{"id":2512,"date":"2011-09-25T18:36:37","date_gmt":"2011-09-25T22:36:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.nationalsarmrace.com\/?p=2512"},"modified":"2011-09-25T18:36:37","modified_gmt":"2011-09-25T22:36:37","slug":"nats-rotation-cycle-32-goodbadsoso","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nationalsarmrace.com\/?p=2512","title":{"rendered":"Nats Rotation Cycle #32: good\/bad\/soso"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"attachment_2559\" style=\"width: 236px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.nationalsarmrace.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/09\/wangCheinming_copyright-the-Washington-Nationals.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-2559\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-2559\" title=\"wangCheinming_copyright the Washington Nationals\" src=\"http:\/\/www.nationalsarmrace.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/09\/wangCheinming_copyright-the-Washington-Nationals-226x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"226\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nationalsarmrace.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/09\/wangCheinming_copyright-the-Washington-Nationals-226x300.jpg 226w, https:\/\/www.nationalsarmrace.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/09\/wangCheinming_copyright-the-Washington-Nationals.jpg 362w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 226px) 100vw, 226px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-2559\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">After Wang&#39;s latest gem, perhaps he&#39;ll be in a Nats uniform a bit longer?  Photo via the team.<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Good<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Tommy Milone<\/strong> efficiently worked his way through a Ryan Howard-less Philadelphia lineup in the first half of\u00a0 9\/20&#8217;s twin-bill (<a href=\"http:\/\/washington.nationals.mlb.com\/mlb\/gameday\/index.jsp?gid=2011_09_20_wasmlb_phimlb_1&amp;mode=recap&amp;c_id=was\">box\/gamer<\/a>) for the easy victory.\u00a0 Line: 6 scoreless innings giving up just 4 hits and no walks.\u00a0 He was matched by Philly&#8217;s spot starter <strong>Kyle Kendrick<\/strong> so he got a no-decision on the day.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Brad Peacock<\/strong> looked pretty durn good on 9\/22 (<a href=\"http:\/\/mlb.mlb.com\/mlb\/gameday\/index.jsp?gid=2011_09_22_wasmlb_phimlb_1&amp;mode=recap&amp;c_id=was&amp;partnerId=rss_was\">box\/gamer<\/a>) to help the team sweep the Phillies away.\u00a0 5 2\/3 innings, giving up just one hit (on a somewhat questionable scoring call giving Ruiz a hit and an error on a diving stop but errant throw from <strong>Ryan Zimmerman<\/strong>).\u00a0\u00a0 He absolutely dominated the lineup through 5, finishing those 5 innings on just 50 pitches.\u00a0 He gave up a ton of fly balls (small quibble: as with last week he had 9 flyball outs versus just 2 grounders), but lots of the fly ball outs were pop-ups on balls where he simply overmatched the hitter.\u00a0 He struggled in the 6th, seemingly trying to aim the ball versus Oswalt and ending up with a 4-pitch walk.\u00a0 He couldn&#8217;t be tired; he was only on about 55 pitches at that point.\u00a0 After giving up a second walk (losing the at-bat after having Rollins down 0-2), he got a flyball out before getting yanked on just 69 pitches on the night.\u00a0 Had he been left in, he could probably have gone 8 complete, but Davey decided on a lefty-lefty matchup and brought in Gorzelanny to finish off the rally.\u00a0 I&#8217;m still taking the &#8220;glass is half empty&#8221; analysis here, but Peacock looked pretty good.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Chien-Ming Wang<\/strong> put an exclamation point on his comeback season, getting the win on 9\/24 (<a href=\"http:\/\/mlb.mlb.com\/mlb\/gameday\/index.jsp?gid=2011_09_24_atlmlb_wasmlb_1&amp;mode=recap&amp;c_id=was&amp;partnerId=rss_was\">box\/gamer<\/a>) and dominating the Atlanta Braves, who (unlike the Phillies) were certainly playing a full-strength roster.\u00a0 Final line: 6ip, 4 hits 1 run (on a solo shot in the 5th) and 4 strike-outs versus zero walks.\u00a0 He was only sitting on 85 pitches and could probably have gone at least one more inning easily.