The Nationals won game #81 at home with great starting pitching and a new-found energy. The Nats displayed some exciting defense that looked like a Web Gem reel which started with a Superman-esque leap mid-air dive by Tyler Moore, yes, Tyler Moore! It saved a run and kept the no-hitter alive. Web Gems added by Dan Uggla, Trea Turner, and Anthony Rendon.
Check out this video of today’s defense: CLICK —> WEB GEM COMPILATION VIDEO FROM MLB.COM and one Trea Turner video Trea Turner Web Gem from multiple angles
Scherzer kept his no-hitter going into the 8th inning, and around the 6th inning you started to think the no-no was possible. Why not, it’s September 28th.
Matt den Dekker provided the bulk of the offense with another HR, 2 doubles, and continued to pad his slashline as he ended the day with a BA of .276, and that’s a 61 point improvement in just 2 games. Ramos added an oppo HR and Scherzer went 2-3 pushing his BA above Mendoza, and Trea Turner went 1-3 with a walk.
At TalkNats.com, our day started early with an overnight message retrieved this morning that became a headline we started writing after 7AM EST (4AM PST) that read Our sources: Nats will discuss with MLBPA and Papelbon’s agent to send him home for remainder of the season! We were the only ones with the story which held complications of legal and personnel issues but our source insisted that the team was moving in that direction. We have been used to years of breaking stories on other people’s blogs and it was gratifying to do it on TalkNats.com even if the story was not a pleasant subject we felt we would go with it. Our sources provided details throughout the day and we broke several news flashes
BREAKING 12:42: According to our sources, Papelbon will immediately accept the 3 game suspension for plunking Machado
BREAKING 1:38PM EST: With the 3 game MLB suspension and 4 game suspension from the Nats, Papelbon is indeed done for the season and confirms what our sources said were the intention to accomplish.
UPDATE 2:10PM EST: Papelbon accepted and will not appeal the Nats 4 game suspension without pay according to our sources.
Matt Williams held his pre-game presser and confirmed the Papelbon suspensions to total the 7 games plus the 1 game benching of Bryce Harper.
After the game was the Mike Rizzo press conference, where he covered a number of topics including if Papelbon will be on the 2016 roster, the un-named source who negatively commented on the state of the Nats clubhouse, and even his own self-evaluation.
Rizzo on the future of Papelbon with the Nationals, “He’s under contract. We’re gonna evaluate every moving part that we have after the season, and we’ll make all those decisions once the final out is made in 2015.”
We had many, many, many great comments totaling several hundred today plus all the emails that we receive. This was a good take by conatsguy as to Papelbon’s future in DC:
“conatsguy responding to Ghost of Steve M. • 3 hours ago
Steve, thanks for all you effort in covering this story. I love that I have a place to go to get accurate info on this story without the Trolls or personal attacks.
If I was Paps, I would be reaching out big time to Bryce. Ultimately, his fate is in Harpers hands IMHO.”
There were individual interviews worth noting.
BREAKING QUOTE from Bryce Harper, “I’d like to talk to him in person if that’s possible but I think we’ll worry about that when that comes up. If Pap is gonna help us win a World Series next year, that’s what I need. That’s what this whole clubhouse needs. … As much as I need him, he needs me.”
Rizzo addressed the clubhouse which Barry Svrluga wrote about issues there from a player source and Rizzo lobbed one back:
“If I knew who that was, I’d respond to it. It’s some blind accusation from an un-named source”
Scherzer then addressed the clubhouse:
“I know you guys are up in arms about our clubhouse, and it’s really not fazed whatsoever”.
It’s been open season on the Nats for a while and the Paps/Harps incident just added fuel to the fire. Harold Reynolds who regularly mouths off said the Nats clubhouse is “fractured” and it’s easy to throw out negative words without substantiation, but we hear that Werth has everything under control.
Time will tell as the 2016 clubhouse will look much different. Soon players will be going in different directions early next week and vacating their DC area rentals and some will only return as visitors in the clubhouse on the 3rd base side as the finality on JZim, Desi, Fister, Span, Janssen, and Thornton will be known when their 2016 deals are finalized. The Papelbon 2016 status will be an off-season storyline.
The early morning all started with an inside source who has helped over the years with the perfect scoop. This person has only been wrong once and not their fault as situations are fluid and change quickly, but I would say 95% right! Thank you from our community for allowing us to break several stories today.
