Nats Park During Make Up Game On A Rainy Work Day ... Empty

The crowd was sparce today for the rainy make-up game...Here is what it looked like for the first pitch...wow...

Nationals Ask Fans For Advice With Some Funny Results

What would you change about the Washington Nationals game experience?  I'm sure you have plenty of ideas.  Personally I spend half the big games waiting in line for bathrooms and starving to death because I don't want to miss 4 innings to get food, so I'd try to improve those aspects.

Well the Washington Nationals decided to setup an online suggestion box on Betterific and used a Facebook Post to get additional comments from fans.  As expected, hilarity ensued.

Teddy Goes Green, Helps Discuss Sustainability

The Washington Nationals are helping the Department of Health & Human Services & Secretary Kathleen Sebelius get the word out about sustainability and the correlation between going green and being healthy.  In the following video, Teddy demonstrates several different ways to stay healthy by participating in green activities like recycling, riding a bike, and eating a salad.

Dreaming Of Bathroom Free Ballparks

Each Thursday We Let A Nats Fan Sound Off, Because Quite Frankly, The Fans Know More Than We Do

This Week's Entry Was Written By Nats/Caps Fan @KevinLamparter

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Why do I always find myself in the bathroom lines at professional sporting events…

Do I drink in excess to enhance the social enjoyment of the game? Do I require the extra liquid inhalation due to the winning percentages of area DC teams? Do I have the bladder capacity of a 10 or 90 year old?

This Was At Nats Park Last Year

Thinking deeply about it, the answer to all these questions is “Yes”. But bathroom lines are such a hassle at sporting events. I can’t tell you how many big plays happened while I was staring at the back of the head of some bro who just chugged 20 beers.

So what is a fella to do?

Sports Is Beer

This is Actually Editor Chris

Professional sports have been saturated with alcohol-related marketing, sponsorships, and promotions since before I was born.  If you see a game in St. Louis everything is Budweiser and if you head out to Milwaukee then the same is true with Miller Lite. Even at Nats Park these days there is a ginormous Miller Lite logo in dead centerfield.

Beer men are a staple at professional sporting events, providing fans with ice cold adult content delivered right to their seat!  But most of us (def not all) HATE to be that guy who is constantly getting out of his seat during the game.  Try it at a Caps game without getting yelled at.

But how can fans resist that little voice down below telling them they have three minutes to evacuate before something bad happens?

Non-Solutions:

“Drink less beer!” Are you serious bro? Have you ever drank just one beer? It sucks!  And don’t tell me to switch to liquor. Liquor and I do not get along, just ask my ex-wife.

Plus beer is king at the ballpark, liquor is not even readily available.  And nobody wants to be the guy at the Wizards game drinking 3 ounces of pink liquid out of a plastic wine sample glass.

So why hasn’t anyone come up with a better solution to this problem. If they can’t shorten the lines, what can they do? 

Solutions?

Well luckily, I have found two products that could help me out in the future. Although sadly, these products are not really socially acceptable at this point in time…

Obviously the first is an adult diaper. I mean if Wes Welker & Clay Matthews are wearing them, then why not me!

The second is more outside the box thinking, but I'll avoid the box to avoid the stall.  It is called the "Texas Catheter" and boy is it awkward.  You basically put a condom on and a tube transports the contents into a plastic IV bag.  Looks fun...check it out...you ready to strap that bad boy to your leg?
Conclusions:
I’m headed to the Nats game in a week and I’m strongly considering wearing one of these two devices. So who’s with me? June 7 is officially Diaper Day at Nationals Park! Let’s take back the park from all the bathroom line losers and enjoy some baseball, beer, and tension-free bathroom breaks.

In The Defense Of Nationals Fandom: Part III

Each Thursday We Let A Nats Fan Sound Off, Because Quite Frankly, The Fans Know More Than We Do

This Week's Entry Is a 3-Parter Written By A Huge Nats Fan From Twitter:  @TClippardsSpecs

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Part III: The Phuture (Part I, Part II)

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“I Never Think Of The Future.  It Comes Soon Enough.”

-Albert Einstein

What does the future hold?  Let's take a look at some more recent statistics to find out.  Because the Vet was so terrible, and the new Citizen's Bank Park is such a better/cozier place to watch a ballgame, we will look at some numbers for CBP:

Since Nationals Park only has 4 years of existence under it's belt, let's only 

considered the first four years (2004-2007) for Citizens Bank Park.

