June 2009 Archives

Sergei Fedorov's decision to move to the Kontinental Hockey League marks another loss for the Washington Capitals. Victor Kozlov signed with Salavat of the KHL in May, and rumors have linked both Donald Brashear and Michael Nylander to Russian teams as well.

While Brashear denied these claims during the season, he does expect to hit the free agent market come July 1; he has not yet been approached by the Capitals regarding a contact for the 2009-2010 season. The Washington Post's Tarik El-Bashir reported that while the KHL rumors were indeed false, Brashear has not ruled out a move to Russia in order to play.

As the Caps lose two, and possibly three of their veteran players, it displays another shift towards the "Young Guns." These changes could, however, have serious repercussions.

Of the Capitals' veterans, only five will enter the 2009-2010 season with more than four years of having played forty or more NHL games.

Minnesota news station WCCO has reported Brett Favre signed an agreement to attend the Vikings' training camp come July. Should he actually start for them during the regular season, the Vikings will pose a considerable threat to the other NFC North teams.

It is no secret the Vikings have a serious running game; Adrian Peterson has proven that, but with the addition of Favre, they will have finally (or at least temporarily) solved their quarterback shuffle as well. The Vikings may also have a championship defense in the making.

The Nationals drafted Drew Storen #10 overall in the 1st Round. Two sirens should have rang for Nationals fans to hear.

The first would have been the change in philosophy from high risk high reward picks involving young high school players vs. a more measured approach by acting general manager Mike Rizzo who prefers more experienced players from college to fully understand the player he's drafting with more time to evaluate players.

The second signal Nats fans should have heard was the sound of money. For all of the money that will be spent on the #1 overall pick Strasburg, the Nationals drafted a reliever early in day one of the draft. Storen signed quickly and could even be rushed (too) quickly to the 40 man roster in September. Adding to the mix the lack of command of Storen's pitches by MLB.com. Drafting another starting pitcher may have cost the Nationals more money. Although the Nationals bullpen lacks the depth and quality in the minor and major league level, drafting a closer for a team that is on pace to secure the number one pick in next year's draft let alone vie for the league record in futility set by the 1962 Mets with a 120 losses seems premature. Affordable relief pitching can be found early in the offseason if it's a priority. With excellent scouting, young pitchers can also be developed through the system. Two factors that haven't really been addressed in recent seasons.

Would it be that far to fathom that ownership may consider all the money tied up into Strasburg and look for savings elsewhere? Fans may draw a connection between the lack of free agent spending in prior years coupled with a relief pitcher taken so early. Would ownership really have been willing to add Adam Dunn to the roster if they had already signed Teixeira? Fans may already be drawing their own conclusion and are expressing their counterproposal to ownership by the way of empty seats.

After taking back to back series vs. the Yankees and Blue Jays, much of the ballyhooed talk of the Nationals making a change at the helm to bench Coach Jim Riggleman has died down. The front office cleared out the coaching staff after last season with the exception of pitching coach St. Claire who was let go earlier this season. Removing Manager Manny Acta at this point in time won't resolve the underlying issues that permeate through the organization. Acta may have his faults and still have plenty to learn, but it would be interesting to see how he improves as a manager with more talent on the roster.

Stan Kasten and Manny Acta are all that's left from the initial hiring's of managers and coaches. Former GM Bowden resigned before the start of the season. Firing Acta will neither improve the performance of the players on the roster nor improve the evaluation process of players to acquire. It's a move that would tell fans that ownership can't fire themselves for decisions and missed opportunities in free agency over the years, so the active manager would take the fall. If ownership truly believes that Acta is a solid manager and would be the best manager in the long term then giving him an opportunity to prove himself with more talent would suggest granting him that extra time.

A spectacular performance by SP Ross Detwiler and CF Willie Harris combined for a solid one-two punch to help defeat the Toronto Blue Jays on Saturday to ensure a series victory with a 5-3 walk off 2R HR by Willie Harris at Nationals Park.

Detwiler pitched seven stellar innings in one of his best performances of the season as he searched for his first win. He was pulled after 99 pitches. Dukes helped Detwiler's cause with a double that he tried to stretch into a triple. He was ultimately thrown out at third base, but drove in Nick Johnson before the out. Kip Wells came entered the game in relief with an inherited runner and after a single to LF, Adam Dunn failed to locate the cutoff man and proceeded to throw the ball to home plate allowing the tying runner to advance to 2B and scoring position.

Wells retired two batters in the 8th inning after allowing another run. He was relieved in place of Joel Hanrahan, who twice hasn't been able to hold down the closer status.

After the 7th inning MacDougal could have been called into the game or when Wells found himself in trouble. Instead MacDougal wasn't brought into the game until it was headed into extra innings. If he could log the two innings then why not preserve the victory and call in the closer in the 8th inning?

