The Washington Nationals have long been rumored to be the “front runners” in the Prince Fielder sweepstakes.  They have the money and they certainly don’t have a star blocking the position (Yankees, Angels, Sox).  That being said, the Nats have been playing the role of the tortoise in the race.  Rizzo and co. have been unwilling to state much interest in the portly, slugging 1st baseman.  Sure, the strategy is smart.  Even if the Nationals are truly planning on signing Prince, there is no need to announce interest and drive up the price tag.  As fans, all we can do it wait and ponder what Prince Fielder would mean to the team and the organization.

Three Outcomes of a Prince Fielder Signing:

1. The “Howard Factor” for Mr. Werth – It is no secret that Jayson Werth underachieved in his first year as a National, leading many to declare that his former numbers were a product of Philadelphia’s deep line-up.  Prince would provide some thump in the middle of the order and provide Jayson with the same type support he had in Philadelphia during the championship years.  Jayson may not be the hitter the Nats thought they were getting, but they can certainly improve his numbers by adding Prince in the cleanup spot.
2. Excitement in the DC area -  If last year’s near .500 finish and the acquisition of Gio Gonzales don’t fire up the fan base, there isn’t much else that will – unless the Nats bring in Prince.  Fielder is the type of marquis name that will bring fans to Nationals Park.  Don’t think it’s possible?  See Ovechkin, Alex of the Washington Capitals.  D.C. is an event town.  If the Lerners want to fill the seats, they need more than a phenom pitcher who appears once every 5 days.
3. Depth and Flexibility – The acquisition of Prince Fielder would provide the Nats with a roster full of options.  Davey would have a field day playing around with the order every night, allowing for chances to rest key players periodically.  While the fielding situation would be a little cloudy given the current roster make-up, Fielder would give the Nats a chance to trade LaRoche for some farm system depth (which is much needed after the Gio trade)

We can’t do much but speculate now, but the implications of Prince in DC could reach far beyond the batting order.

In a recent radio interview, Washington Nationals GM Mike Rizzo declared that while the Nats are definitely giving all their prospects a look, winning each game is still the ultimate goal.  Of course, Rizzo needs to say that in order to appease short-minded fans, but the bottom line is that the Nationals SHOULD NOT be trying to win every game. I’m pretty sure Rizzo and Co. agree with that.

Don't blame the 'Stache

I know, I know… “What about the fans who pay for the tickets? Don’t they deserve a manager who is playing to win?”  Not really, especially if it means the Nats are giving themselves a slight edge in being able to compete next year.  Think about it, will there ever be a better time to see big time prospects compete at the highest level?  Consider this scenario:  The St. Louis Cardinals are in town, only a few games back for the NL West.  They have a 1-run lead over the Nationals in the bottom of the 8th.  Chris Marrero is on third with 1 out and the pitcher’s spot coming up.   Who does Davey go with to pinch hit?  Pudge Rodriguez or a guy like Steve Lombardozzi?  Fans who want to win TODAY probably chant for Pudge, but the sophisticated Nationals fans want Stevey up there.  Why not see how the young infielder handles himself  a clutch situation?  When it comes time to make roster decisions next spring, this moment might be the deciding factor in a Desmond/Espinosa trade.  Don’t you want all the information you can possibly get on a young star? No offense to I-Rod, but we’ve seen all we need to out of the future Hall of Famer.

Which brings me back to the 13-inning heart-breaker last night.  Would it have been nice to carry home a Curly-W on the third night of Strasmas?  Sure, but I’m content with the way the game was played out.  I’ve been seeing calls for Davey’s head after letting Balester pitch the 13th instead of Clippard, but in reality the outcome of the game is really secondary.  Strasburg pitched great once again, which is the only thing that really matters.

Hang in there Nats fans. If all goes to plan, this time next year the Nats just might be playing for keeps.

Let’s rewind to the weekend of August 19th when Nationals park was flooded by a deluge of Phillies red, white, and royal blue. Nationals fans were drowned out by anti-Werth chants and curtain calls for visiting players.  Going into that series vs. the most dominant team in baseball could have been a down-point to the Nats season.  However, something funny happened that weekend…the Nationals stepped up and provided D.C. fans with two of the most dramatic wins of the season. I for one, saw that weekend as a turning point for this young crop of Nationals.  I’m starting to be proven wrong.

Just a few short weeks later, the Nationals have found themselves on the losing end of four (maybe five, pending rain) consecutive series.  The Nationals have been inconsistent at best in all facets of the game.  The struggles with runners in scoring position continue, the defense has been spotty, and all of a sudden the once stalwart Nationals bullpen looks beatable.  Is this the case of a young team hitting an end-of-the-year skid?  Has this Nationals team been riding the coat tails of an impressive mid-summer winning streak? It’s hard to say, but in either case the Nationals need to steady their course heading into the off season.