Keep in mind, these are the years prior to their 2008/2009 World Series appearances, as well as their 102 win 2011 season.  The average attendances from 2008 forward are in the 42,000-47,000 range. Think about those numbers, compared to Veterans Stadium averages – quite a difference a new stadium makes.

Winning also plays a role, but in this comparison it's somewhat irrelevant, if you consider the history of the Phillies at the Vet. In 33 seasons at the Vet, the Phillies had 3 World Series appearances, winning in 1980, 13 winning seasons, with 2 of them being 100+ win seasons -- very comparable to their CBP years thus far.

So where does that take us, and what does the past tell us about today?

Comparing losing seasons between the two teams shows that in spite of what Philadelphians might think, their accusations of bad Nats fandom should fall on deaf ears. If they need confirmation, they need look no further than the Phillies of the 1990's. While a number of fans showed up to root for a losing team, they didn't do it with the dedication that Nationals fans had.

What we currently see also gives hope to the Nationals fan. A flirtation with first place, the promise of a great pitching staff, all combined with a highly regarded farm system bodes well for the future. With the Nats on the up & up, and the Phillies at a injury plagued crossroads, will the tables turn for these teams?

Things Are Looking A Bit Different Nowadays

In 2012, the Phillies/Nats series drew on average almost 10,000 more fans in Philly than it did in DC.  And DC's series was a beautiful weekend, and in Philly it was rainy weekdays.  I think many more Philly fans traveled down here than vice versa.  So it isn't close yet...but winning consistently can cure all ails.

Will we ever see Nationals Park at 83% capacity like Citizens Bank? Will Philadelphia see a return to 1990's misfortunes and a concomitant drop in attendance again? Will the Nationals find their most recent fortunes to be the springboard to years of success and winning?

If showing up is half the battle, the future looks bright for Nats fans...

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If you are interested in writing a fan-post of your own, email editor@DCSportsNexus.com
And use the comments to let these fans know what you thought about their piece.

In The Defense Of Nationals Fandom: Part II

Each Thursday We Let A Nats Fan Sound Off, Because Quite Frankly, The Fans Know More Than We Do

This Week's Entry Is a 3-Parter Written By A Huge Nats Fan From Twitter:  @TClippardsSpecs

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Part II: Statistics 

(Go Back To Part I)

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“There Are 3 Types Of Lies.  Lies.  Damn Lies.  And Statistics”

-Mark Twain

So are Philly fans really "lifers" as many of them claim to be?  Does the fan-base as a whole stick with the team through thick & thin?  Are the fans that much better than Nats fans in times of trouble?

To determine this, let's have data show us the way:

For the Nats, I took their attendance and win-loss record from their entire history (2005-2011).  For the Phils, I took the same stats from their recent losing seasons (1996-2000, 2002).  That gives us 7 years of Nats data and 6 years of Phils data to compare.  The Nats avg 70 wins per season during their years, and the Phils avg 72 wins.  All data from Baseball Reference.

Click The Image To Enlarge & Follow Along With

During the years in question there are some stark similarities...Let's break it down visually:

Stadium Effects:  During the Phils seasons of note, they played in the old & decrepit multi-purpose Veteran's Stadium.  During the Nats seasons, they played some in the old & decrepit multi-purpose RFK, and some in the new and cozy Nats Park.  So I looked at various comparisons:

You can see in the chart how each combination of stadiums has outperformed the Phillies during these down years.

The highest capacity ever at the Vet was during the World Series trip in 1993 when it was a whopping 61% filled.  The Nats at RFK filled the stadium just as well (percentage-wise) as the Phils best year.

Quantifying the Un-Quantifiable:

There is one variable of attendance that I really can't quantify with any veracity; the amount of fans in the stadium that aren't fans of the home team.  Proximity of a good team to a bad team during a series is a big factor.  While this doesn't skew the numbers too much, it should be noted.

There has been a lot of hubbub the last couple of years over Philadelphia fans 'taking over' Nationals Park – a.k.a 'Citizens Bank South' – it's obvious that the composition of the crowd at each of these home games is not 100% Nationals.

Philadelphia has had their own park infestation in the years we are looking at, in the form of New York Mets fans who made the Vet their home away from home -- 'Shea Stadium South', if you will.

So what does this mean going forward for the Nats?  We look at the future in Part III

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If you are interested in writing a fan-post of your own, email editor@DCSportsNexus.com
And use the comments to let these fans know what you thought about their piece.

In The Defense Of Nationals Fandom: Part I

Each Thursday We Let A Nats Fan Sound Off, Because Quite Frankly, The Fans Know More Than We Do

This Week's Entry Is a 3-Parter Written By A Huge Nats Fan From Twitter:  @TClippardsSpecs

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Part I: Bad Fans

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“In God we trust; all others must bring data.”

