will be successful.

Strasburg admitted that he suffered a jolt upon learning that he would require surgery to replace the torn ligament.

"It was kind of a shock to me," Strasburg said, "because I really didn't feel anything."

Speaking calmly and confidently, Strasburg quickly put his injury and forthcoming surgery into perspective.

"In a way, it's good that it happened now," Strasburg said, "instead of when we're going to the postseason or getting ready for the World Series."

"It's a new challenge," Strasburg said. "I want to be the best at everything.  Right now I'm going to be the best at rehabbing and getting back out here."

Strasburg said that he has had the opportunity to discuss his injury and recovery path with fellow right-handed pitcher Jordan Zimmermann, who returned to the major leagues on Wednesday evening after undergoing Tommy John surgery in August 2009.

"[Zimmermann] was telling me that, especially early on, you're going to be questioning yourself," Strasburg said. "It's going to feel really, really good on some days, and the next day it'll be tight."

Strasburg recognizes that the major leagues are replete with successful returnees from elbow ligament reconstruction, "all the guys in the big leagues who are Cy Young contenders, Hall of Famers who have had this surgery."

Expressing confidence in the skills of orthopedic surgeon Lewis A. Yocum MD -- who also performed the procedure on Zimmermann -- Strasburg said, "It's become such a specialty.  I'm going to the best."

"I know deep down inside," Strasburg said, "that I'm going to work just as hard, if not harder, than any of these guys who had to go through it before."

Strasburg did not immediately consider that the pain he felt after throwing the pitch in Philadelphia that resulted in his removal from Saturday night's game might indicate an elbow issue.

"It felt more like a flexor strain than anything," Strasburg said.  "It felt like my forearm cramped up.  That was about it."

In the opinion of Strasburg's medical team, as stated by team general manager Mike Rizzo at a media teleconference this morning, Strasburg's injury was "an acute injury caused by a single pitch."  Strasburg himself, however, did not seem to think that was the only possibility.

"What happened the other night [on the mound in Philadelphia] was something I'd felt before," Strasburg said, "and nothing was torn then.  I don't know what the doctors think, but I think it might've been more something that happened over time."

Team general manager Mike Rizzo reaffirmed the team's intention, despite Strasburg's setback, to build a credible rotation by all means possible -- "via free agency, trades, or developing our own.  That's always our primary goal."

"We're certainly not going to stop looking for the ultimate starting rotation," Rizzo said.  "A year goes fast, and a year from now [Strasburg] will be toeing the rubber."

"We're going to be ready to take off from there," Rizzo said.

Nationals field manager Jim Riggleman said he learned just before Thursday night's game of the likely need for Strasburg to undergo surgery.

Riggleman did not understate the impact that Strasburg's absence will have on the team.

"When you lose a guy that is this talented, it's hard to replace that," Riggleman said, indicating that it might take one or more pitchers to fill the rotation void left by Strasburg.

"We just want to put a staff together that'll get us through the remainder of this year and the upcoming season," Riggleman said, "to make us as competitive and keep moving forward as we've been trying to do."

Zimmermann's rehabilitation was cited by Riggleman as an experience from which Strasburg could project his own future.

"Whether it's on the surface or subconsciously, it's got to affect Stephen a little bit that he saw the work Zimmermann put in in Viera on his comeback," Riggleman said.  "He saw Zimmermann work and he saw the progress from where he was to where he is now, right there hands-on with him" instead of only hearing of other elbow-reconstruction recoverees, such as John Smoltz, at second hand.

Riggleman talked about the injury risks faced by present-day pitchers.

"When I see these pitchers throw, I'm almost more surprised when they don't end up with surgery," Riggleman said.  "So many of them break down."

"You sense that, if you put twelve names in a hat, three of them are going to need surgery," Riggleman said.  "That's just a fact."

Riggleman spoke confidently of his eventual hope to have Strasburg and Zimmermann working in the same rotation.

"It's still gonna happen," Riggleman said.  "It's just gonna be another year before it happens."

      

Starting to get the feeling that this franchise is cursed?  

We're originally given a team whose minor-league system had been gutted.  Then we have to endure the drama days of a certain GM.  A number one pick doesn't sign.  Future of the franchise-catcher goes down with mysterious shoulder injury from which he has yet to return.  Future of the franchise-pitcher 1 loses a year to Tommy John surgery.  And just when he gets backs on the mound, future of the franchise-pitcher 2 is similarly lost. 

There is one serious bummer.  

As Hendo reported earlier today, Stephen Strasburg won't be seen in DC until, most likely, the 2012 season.  Suddenly gone is the vision of two elite power pitchers, Strasburg and Jordan Zimmerman, leading the rotation next year and for many more to come.  

And 2011 doesn't look very pretty.  Normally reliable starters, John Lannan and Jason Marquis, have struggled mightily this season.  Scott Olsen has a ways to go to get back to form, which was only mediocre.  Craig Stammen has shown flashes of emerging, but has yet to find the consistency needed to break through.  The others have too many question marks to go through one by one.  Only Livan Herandez -- yes, Livan -- has been dependably good.  Wow.

Strasburg's exit from the rotation also complicates the rest of the line-up, which is mostly filled with older veterans whose clocks or contracts are ticking.  Will Adam Dunn still be a Nat when Strasburg returns in 2012?  If so, will he, Josh Willingham and Nyjer Morgan be performing at a high level?  Will Ryan Zimmerman, with one year left on his contract by then, decide not to extend and instead pursue free agency?  These are pretty big questions.  

Over the next few days, NDN will dig a bit deeper into these and other implications of the Strasburg situation.  For now, just feel bummed.  We do.