>> bob: yes. i'm not make this go stuff up. >> rob: come on. >> bob: you can't make this stuff up. >> rob: i still don't believe vernon wells played in the cfl. >> bob: ryan zimmerman, breaking ball taken 2-2. >> rob: what team? >> bob: if it was the toronto argue thoughts, that would really be -- argonauts, that would really be ironic. i'll have it do more research. >> rob: is it the calgary stampeders? >> bob: i used love to the montreal alouettees. >> rob: the rough riders. >> bob: zimmerman. they're not going to throw them a -- throw him a fastball down the middle. blue jays do have another left- hand her in their bullpen. he's someone we know pretty well. >> rob: rod barajas is a very wide man, and you see him lean the chest forward, keep it in front. it would be hard to get it by that man. >> bob: b.j. ryan is not warming up right now. it's shawn camp, right-hander. >> rob: sometimes we refer to the catcher as a beck stop. that man is definitely a backstop right there. >> bob: zimmerman is g

>> bob: no. >> rob: oh, man. >> bob: gorman is not having a good night. >> rob: i'm telling you, bob. look at this. this pitch is up and away. >> bob: are you kidding me? >> rob: i mean, goodness gray mice. s -- >> bob: last two strike calls not even close. 1-1 to zimmerman. >> rob: come on, zim, get mad.  >> bob: winning run nobody out. ryan looking to protect on 1-2. >> rob: that was one of those -- >> bob: [ indiscernible ] >> rob: smack that guy. >> bob: have umpires ever been thrown out of a game? this might be the time. the ones in the seats. 2-2 now. zimmerman on a breaking ball low and away. that one pitch changed the entire at-bat because that would have been a 3-1 pitch and ryan zimmerman is 0-5 tonight. >> rob: accardo makes a good breaking ball pitch down and away and tried to if you will. that pitch, if he makes a mistake with dunn could leave the building. >> bob: adam dunn, 1-3, a single and an intentional walk. first pitch changeup outside.  >> bob: pitcher spo then, alberto gonzalez

bob, rob?bob: thank you, debbi t always helps when your reliever comes out of the bullpen and shuts down a rally in this case on one pitch by kip wells. that leads to jesse carlson, 28- year-old lefty out of new britain, connecticut, for toronto. he pitched in 60 ballgames last year. had a good 2.25 e.r.a. he did pitch yesterday against the phillies and sporting a higher e.r.a. this year 4.88. nats box score rolling by the top of your screen and josh bard with a run and a walk and scored the nats only run. battle of the bullpen the rest of the way. as you know, kip wells doesn't have many quick innings. that was nice to see him get an out on one pitch. >> rob: yes, it was. >> bob: so, jordan zimmermann will get a no decision in his 11th major league start. croorls, a little hushingy jamie burkey on the left -- herk ji jerky on the left hand deliver -- hushingy jamie burkey on the left hand delivery. willie harris is next. 3-1.  >> bob: 3-2 pitch. emerge

hit. >> bob: he has one. walked and got a single. all-time interleague, blue jays, eight. nationals, four. it's really kind of an oddity because these teams have played nine times only three times in washington for some strange reason. nats took 2-3 from the blue jays at rfk back in 2005. swept at toronto a three-game series in 2006. the last time nationals traveled north of the border in 2007, blue jays won 2-7. it's about time we got these guys back down here. the toronto montreal interleague series used to be a pretty spirited rivalry. they played a lot over the years a total of 42 games and the blue jays won 23 of them involving the expos and the nats. nick will just step back from that one. 1-2. brian tallet pitching a really good game as well. four innings, one run on four hits. 61 pitches, 32 strikes as he entered the bottom of the fifth. yankees lead 5-1 at florida. news out of new york had them benching alex rodriguez for two games to give him time off and get things back together. the nats really pi

stammen is also 25. >> bob: 2-2. now, you know, all these things we are talking about, with the young team that has to go through the growing pains and lose for a while before you win, we understand that you folks sitting at home are saying, wait a minute you are asking me to pay major league prices for this right now. we know that. it's a very difficult process for fans, product casters, everybody to go through to get to that point whbecome a winning team. i bet you everybody in tampa, st. petersburg would tell you now that what they had here last year made the wait worthwhile, not to say they weren't really tough years. they won

>> bob: no, they went to milwaukee first. the philadelphia athletics went to kansas city. >> rob: some teams have traveled around a little bit. they have gone and then. >> bob: and they are in oakland. it's i how can you deny the history. that's baseball. at the end of the day, that's all good. >> bob: and the royals fans have the st. louis browns who came there in '53, how their team moved around. i mean we have lost two teams in this town. 1 ball, 1 strike to dunn. that ball gets away the nick johnson never saw it. he just fell right out of the glove of raul chavez. he had the catcher and the umpire in his line of sight. >> bob: that ball. >> rob: that ball gets out of the sight. did you see barajas -- or not barajas but chavez much he was looking at the runner. >> bob: thighs try at the breaking ball. >> rob: i think nick was shaded by dunn and the catcher and didn't know where the ball was. >> bob: yes. screened. >> rob: i'm thinking of the hockey term. >> bob: like screening the goaly. >> rob: screening the goaly. >> rep