-W. Edwards Deming

"Bad fans".  That may be the answer you get when you ask fans of other Major League baseball teams to describe the Washington Nationals fan-base.  And no fans beat this dead horse more than the humble and demure residents of that quaint village about 150 miles north of our nation's capital; Philadelphia.

As the weather begins to get warmer, the season begins to heat up as well, and the notion that the Nats' fans are subpar intensifies.  Images like the following are being passed throughout Twitter along with the message that the Nationals' fans are terrible supporters of the team.

Keep in mind this photo was taken at a game with a 1:05 start time, just moments 

after a brief rain delay, but hey, let's not have facts get in the way of a good story...

What Philadelphia fans give as the evidence damning Nats fans as "bad", is attendance. "No one shows up to your games" - We have daily sellout crowds"

While there is some merit to this notion (DC has the 4th lowest attendance in the NL this season), this is not necessarily the factor of the city it is taking place in.  All teams throughout their existences, have encountered this problem, even Philadelphia.

Why such poor attendance? Because everyone loves a winner...and if there's been anything lacking in the Nationals short history, it is wins (Avg 70 wins from 2005-2011).  The Phillies on the other hand have not only won a lot of games (Avg 92 wins from 2005-2011), but they have taken home a World Series title.

Phightin fans, and Philly sports writers claim that Washington isn't a good baseball town based on these attendance figures and images of empty seats...but should that be their only evidence?

Phillies fans may remember (or choose to ignore) the mid to late 1990's – it wasn't pretty, and neither was Veterans Stadium.  Kevin Sefcik and Wayne Gomes playing with Terry Francona at the helm aren't the first memories that come to mind when you think of the Philadelphia Phillies.  The team's recent success has pushed these memories far out of our mind's reach.

So do Philly fans have a leg to stand on?  We look at the stats in Part II

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If you are interested in writing a fan-post of your own, email editor@DCSportsNexus.com
And use the comments to let these fans know what you thought about their piece.

The Battle Of The Beltways Should Be Fun

Two Baseball Cities Less Than An Hour Apart

Have you ever spent a weekend up in Baltimore for a baseball game?  It is amazing.  The stadium is nice, the fans are passionate, and the pregame & postgame nightlife is great.  I don’t care what team you root for, you will have a good time in Charm City.

The baseball experience in DC is slightly different, but you can still have a great time.  While the stadium may have been built with no charm at all, and our bars are a cab ride away, a baseball weekend in the Nation’s Capital is quite an experience.  

People that live in D.C. and Baltimore may be very fervent and particular about their home cities, but it doesn’t mean they don’t enjoy taking a short road trip for a new experience every once and awhile.  And as a baseball fan, who doesn’t want to check out one of America's baseball towns.

That is one of the things that makes the Battle of the Beltways series so amazing.  Two cities that are less than an hour apart, each with their own charm & uniqueness, coming together for some summer baseball.  You can grab your friends & family, drive a short ways, and have a baseball experience.

Non-Rival Rivalry

The other great part about the series is that you have a National League team playing an American League team.  That means that the games, while not meaningless, are not as important as most other games during the year.  That should lead to an environment where the rivalry is fun, instead of vicious as in division rivialries.

A “light-rivalry” such as this one, caused by geographical location, should be a time when fans of opposing teams jab and jeer each other in a friendly and...

RIP DC Legend: Chuck Brown (Nationals Edition)

According to the Washington City Paper, A Washington D.C. music legend, Chuck Brown, has died at age 75 after being in the hospital with pneumonia.  The Godfather of Go-Go was known was not known by all due to his niche style of go-go music, but most people could probably begin to sing along with his most mainstream hit Bustin' Loose.  Chuck Brown put on a show that could be enjoyed by all types of people of all different generations and he will be missed.

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Read The Washington Redskins Edition

Back in 2008, the first season the Washington Nationals played in Nats Park, the team held a fan vote to see which song would be played after the first Nats player hit a homerun during every game.  The #1 vote-getter and winner was Chuck Brown's song "Bustin' Loose"

Well the first ever homerun at Nats Park turned out to be Ryan Zimmerman's walk-off, and so Chuck Brown's homerun song was shoved aside by the victory song, U2-Beautiful day.  Sad.  It probably ended up happening for the 1st time after a Christian Guzman HR.  Sad again.

So in honor of Chuck and his contribution to the city of Washington, D.C., here is Bustin' Loose.  RIP Chuck!