Ultimately the game was won by a 12 inning walk off 2R HR by Willie Harris who earlier in the game manufactured the first Nationals run of the game almost single handedly with a double and a steal. He also made an unbelievably difficult catch in CF to rob the Blue Jays of a sure hit.

Could extra innings have been averted? Fans will never know. 3B coaches usually get the pink slip for too many bad decisions about sending or not sending runners home. Managers get judged more often by keeping the locker room together as a cohesive group and managing the pitchers. Manny Acta's done a phenomenal job of keeping the team together and looking forward every game, but his handling of the pitchers leaves something to be desired.

Manny often makes similar calls time and time again regarding the pulling of starting pitchers very early in games without allowing the young pitchers to learn how to manage their own pitch count, how to pitch without their best stuff, and how to adjust during a game after the batters have adjusted with their third at bat. Otherwise Manny is creating middle relievers that start the game. It's the experience the starters gain in the later innings that make them a better starter. What clouds the evaluation of Manny's decisions about pitching is the talent he's had over the years on the staff. It will be interesting to see if decisions become easier and better as the talent improves.

As reported earlier on The DC Sports Page Twitter account, it appears shooting guard sensation Lance Stephenson may not be attending the University of Maryland at College Park. As the Nationals were heading into extra innings, The DC Sports Page casually asked Johnny Holliday as he prepared with Phil Wood for the Nationals post game show if he thought Lance Stephenson would be attending Maryland to which he emphatically responded with a "No! No way!" - And a wave of the hands as if he was giving a safe sign to a play at the plate.

The Terps front court which already was very thin waved goodbye to Dave Neal (Maryland's own "Rudy" on senior night) and Braxton Dupree transferred to Towson (CAA). The Terps will once again rely heavily on returning point guard Greivis Vasquez for another season. The 2009 season could be another tough season for head coach Gary Williams that tests the limits of how much a coach can get from his players before highly touted recruits arrive in 2010 to further help the program.

The Manny Acta watch is on Day Whatever. His job continues to be on the line and according to the Nationals front office, he will be evaluated on a series by series basis. What confidence they give this man! Seriously, of course changes need to be made to this team. But firing Acta will not immediately improve the team. It may not even improve the team next season. Simply, there is no one out there who can say he's a good or bad manager. He's being evaluated as a miracle manager. That's not the way to run a baseball team.

So now that the worst team in baseball beat the hottest team, does that mean he buys an extra day? Series? Do we chalk it up as a win if they take one of three? Maybe not as they beat Chien-Ming Wang.

If the front office were baseball smart, and it should be after Jim Bowden left, Acta should keep his job through this season. Call up the best minor leaguers in September and see how they stack up against major league competition. By best, I mean the players who are major league ready, so Stephen Strasburg can stay down too, if he still needs tinkering in the minors. While not the best way to evaluate Acta, it's better than canning him now. Jim Riggleman is not a miracle worker either. Unless you can convince a Joe Torre type to take over the team, no manager can turn this team around.

Greivis Vasquez, star of the Maryland Terrapins basketball team, opted to withdraw from the NBA draft and return to Maryland for his senior season. This is great news for Gary Williams as he attempts to build a team to contend in the ACC and return to the the NCAA late rounds.

Vasquez has been a great asset for the Terps. While basketball is team oriented, he alone could change the game, like against NC State late this past season. Some might have worried that Vasquez would take the leap to the NBA or worse yet, stay with the team and work like John Gilchrist did his junior season. Terrapin fans will remember that Gilchrist played to impress NBA scouts, thereby creating some friction with Williams.

Vasquez looks like he's back to help the Terrapins continue to rise. With a good recruiting class, including the possibility of Lance Stephenson, Coach Gary may be able to gel together a team that can contend with Tobacco Road foes. Maybe an ACC Championship is in the works.

After coming from behind in the Stanley Cup Finals, the Pittsburgh Penguins marched back to take Game 7 at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit 2-1, but another hockey story began shortly thereafter. The rich and proud tradition that takes place after the conclusion of every series where the two teams form a line and begin to shake hands didn't completely occur for the Penguins captain. It's a show of sportsmanship that no other professional leagues duplicate directly following such fierce competition.

Many have bestowed upon 21 year old Crosby, the team captain, an ability to comprehend and understand the tradition and history of the sport he plays and loves. When he makes a comment about tradition or chastises opponents about the game he takes on the mantle of a veteran player from a bye gone era that's why not apologizing for not shaking the hands of several Red Wings seems hypocritical.