>> bob: i have no idea. that's why i'm up here. >> rob: you are not going to be able to hit that ball. slideer away. >> bob: i would be shocked to see any ball near the zone. >> rob: actually a two-seam sinker that ran back over the plate in the lefty batter's box. >> reporter: keep in mind there is a runner at second base. >> rob: what a wheeler and dealer. two-seam fastball, a little bit low. >> bob: that is a great pitch. >> rob: that is a great pitch but he has to have the pinpoint command. he is not going to overmatch elijah dukes. >> bob: 3-2 with nobody out. dukes, high in the air, left field. how far can it go? it will be caught in front of the 370 mark. adam dunn goes to third. carl crawford had a hard time digging that ball out of his mit. >> rob: i think he was shocked. >> bob: that was a great-base- running play but adam dunn. >> rob: i don't think they know that dunn has 64 stolen bases. >> bob: well, he also scored from first tonight on a double. see what happens to crawford. >> rob: no, he loo

>> bob: you could kill him.'s stick with the shaving cream. >> rob: you throw the shaving cream in their face. they hate it. >> bob: they'll tray that -- trade that for that first major league win. >> rob: that's the male bonding process. that means you're becoming part of the group. anyway, the three-man lift where you get one guy, get two guys to lock down another guy intertwieng arms and legs and you start acting like you're gambling and bet that go this one, big, strong guy can lift the three guys. right when you say like the guy is going to lift him up, the rest of the team comes in with condiments, ketchup, mustard, mayo and nails the rookie in the middle. he's do i haveless, can't move. base hit by vernon wells. 2-2. three-man lift on vern orrin. >> bob: vernon wells is coming out of his funk 8-18 last. his batting average on its way over .250 now. >> rob: gets the fastball where he likes it. he drives it right up the dish. see, when you're trying to come out of a slump though, that's the way do you t you

: . >> bob: thank you, debbie. he is going to be smiling because his leadoff man has an extra base hit. he has big triple until the outfielder stops him. cristian guzman has his multi- hit game. it looks like one of these games where each team will have a punch count punch going. >> rob: cristian guzman gets us going in here. down and in, smokes it by scott rolen, he has no chance. you keep running like a triple until the third base coach and the outfielder stops you with his defensive play. i want to get into the manny topic because i think that's a fantastic topic. people don't like manny like we know manny. we had a conversation and he is probably one the most fiery people and one of the most respectable people. you may not think that he is fired up or he gets on his team. he does privately. he has a lot of fire inside. he is like charlie manuel. they are very reserved. they are not like lou piniella who i played for. he is more like pete rose where he is very reserved, you don't know what he is thinking but he

bob carpenter, rob dibble, byron kerr with us. we'll fly to new york and come to you from the new yankees stadium tuesday night with martis against sabathia. >> bob: i think some of these young pitchers are going to make sure they're not in awe of the place in which they're pitching tuesday, wednesday, thursday. last time they measured it, the mound was 60 feet 6 inches too. >> bob: and hernandez will drop one to right center. gonzalez with a great jump. going to 3rd. he will be out with the ball waiting for him. testing the arm of gabe gross who threw him out. [cheering and applause] that made him make a perfect throw to get him. >> rob: i like it. challenge the defense. - oh, it's on. - it's on. - it's on. - ( music playing throughout ) - it's on. - oh, it's on, all right. - it's on. - totally on. jimmy, it's on. - it's on. - oh, yeah, it's on. affirmative, it's on. announcer: southwest airlines announces new service out of bwi airport, with three daily nonstop flights to new york laguardia for just 49 dollars one-way starting j

>> bob: nope.i just looked it up. >> rob: you're not allowed to do that. >> bob: i know, but i had no clue. jesus colome was with the rays for a good part of his career. came up with them in 01 here through the 06 season. >> rob: mike mussina. >> bob: you've got the right side of the mound though. >> rob: roger clemens. >> bob: no. >> rob: bill hughs? >> bob: you're getting warmer. >> rob: ian ken can i? >> bob: you're getting colder. former expo. >> rob: he gave up mark mack wire's 69th and 70th home runs. carl pavano, from my alma mater. sorry, we've still got two world champions from that high school. >> bob: that ball out to center. it will drop in front of willie harris and a base hit for michel hernandez. now the nats get anybody out here -- can't get anybody out here in the 6th inning. reid brignac will be next. >> rob: all there's power hitters in the middle of this tampa bay line-up. two biggest boppers, evan longoria hits a little flair out to the outfield. then your number four guy bunts

meet. >> bob: no, you're not. >> rob: except for my cars and my garage, whatever. >> bob: your car isspotless. >> rob: i didn't know whether to strap it or genuflect. >> bob: nick johnson reaching for a pitch away. manny made this point last week when talking about guzman. he said when hitters start to struggle, they expand their zone and then they get strikes on pitches they would normally just spit on and not even swing. so now nick looks up and he's 0- 2. cow bells are ringing. nick will hook a base hit to right field. hernandez had to hold up to make sure that ball got through. and then launching a bad throw, gabe gross, everybody will move up. the pitcher sonnanstine was very slow in backing up. so the nats will score making it an 8-3 game. that will be a throwing error on gabe gross, when all he had to do was hit the cut-off man. >> rob: all he had to do was get it in. he could have four hopped it in. defense is so important right here. gabe gross, wanting to show off his arm. he does just that. short hops the catcher hernandez, right through the five hole. now anderson can walk

it is bob, isn't it? yes, bob. okay okay. [ laughter ] but you don't have the d.h. over there all the time. >> bob: of course we don't. >> jim: so there's a difference. i don't want you to get too -- >> bob: you're not taking the air out of my balloon. >> jim: not with that red slighter on, i'm not. >> bob: no, sir! so josh bard is on base again. the thing i didn't mention about bard is on-base average in june, it is about .480 now with that walk and here is willie harris who walked his first time. one ball, one strike. rob talked about willy hitting a .238, but he has hit safely in five of his last six games at a .333 clip and he has hit a couple of home runs. you make a mistake and he can drive it to right field. 2-1. and this is a great ballpark for left-handed hitter whose can pull. >> jim: and even if you go the other way. >> bob: it is not a very deep gap as you mentioned earlier. 318 to the scoreboard. willy does turn on one, but he hooks it foul. >> jim: and it is a very slow infield that has gotten progressively faster. and that helps the hitters. the oriol

