Open Memo To Stan Kasten

In spite of my numerous complaints to various staffers this weekend, not a single person was willing to do something about the Five Guys stand behind my section. If I'm lucky I'll only weigh about 500 pounds at the end of the season. And if that sudden obesity does not kill me, my doctor certainly will.

On a serious note though, the stadium policy of not providing lids and straws for sodas is pure bunk. As somebody who was there the night Boozer's Mom was hit in Cole Field House, I understand and support the policy regarding bottle caps. But the policy regarding lids is totally and completely unnecessary.

As for the facility itself, maybe I'm spoiled or maybe I'm hard to impress but there wasn't that "WOW" factor for me that many were talking about. Yeah, RFK is old and can't take the rigors of an 81 game baseball season anymore but there isn't anything at the new place that is very impressive outside of the scoreboard.

Though I had to laugh at the line for Ben's Chili Bowl. Not because the food isn't worth it, but because the line was snaked around the corner and the stands right next to Ben's had no line at all and the employees at those stands looked absolutely bored out of their minds. I took pity on them and bought my dinner at one of those forlorn stands. (I'm not stupid enough to arrive right before the game and expect to get through Secret Service Security quickly. I got there 5 minutes before 3 pm).

Oh, and the Navy Yard Metro Station is totally inadequate. The ironclad proof of that is the fact that they closed the station briefly in order to keep the station from dangerously overflowing. I laughed doubly hard at the signs pointing us to the Waterfront station which had nothing but jam packed trains pulling into it with nobody getting off.

And the "game experience" was indistinguishable from RFK. Same old songs being played, same old promotions being run, same old gags being pulled. (BTW, Teddy should have been running around an empty RFK. Yeah, everybody would have seen it coming but it still would have been HIGH-LARIOUS.)

Finally a special note for the jerk who stood up in front of me right as Odalis Perez threw the first pitch of the game last night. I understand that you too wanted a picture of the occasion but the LEAST you could have done was apologize instead of just looking at me like I was the idiot you bleepin' moron.

Raise Your Hand If You're Also Underwhelmed

I made it to the Caps preseason game last night and I have to say, I was rather underwhelmed by the much ballyhooed new scoreboard and video screen. I do have to say that the picture is much nicer than the old one, but the only time I ever watched the screen was for replays.

The ribbon boards around the 400 level were annoying more than anything else. When the ads changed, the amount of light in the arena changed with it and it drew your attention away from the game.

The new setup is a lot like what they now have in Philadelphia only we're under utilizing the system compared to Philly. The corner pieces with the caricatures of the Capitol Dome, Washington Monument, and Jefferson Memorial topped with stars is nice but seems to me to be a waste of space, especially since the rings on top and bottom just displayed ads all night.

I'll grant you it was the first time they've used the system so hopefully things will improve. It wasn't until the third period last night that they figured out how to place the score, clock, and shots on goal on the 400 level ribbon board. The club level ribbon board was extended all the way to the end but the new panels weren't online yet and the corner displays weren't up and running yet either.

Though let me give a compliment to the new color scheme throughout the phone booth. That ugly purple and yellow is now thankfully gone. But was all of this worth a tax hike on tickets? I still say no.

And as I feared, the numbers on the Caps new jerseys are much easier to read but the the names are just as difficult as they always were. I had no problems reading the names of the Hurricanes but unless I knew which Cap was which by number, I still needed binoculars to read the name.

As for the game itself, the Caps pulled it out in OT 3-2. Nicklas Backstrom, Viktor Kozlov, and Mike "BEAM ME UP" Green scored the goals. The Power Play and referee Don "Have Another Donut You Fat Pig" Koharski both looked to be in midseason form (Yes, it is the same cheap joke I break out every year) and Jakub "and sons" Klepis did himself no favors by missing a wide open net in the first period.

