It is Opening Day 3.0 and for the first time in about 35 years, Opening Day IS Opening Day. Hooray!
It looks like we are in for a good one — the forecast is 79° and sunny. If by chance you didn’t take a vacation day already you might want to pull a Ferris Bueller and get yourself down to RFK. Tickets should still be available.
My tickets are in section 471 (at least initially) with MC Hamme so stop by and say hello. I’ll also be enjoying MissChatter’s tailgate.
I’m on the record as saying the Nats will go 62-99 (one rain out). I really hope I am selling them short. They players don’t understand the doom and gloom predictions (The Post, The Free Lance-Star and The Wash. Times, respectively). There was one of these stories in The Wash. Examiner too.
Manny Acta is also not buying into the “Nats will be historically awful” talk. His managerial debut (The Wash. Times) is today (The Post).
P John Patterson is also having a big day today, his first Opening Day start (The Free Lance-Star). The 29 year old has gone through 11 spring trainings and has a 17-20 career record. Despite these numbers, he is the staff ace (The Wash. Examiner), though by default.
President Bush will not throw out the first pitch. (The Post) We have already been over how disappointed we are over this news. Back in the 1950s, Eisenhower took a lot of flack for suggesting he wouldn’t throw out the first pitch.
Enjoy the last year of a below average fan cost index (The Wash. Examiner) for the Nationals.
Jim Williams of The Wash. Examiner briefly talks with Stan Kasten about the Nats broadcasting situation.
Ryan Zimmerman is the face of the franchise (The Post). How do we know this — his new address is gossip online.
Thomas Boswell of The Post laments that the Nats and some other team don’t have a power hitter.
The Washington Nationals Foundation has made its largest donation yet (WRC-TV) — $2 million (cash, advertising and other benefits at RFK Stadium and the new Nationals ballpark) to Children’s Hospital to establish a diabetes care and education facility.
The Miami Herald says Opening Day is just another game.
See you at RFK!