>> bob: seven. >> rob: very nice. >> bob: you don't always have to directly throw out the base runner to get an assist in the right field. that's why you make good relays, hit the cutoff man. that's as good as throwing somebody out at home plate. >> rob: that's what, 250-foot throw to the cutoff man gets an assist. >> bob: this is interesting. zimmerman down the line and that ball is foul. and that's an umpire, paul nort who only went about three or four feet down the line and planted himself and made the call. a lot of umpires don't like to be running down the line and bouncing when they make that call. >> rob: here is a look. i don't know. >> bob: it's hard. >> rob: i saw yellow before i saw white. >> bob: we see white. >> rob: that means it went in front of that foul pole. we should call them fair poles, anyway because if it's hits, that's a homerun and it's fair. i don't get that foul pole. >> bob: looks like that ball crossed it. >> rob: it did. it was a shadow. >> bob: good call by paul nauert. >> bob: and zimmerman. >> rob: that was not much of a breaking ball when you are thro

rob: snap dragon. >> bob: it was.ing ball to nick. johnson under .300 for the first time in a long, long while. >> rob: you guess that he tries to throw three or four in a row, and nick can recognize the rotation and crush it. you saw that one, that last breaking ball was hanging. >> bob: the last time i can find nick johnson under .300 was 22 at-bats into the season when he was batting .273. so nick johnson has been well over .300 since the first week of the season. that's how consistent he's been. he got jammed enough on that one. it will stay in the park for carroll. and ricky nolasco gets a 1-2-3 in the third. @@pp÷x fios guy! where ya headed? ah, just installed fios in the whole building. now everyone has the fastest upload speeds. and we're giving them a mini netbook. well, i'm sticking with cable. so's ted. (voice) no i'm not! he's just goofing. (voice) no i'm not! (sighing) ted has betrayed me. (announcer) switch to verizon fios tv, phone and internet today and get an ultra-sleek compaq mini netbook. call the

[cheering and applause] >> bob: 2-2. you have your first winning series, go to the world series and all the crazies come out. >> rob: i wouldn't call the guy crazy. >> bob: i would. that's a fastball. close but outside. 3-2. they've got a choice to make here. either pitch to dunn or have wheeler pitch to dukes. >> rob: this was below the knees and outside. nice job by the umpire on that call. >> bob: at 1st, base, zimmermann will be running. runners at the corners. 3-2 count, two outs in a tie game.  >> bob: adam dunn  pitch in the strike zone. he took three fastballs for strikes in that at bat. the nats have left six. that will finish shields' for the day. he'll give up 4 runs in 6 innings. adam dunn leaves a couple of men aboard. 7 inning stretch time. from tampa bay st. peters bay, god bless america.  (singing god bless america) ú ♪ ♪ who's watching? ♪ tell me who's watching. (muffled music) ♪ who's watching... (announcer) it's right here. it's easy. ♪ i always fe

millar tags the throw from chavez. >> bob: is it c chavez or chavez. >> rob: chavez. >> bob: raul chavez. >> rob: pretty good cannon for an arm, though. >> bob: yep. he was with the pirates for 42 games last year. they got him in that trade. actually, picked him up as a free agent in december. good defensive guys back there. and gonzalez hangs tough on a pitch up. we are looking at those umpires. telling them, don't punch me out. i'm coming to get you. >> by the way, i did a little bit of investigative report. i know what amateur umpires make. i spotted them in the president's club at about an hour before the game and how they are in the first row still is beyond us. >> rob: still baffles you. >> bob: yes. >> rob: they could be on the take. >> bob: i tossed and turned a few times last night thinking about this. that's a little pop-up to millar and he made the play. now, had he not made that play, dukes would have been in no man's land because he was only about 15 feet off the bag. but kevin millar grabbed it with a nice play for the first out. and that was a fair ball when he made that p

joe beimel. >> rob: joe b. >> bob: first save in two years yesterday. >> rob: joe b-eimel. >> bob: the bullpen set up if the nats can take the lead here. willingham seeing a fastball he thought he could lift. and the count's even 2-2. >> rob: last pitch after an elevated breaking ball. an elevated fastball. probably going to go way down and away. willingham lifting the ball short left center. that will not score the run. carl crawford on the run. gonzalez taking about five stems and came back. two outs. it will be up to willie harris. by the way, willie harris had dropped his bat in the on deck circle and he was running to home plate to serve as a possible traffic cop or base coach for alberto gonzalez. sew the rays will go to the left hander here. j. p. howell has been running up. a runner at third, two outs in the 8th in a tie game here at the trop. times the bills i used to. and they're getting in the way of things i'd like to do. with the money bar, i can move my money around instantly, so when there's more bills than usual, it's no problem. and i use the wish list to put any extra

