Philadelphia 4 WASHINGTON 2 (ESPN Boxscore)
The 2nd Annual Half-smoke Cheesesteak Challenge is tied. The Fleas tagged “ace” John Patterson for three runs in four innings before manager Manny Acta had enough. On the radio, Charlie Slowes and Dave Shea noted that Patterson was not using his lower body well in his pitches and that Patterson pitches poorly when it is “cold.” Perhaps Acta could have used the Sunday postponement to juggle the rotation a little to ensure Patterson pitched in Florida tonight instead, but I can understand some reluctance on his part. That Philly only got three runs off of Paterson is more a reflection on their ability to strand runners than Paterson’s pitching.
Eighty year old Jamie Moyer shut the Nats down through eight innings. In the ninth, he finally faltered giving up doubles to 3B Ryan Zimmerman and 1B Dimitri Young. Tom Gordon appeared in relief and loaded the bases with no outs. PH Robert Fick sacrificed Young home, but that would do it for the Nats scoring. The game ended with LF Chris Snelling watching strike three go right past him. At least it was an exciting loss.
It’s Still Slow Going For Nats’ Patterson – The Post
Patterson still isn’t up to speed – The Wash. Times
More stories
NATIONALS NOTEBOOK: Church Gets Credit for His Work in Center – The Post
Ryan Church is playing well in centrfield despite his antipathy for RFK.
Record aside, Bergmann shows quality – The Wash. Times
Jason Bergmann may not have any wins, but he has half the staff’s quality starts. Also, Jesus Colome learned he doesn’t have to throw 100 MPH to get the job done out of the bullpen.
Freddie Mac, Washington Nationals team up to encourage area adoption – The Wash. Examiner
THOMAS BOSWELL – Mind Over Matter – The Post
Happy Bos is back! He lucks the attitude of the Nats right now and doesn’t think they’ll be historically bad.
The Business of Baseball – Forbes
The Nats are worth $447 million, making them the 10th most valuable franchise in baseball. That puts them at 4th in the NL East though, $10 million back of the Phillies, but with the new ballpark coming, that may change. Also noted:
1.) Yankees – $1.2 billion
2.) Mets – $736 million
14.) Balmer – $395 million
30.) Marlins – $244 million
By the way, didn’t the Nats sell for $450 million? I wouldn’t put too much in this though, since there are factual errors like “Lerner owns the Capitals.”