Interviews have occurred after every Stanley Cup victory and celebrations inevitably occur, so why is this the first time this has occurred and why has someone who's supposed to know better instead just casually shrug the entire incident aside? Crosby stated his understanding from the losing side as he waited after a defeat to the Red Wings the previous year, yet the Red Wings were able to shake hands and still be accessible to the media (who aren't going anywhere) in their victory the prior year.

When the Carolina Hurricanes won the Cup in 2006, Commissioner Gary Bettman could be caught telling captain Rod Brind'Amour to put the trophy down because he wasn't done talking yet. The ultimate "me" commissioner handed the trophy to a "me" player (Crosby) this season. Some may argue that tradition suggests the acknowledgement of accomplishment and shaking of hands that occurs at the end of the series takes precedent over festivities.

The NHL ritual would have been the ultimate "sell" to newly found sports fans watching hockey that they're watching something that's very unique - for two teams after competing to shake hands as soon as the series concludes. This would have been a great explanation to viewers about the tradition of hockey and explanation regarding why it would take some additional time to speak to Crosby. The oversight to shake hands from the entire Detroit team by Sydney Crosby appears to be missed by the commissioner and missed by Crosby as to what occurred and should have occurred.

It appears that after months of waiting for a decision from shooting guard sensation Lance Stephenson, Maryland Terrapin fans may only have to wait a little longer. Gary Williams and Maryland have now spent the most time with Lance out of all the schools he's still considering for college.

According to ESPN's list of top recruits for 2009, Lance Stephenson is the only top 25 uncommitted high school player.

Stephenson's sexual assault hearing is scheduled for June 29th. Last season's turbulent roller coaster ride led to an explosive eruption between Maryland's Head Coach Gary Williams and Athletic Director Debbie Yow, who eventually issued a statement of support for her head coach. Gary's ability to take the high road in recruiting was well documented in a series of articles by the Washington Post.

Many questions exist that won't be answered until the hearing concludes, so it's too early to ask whether Maryland should offer a scholarship to Stephenson or not and that assumes that Maryland is where he wants to play basketball. It could be another rocky season for the Terps, but the front court addition of James Padgett should help considerably.

ESPN already has Maryland receiving commitments for the 25th ranked HS player in SF Terrence Ross and 74th ranked PG Terrell Stoglin. The 2009 season may have more growing pains, but the 2010 season looks much brighter. The thought of adding a true shooting guard should help stretch the opposing defense.

Terps fans may only have weeks to wait before a court's ruling and a decision by Stephenson forcing Maryland to decide if character enters into the equation for a scholarship besides shear talent alone. Gary's made good judgment calls in the past regarding players troubled history and bringing along a player that will require more supervision from Gary on a more personal level may be a new challenge for Williams and take time away from what Gary Williams does best - coach.

I have to admit that despite in the past having expressed a lack of enthusiasm about the NHL, I found this year's hockey playoffs the most interesting in a decade. I was never a huge hockey fan, but throughout the 1990s, I followed hockey consistently, and would usually make time to watch big games. But my interest faded around the turn of the century and then the strike/lockout of 2004/2005 really ended any interest I had in hockey. That lack of interest lasted four years, until this post-season. I think I watched more hockey in the past two months then I have the last six years. The matchups of Crosby vs. Ovechkin and then the Penguins run culminating in a game 7 victory in the finals made for compelling viewing. Will I be watching regular season hockey this October? No. But if the young stars of the sport continue to create good post-season matchups, I'll be watching next spring.

The Redskins released James Thrash today. The wide receiver had spent most of his career with the Redskins, save a short stint with the Philadelphia Eagles.

This move is not surprising. Thrash has spent 12 seasons in the NFL. Though not ever the number 1 receiver with any team, he proved to be a fairly good number 2 and in recent years beat out younger, healthier players for playing time. More than a good player on the field, by all reports he was a great teammate and locker room leader.

Following the dismissal of Jon Jansen in recent weeks, it is unlikely Thrash will sign with another team and should concentrate on healing. Jansen subsequently signed with the Detroit Lions. The move by the team on Thrash clears the way for second year players Devin Thomas and Malcolm Kelly to step up and take stronger roles in this coming season's offense.

It's anticipated that the Nationals will draft pitching sensation Stephen Strasburg with the first pick in the draft. His resume includes a fastball clocked at 100 MPH as well as some talented breaking pitches. After the selection the Nats front office has to quickly get back to work for the #10 pick in the draft, a compensatory pick for not signing SP Crow in last year's draft.

MLB decimated the Nationals farm system and allowed trades to occur receiving little back as compensation for top tier players. As the Expos moved to Washington, MLB directed GM Bowden to draft more players from college to accelerate their climb to the big leagues.

The Nationals reversed that strategy over the past few seasons looking long term in the hopes that some young arms would soon yield better records for a franchise looking up from the bottom of the league. The organization has signed few free agents the past few years and the depth of young players hasn't translated yet to the major league level.