. >> bob: what a dairchs day makes in new york. back-to-back starters virtually unaffected by the yankees misdeed. can they carry the mom yum into tonight. the blue jays stand in the way on masn.  >> bob: a happy bunch o nationals landed at 1:00 a.m. this morning from new york city. some momentum built in that finale of the road trip against the yankees. now the toronto blue jays come in. that is solid toronto club definitely contending for honors in the a. l. east. bob carpenter, rob dibble. good to be back home. that was nice wrapup to what we saw in new york. >> rob: yes, it was. it was a momentum builder and a way i gauge yourself against a very good team like the yankees. well-pitched baseball game, well defensively played, great defense and great pitching will when you -- win you championships. last night it was the great defense that kept this nationals team in the game and on the board and keep the yankees off the board with a 3- 0 shutout. willie harris, cristian guzman, anderson hernandez,

>> bob: he did. >> rob: ramirez, ryan zimmerman was fourth, fifth? >> bob: he was third.as second, uggla was third. that thing was a marlin-fest. and a 1-1 to nick johnson. >> rob: no, leo nunez was a rook any 07. >> bob: yeah, he wasn't one of them. maybe ross gload. i think he was with the whosm at that time -- the white sox at that time. hermida only played 23 games in 05, so he was a rookie. but he was hurt a lot. he's probably not one of them. >> rob: what about willingham? >> bob: nick johnson, high fly ball, left field. this ball slicing toward the corner, and over there to grab it, chris coghlan. boy, they've got some interesting plays in that part of this ballpark. josh willingham played 12 games in 04, 16 in 05, so he was one of those guys in 06. so 12 of the last 13 nats batters retired by ricky nolasco. here's zimmerman who took him way deep leading off the second. ryan takes his first pitch of the night. he'd only seen two pitches. homered on one, popped up on the other. >> rob: he gets a hard slider there. nolasco pulling another trick out of his magician's

another breaking ball. >> bob: hits it fair near the bag.derson hernandez knows he's got time with the catcher running. ♪ ♪ (tucci) more bars in more places. at&t. the best coverage worldwide. buy the lg xenon messaging phone for 99.99 after mail-in rebate and get one free after mail-in-rebate. >> bob: st. petersburg, florida, is a beautiful town here on tampa bay. not the greatest ballpark in baseball, but it is nice to have a roof when it's 90 and muggy every day here in june. anderson hernandez tries a little slug bunt. he dragged the bunt for a base hit first time up. one out here in the fifth. byron, some speculation today because of media report regarding the status of manny acta. >> byron: yes fox sports.com saying that jim rig he willman would become the manager and manny acta would be fired sometime in the future. i spoke with the team president before the game, edsel not comment on media reports. he is perplexed by this bad start and he's looking for all solutions to try to figure this out. jim riggleman said before the game

and that's how you start your future in washington. >> bob: . >> bob: raul chavez hit a ball hard, robbed by willie harris and then a flyball that ended the 7th. guzman for another one. you can follow the nats on your. it's phone, your ipod touch. it's called mlb.com. featureing play-by-play video highlights. visit nationals.com on your. it's phone or ipod touch to purchase. this is jo inglett, 30-year-old infielder from sacramento, played at the university of nevada reno. he is 4-for-22 in a part-time role, 1-for-6 as a pinch hitter but he is already in the game as a right fielder. right at the letters. mcdougal, 98. wow! he is getting loose these days. >> rob: he always had an amazing arm. that's pretty uncomfortable. 97 inside. >> rob: you and i look at that differently. i done find that as uncomfortable. i look that as setting up the next pitch. >> bob: that means you are the pitcher and i am the hitter. i'm out of here. i these guys are professional. >> bob: overpowerred him. three ground balls. let's see if the nats can get one with dunn.  . >> johnny:  hi, ever

bob? >> bob: i did see reporters talking to john about his feelings today. of course, his rent just doubled. >> rob: i'm really going to miss my roommate. now i have to play the whole rate, the whole apartment rent. >> bob: i can't remember what debbi said last week who the sloppier one of the two was? wil told me last night he thought he hit it out, but it was to the very end of the scoreboard out there in left center. >> rob: he told me he was going to the gym at 11:00. he was going to the gym -- he was very disappointed. >> bob: when he hit that ball, that was a tie game. that was the top of the eighth. he was the leadoff guy. elijah dukes. now elijah dukes running -- running has been an adventure this year. two steals in nine attempts. several of those are pickoffs when you are picked off first, that does count as caught stealing. baker, 10-53 this year. and that's another by product of a young pitching staff. >> rob: in elijah's case, too, he's work on stuff. he was an excellent base steal her in his day when i played against him. you have to separate t

probably day-to-day, bob. >> bob: and then tavarez came up. i would love to see adam dunn swing at anything that's close in this at-bat. he does not need our advice but adam did strike out on a borderline pitch in the 9th when we would rather see him hacking. it was 3-2 delivery and he could have been the potential winning run at first. he gets under that one. it's going to stay in the park. second out. elijah dukes had the ford drive of the game that put the nats up. >> rob: cristian guzman, elijah dukes and nick johnson with the doubles. elijah thrown out trying to go to third. ryan zimmerman and adam dunn 0- for-10 tonight with four strikeouts, three of them looking. it's opinion an odd night for the 3-4 guys. dukes pulls off a breaking ball, hits it right off the end of his bat. fair ball. picked by scott role en and a good throw and a good stretch. we are going into the 12th inning.  scott rolen has been doin for years. 7 gold gloves worth. inning number 12 coming up. it's on. - it's on. - oh, it's on, all ri