The Nats can do themselves a tremendous favor by playing out the last few weeks of the season strong.  Former Yankee, Paul O’Neill had a theory about playoff games: even if you were getting blown out in game 1, putting up some runs in the ninth inning could give a team momentum headed into game 2.  The 2011 season has been a blowout for the Nationals.  Despite some nice moments here and there, the Nats are far from being team ready to compete for the playoffs.  It’s time to for the Nationals players to finish strong and show they can make noise in 2012.  The most exciting part of September baseball shouldn’t be the AA call-ups.   I for one am hoping that 12 months from now, I am writing a post about how the Nationals can sneak into the playoffs.

So should Nats fans panic over the current tailspin?   If you care about shedding  the “lovable loser” tag, the answer should be yes.  The fastest way to make that happen is to show that the Nationals are a team to be reckoned with in 2012.  Does a strong finish necessarily lead to a strong start?  Of course not, but it sure couldn’t hurt.

Well folks, the NATS organization ended their minor league season on Monday with a clean sweep of their opponents. Now we turn to the playoff where the AA Senators and 2010 Carolina League Champions (A) Potomac Nationals will represent the NATS in the minor league playoffs. We will take a look at each team’s opening series, discuss first game starters, and provide a series prediction.

Before that, a quick thought on Strasburg. Lilly and Mattingly of the Dodgers both made comments stating that they were not impressed or amazed by Strasburg. People who say that are either in denial, lying, or terrified of him. Probably all three. He pitched 2 H baseball and no one really came close to hurting him. He has the potential to be one of the best pitchers ever, but he is nowhere near that yet. However, to discredit him is foolish and sounds envious that you don’t have him on your team.

Alright, playoffs.

Senators vs. Flying Squirrels (Eastern League Playoffs)

The key thing about this series would have been that the SENS were supposed to host the first two games. However, due to the rain and flooding now home team advantage goes to Richmond with Games 1&2 being played there. I am confused by this decision. It entirely eliminates the point of winning during the regular season, home field advantage is not being honored and that is a shame. It complicates the series for Harrisburg as they now are forced to take at least one game in Richmond if they want a chance at winning the series. The Squirrels are a solid team that has notched a lot of wins this year and finished behind Harrisburg by 4 games this season. The reason for home field being so important is that the Squirrels are 31-40 on the road while they boast a 45-26 record at home. It will be important for the SENS to pick up two wins at home if they want to extend their postseason past this round. However the SENS are only 9-13 against Richmond this season and will need to find a way to solve this puzzle if they hope to win ball games early.

Players to Watch: For Harrisburg they will need to get key hits and production from Tim Pahuta, Erik Komatsu, and Tyler Moore. These three have been mainstays at the club hitting .260, .234, .270 respectively with Moore having hit 31 bombs during the season. These guys will have to take on the leadership roles necessary to excel in the postseason. They have to provide run support as a team for their pitching staff, which is always altered after September call-ups, making run support even more crucial. Important to note that players that appeared on the SENS all year will not be there (Lombardozzi, Peacock, Tatusko, Harper).

Prediction: For the SENS to win this series they MUST take game 1 or 2 in Richmond as well as BOTH home games. The restructuring of the series has created a big obstacle to the SENS, somewhat unfairly, but then again the best teams find a way to make a play, when the play seemingly is not there. We do not want to have to go back to Richmond for game 5 when they boast a Goliath-like record at home. If SENS win game 1 or 2, I say then win 3-1, but if they fail to accomplish this we could see them bow out from the playoffs early in 5 games.

Pitching game 1: Erik Arnesen (SENS) 8-4, 2.43 ERA in 126.0 IP with 122 K and an OPP BA of .241

Daryl Maday (RICH) 4-10, 4.47 ERA in 116.2 IP with 92 K and an OPP BA of .276.

PNats vs. Frederick Keys

This series begins in Frederick tonight with the PNats looking to defend their 2010 Carolina League Title. This will be a hard fought series with the PNats going 10-10 against the Keys over the season. Like I said with the SENS it is absolutely crucial for the PNats to take game 1 or 2 if they want to get through the round. It could go either way since both teams have being playing good ball lately. As you see they matched up pretty evenly against each other this season, however PNats took 2 of 3 from the Keys in Frederick two weeks ago.

Players to watch: Destin Hood (.276), Eury Perez (.283), Brian Peacock (.237), and Sandy Leon (.251) need to continue their offensive production in order to help the PNats pitching staff win some ball games. These four players combine for 22 HR, 68 2B, and 187 RBI.

Prediction: Same as above. A win in game 1 or 2 is crucial. This one will likely go 5 games, and the team whose SP plays best in that game will advance. Let’s hope it’s the PNats.

