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Hitter’s Meetings with the Nats and How to Get Better!
The Washington Nationals completely modernized their hitting department by hiring a young, data-driven staff consisting of Matt Borgschulte, Andrew Aydt, and Shawn O’Malley. This progressive trio combines Borgschulte’s “ Own the Zone” strategic approach, Aydt’s advanced biomechanical expertise utilizing cutting-edge technology, and O’Malley’s practical major league experience to optimize the team’s offense. With all the changes in the front office and coaching staff, there was little change to the roster, other than the bullpen and the starting rotation. Curtis Mead, Jorbit Vivas, and Joey Wiemer were the only changes to the position roster to start the season. The Nats essentially kept the majority of the position players from the previous team and did exactly what they promised that they would get an “extra gear” out of each player. That was the company line from President of Baseball Operations, Paul Toboni, when he was hired and then echoed by his manager, Blake Butera. Again, the “extra gear” statement sounded gimmicky and BS. You hear it all the time in sports with little tangible proof of achieving the goal. But it absolutely worked with the Nationals’ offense. Coaching mattered. Execution mattered. The analytics mattered. The technology mattered. This is the blueprint. The key going forward is evolving and improving. Now we have the final numbers from the 2026 season, and it’s impressive when you look at the returning full-time players of which there were seven of them in the lineup. OPS increases for the seven players: Dylan Crews (+5.1%), James Wood (+8.0%)…
MVP Chants for AD, and booing for Kuz reign down as the Wizards shine enroute to a 128-116 victory over the Bucks
Some hype from the Washington Wizards’ opening-night contest against the Milwaukee Bucks took a hit on Tuesday when Head Coach Brian Keefe announced after practice that the face of the franchise, №1 overall pick in the 2026 NBA Draft, AJ Dybantsa, would miss what was scheduled to be his debut. At Capital One Arena on Wednesday night, 18,805 showed up as the team’s faithful rocked from the opening tip. Making sure to boo former Wizard Kyle Kuzma gave the arena an instant hostile environment that helped the Wizards gain momentum early as they held a 25-23 lead after one quarter off the play of 10-time All-Star Anthony Davis who showed the play that made him a NBA 75th member with 10 points, and 6 rebounds. Led by 1st-year Head Coach Taylor Jenkins, you know the Bucks were going to come in prepared, buttoned up, and ready to get their season…
Michael Locksley has stepped down as the head football coach at the University of Maryland
Michael Locksley has stepped down as the head football coach at the University of Maryland, effective immediately, the school announced today. The university and Locksley reached a mutual decision to part ways following what Maryland officials described as “thoughtful conversations.” Aazaar Abdul-Rahim has been named the interim head coach to lead the Terrapins through the remainder of the season. Locksley leaves College Park during his eighth season at the helm, finishing his tenure with a 39-54 overall record. His time at Maryland was highlighted by three consecutive bowl game victories from 2021 to 2023, a stretch that helped stabilize a program undergoing significant transition. Leadership Reflects on the Change In a statement, Barry P. Gossett Director of Athletics Jim Smith expressed gratitude for Locksley’s commitment to the university and the local community. “We agreed that a coaching change was in the best interest of Coach Locksley and the Maryland football…
Maryland Terps Women’s Basketball in Coach Frese’s 25th season!
As legendary head coach Brenda Frese enters her 25th milestone season in College Park, the Maryland Terrapins women’s basketball team is gearing up for a highly anticipated 2026–27 campaign. Frese has a career Terps coaching record of 631-178 for a.780 wining percentage. Following a 24-9 finish and a Second Round appearance in the 2026 NCAA Tournament, the Terps find themselves ranked No. 17 in the Coaches Poll and No. 20 in the preseason AP Top 25 for this upcoming season. With a refreshed roster featuring a dynamic blend of proven veterans and elite freshman talent, Maryland is positioned to make noise in a highly competitive Big Ten Conference. Retooled Roster: Star Veterans Meet Elite Youth The anchor of this year’s squad is senior guard Oluchi Okananwa, an All-Big Ten selection who powered the Terps last season by averaging a team-high 17.8 points and 5.4 rebounds per game. Okananwa will lead…
The 2019 World Series Nats proved that it takes a village!
