Official Nationals and Orioles 2011 Thread

[Longtimefan]

Originally Posted by SmootSmack

And McLaren's been ejected tonight. I think maybe ArtMonkDrillz is managing the team now

That call by the HPU was...... just something I've never seen happen before in baseball.

[ArtMonkDrillz]

Real quick, gotta get out there for the bottom of the 9th, my Yahoo fantasy baseball status for the past 2 days actually says I'm taking over the Nats, so maybe you're on to something.

Plus, at the game last Friday I bought an Espinosa jersey and within 5 minutes a random guy told me I looked just like Danny. So I've got that going for me...

[SmootSmack]

Luckily didn't come back to haunt us. Let's see if we can get another shutout tonight

[ArtMonkDrillz]

Also, the fat guy in the Wisconsin t-shirt (go figure) was just flashing the shocker sign to the cameras. It made me vomit.

That call early was ridiculous. Why is the 1st base ump even on the field if his judgement can't be trusted?

And crap.

[SmootSmack]

Get AMD out of here. Dude can't manage and post at the same time

[Longtimefan]

Davey Johnson Replaces Jim Riggleman As Manager Of Nationals - SB Nation DC

[FRPLG]

I like the Johnson hire. It does several things. First it shows everyone, players and fans alike that they believe the team is good enough to be given the opportunity to have a quality coach lead them. Johnson isn't being brought in as a care-taker just to keep the seat warm until the team comes together (like Riggleman basically was). Second, he's good. He isn't a hard-ass who'll lose the team and he can handle a rotation as well as anybody. If they can stay on the same path and keep Johnson in the fold they've upgraded their managerial position a lot.

[ArtMonkDrillz]

Originally Posted by FRPLG

I like the Johnson hire. It does several things. First it shows everyone, players and fans alike that they believe the team is good enough to be given the opportunity to have a quality coach lead them. Johnson isn't being brought in as a care-taker just to keep the seat warm until the team comes together (like Riggleman basically was). Second, he's good. He isn't a hard-ass who'll lose the team and he can handle a rotation as well as anybody. If they can stay on the same path and keep Johnson in the fold they've upgraded their managerial position a lot.

Good points. I also like that he's been associated with the team for the last season or two, so it's not like he's a total unknown to these guys (like, say, Bobby Valentine might have been) coming in off the street with his own ideas and methods. Obviously any new manager is going to bring about some changes, but I like that he's at least from within the organization.
Also, I heard on the radio or somewhere that he has a similar style to Riggleman, whatever that means, so again, I think this will make the transition easier. Couple that with the fact that he has a proven track record and I'm pretty happy with this one.

[12thMan]

Not a big Nats follower, although I live 10 friggin' minutes from the ballpark. But do you guys think there's much, if any, falloff between Riggleman and Johnson?

[Longtimefan]

Originally Posted by FRPLG

I like the Johnson hire. It does several things. First it shows everyone, players and fans alike that they believe the team is good enough to be given the opportunity to have a quality coach lead them. Johnson isn't being brought in as a care-taker just to keep the seat warm until the team comes together (like Riggleman basically was). Second, he's good. He isn't a hard-ass who'll lose the team and he can handle a rotation as well as anybody. If they can stay on the same path and keep Johnson in the fold they've upgraded their managerial position a lot.

"He knows the game, he knows our players, he knows our fans, he knows the Washington, DC area, and he knows exactly what we need to be doing to build the Nationals into a contender."

For Davey Johnson, the time was right to manage again - The Washington Post

[FRPLG]

Originally Posted by 12thMan

Not a big Nats follower, although I live 10 friggin' minutes from the ballpark. But do you guys think there's much, if any, falloff between Riggleman and Johnson?

In what sense? In terms of quality...hell to the no. Johnson is a far better manager in a general sense. We need to remember that Riggleman up until he had taken the Nats job had been an abject failure as a manager. He was regarded as one of the worst managers in the game. But since this team wasn't a team that was in any position to compete regularly he wasn't brought in to manage as much as to watch over and make sure they the younger players had a good environment in which to gain experience. There's little doubt that Rigs was right in teh sense that he wasn't the long term answer at manager. Hence the rolling one-year deals.

Now that the team has shown some cohesion and competitiveness they need to be managed in a competitive way. The question is whether DJ's style will work straight away or whether it will take some time for the players and him to adapt to each other, if ever.

[SmootSmack]

Riggleman was perhaps best known as the guy who ran Kerry Wood's arm into the ground. Hence so much trepidation last year when Strasburg kept pitching

[Longtimefan]

Originally Posted by FRPLG

In what sense? In terms of quality...hell to the no. Johnson is a far better manager in a general sense. We need to remember that Riggleman up until he had taken the Nats job had been an abject failure as a manager. He was regarded as one of the worst managers in the game. But since this team wasn't a team that was in any position to compete regularly he wasn't brought in to manage as much as to watch over and make sure they the younger players had a good environment in which to gain experience. There's little doubt that Rigs was right in teh sense that he wasn't the long term answer at manager. Hence the rolling one-year deals.

Now that the team has shown some cohesion and competitiveness they need to be managed in a competitive way. The question is whether DJ's style will work straight away or whether it will take some time for the players and him to adapt to each other, if ever.

Nationals GM Mike Rizzo needs Davey Johnson hire to work - The Washington Post

[FRPLG]

Originally Posted by SmootSmack

Riggleman was perhaps best known as the guy who ran Kerry Wood's arm into the ground. Hence so much trepidation last year when Strasburg kept pitching

Yeah Rigs is actually a major factor in the history of baseball. The current trend of intently protecting the pitchers' arms is in large part due to his mismanagement of Wood and the chilling effect it has had on the role of work-horse pitching in the majors. Woods is the poster child for teams now when they develop young pitchers..as to what not to do.

[Longtimefan]

Nats TV ratings still climbing - DC Sports Bog - The Washington Post