Pitching game 1: Paul Demny (PNats) 10-10, 4.32 ERA in 143.2 IP with 108 K and an OPP BA of .261

Jacob Pettit (Keys) 7-0, 1.62 ERA in 55.2 IP with 41K and an OPP BA of .213

SENS win 3-1 PNats series goes 5.

- Marco, NATS Farm System Correspondent

As you can probably tell by now, Ron does a great job of previewing and discussing the happenings in the NATS organization. For this reason I will not include the NATS game in my daily previews as he normally does one as well. I will instead focus in on our farm system, something that I am very passionate about. I hope to share our prospects and minor league teams with you well.

Chiefs (66-73) vs. IronPigs (79-64)

Here we are folks, the final game of the Chiefs season. They look to end their season on a high note by avoiding the sweep against Lehigh Valley. The IronPigs send SP Nate Bump  (4-9, 5.09 ERA) to the mound to face off against Syracuse’s Brad Meyers (6-4, 3.46 ERA). The last few games of AAA ball are always interesting due to September big league call ups, prospects reaching the pitching limits, etc. The bottom line for the Chiefs is that they need to produce runs. Bump has been hit all season (.320 opp BA) and we need to give him one good last shellacking for the fans in Syracuse. Heart, not stats is going to win this game. Chiefs are 6-4 in their last 10 while Lehigh Valley is 4-6. Let’s take the final game of the season and series by not repeating today when we squandered a 4-1 lead by giving up runs in the 7th, 8th, and 9th innings.

Prediction: Chiefs get out of the season with a win behind a good shutdown performance by Meyers. I figure he will go 6 innings or so and give up 5-6 hits. Chiefs win if their bats put 4 or 5 runs on the board.

Senators (79-62) vs. Akron (73-68)

The Senators look to end their regular season on a high note. After clinching the division and a spot in the AA Eastern League Playoffs, it can be hard at times for teams to keep up the heat and end the season strong before entering the post season.  They did lose yesterday to the Aeros by a score of 6-4 and they need to remember the importance of finishing. After all, the champion is usually the team who ends playing the best ball, not necessarily the one who starts off hot. Early game time tomorrow (2 PM) with Steven Wright (2-3, 5.62 ERA) on the hill for the Aeros against Oliver Perez (3-5, 3.27 ERA) for the Sens. The big story in Harrisburg is whether or not Bryce Harper will be allowed to play in the upcoming playoffs. Regardless, this game is of extreme importance to set the tempo for the Senators in the playoff matchups. A win tonight will show they mean business and are ready to win some playoff ball games.

Prediction: Both SP’s get knocked around early, pulled by 5th. High scoring game. Sens pull off the win if they can put 7 or 8 on the board. This is going to be a good old fashioned wild west baseball shoot out.

PNats (67-71) vs. Kinston Indians (76-61)

The PNats end their regular season today against the same Indians that took two games from them yesterday. However, their end of season break will be short as they begin their playoff series against Frederick on Wednesday. The truth is, the hope of defending that Carolina League title is slim at best. The record says it all. However, we are only 1 game back on the division leading Keys, our opponent next week. I guess there is always some hope, no matter how small. I think the main issue is not the record but rather our inconsistency. We go through too many cycles of a few wins here, a few losses there to put together a deep playoff run. I hope I am wrong. The one thing they have going for them is that they have practically the same record at home and on the road (19-15 and 19-16 respectively) while the Keys are 23-13 at home and 16-17 on the road. Alright back to today’s game. At posting time, there was no official release of tomorrow’s starters, however the same logic I applied to the Sens applies here in that ending the season on a good note is crucial.

Prediction: Either team can win this one. I  will update once I see who is pitching for both teams. That will be a huge factor as both teams want to get this final W.

Suns (74-64) vs. BlueClaws (68-68)

The Suns send Matt Swynenberg (6-3, 3.77 ERA) to the mound to face off against Austin Wright (1-1, 1.50 ERA) after winning yesterday thanks to big homeruns from Keyes (17 HR) and Martinson (19 HR). Wright will present a challenge to the Suns lineup as he has struck out 36 in his 30.0 IP with Lakewood and has an opp BA of .224. The Suns Swynenberg has also posted decent outings, having an opp BA of .262. If today gives us any indication of the Suns’ performance against the ‘Claws we should expect another defensive game tomorrow. Low Scoring offense, probably powered by the long ball rather than stringing together a few hits here and there.

Prediction: I think Wright will give the Suns lineup a lot of trouble and will go deep into the game, but I really am buying into Keyes and Martinson’s ability two hit jacks despite both of them having a BA in the mid .200s. Low scoring game, powered by one of the two Suns players mentioned getting another homerun to their total. Suns win tight game 3-2.

Again these predictions are somewhat based on stats and trends but mainly on gut feelings and my experience having followed these teams.

- Marco, the NATS Farm System Correspondent