>> bob: no. >> jim p.: my shirt? >> bob: i love your shirt. >> jim p.: you guys really look good tonight. >> bob: thank you. >> jim p.: you've got a long sleeve shirt on, rob, and bob's got the shortsleeve. >> bob: i've got less ink. >> jim p.: that's true. >> rob: i don't want to scare the people at home, so they do a shot of us, i pull the sleeves down. i look like you two characters. >> bob: bounced out to short first time. he lines it but it's right at willingham. and the orioles are gone in the fourth. @ (man) some days my 8:15 bus is just a bus, but other days, like today, it's my office. the boss just emailed me and wants the new proposal asap. no worries though, my smartphone, it's from at&t. i'm on the nation's fastest 3g network. so that proposal? delivered. (announcer) the nation's fastest 3g network. another reason why twice as many smartphone users have chosen at&t. get the blackberry bold for $199.99 after mail-in rebate. only from at&t.  >> bob: tonight's beltway series

>> bob: no, i found itmyself. i don't have the stats, so don't ask me. [ laughter ] that's a good slider just off the plate. 2-2. wait something adam lind and then alex rios here right off the end of the bat. guzman there. oops. guzman's ninth error of the year. nationals second of the night. 63rd of the year in ballgame number 65. we really don't want the ball club to come home from a good finish of a road trip and play like that. >> rob: well, he had a little too much time. we talked about this with ryan zimmerman waiting, waiting. you should be charging the ball. you wait with an open glove and it drops right in front of you. >> bob: tavarez deserves better. he pitched 1 1/3 inning. he should have retired five batters in a row. nats deeper into their bullpen now with ron villone.  >> bob: well, the momentu shifted just a bit. we'll see what ron villone can do about it. a adam lind up and a runner aboard. nobody out in the eighth. lind is 0-3. ron villone, a scoreless third of an inning in new yor

bob? >> bob: thank you, debbi taylor. manny very involved in the d.c. community.he has a heart for kids. he has a heart for those less fortunate. and right now the job number one is to get out of this game without having your bullpen totally destroyed for the weekend. jesus colome will be the fourth washington pitcher. he'll take over here, bottom seventh. >> jim: the good thing about being on the road and down by 10 lune runs that you know that they here not going to bat the ninth inning. again -- well, i mean, you're not going to have to save an inning there. >> rob: you're counting us out already? >> jim: i'm just saying it is leaning that way as albert gonzales comes in to play third base and ryan zimmerman gets the rest of the night off. >> bob: he needs a blow every now. ryan plays just about every inning in every game for the nats. robert andino leads off, bottom seven against yes sus colome. >> rob: sometimes it is easier to come back off of a blow-out loss instead of maybe a 2-1 bottom of the ninth loss. >> jim: i know you were a reliever, but when i lost

>> rob: jeff kent. >> bob: let's hope he's not so grumpy. >> rob: so true. >> bob: but jeff sure couldy. he just didn't know how to have fun. >> rob: you know what he said? he said i want to leave this game with no friends at all insuring the game. so, i mean, yeah, i think he pretty much succeeded at that. but he was a hall of fame player. >> bob: oh, yeah. he brought back rbi numbers as a second baseman that rogers hornsby had put up back in the 20s. and the 30s. that's how good he was driving in runs. it's not a position you associate with rbi's. there have been a few. joe morgan and ryne sandberg, but over the years not that many. right-field line, brett carroll with the long run. and right at the bullpen barrier for the second out. willie harris still looking for contact. >> rob: 377 home runs, 1518 rbi's, lifetime .290 hitter, .356 on-base percentage over 17 years. won mvp back in 2000. he was special. eight times drove in over 100 runs. >> bob: and those were the numbers, the rbi numbers that evoked comparisons to the great raja as they called him, rogers hornsby. willie harris,

that's like rebuilding a ferrari. >> bob: 2-2 to willie who hacks one into the bullpen. >> bob: i think the '62 mets were summarized by one thing. their most valuable player was ricky ashden. they gave him a boat. it sank. >> rob: how would you like to be a pittsburgh pirates man. about 25 years ago when i played against them, they were one of the toughest teams. now nate mac lot goes to the braves. >> bob: i would be mad about that. willie harris made an out but he battled for about seven or eight pitches. now, garza is battling in the 100-pitch territory and he has not even pitched 6 innings yet. here is josh bard who is 1-for- 2. 110 pitches, 65 strikes. of course, in this league, you don't have to hit for the pitcher so it's strictly by what's happening on the mound that you determine whether or not a pitcher stays in the ballgame. manny commented on that this afternoon, first time on the road in an american league ballpark this year. he said the thing about it, you can be a little more relaxed when you manage. you have one less thing to worry about and that's what spot in the batti

. >> bob: this will be his last inning. pitcher spot due up first in the 8th. >> rob: you don't think two strikeouts warrant another at- bat? >> bob: no, sir. if he had been at-bat, it would be 3-11 them. b. j. ryan is in the bullpen. he was the only guy who didn't -tch for roo last night. scutaro turns it 4-63. and scutaro really made gonzalez get down. he came charging across that bag. two outs, bases empty. beautiful night in our nation's capital. the nats are trying to win their 20th game and their fourth in a row, and as rob said, trying to get out of their teenage years. that's interesting how you said that. >> rob: let's join the rest of major league in the 20s. >> bob: bases empty, two out. wil nieves. detwiler is on deck. manny might let him start the 8th. he has only thrown 93 pitches. >> rob: once again, i talked about the pitch count and what the rangers are doing and the way it used to be and he relayed this wisdom on it. when he used to warm up hall of famer steve carltop, every time he started a game, 120 pi

this helped the nationals off early in the ballgame. >> bob: rays win it 5-4 with bob carpenter, rob dibble, it's on to new york. tuesday night on masn hd. city tuned for the latest news on the nats. stay tuned now, nats extra coming up now from johnny and ray. so long from just a while. >>> the tampa bay rays have their second series sweep of the season today. they knock off the nationals friday, saturday and to. johnny holliday and ray knight with you. once again the nats couldn't hold the lead. interesting, unusual play. the ball hits the bag at 3rd, goes to left field, tampa scores a run. anything that can happen to this ball club, we haven't seen this, this year. >> i didn't think our catchers in bullpen might disrupt a play. we'll go to the final moment it has game change there had. villone on the pitch. 8th, tie game. pena doubles to deep center field as he drives the ball out there. aybar pinch hitting, hits the bag, willy is all over it. you don't see that happen. i can remember in my career only a couple hitting the bag. most of them hit right on the corner. run scores. jus

