Author Archives: Section222

7th 18-gamer: Near Heartbreak and Unexpected Heroes

For previous 18 gamers, click here. You may recall that the 6th 18-gamer was essentially the Bryce Harper show.  With six homers, five in the first inning, Bryce led the way to a 10-8 set with a lot of help from … Continue reading

Posted in 18GameRecap, Analysis, Bullpen, Bullpen, Difo, Harper, Kelley, Kendrick, Kendrick, Lind, Murphy, NLEast, OliverPerez, Roark, Scherzer, Strasburg, Wieters | Leave a comment

6th 18-gamer: Relief Help Arrives as the Rotation Faces Adversity; and Bryce!

For previous 18 gamers, click here. Another pretty good 18 game set for the Nats, keyed by a newly reliable bullpen.   10-8 put us at 64-44, still 20 games over .500 and 13 games up on the Miami Marlins in the … Continue reading

Posted in 18GameRecap, Analysis, Bullpen, Bullpen, Gio, Harper, Heisey, MikeRizzo, Murphy, Rendon, Roark, RyanZimmerman, Scherzer, Strasburg | Leave a comment

5th 18-gamer: Bryce was Up, Zim was Down, Murph was Murph, TTB was On Fire

For previous 18 gamers, click here. Regular readers know that Game 90 took place when I was out of the country. Putting together a blog post as scheduled was not in the cards, but I did manage to keep tab … Continue reading

Posted in 18GameRecap, Analysis, Bullpen, Dusty, Gio, Harper, Murphy, Rendon, RyanZimmerman, Scherzer, Strasburg, Taylor, Turner | Leave a comment

4th 18-gamer: Fits and Starts

For previous 18 gamers, click here. The fourth 18-game set was the worst of the Nats’ season so far, 9-9. As regular readers of these 18-gamers know, averaging 10-8 in the nine sets in the season gets you 90 wins, … Continue reading

Posted in 18GameRecap, Analysis, Bullpen, Gio, Gott, Harper, JRoss, JZimm, Kelley, Koda, Lobaton, Murphy, Roark, RyanZimmerman, Scherzer, Starters, Strasburg, Taylor, Turner, Wieters | Leave a comment

3rd 18-gamer: A Tale of Two Aces

For links to previous 18-gamers, click here. You will recall that in the second 18-game set this season the Nats managed a 10-8 record despite some pitching woes, because their hitters continued to be on fire. The third set of 18 … Continue reading

Posted in 18GameRecap, Analysis, Dusty, Harper, JRoss, Murphy, Rendon, Roark, RyanZimmerman, Scherzer, Strasburg | Leave a comment

Another Look at Starter Pitch Counts #Nats

The discussion over the past several days has focused on two problems that together create a perplexing dilemma.  On the one hand, many commenters are very concerned about “overuse” of the starters (Problem #1). On the other hand, a lot … Continue reading

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2nd 18-gamer: The Bats Bail Out the Arms

For links to previous 18-gamers, click here. Following up their hot 13-5 start, the Nats logged a respectable 10-8 in the second 18 game set. Their 23-13 record after the first two sets is exactly the same as the record … Continue reading

Posted in 18GameRecap, Analysis, Bullpen, Eaton, Gio, Harper, Jayson, Koda, Murphy, NLEast, Rendon, RyanZimmerman, Scherzer, Strasburg, Treinen | Leave a comment

And they’re back! First 18-gamer of 2017 #Nats

My 18-game posts have a long and sordid history.  For those who are new to this rodeo, check out the first few paragraphs of last year’s first 18-gamer for an explanation of what these posts are all about.  And for links to … Continue reading

Posted in 18GameRecap, AdamEaton, Analysis, Bullpen, Eaton, Gio, Harper, Kelley, Murphy, Rendon, Roark, RyanZimmerman, Scherzer, Starters, Strasburg, Treinen, Turner, Umpires, Werth, Wieters | Leave a comment

SABR Meeting in Rosslyn on February 4 — Still Time to Register!

Some of you who’ve been on TalkNats for a while may remember a few posts a year ago about the annual meeting of the local chapter of the Society of American Baseball Research (SABR). Several TN regulars attended and found … Continue reading

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The Barrel – A New Stat to Watch, Courtesy of Statcast and Tom Tango

Any Nats fan who has listened to Anthony “Tony Two Bags” Rendon talk about hitting knows what “barreling the ball up” means.  TTB talks about that as his goal in just about any situation – making solid contact with the … Continue reading

Posted in Analysis, Murphy, Rendon, RyanZimmerman, Sabermetrics | Leave a comment