What if Michael A. Taylor ‘s hit-by-pitch in the 8th inning of the 2019 Wild Card game was overturned on the video evidence? What if Ryan Zimmerman ‘s broken bat blooper was caught by Lorenzo Cain in center field. Cain was playing on a sore leg. What if Josh Hader ‘s 3-2 pitch to Anthony Rendon was ruled strike-3 instead of ball-4? The pitch was high and fortunately the ump called it correctly as a walk. There was no ABS video replay in those days to overturn calls. All of that happened to load the bases with two outs in the 2019 Wild Card in a game that the Washington Nationals trailed by a score of 3-1 at the time in the 8th inning. History says that all of the tumblers clicked into place which was essential in a game that relies on some luck, and all of the “what ifs” went the Nats way before the then 20-year-old Juan Soto stroked a single into right field that we all know veered slightly off course with that element of luck that former manager Dave Martinez called a “tricky bounce.” Call it what you want, the Nats won on Soto’s bases clearing single plus an error on the right fielder to score three runs. The Nats took a 4-3 lead and won with that exact score. Every step of the way in competitive games of skill there can be that one instant that changes everything. In the Nats Wild Card game…
12-Days to November
The offseason officially begins in less than two weeks for baseball. There is no movement on a new collective bargaining agreement (CBA) and most expect that there will be a work stoppage due to an expiring CBA to start at midnight on December 2ⁿᵈ. Before that date, there is a lot of work to get done. While the Washington Nationals are already in their offseason with 27 other teams, as the Cleveland Guardians were eliminated an hour ago from the postseason, that leaves just Tampa and Milwaukee as the final two teams standing. There will most likely be a flurry of activity for free agents after teams declare their players protected by Qualifying Offers (Q.O.) set this year for $23.15 million. That is a record salary and an increase of 5.1 percent from last year. The figure is determined by the average of the top 125 MLB player contracts this year. A Q.O. can be made through the 5ᵗʰ day after the World Series, and a player has a week after that to accept. Teams that sign Q.O.’d free agents are subject to penalties that begin with forfeited draft picks and international free agent money. For the Nats, signing a Q.O. player would cost them to forfeit their 2ⁿᵈ-highest draft pick + $500,000 in international bonus pool money. We would doubt the Nationals will be signing Q.O. free agents this year. The free agent market just is not that deep this year. You have starting pitcher, Tarik Skubal, at the…
Game #9 Caps want to start a winning streak!
The Washington Capitals (5-3) will host the Los Angeles Kings (0-4-2) at Capital One Arena tomorrow night, Tuesday, October 20, 2026, with puck drop scheduled for 7:00 PM EDT. Washington enters the matchup heavily favored as they look to build on their strong early-season form against a winless Los Angeles squad desperately seeking a spark. Matchup Overview The story of this game centers on two teams trending in completely opposite directions. Head coach Spencer Carbery has the Capitals clicking, especially on home ice where they boast an impressive 4-1-0 record. Meanwhile, the Kings cross the country mired in a six-game…
Game #6: at San Francisco
Old Kezar Stadium was the home of the San Francisco 49ers from 1946-1970. The 49ers were a part of the All America Football Conference until 1950 when the Conference folded. There were some twists and turns at the end of the AAFC’s run. Buffalo had a decided advantage in attendance over a number of the teams. But, the Owner cashed out and joined the Cleveland Browns as a minority Owner. The Miami Seahawks became the Baltimore Colts. But, they lasted only as long as the 1950 season. 3-years later the League gave Baltimore a second chance with the remnants of the Dallas Texans. All through the AAFC years the 49ers were solid. They lost the final Championship Game to the Browns (who won all four of them). Kezar was a rough place to play per opposing players. The field was often in poor shape. And, the seagulls were omnipresent late in games. Artie Donovan claimed that the birds were expert dive bombers. San Fran closed the building with a loss to Dallas in the Conference Championship Game. They spent 43-years at Candlestick Park before moving some 38-miles to just south of the Bay at Levi’s Stadium. This has been some week, eh? It started with the collective Burgundy-and-Gold nation screaming at their TV sets, “What are you doing?!!!” By the end of the week everyone in the organization short of the Water Boys were claiming that the snafu at the end of the Giants’ game was “On Me.” In the meantime the Sports Talk Radio and TV Talking Heads had drawn and quartered Head Coach Dan Quinn. It was a lot of mob mentality on full display. And, if you dared venture into the message boards the commentariat was looking for an even harsher fate, if one is possible for…
The “Bullpen Factory” Blueprint: Why the Rays, Brewers, and Red Sox Offer a Roadmap (and Hope) for the Nationals