. >> bob: upton was late for it. the count is 1-2. these teams have met once in interleague play since the expos became the nationals. the nats took 2 of 3 against the rays at stadium three years ago. that's a defensive swing. and here is an interesting little piece of trivia for you. tampa, across the bay, was th spring training home of the washington nationals way back from 1920 to9 feat world series championship team of92. so this area knows a litt about washington history. that's in the bird, 2-2. >> rob: i know this area quite well. this is where i had about four spring trainings, three at the major league level. >> bob: i kn you just love plan city i. it's plan city, strawberry capital of the world. but tampa, now, the winter home of thdyork yankees. >> bob: used to play at al lopez field, didn't you? >> rob: al lopez field and played the florida state league. extended through spring training, group 5 here. >> bob: stammen does not want to walk the leadoff man after getting three gift runs. and he gets an out. >> rob: he walked

. >> bob: by the way, we're heading for yankees stadium. they're having a little fun now. 5th inning, yankees 15-0. >> rob: that's not fun for the mets. >> bob: guess who the starter was? santana. he's not liking that. >> bob: johnson stays. two outs. 3:00 on a sunday afternoon. where else would you rather be at the ball park or here with us on masn. good crowd at tropicana field in st. petersburg. dukes 2-2 with a pair of doubles and two runs scored stepping in a place where he first played and not far from where he grew up. >> rob: elijah has nailed two shots off today. >> bob: evidently the problems elijah was having with the fans in left field last night, some of what they were saying was getting personal and family related. elijah didn't like it. fans have been harassing opposing ballplayers for 100 years, but there's a point where it goes too far. >> bob: he's done damage today. that's the best way to shut them down. swing and a miss, 2-1. in on dukes' hands. shields started this inning with 59 pitches. he's nearing 80. [cheering and

that's why it is out there. >> bob: 1-1 to dukes. they have been giving him a steady diet of breaking stuff. the bat flew right past the pitcher's head. that was chuck and duck for brad bergesen. he gets the ground ball to brian roberts and a one, two, three top of the sixth. the orioles lead 3-1. this was dangerous. >> welcome back to the yard everybody. today, dave trembley told the media it is highly unlikely that koji u har aye will make his scheduled start on sunday against the nationals. cocky returned home today with the team. he met with team doctors, and although the reports were good, but the swelling and the inflammation in his elbow seemed to have subsided a bit, it seem that is the orioles are not prepared to put him back out on the mound. andy macphail is going to talk to the team doctors again to decide what the next step will be. it is widely believed that david hernandez will be recalled from triple-a nor fork to get the start. >> bob: 12 starts for uehara. and that ball bangs off the mound and a base hit for nol

very nice pitch. >> bob: here is marco scutaro 0- 5 tonight. four grounders and a line drive to the second baseman. >> rob: don't think about it. diswrowft it. bring it to the hitter. like you said, flashes of brilliance. he's gone 2-0. >> rob: he has two quick outs. >> bob: good hitter next in aaron hill. these two good hitters tonight, scutaro and hill, 1-10. >> rob: the toughest thing i found of a reliever is calming your mind down. your mind starts to rush which makes your body rush and you can see that a little bit with jesus. got the two outs. mechanics got just a little bit quick almost like a golfer that swings too hard or too quick on the bat swing. now his mechanics are off. i always found taking a deep breath blowing it out right before i start my windup or delivery from the stretch would help. get your sign, blow it out, now you bring it. >> bob: right in there, 3-2. >> rob: i would have pitchers that would say muscle memory, muscle memory. it means repeat. try to remember how that last pitch felt to you and do it again. pretty simp

so they have a guideline. >> bob: huff on the move.ow right field for elijah dukes, lannan pulling the string on a 3-2 pitch and he's through six. so are the nationals. ♪ ♪ i always feel like somebody's watching me. ♪ (announcer) it's right here, it's easy... ♪ always feel like mebody's watching me. ♪ ...it's the money you could be saving with geico. ♪ who's watching? ♪ i always feel like (announcer) it's right here, it's easy... ♪ somebody's watching me. ...it's the money you could be saving with geico.  >> rob: here's our miller coors freeze frame. you can see matt wieters throw out anderson hernandez. the pitch is up, he has to slide out to the right-handed batter's box. then in the fifth inning, the pitch is a little lower, same result though. perfect throw to second base. tagged a little off by ty wigginton in the fifth. i think we've shown today that matt wieters is doing an exceptional job getting away from the left-handed hitter, getting out and throwing the ball to second base. >> bob: top of the 7th. willie harris

heck of an athlete. >> bob: johnson at 3rd.nats have a chance to get one of the runs back they just gave up. first time joe maddon has played all infielders in today. they're moving longoria two steps closer towards the base runner. >> rob: maybe they're thinking adam dunn might bunt like carlos pena. i don't think so. >> bob: adam dunn 1-2 today, 2- 7 with an rbi this weekend with two walks. a great chance for rbi 46. [cheering and applause] strike out total on the rise. at 66 right now. that ties for the 3rd in the league.

