Mid-Season Correction
With the Washington Nationals firmly in first place in the NL East, and the Baltimore Orioles hanging onto second place in the AL East, I revisit a post from early this season...because it seems I must eat a little crow.
After the first weekend of the MLB season, I had this to say:
Riding the Metro past RFK Stadium in DC last night, I got to thinking: as a fan of the Orioles for the past 18 years or so, but now a newly minted Washington Nationals fan (gotta support the hometown team) who has largely renounced the Orioles (particularly as long as Peter Angelos runs the club), what happens if the O's make the playoffs this season?
Let's be honest, the Nationals (3-3) will not make the playoffs this year. They don't have the pitching or the bats. The Orioles (3-3), on the other hand have the tools on offense to score runs (Mora, Tejada, Sosa, Palmeiro) and an intriguing, if unproven, pitching staff. Having just taken two of three from the Yankees (which never seems to happen anymore), let's just throw out this hypothetical: The Orioles win the Wild Card this season, while the Nationals spend the offseason on the golf course...would it be considered bangwagon jumping if I or any other former O's fan, put my O's hat back on in October?
I am glad the most likely circumstance at this point is that the Nationals make the playoffs as at least a wildcard team. The Nationals have survived some pretty signficant injuries to its starting lineup and now seem to be hitting their stride as they win game after game as the All-Star break approaches. At present, the Nats have won 7 of 8 and 8 of their last 10. That translates into a solid 5 game lead in the East.
As for the bolded statement above, let's be honest, I was dead wrong!
The O's have been almost as surprising as the Nats. Only recently they relinquished first place to the BoSox. They are suffering some tough times as they head into the break, however. The O's have won only 2 of their last 10 and have conceded four games to the Yankees, who are now only a 1/2 game behind them in the race for second place. But hey, they're still ahead of Evil Empire, so no complaining here yet.
I hope this scenario holds, as the perfect case would allow me to cheer primarily for the Nats, and secondarily for the O's in the playoffs. If somehow the Nats falter and miss the post-season, but the O's remain in, I suppose I can cheer for them as I had in former days. There would be no shame in it, as this team, with the exception of Steve Kline and Sidney Ponson, is full of some quality players and quality personalities.
These are exciting baseball times in the DC/Bmore area.
(Obligatory Bar Exam Complaint: Too bad I am stuck in a library and missing it all. In fact, I have yet to go to a game this year. I can't remember the last time I made it through April without seeing a game. Miserable.)
After the first weekend of the MLB season, I had this to say:
Riding the Metro past RFK Stadium in DC last night, I got to thinking: as a fan of the Orioles for the past 18 years or so, but now a newly minted Washington Nationals fan (gotta support the hometown team) who has largely renounced the Orioles (particularly as long as Peter Angelos runs the club), what happens if the O's make the playoffs this season?
Let's be honest, the Nationals (3-3) will not make the playoffs this year. They don't have the pitching or the bats. The Orioles (3-3), on the other hand have the tools on offense to score runs (Mora, Tejada, Sosa, Palmeiro) and an intriguing, if unproven, pitching staff. Having just taken two of three from the Yankees (which never seems to happen anymore), let's just throw out this hypothetical: The Orioles win the Wild Card this season, while the Nationals spend the offseason on the golf course...would it be considered bangwagon jumping if I or any other former O's fan, put my O's hat back on in October?
I am glad the most likely circumstance at this point is that the Nationals make the playoffs as at least a wildcard team. The Nationals have survived some pretty signficant injuries to its starting lineup and now seem to be hitting their stride as they win game after game as the All-Star break approaches. At present, the Nats have won 7 of 8 and 8 of their last 10. That translates into a solid 5 game lead in the East.
As for the bolded statement above, let's be honest, I was dead wrong!
The O's have been almost as surprising as the Nats. Only recently they relinquished first place to the BoSox. They are suffering some tough times as they head into the break, however. The O's have won only 2 of their last 10 and have conceded four games to the Yankees, who are now only a 1/2 game behind them in the race for second place. But hey, they're still ahead of Evil Empire, so no complaining here yet.
I hope this scenario holds, as the perfect case would allow me to cheer primarily for the Nats, and secondarily for the O's in the playoffs. If somehow the Nats falter and miss the post-season, but the O's remain in, I suppose I can cheer for them as I had in former days. There would be no shame in it, as this team, with the exception of Steve Kline and Sidney Ponson, is full of some quality players and quality personalities.
These are exciting baseball times in the DC/Bmore area.
(Obligatory Bar Exam Complaint: Too bad I am stuck in a library and missing it all. In fact, I have yet to go to a game this year. I can't remember the last time I made it through April without seeing a game. Miserable.)
posted by Mike C | 9:55 PM
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