There was a fear that I had regarding a touchy situation that the Washington Nationals fans might boo Patrick Corbin off the stage. After polling people via DMs where they could give their thoughts privately, about two-thirds (66.7 percent) felt that Corbin deserved a standing ovation after his final start today in a Washington Nationals uniform.
We took the informal polling information and decided to make a Twitter poll to have more of an open and public discussion with polling — and maybe — change some minds in the process. The comments were mostly civil as you can read with over 50 comments — and then some comments to those comments. Maybe we should have kept the poll open longer because nearly 1,900 people voted — and nearly 60,000 and counting have seen the poll. The final count was 56.1 percent in favor of a standing ovation on the broader Twitter poll — and based on comments that many fans felt that Corbin’s World Series contributions were the reason behind a standing ovation.
But as Stever20 thought in a Twitter comment, there would also be a component of how Corbin performed in the start. An ace start could certainly change the fan reaction. A poor start could sour the reaction. Stever20 wrote, “I think it depends on the start. If it’s a good start yes when he leaves. If it’s a bad start, no he doesn’t.” Corbin had a rough third inning and gave up 3-runs and four for the game. Statistically, not a good start. But the Nats were going toe-to-toe with the Royals in a 4-to-4 tie game, and Corbin exited in the 6th inning to what looked like a near-unanimous standing ovation and cheering. Not a boo or a bleep heard. Let’s go to the video in the Twitter below.
All I can say is, “Well done Nats fans.” You showed your class, and put any personal differences aside as well what has been more downs than ups the past five years of Corbin’s contract. On the postgame show on MASN as well as 106.7, they were glowingly speaking of Corbin with personal stories of how he was a clubhouse leader, and generous to a fault. This week they unveiled Corbin’s name on a scoreboard at a Nats’ youth facility that included a sizeable donation by Corbin. Maybe the fans needed to hear more positive stories about Corbin behind the scenes. We knew about his on-the-field successes of 2019 and into Game 7 in the World Series. Also, we knew in every full-season, Corbin started at least 31-games per season too.
In total, Corbin started 173-games in a Washington Nationals uniform plus those five appearances in the 2019 postseason as a reliever. His final relief appearance bridged the 3.0 innings between Max Scherzer‘s 5.0 inning start in Game 7 of the World Series to Daniel Hudson‘s scoreless 9th inning. Corbin earned the win in Game 7 for his scoreless appearance as he watched Howie Kendrick‘s game-winning home run clang off of the foul pole. Those are the memories that will forever remind me, and others, that Corbin will always be a champion in Washington, D.C.
In 2029 at the 10th Anniversary of the World Series win, you would hope that Scherzer, Stephen Strasburg, and Corbin can re-enact the pose as the Three Aces again like they did for the Nats’ photographer for this iconic photo in 2019.
Corbin, 35, was almost baby-faced in 2019. That photo was taken when he was still in his 20s. He was married to Jen, and they had no children at that time. Today, the couple have two young boys with another baby due next Spring. Most expect Corbin to try to pitch again next year. But who knows. Corbin probably doesn’t need the money after the Nats paid him $140 million plus his earnings from his 6-years with Arizona paid him an estimated $16 million per BBRef.
The Nationals announced the paid attendance at 14,357 fans today. That was on an ugly weather day with some rain and in the middle of a school day against the Kansas City Royals. The Nats had been shutout in three straight days. But here they were for a game in late September and a record approaching 90-losses. Earlier this season, the Royals were in Baltimore and the attendance on that day was only 9,404. So not only did the Nats fans show up, they stood up and applauded in a standing ovation.
“That was cool. Kind of maybe thought something [like] Davey might come out in that situation there. But yeah, I think that might be my first one of those. But it was cool. I mean, it’s half my career I’ve been here. I got to experience a lot with the fans and they’ve supported us throughout the years that I’ve been here. So nothing but love towards them, and that was really special.”
— Corbin said after the game
“These last six years have gone by fairly quickly, looking back now, but I enjoyed every second of it. I don’t regret anything. I enjoyed my time here, and obviously to win the World Series, start a family and get to meet all you guys. So it was great. I really enjoyed it all.”
We could talk about Corbin’s final ERA this season of 5.62 ERA, and do a deep dive on so much of what went wrong. But again, why bother? This page needs to be turned to the youngsters and the young core and any new leaders that general manager Mike Rizzo might bring in.
Yes, veteran leadership is important. Obviously you need those who can lead by example — and Corbin’s example was you take the ball every fifth time in the starting rotation and try to help your team win games.
“We’ve got one more series left. These guys are still working hard trying to finish the season on a good note, and I’ll be here with them to try to finish the season with a couple of wins.”
— Corbin said today
That’s right, three more games to go in the 2024 season.