>> bob: marco scutaro. he has been one of the better hitters in the american league, one of the better onbase guys. >> rob: once again. i just think that nick johnson came from the yankees, they teach it in that organization pressure on the pitcher when the fire stands there and just keeps taking, taking and taking. >> bob: but it's been a while since the oakland athletics has been in the playoffs. i guess they have not been in there since derek jeter made that miracle play in the colyseum and they are 8 game out of first place. all this money ball stuff, you have to ask, is it working? evidently not. >> rob: the onbase percentage is key. you need some talent, pitchers, bullpen. now, they have not had a lot of dave stewards running through there, mike welshs and mike moore and hall of famer dennis eckersley. they have honeycutt, pitching cope for the dodgers, their pitching staff is amazing. >> bob: 2-2. got him. >> rob: nice. >> bob: it looks like when tavarez makes that turn away from the hitter, if there

and it will continue to be a one run game.   >> bob: bob carpenter back withob dibble, jim palmer. now, when the nats were going well at new york and against toronto, these were the kind of games they were winning because their starters were able to get deep into the game. >> rob: this is where john lannan has been at his best. he can get the double play and he can pitch his way out. that's pitching to me. you're able to work it out and keep your team in a game. this is a tight ballgame. it's probably going to go over to the bullpen. that's where we've been having a little bit of a problem. >> jim p.: he got wieters to get the double play. i tell you, i've already learned, i've only seen adam dunn play on two sundays, he has 8 rbi's and two home runs. i'm not pitching to him the rest of the afternoon. he's been that good against the orioles. boim matt wieters, bottom of the fifth. john lannan, after a few struggles early has a very economical pitch count. he's right at about 14 pitches per inning threw his first four. and usually when john pitches like this, g

[cheering and applause] >> bob: there it is. dining in air condition comfort 400 something feet away. can you eat for three hours? >> rob: can i? i think i can. >> bob: i'm not sure what i would do. that's a walk. nick johnson going to 2nd base. that's called by the 1st 1st base income. shields has his back to him. he picked up this quick. he made a move while he was looking at 1st base. >> bob: first time he's done that this year. [cheering and applause] >> rob: shields has given up 10 home runs in 88 innings but only three here at the tropicana. he's very stingy when it comes to pitching at home. >> bob: it's early in the ballgame but does johnson going to 2nd maybe alter a bit how shields goes after adam dunn or if he goes after him. >> rob: if he goes after him, it will be a lot of changeups. no, i don't think being on 2nd will alter his game plan. there's another one. if adam tries to pull that ground ball to 2nd baseman and goes the other way, he'll get an rbi. nice curveball. >> bob: adam dunn now. he is fooled on that. d

. >> bob:  evan rock longoria front of him.nny acta says the best way to handle this for stammen and for josh bard, keep b. j. upton off base. b. j. hitting only .2212. he came in as a .277 career hitter. rob will have more on craig stammen who is mamaking art. his last uteing was not very od on sunday, was it? ro no. >> bob: b. j. upton who only has an on-base average of .307. byron kerr handing me a note and we'll knock on wood for this one. rays9-22 when the rays have scored first butve not had an at-bat yet. >> rob: and they do have the top offense inthe american league. >> bob: they have scored more runs than the nats have given up. that's a lot. >> rob: you came back on fire. >> bob: you know,

one of the reasons. >> bob: big spot for reimold. last time up he was batting with a man at first and two outs. and he bounced into a fielder's choice. tying run at first base here for the o's in the fifth. >> rob: first pitch was a get me over slider that he missed. so he threw the get me over slider at 1-0. >> bob: and a high fly ball to left, willingham does not see it. he has no idea and the ball leaves the ballpark anyway. >> jim p.: it appeared that he had a home run swing. that's one thing he doesn't get cheated. this kid, again, i haven't seen too many kids with under 100 at- bats make the kind of adjustments he's able to make. looks like a change-up. a perfect pitch to hit. >> rob: yeah, he threw three pitches the same speed right there. reimold makes the adjustment and just crushes that up into the very tough sky, but that was home run anyway. when came down. >> jim p.: this is a very short swing. looked like he had a home run swing. >> rob: i thought it was a home run. >> bob: maybe 345 or 350 where that ball went out. abo

bob carpenter, rob dibble.s the weather warms up, it's not the hitters, it's the pitchers and we found out lately you can pitch well to win ball games and, rob, in the last 23 1/3 innings by the nats starters, they have only given up four earned runs. >> rob: and they are starting to do their job and that's what they are being paid to do, throw strikes, get ahead of people and throw strikes. martis started this off at yankee stadium. he deserved a little bit better fate that they got. obviously, they should have won that game. john la man then, best start of his career, best start of the year, and a lot of yankee scouts said maybe the best start against the yankees this year. and then nats didn't want to stop that. nice shaving cream pie to boot in his first live interview. jordan zimmerman last night was very special, 23 first-pitch strikes, was dominant. deserved a better fate but the umpire didn't give a lot of calls. we would agree that, later in the game, his strike zone loosened up and now ross detwiler,