The fans are waiting for some encouraging signs of life from the team and the Nationals may need to pass on the potential of HS athletes for a more tested and proven player from the college ranks. Ryan Zimmerman worked out nicely for the team. it doesn't mean that the long term strategy is flawed or incorrect, but there's been some misses in the draft causing the club to stay status quo with the exception of the signing of Dunn and a couple trades. Hopefully for Nationals fans the evaluation of talent is correct and will soon find some of the recently drafted players on the big league roster in the not too distant future.

Major League baseball history was recorded yesterday in rain soaked Washington, DC. Randy Johnson, the Unit, won his 300th game of his career. This has been a benchmark for guaranteed Hall of Fame induction in retirement. It also marks the last time we will see one in quite awhile. With the modern era of short careers, bouncing back and forth between bullpen and rotation, and diluted pitching prospects make 300 a long shot for anyone.

While Johnson may not have been the favorite pitcher of his era, we should celebrate his accomplishments. However, I think we should also take the powers that be to task. Why was this game played? Sure, his attempt at 300 was already delayed a day due to rain. But yesterday was no better. The San Francisco Giants do not return to Washington the rest of the season. Maybe that's it. But really that rain was terrible. I don't see any reason this game should have been played except for the Unit.

With the LA Dodgers holding the NL West and the rest of the division in shambles, the Giants could only contend for a wild card berth. Still unlikely as the NL East is still popping with the Phillies, Mets, Marlins, and the reconfigured Braves. Don't forget the Central as well with Cubbies and Cards. The need for these games to be made up at the end of the season are unlikely. So why was the game played? More boggling is that the game was the one scheduled for a 4:30 ET start. 1:30 PT on a Thursday afternoon. The TV draw would be low. The whole decision seems to be a thorough lack of thought.

The Atlanta Braves released Tom Glavine today. He signed a one year contact this season, but never pitched an inning this season, starting it in on the DL with rehab starts in the minors. Glavine has already stated that he wants to pitch somewhere this season.

While reportedly pitching only in the high 80's, he may have value to other teams Nationals?. OK, I may be joking, but I thought this might have been a good fit before he re-signed with Atlanta. Still, a real veteran arm (i.e. not named Cabrera), could give all the pitching a boost, even though the Nationals just replaced their pitching coach. Plus Glavine could draw bigger crowds to Nationals Park given his 305 wins and probable Hall of Fame in the future. His contract with the Braves would have cost at most $4.5 million. While not cheap, that may be a small price to pay to put some respect back in Washington pitching.

The Nationals released Randy St Claire from his pitching coach position yesterday. They replaced him with the AAA pitching coach Steve McCatty. When looking at a team with the highest ERA in the majors, you want to say it is a pitching coach problem. Except you have to look at the Nationals pitchers.

The bullpen frankly sucks. There is no secret about that. While some might argue there was no talent out there, the Nationals truly sat on their hands for pitching, opting to go for hitting power instead. St Claire did not get this team to produce, but I argue that anyone could have. Ultimately its the pitchers out there on the mound and they are responsible for their actions. All St Claire could do is make sure they were as prepared as possible. The talent is just not there.

Now that McCatty is taking over, the pitching might improve. Hey, they held on to the lead in his first game, winning 10-6. Yeah! Wow cheering for 6 runs given up. What I find unbelievable is that time and time again, a mid-season change in coaching is expected to produce. It almost never does. We will see how the Nationals respond long term. But the bullpen is bad. There's no getting around that without acquiring new talent.

The writing was on the wall the past two seasons at Redskins Park for Jon Jansen. Battling back from injuries and more notably a dislocated ankle, Jansen looked to survive the competition to reclaim his role as the starting right tackle. Anyone that witnessed Jansen for interviews in the local media such as Comcast Sports before the draft saw him looking svelte at 295 lbs. He proclaimed himself healthy after such a serious injury and in the best shape in years, but somewhere along the way the first player in Dan Snyder's rebuild from the Gibbs version 1.0 era fell out of favor.

The alternatives now rest with Stephon Heyer who couldn't wrestle the starting position away from Jansen and suffered through an injury plagued 2009 season. Derrick Dockery's friend, Mike Williams hasn't played in the NFL since 2005 and has reportedly dropped down to a slimming sub 390 lbs. The other candidate vying for the starting tackle position is 29 year old Jeremy Bridges.

Interesting that nowhere was it mentioned that any of the remaining offensive tackles could run block as effectively as Jansen. Nor was it reported that anyone's pass blocking skills were superior enough to play on the same line as Chris Samuels. Usually when a player is cut there's a younger better player waiting for an opportunity to play, but not in this instance.