New Blog Day

I didn't watch the Nats game on Saturday because I was cheering on the Terps again. I must be good luck, because once again they came from behind to win. The scouts were out in force to see starter Ryan Moorer (who, judging by his name, must be just like me only moreso) and lefty closer Brett Cecil. Keep in my mind that my scouting skills are pretty much on par with, say, my ukelele abilities, but this Cecil could be one to keep an eye on. He terrified the three unfortunate Lafayette scholar/athletes he faced in the ninth, striking out the side and causing the second victim to humiliate himself pretty badly. Seriously, every time this guy throws a fastball, an angel loses his wings. Filthy, filthy stuff. But, you know, sample size and incompetent observer caveats apply.

So, given that I haven't seen a Nat in a while and that nothing interesting seems to have happened, it's new blog time! Like Brussels sprouts or parsnips or cauliflower, Nats blogs spring from the ground, luscious and verdant, in February and March, so I'll be taking a look at some of the new ones. Because I'm all about supporting the community. And churning out content without bothering to come up with something to say.

First up is Nationals Review, which plans to provide statiscally-minded weekly updates. I hope Charlie has more success with that weekly thing than I did. Here's a representative post covering Ronnie Belliard and the candidates to fill in for Nick Johnson.

Ron’s .237/.293/.371 Aug/Sept with the Cards doesn’t seem any worse than what Guzman has to offer. So basically a bad month for Belliard is a normal month for Guzman. Belliard and Lopez makes for an above average hitting middle infield, guys that can do a decent job of getting on base, and could put up a combined 25-30 home runs. . .

What could be really scary for fans and enticing for RFK hot dog vendors is that if Lopez gets hurt, Belliard and Guzman could combine to form the pudgiest middle infield in the history of the game, possibly only the addition of Deivi Cruz at third base could make it any funnier.

Let's not sell Tony Batista short in that category. His gut gets extra oomph because it's next to his little Tyrannosaurus Rex arms.

At the opposite end of the fan spectrum is Nationals Power. I'll let proprietor Joe Riley explain himself:

You won't find cutting-edge statistical analysis here, I'm simply not equipped to do that, and there are already so many more-qualified bloggers who can analyze statistics, both passionately and dispassionately. What you WILL find here is unbridled enthusiasm for a find organization. If you want my views on the hot dogs, the stadium sound system, wonderful vendors and how the beer tastes, then bookmark this site today.

Joe appears to be well-situated to give important information on a subject important to many if not most Nats fans: beer. Check this post out, and let's hope he makes insider beer updates a regular feature.

It's about time we covered a blog that sounds like it should be pronounced with an exclamation point at the end: NATSTASTIC(!) More Belliard is fat analysis:

Minus of signing Belliard: he's not exactly the physical build of your proto-typical 2B. Plus of signing Belliard, Tony Womack, hero of the 2001 World Series, will likely not make the team. Just to put this all in perspective, Zimm graduated from high school in 2001.

Thanks for making me feel old, NATSTASTIC(!)

We've got two entries at MLBlogs, which I don't know anything about. Do you have to pay for those? Doesn't Lasorda have one? Anyway, This Base For Rent isn't new, and I hate it when I miss these things. Sorry. And here's some props for teh community, which makes me feel even worse.

The newness of the team gave fans (and bloggers alike) to get in on following a franchise in its infancy in a new city. It’s been interesting during the past couple months in which I’ve followed the team day in and day out just how often the Natosphere members blog and how detailed and well-written each blog is. And this is the off-season.

Another neighbor of Mr. Lasorda is DC Daily, which seems to be digging The Plan.

So the franchise that is responsible for producing Tim Raines, Andre Dawson, Gary Carter, Randy Johnson, half of the current Indians, Javier Vazquez, Orlando Cabrera, Vladimir Guerrero, Vidro, Brian Schneider, and Ryan Zimmerman is now being run by the man, Stan Kasten, who helped rebuild the Braves before their decade-plus dominance of the NL(tee hee), and Kasten has hired Tom Rizzo, the man responsible for the most recent rebuilding of the Arizona Diamondbacks, and then Kasten hires a Manager best known as a talent evaluator, in Manny Acta. This finally sounds right.

Not enough paper, you say? Get to The Nationals Report and behold the papery wonder! Kyle is focused -- he didn't bother with the usual "this is my first post" post, instead launching right into a middle infield preview, including Smiley Gonzalez.

So what if he’s only 16 (so he says), I gotta give the kid some face time. The buzz is that he could be a franchise type player, with comparisons to Ozzie Smith and Miguel Tejada. USA Today also reports that he’s working on a cure for cancer. Won’t see him for years to come but one of the Nationals few bright prospects.

Finally, while searching the internet for answers to my many ball punishment questions, I stumbled on a blog called Capitol (sic) Punishment. I looked and looked for a quotation worth putting up, but "Chris" doesn't make it easy. Here's a typical one:

I . . . fear . . . the FBI knocking on my door.

Well, the color scheme's pleasing, at least.