Game Preview: Home Run Derby!

Homerun Derby

8:00 PM Kauffman Stadium

ESPN

Participants:

• Jose Bautista: 26 HR
• Robinson Cano: 20 HR (defending champion)
• Prince Fielder: 12 HR (former champion)
• Mark Trumbo: 20 HR
• Carlos Beltran: 20 HR
• Carlos Gonzalez: 20 HR
• Matt Kemp: 12 HR
• Andrew McCutchen: 16 HR

Stadium Stats:

• Kauffman Stadium is 330 down the both lines, 375 in left and right field, and 400 dead center.
• Right Handed Batter homeruns up 10% and Left Handed Batter Homeruns down 10% in last 3 seasons.
• More Park Stats

Pick em:

1. Smart Money: Carlos Gonzalez.
2. Gut Feeling: Mark Trumbo.
3. Dark Horse: Andrew McCutchen.

Personally I'd love to see either Trumbo or McCutchen win this thing.  I'm a little disappointed Giancarlo won't be in the derby, was really looking forward to watching that guy crush the ball.  Guess Kemp does the worst...since he is injury and all.

Ian Desmond Makes All Star Team

A while back Tony LaRussa said that he loved the way that Ian Desmond played.  That was a heck of a compliment coming from a multi-World Series winning manager.  Well LaRussa gave Desmond a little more of a compliment by adding him to the National League roster of the All-Star Team.

Desmond's power stats as a shortstop, leading the NL in RBI's (43) and Doubles (23) and 2nd in homers (13) looked like All-Star numbers.  But he struggled last year and his number kind of quietly added up this season, puting him right on the edge of being selected or not selected.  But with the Nationals in first place, it helps.

Desmond has come into his own this season.  The manager started him off in the wrong position in the batting order, but now in the 5th slot Desmond is making a huge contribution for the first place Washington Nationals.  Not only does he have a lot of RBI's but many of them are in key situations (8 GW RBIs) that turn games around for the Nats.

Desmond's career homerun season was back in 2010 when he hit 10.  Ian is already at 13 long balls  and the season isn't even halfway over.  I had a favorite player who's homerun numbers jumped alot too.  His name was Mark McGwire.  I'm not saying that Dezzy is "enhancing" but in this baseball culture I hope they have tested him already because I don't want to be disappointed.

The starting shortstop selected by fans, aka the Cardinals fans stuffing the ballot box, was Rafael Furcal.  Starlin Castro was the other shortstop selected by LaRussa as a reserve.  Guys like Jose Reyes & Jimmy Rollins were left out.  Desmond was deserving, and I think LaRussa was the only manager that would have selected him.

It's ashame that the fans vote (All-Star voting is so stupid) and a non-nationally known player like Ian Desmond often would get overlooked.  Thank you Tony LaRussa for looking at the baseball player instead of the name.  See you in Kansas City Dezzy....

All-Star Selection Show

Coming up on Sunday afternoon, about a half an hour before the Nationals take on the Atlanta Braves, TBS will be broadcasting a special All-Star Selection Show to reveal the players who have been chosen to be on the All-Star team.

The show is a 1 hour special and at the end they will announce the "Final Vote" thing where fans will vote in one player for each roster.

From TBS:  Host Matt Winer will be joined in the TBS studio during the Selection Show by analysts Dennis Eckersley, Cal Ripken Jr. and David Wells to introduce the teams and provide analysis on the selections.

So let's take a final look at the Nationals and their All-Star chances:

The Pitchers:

Strasburg:  Right now there is only one player on the Nationals who appears to be a lock selection to the team. That player is Stephen Strasburg, and while he most likely won't be the starter, he will probably be the #2 pitcher on the National League roster.  Prediction:  IN

Gio:  Gio Gonzalez is the next National who will probably get a consideration to make the team, but his ERA has dropped all the way down to 13th in the NL.  A few weeks ago he was looking like a lock, but now things are a bit different.  Gio is still #5 in strikeouts and is tied with 3 other guys for 2nd with 10 wins.  Prediction:  IN

Clip:  Alot of fans and the local media have brought up Tyler Clippard as a possibility to represent the NL citing that he has been there before, but not being a closer for the entire season really hurts his case.  Clip is 13/13 on saves in the closer role, he blew one save as a setup man, and he also has 10 holds on the season.  He is in the top 10 in saves but the other guys have more, on more attempts.  Prediction:  OUT


The Postition Players:


Desmond:  Ian Desmond is the only player on the team that has any chance at being chosen based on his current production.  Among NL shortstops he is #4 in average, #2 in homers, and leading in both doubles and RBIs.  LaRussa has said in the past that he likes the way Desmond plays, but with the Nats already having 1-2 pitchers on the roster, Dezzy may get left out.  Especially considering the #3 shortstop (avg) is Raphael Furcal, who played for LaRussa last year.  Prediction:  OUT


Bryce Harper:  Tony LaRussa has mentioned that the All-Star game is not a "real" game.  It is more of a sideshow for entertainment purposes.  That is why he said he might consider throwing Chipper Jones on the roster despite his lack of production.  While this would work in favor of Tony selecting Harper, I don't really think that will happen.  Instead Harper will end up being added as a guy on the final fan vote ballot, most likely making the team that way.  Prediction:  OUT but added later.

So tune in at 1pm and find out who is in and who is out before watching the Nats try to win the series against the Braves.