Shaone Morrrissonnn had a great scoring opportunity in the second period and held onto the puck in the slot too long before shooting. Cam Ward made a routine save. If there was anything that struck me last night is was the Caps continuing to hold onto the puck for just a little too long before either passing or shooting. That was a problem that plagued them last year and MUST be corrected before they can even think about contending for a playoff spot.

However it is tough to get a good read on how well somebody is or isn't playing in the preseason when the game is about 3/4's speed. Seven (yep, that long) years ago now Jakub "and sons"Cutta had an excellent camp and preseason. He made the team coming out of camp that year; but when the games counted for real, he couldn't handle the speed and was sent down after appearing in just three games. He played 5 more in the NHL since then and hasn't been heard from since. So while guys like Tomas Fleischmann and Green are having strong camps and preseasons, it does not mean it will carry over into the regular season.

The best news of the night however came from the Nats who, despite trying hard, held onto a seven run ninth inning lead and won 10-9. It was the 71st win for the Nats this year and it matches their total for last season. That means they need just one win in their final three games to beat last year's record. Their "magic number" to lock up fourth place is two.

Take Your Record And...

Watching the Nats-Giants game last night, you could tell very early on that Big Head BALCO Barry Bonds* was going to hit a home run and break the record of Hank Aaron. Big Head BALCO Barry Bonds* was "locked in" as they say and with Felipe Lopez, Austin Kearns, Brian Schneider, and Bengie Molina all hitting homers ahead of Big Head BALCO Barry Bonds*, you knew the ball was flying out of AT&T Park.

Now let me first say that Bud Selig should be left alone. Yes, the guy is a National Disgrace and the sooner he steps down as MLB Commissioner, the better. However when it comes to Big Head BALCO Barry Bonds*, Selig is in a no-win situation. By "ho-humming" the chase and the achievement, Selig is getting ripped for snubbing and slighting Big Head BALCO Barry Bonds*. However had Selig gone out and been the lead cheerleader for Big Head BALCO Barry Bonds*, Selig would be getting ripped for promoting a cheater and a fraud by the same people who are ripping him for snubbing and slighting Big Head BALCO Barry Bonds*.

And don't think for a second that Big Head BALCO Barry Bonds* doesn't have his cheerleaders and people quick to say "innocent until proven guilty" to begin with. However, this isn't a court of law where innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt applies. This is the court of public opinion and the rules are entirely different. But I have to wonder what the "innocent until proven guilty" ostriches think of Orenthal James Simpson? He was acquitted of murdering his wife and an unfortunate soul in 1995. I also question their "innocent until proven guilty" attitude as it relates to WWE Owner Vince McMahon who was acquitted of steroid distribution in 1994 (a fact he proudly wears on his chest ) in light of the recent Benoit family tragedy. Scooter Libby was convicted of perjury based entirely upon "he said-she said" evidence while Marion Barry was acquitted of using crack cocaine despite being caught on video using the drug. Our legal system sometimes leaves a whole lot to be desired.

It takes a special kind of dense to look at all the available evidence in this case and still believe that Big Head BALCO Barry Bonds* did not take steroids. The fact that his trainer and other close associates sit in jail while he's under investigation himself is pretty damning. And even if you try to take it half way and believe Big Head BALCO Barry Bonds* when he says "he didn't know" he still IMHO has a responsibility to take responsibility for his actions.

Instead Big Head BALCO Barry Bonds* likes to play the victim card while he pursues his own personal glory. Make no mistake, what happened last night wasn't about the San Francisco Giants as a baseball team. It was all about Big Head BALCO Barry Bonds* as he came out of the game after breaking the record in the fifth inning. Did you know that the Nats ended up winning last night? One can only wonder just how the game would have turned out had Big Head BALCO Barry Bonds* stayed in and played the entire game. As stated before, he was "locked in" going 3 for 3, scoring three runs, and needing just a triple to complete the cycle. But nope, it was party time for Big Head BALCO Barry Bonds*, and his team lost for the 63rd time, 2 more times than what was supposed to be the worst team ever assembled in the history of Major League Baseball.

