Unusual Season Plays Out Until the Very End – The Post
Nats end on high note – The Wash. Times
How long was yesterday’s Nationals vs. Braves season finale in Atlanta? Well, I watched the first ten innings (while occasionally surfing over to the Redskins game — I saw Jason Campbell‘s beautiful TD to Santana Moss) and then had to run errands with my 16 month old. Every time we went somewhere, I said to him, “I guess we’ll know how the Nats did when we get back.” Every time, we can back to hear the game was still on. After three errands (including trips to Babies R Us and Harris Teeter) I couldn’t believe the game was still on. The last time, we got in the car and hear the last out of the 2009 season, a strikeout with two Braves runners on. Final score 2-1, Washington over Atlanta.
Starting pitcher J.D. Martin went six innings, giving up only Nate McClouth‘s homer to right. He was replaced by PH Adam Dunn, who knocked in the first Nationals run. That was the final scoring until the 15th inning when Alberto Gonzales knocked in Elijah Dukes for the winnig run. Logan Kensig, the fifth Washington reliever of the day, pitched the final two innings to earn his first win of the season. He had been DFA’d twice. It was that kind of game and year.
That was the longest Washington Nationals game ever.
The Nats are the first team to open a season with seven straight losses and then win seven straight times to end the season. Stan Kasten joked that the Nats were a 7 1/2 game winning streak.
James Williams dismissed by Nationals – All Nats All the Time, nationals.com
The man responsible for keeping Dukes responsible has been told his services are no longer needed. James Williams, a mentor (*cough* babysitter) ti Dukes has been employed by the team for the past two seasons. The team felt that Dukes had grown enough since his demotion to Syracuse and subsequent call-up. Williams was gracious with his remarks:
“Elijah has a great future and I know he now understands the importance of diplomacy. It is the best method of resolving issues. I truly love him and his family as if they were own. He will make it. Many people are praying for him.
Let’s hope he is right, Dukes has a lot at stake.
Nats’ Dunn misses out on history – The Wash. Times
Dunn’s streak of seasons with exactly 40 home runs ended at four. His power cooled in September — he did not hit a homer since his 38th on September 23. It was the first time since 2003 that he did not cross the 40 homer threshold. He also had 46 in 2004. His average though was 30 points higher than last year and his OBP was .397.
There is a lot that will happen over the next few days, including the big question of whether Jim Riggleman will be retained.