\u00a0 He had a 9\/3 go\/fo out ratio, showing his sinker working well.\u00a0 I wonder how negotiations are going to go with Wang in the off season (<a href=\"http:\/\/therocket.mlblogs.com\/2011\/09\/23\/wang-nationals-talking-extension\/\">per this report here<\/a> &#8230; maybe we won&#8217;t even get to the off season if the team and Wang are already talking an extension.\u00a0 Great news if this is true).<\/li>\n<li>You can&#8217;t ask for much more than <strong>Ross Detwiler<\/strong> did on the game&#8217;s final home game of the year on 9\/25 (<a href=\"http:\/\/washington.nationals.mlb.com\/mlb\/gameday\/index.jsp?gid=2011_09_25_atlmlb_wasmlb_1&amp;mode=recap&amp;c_id=was\">box\/gamer<\/a>), just pitch 6 scoreless innings and give a shutout to his bullpen.\u00a0 Line: 6ip, 4hits, 2 walks and 4ks against a Braves team that is hanging on to the playoffs for dear life.\u00a0 His day was highlighted not by dominance, but by his getting out of a bases-loaded, 0 out and 3-0 count jam without giving up a run.\u00a0 He got a bloop, a flyball and a grounder out of <strong>Chipper Jones<\/strong> to finish off the threat and preserve the victory.\u00a0 Another great statement game for Detwiler going into 2012.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Bad<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Stephen Strasburg<\/strong> really struggled to be comfortable on the mound in the first inning on 9\/23 (<a href=\"http:\/\/mlb.mlb.com\/mlb\/gameday\/index.jsp?gid=2011_09_23_atlmlb_wasmlb_1&amp;mode=recap&amp;c_id=was&amp;partnerId=rss_was\">box\/gamer<\/a>), getting touched up for 3 runs on 4 hits (all singles but a couple hit on the nose) and facing 8 hitters before getting his 3rd out of the game.\u00a0 He was missing spots, fiddling with the mound, fiddling with his landing spot, shaking his hand and going to the resin bag over and again before getting out of the inning.\u00a0 He then cruised through the next three innings, facing just one over the minimum before getting yanked.\u00a0 His rough first inning cost him his 5th inning; he was sitting at 75 pitches through four.\u00a0 He was somewhat controlling his speed, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.brooksbaseball.net\/pfxVB\/pfx.php?month=9&amp;day=23&amp;year=2011&amp;game=gid_2011_09_23_atlmlb_wasmlb_1%2F&amp;pitchSel=544931&amp;prevGame=gid_2011_09_23_atlmlb_wasmlb_1%2F&amp;prevDate=923\">averaging 95.5<\/a> and humping it up to 97.6 on several occasions.\u00a0 His change-up was fantastic on the night, if his four-seam control was off.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Mediocre\/Inconclusive<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>John Lannan<\/strong> got the win on 9\/21 (<a href=\"http:\/\/mlb.mlb.com\/mlb\/gameday\/index.jsp?gid=2011_09_21_wasmlb_phimlb_1&amp;mode=recap&amp;c_id=was&amp;partnerId=rss_was\">box\/gamer<\/a>) on somewhat of an off day for him; 5ip, 8hits, 3runs.\u00a0 Not a great outing, but enough to get his 10th win of the season.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Starter Trends; Its hard to give some of these starts just a &#8220;good&#8221; rating, especially when you give the team 6 scoreless innings (as Milone and Detwiler did).<\/p>\n<p>2nd half<br \/>\nMilone\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0bad,soso,good,good<br \/>\nLannan\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0good,good,bad,soso,good,bad,bad,good,soso,good,bad,soso,soso<br \/>\nStrasburg\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0great,soso,good,bad<br \/>\nDetwiler\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0soso,soso,good,good,bad,bad,soso,great,good<br \/>\nWang\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0bad,bad,great,soso,soso,good,bad,soso,soso,soso,good,good<br \/>\nPeacock\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0good,good,great<\/p>\n<p>Relievers of Note and other News<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>I love the fact that 9\/21&#8217;s win over Philadelphia guaranteed at least a season-split with them, and then we went and took the season series the next day.\u00a0 That&#8217;s right; the Nats won the season series against the best team in the majors.