For Washington Nationals manager Blake Butera and the fanbase alike, a call to the bullpen became an immediate cue to reach for the antacids and/or the bourbon. The team just wrapped up a 2026 regular season that was defined by a polarizing paradox. On one hand, their young offense took immense leaps, and their player development pipeline reached its healthiest state in over a decade. On the other hand, the team’s postseason aspirations suffered a slow death in the late innings, with a bullpen that coughed up a mind-boggling 42 blown saves that led directly to 24 losses. If half of those losses were wins as President of Baseball Operations, Paul Toboni said, his team would have made the postseason with 89 wins. Again, we know and say it all the time, shoulda woulda, coulda. The team leader in blown saves was Clayton Beeter (7) followed by Mitchell Parker (5), Tom Cosgrove (3), Richard Lovelady (3), Orlando Ribalta (3), Erik Tolman (3), Yovanny Cruz (2), Cole Henry (2), Brad Lord (2), PJ Poulin (2), Gus Varland (2), Riley Cornelio (2), Will Dion (2), Max Kranick (1), Matt Krook (1), Paxton Schultz (1), and Ken Waldichuk (1). That is 17 relievers who made that list, and of those 17, only a few will make the Opening Day roster. Again, blown saves happen. ❝[The bullpen] hasn’t turned out exactly how we like — stating the obvious there. We’ve been pretty aggressive on flipping it over, to give more and more guys chances…
Thinking Outside of the Box on a Lefty Hitting Free Agent
There are few clear fits for the Washington Nationals need to add a left-handed hitting first baseman. We’ve been talking about Jake Bauers for weeks before his postseason heroics as a nice fit. One name we didn’t mention is Luis Arráez, 29, as a potential free agent. Seen as a highly specialized, one-dimensional profile, clashes with the team’s current roster construction and long-term needs — but the Nats could use him as a short-term fix. While adding a multi-time batting champion with an elite bat-to-ball skill set is an intriguing and an “outside-the-box” thought experiment, a deeper look reveals more about this player. Why the Nats Might Consider It (The Pros) Elite Contact & Low Strikeouts: Arráez possesses the lowest strikeout rate in baseball and a proven ability to put the ball in play. He would provide a reliable on-base presence for a young Nats lineup that can occasionally struggle with consistency. Veteran Leadership: On a young, rebuilding team, his veteran presence and unique offensive approach could serve as an excellent model for developing prospects. Why It Doesn’t Work (The Cons) Defensive Position: Arráez has expressed a strong preference to play second base. However, the Nats already have CJ Abrams who appears to be the second baseman going forward. Shifting Arráez to first base is a need the Nats have for a lefty batting first baseman and there will be days that Abrams will play shortstop, and Arráez could play second base. Severe Lack of Power: Traditional first basemen and…
Game #8: Caps big division rival game vs. Devils
Today, the Washington Capitals host the New Jersey Devils in an early afternoon matinee at Capital One Arena. Both Metropolitan Division rivals enter the matchup with identical 4-3-0 records, looking to build early-season momentum. The Capitals are fresh off a thrilling 5-4 victory over the Montreal Canadiens to open their five-game homestand, while the Devils are flying high following a dominant 7-1 blowout against the New York Rangers. Expect plenty of Devils fans in attendance for this one, and there are plenty of fans of Jack Hughes the kid with the Golden Goal in the Olympics as he is the…
A Moneyball World Series proves that money isn’t everything!
Many have been conditioned to hearing that the Washington Nationals seven consecutive losing seasons (2020-2026) were based on not spending enough on player payroll. That certainly wasn’t the case in 2020 or even 2021 when the Nationals were still a Top-10 spender to start each season. A lack of spending could have been the case in 2026 if you want to conveniently use hindsight. The Nats were supposed to be in another rebuild in 2026. It turned out that they were actually in contention for more than half the season. Shoulda. Coulda. Woulda. Fact is, the Nats were terrible and aged out in 2021 and began their rebuild in July 2021. The Los Viejos just got too old; Patrick Corbin stopped being good, and Stephen Strasburg was paid $35 million a year for seven years through this 2026 season while he was injured for all but six partial games of what should have been at least 210 games. Combined through most of those losing years, the Nats were wasting nearly $60 million a year on Strasburg and Corbin that was not spent on high-producing players. Again, tough luck. The Nats won a World Series with that duo, and then spent the following years watching consistent losing. Add to that, the coaching was suspect, the farm system was poor, and the technology was not upgraded. That was then and this is now. Before this year, the Nats were still operating like they were using an outdated philosophy on building a roster…