Finally, not only is Big Head BALCO Barry Bonds* chemically enhanced, it turns out he's also mechanically enhanced too (I found that on Drudge Monday), but hey, we're all just jealous or racist or Yankee fans right? And so Mike Bacsik becomes the footnote to history and graciously as well. Personally I would have walked Big Head BALCO Barry Bonds* but I don't get to make those executive decisions.

At least now the circus is over and the Nats and Giants can get back to playing and worrying about nothing but baseball. Maybe the Giants can find a way to make a run to improve their record now that Big Head BALCO Barry Bonds* has his precious record. It's too late for either team to challenge for the playoffs but the least they can do is to play hard for the rest of the season instead of phoning it in like I suspect a certain player will.

Gotta Love It...

You know you've made a big mistake when even the opposing team's announcers deride your call in their favor.

Yet Hunter Wendelstedt turns to the lame "my hands are tied by the rules" excuse for his ejection of John Lannan. The fact that Wendelstedt felt that he even had to issue a comment about (let alone even try to equivocate it) his ruling speaks volumes about. Somebody on that crew told him that he blew it and blew it big time. Considering the universal disagreement with the call, it would have been difficult for the overlords of MLB to have disciplined Wendelstedt for not ejecting Lannan after he hit plunked Ryan Howard.

Furthermore, actually digging through the MLB rules he is only following a guideline, not a clear cut rule. He could have warned Lannan and the dugouts but instead he chose to eject the kid. At least the Nats came back and won the game.

More Meathook!

Good news for Nats fans, listening to the Nats game over the internet, an announcement is expected later today concerning a contract extension for Dmitri "Meathook" Young.

Not only does this lessen the chances that he'll be traded but it also means that the Nats have no confidence that Nick "China Doll" Johnson will play this season. While Young is a valuable trading asset, keeping him around will make the games in August and September much more interesting to watch. And by signing him to an extension now, they'll keep him in the fold beyond this season unlike Alfonso Soriano.

And speaking of contracts, as you no doubt by now should know, Brooks "
and Dunn" Laich was awarded a small raise on a one year contract yesterday from his arbitration case.

Caps Fans Take Note

I know most don't bother or care to listen to me but once again there's a cautionary note out there in spending $$$$$ just to spend $$$$$.

In previewing the start of the Nats-B.O.'s series at RFK, the (Com)Post points out the B.O.'s payroll follies. Now I will admit that both teams are as bad as the Caps are right now. However the Nats are spending $62 million less than the B.O.'s are but with a sweep this weekend (not entirely out of the question with the way both teams have been playing recently) the Nats will be tied with B.O.'s.

Long story short, spending freely does not equal winning.

Maybe The Nats Should Have Fired Their Trainer?

"Southeast" Jerome Williams heads (back) to the DL. A team that has thin starting pitching depth as the Nationals do, they can ill afford having four starters on the DL (Williams, Shawn Hill, Michael O'Connor, and John Patterson).

You have to start feeling sorry for Manny Acta, while he knew that he was taking over a rebuilding team with nothing in the pipeline, there's no way he could have been prepared for the absolute train wreck that the starting pitching staff has become because of injuries.

Talk About Odd..

Caps fans love to bash anything George McPhee does but we really should be thankful that he doesn't make trades just to make trades.

Nats GM Jim Bowden does exactly that because that is the only explanation of his trade for Ryan Langerhans.

Now in the interest of full disclosure here, I haven't been following the Nats that closely and from what I've seen is that there are problems in the field for the Nats (mostly on the pitcher's mound) but the outfield has been fine. It has been the infielders throwing the ball away and making errors, not the outfielders.

But Bowden trades one outfielder for another outfielder saying this will improve the defense. Ooookkkkaaaayyyyy...... This also creates an outfield logjam when Nook Logan comes back and somebody will have to be the odd man out. This just doesn't make sense.