<\/li>\n<li>Likewise, 9\/25&#8217;s win over Atlanta <a href=\"http:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/leagues\/NL\/2011-standings.shtml\">split the season series<\/a> with them 9-9.<\/li>\n<li>Is anyone else worried about the Nats losing a protected 1st round pick with this late season surge?\u00a0\u00a0 Here&#8217;s your <a href=\"http:\/\/www.mlbtraderumors.com\/reversestandings\/\">reverse standings<\/a> (normally a point of extreme interest for Nats fans looking to wrap up the first overall pick).\u00a0 I guess its a good problem to have, but it will give the team some pause if they go after a type-A free agent.<\/li>\n<li>I havn&#8217;t always been the biggest <strong>Henry Rodriguez<\/strong> proponent, but I&#8217;ll give credit where credit is due.\u00a0 His 7th inning appearance on 9\/25\/11 was perhaps the most dominant 3 outs I&#8217;ve seen a reliever throw this season.\u00a0 He was dialed in on his fastball, in complete control and absolutely overpowering hitters.\u00a0 He punched out <strong>Jason Heyward<\/strong> on a pitch that was in the glove before he swung, then got the opposing catcher to actually attempt a bunt with 2 strikes.\u00a0 He then put two 101-mph pitches on <strong>Jack Wilson<\/strong> before throwing an 88-mph hook to end the inning that had me saying &#8220;holy cow&#8221; to my TV screen.\u00a0 <strong>JP Santangelo<\/strong> said it best; &#8220;that may have been the best inning i&#8217;ve seen a reliever throw all year.<strong>&#8221; <\/strong>I concur.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Overall Summary<\/p>\n<p>Here&#8217;s an &#8220;arbitrary endpoint&#8221; statistic; since <strong>Livan Hernandez<\/strong>&#8216;s last start on Sept 4th, the team is 14-6.\u00a0 Livan and <strong>Jason Marquis<\/strong>&#8216; starts have been replaced by guys who are making pretty good statements for 2012&#8217;s rotation, and the team is doing this without <strong>Jordan Zimmermann<\/strong>&#8216;s stellar #2 starter capabilities.\u00a0 Maybe 2012 is going to be more than the last transition year for this team.\u00a0 I&#8217;m starting to believe in these up and coming starters.\u00a0 Masn put up a graphic that showed our starters having the #1 ERA in the majors for the past few weeks and it has shown.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Good Tommy Milone efficiently worked his way through a Ryan Howard-less Philadelphia lineup in the first half of\u00a0 9\/20&#8217;s twin-bill (box\/gamer) for the easy victory.\u00a0 Line: 6 scoreless innings giving up just 4 hits and no walks.\u00a0 He was matched by Philly&#8217;s spot starter Kyle Kendrick so he got a no-decision on the day. Brad [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,12],"tags":[35,37,181,42,39,43,168,41,51,36,38,34],"class_list":["post-2512","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-mlbpitching","category-natsrotationreview","tag-brad-peacock","tag-chien-ming-wang","tag-henry-rodriguez","tag-jason-marquis","tag-john-lannan","tag-jordan-zimmermann","tag-jp-santangelo","tag-livan-hernandez","tag-ross-detwiler","tag-ryan-zimmerman","tag-stephen-strasburg","tag-tommy-milone"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nationalsarmrace.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2512","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nationalsarmrace.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nationalsarmrace.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nationalsarmrace.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nationalsarmrace.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2512"}],"version-history":[{"count":14,"href":"https:\/\/www.nationalsarmrace.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2512\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2598,"href":"https:\/\/www.nationalsarmrace.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2512\/revisions\/2598"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nationalsarmrace.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2512"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nationalsarmrace.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2512"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nationalsarmrace.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2512"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}