Matt Kemp Ruins The Homerun Derby, MLB's Move

Apparently there is such a thing as a "captain" of the home run derby, and the National League captain Matt Kemp has said that he will NOT be selecting Bryce Harper as a participant in the MLB Home Run Derby during All-Star Weekend in Kansas City. (According to USA Today)

You may remember Matt Kemp from earlier this season when he started the year off with triple crown numbers.  Well Kemp got hurt and he hasn't played in a game since the end of May.  That didn't stop the MLB from naming Kemp the captain of the National League Home-Run Derby "team?" a few weeks ago.  (Robinson Cano is the AL captain).

Kemp did an amazing job in last year's derby, hitting 2 homers in the first round and finishing in dead last in an embarrassing display of non-power.  But even after that performance, Major League baseball has decided that despite being injured, he should captain the squad.

Clearly Major League Baseball chose Kemp because of his star power.  He plays on the team in Los Angeles, he PWNs Rhianna (along with 20 other dudes), and he goes on talk shows like Conan to claim he can beat Magic Johnson one on one.

But that is the exact reason the MLB should have a word with Kemp, and make him reconsider.

Having an intriguing rookie, who is right now MORE popular in the baseball world than Matt Kemp, would bring in viewers.  All the hype behind Harper, and some of his performance this season will get even non-baseball fans interested in watching the kid try to compete with the big boys.   Chris Berman would have a field day...

Kemp says that Harper will have his day in the future, but A 23 year old Harper in a homerun derby will NOT have the same feel and excitement as a 19 year old rookie Harper.  Could Matt Kemp be jealous...


This event has no rich tradition.  It is not about who has better stats.  It is a SIDESHOW and sideshows need ATTRACTIONS to attract onlookers.  Bryce Harper is that attraction.

So I have a message for Major League Baseball.  Get up, go to the phone, and call Matt Kemp.  Tell him that making him a captain was just a publicity stunt, and that Bryce Harper will be participating in the Home Run Derby.   If you don't you are missing out on a boatload of viewers and making a joke of something that already is one.

Fan Poll: Strasburg At The All-Star Game

===================================

Last week: we asked you which Nationals player you would like to have hitting in the clutch.  Bryce Harper was the overwhelming choice getting over 50% of the vote.  Ian Desmond picked up another almost 25%.  However we say Bryce with several chances in the 14 inning game against the Yanks to be clutch and he didn't come through.  Would you still go with Harper?

===================================

The All-Star game is coming up in less than a month and with the Stras-Tracker on full blast towards 160 innings, a very important decision may have to be made by the organization.  This decision has been discussed all year long but as the Mid-Summer Classic nears, will the Washington Nationals tell Strasburg that he is prohibited from pitching in this great baseball tradition?

If things go smoothly for the next month, the final game before the All-Star game will be pitched by the third slot in the rotation, Jordan Zimmermann.  Strasburg is currently set for the Friday before the game, giving him just 3 days of rest.  The All-Star game is just 1 inning of work, but what will the rest factor have on the team's decision?

Also, if the rotation were to somehow change with a rainout or by sitting out someone an extra start, then Strasburg could end up pitching the Sunday before the Mid-Summer Classic and would most likely not be able to pitch.

The Nationals have Strassy on an innings limit and the way the Nats season is going, every inning may be extremely important.  Should they let him pitch in a "meaningless" game and knock off an essential inning from the pennant chase?  Should they make him sit out to save the inning?  Will they have a discussion with Stephen or will they just flat out tell him he can't?  Will there be a controversy?

The Nationals may be doing some dances to get a few rainouts that will cause Strasburg to be on the mound on the Sunday before the game, eliminating the controversy.  A bit of a stretch would be skipping a Strasburg start to ensure he pitched that day, but I wouldn't put it past the Nats.

Do You Want To See Strasburg Pitch In The All-Star Game

From First To .500: The Story Of DC Sports

In 2005, local legend Frank Robinson watched as his Washington Nationals team exceeded all expectations with their play on the field.  By the time the All-Star break hit, the Nats were in 1st place in the division with a 52-36 record.  Was a World Series possible for a new team?

In 2007, Washington Wizards coach Eddie Jordan stood on the sidelines in Las Vegas coaching NBA stars like Shaq, Lebron, and Dwayne Wade.  It was the NBA All-Star game, and Jordan was given the coaching position because his Washington Wizards had the best record in the Eastern Conference.  NBA Finals talk began.

In 2008, the Washington Redskins cruised through the first half of the season going 6-2 in their first 8 games.  While they were still one game back of first place, the city was starting to think Super Bowl.

-------COLLAPSE-------

That Washington Nationals team collapsed and finished the season at 81-81 (.500).  That Washington Wizards team collapsed and finished the season at 41-41 (.500).  That 2008 Washington Redskins team finished (.500).

In 2012, right now, the Nationals and Orioles are both in first place.  Each team started out smokin' hot, outshining all expectations.  However, fans in DC and Baltimore aren't getting overexcited.  They have seen this before with the examples above (and with the O's shorter term examples not listed).

And now things are starting to turn the other way.  The Nationals & Orioles have lost a combined 8 games in a row.  The O's now share the division lead and the Nats are only 1/2 a game up.  The All-Star break is still a month away but are things collapsing a little early?

As a fan of either team, you have to take a deep breath and hope this is just a blip in the radar.  Just a snag.  You have to read the examples from past teams and believe that history will not repeat itself.  You have to pray that the teams won't collapse down to .500.   It's DC Sports...you have to hope...you have to believe...you have to pray...