only at chili's. >> bob: we're back here a tropicana field.jason isringhausen just did something, was physically injured. anderson hernandez has had a fantastic night. first at-bat, actually that was the second at-bat. this is the first at-bat. he's going to bunt for a base hit right here. no chance with that speed. just when you think he's going to play some small ball on you, he's going to jack one off the left center field wall for a double. anderson hernandez having a great night at the plate. >> bob: we like that kid a lot. he's an intriguing player. great speed. my only criticism of him defensively is that on routine plays he probably needs to charge the ball a little more. that will come with experience. he's quick on the double play, good quick hands. here's the veteran lance cormier. he'll let home plate umpire know when he's ready. one out for the rays to win this series and put themselves in position for a sweep tomorrow. >> rob: isringhausen who was hurt before we went to commercial, had elbow problems in the past. i know a lot of

bob carpenter, rob dibble, debbi terrell. our nationals version of our masn crew reunited here after a couple of our guys had the weekend off. we were working with the baltimore crew. great to have them back. here's cody ross with one out in the bottom of the 7th. the orioles came in here last week and were swept by the marlins. so our wise guy stage manager/stats man paul newman indicated to me that the marlins are 9-0 on masn this year. time to do something about that. >> rob: time to break that streak. i remember the yankees were 23- 0 allowing three runs or less to their opponent. >> bob: and the nats got them twice, didn't they? of all people, they said. my lasting impression of that series will be walking out of the ballpark thursday night and a security guy came up to me and said, if we miss the playoffs by one game, we will remember the washington nationals. >> rob: the mets a few years ago really remember the nats. took five out of six the last two weeks of the season. they missed the playoffs. >> bob: he pulls the s

bob carpenter, rob dibble. receipts talk -- let's talk about who is leaving with troubled layers in this organization. it's lastings milledge and joel hanrahan to the pirates. >> rob: well, lastings milledge has been demoted to the minor leagues out right now with a broken finger. joel hanrahan has a ton of upside. throws in the mid-90s, upper 90s. he's getting in trouble with off-speed stuff. they were sent over to pittsburgh. you know, we get nyjer morgan in return also sean burnett a- very good reliever. we got speed. can fly on the base pads. he's got i think 18 stolen bases so -- so far this year. more importantly on the defensive side t-makes our outfield a little better. in the bullpen, burnett has a lot of appearances and been very successful at the major league level. so, we gave up a couple guys that maybe don't fit into our future. here the future is now with nyjer morgan and sean burnett. >> bob: morgan 18 steals, number five in the national league, sean burnett, six saves, in the bullpen kind of an

goop i didn't know you ate blue berries. >> bob: healthy. >> rob: we all eat blue berries. >> bob: submarinendez is there for the force out. markakis. the orioles get a run on a couple of hits, and we'll head to 2 second. the bat of the beltways. battle of the o's. ic, so be careful when you go out. ♪ from the degree men absolute protection line... comes new degree men v12 special edition. protection for the ride of your life. >> bob: tonight's contestan ray, he has a chance to win $90 scratch-off tickets from the maryland lottery for every home run hit. enter by logging on to masn sports.com. here is adam dunn. bergesen retired the side in order in the first. >> rob: may 24 against the orioles is what adam dunn did a huge home run. >> jim: do i see a tear because game yea was really struggle -- struggling. it was game that brad bergesen had an early lead and dunn got them back in the lead with the first home run and then launched the home run with, what, a slider in the middle of the plate and he hit it about 450 to center. >> bob: 2-1 inside, ball three. >> rob: and of adam dunn, it wa

bob. >> bob: i'll go by bob now. ross detwiler. brian roberts leads off.out on strikes the first time. i'm not sure i have ever seen brian roberts called out on strikes against the nats. he usually wears out washington pitching. he is a doubles machine and coming in he has hit safely in six of his last seven. detwiler gets one in there, 1- 2. >> jim: the unusual thing, and i ran the numbers, not in the last week o, brian roberts, great two-strike hitter. he was hitting under .200. >> rob: with two strikes? >> jim: and the league average is .185. it gives you an idea how difficult it is to cover all quadrants of the plate. i think what it is, he'll go up there. sometimes he'll take a first pitch. the next time he'll be on it for a double. he has more doubles than anyone in baseball. mike young i think is, what, about -- michael young of the rangers, is about 21 behind him since 2004. i think he just knows what he wants to hit and then he struggles, like everybody else, when he gets to two strikes. >> bob: 2-2. a changeup away and he couldn't get to it. ross

bob, rob and debbi and our masn crew here on masn 2. johnny and ray are straight ahead with "nats xtra." but a very important out to get here in the 8th inning. and it's taking a while. bases loaded.   >> bob: third base, ramirez doubled, all of this after two outs. cantu walked intentionally after the count went to 2-0. and then uggla who doesn't walk much, the bases are loaded with two outs for cody ross and he's 0 for 3. cody ross has three grand slams this year. so does hanley ramirez. who has hit two in the last week and a half. >> rob: sometimes you don't have to tell everything. >> bob: but if tavarez doesn't throw any strikes, a bases loaded walk will be a dagger as well. >> rob: wil nieves goes out for a little chitchat. manny acta will go out and have a little chitchat. what's going on. one of the biggest outs of the game right here, julian. >> bob: rain starting to fall again.   >> bob: this guy's almost unstoppable when a count gets to this point. >>

>> bob: i'm going to be leaving in a moment, jim.ou can talk about me after i'm gone. >> rob: when jim hunter was here we were able to score runs. >> bob: this has not been lost on jim and i. we've talked about this. he called adam dunn's six rbi's in washington and i called the orioles eight run inning here last night. something strange is going on. >> rob: the battle of the beltway play-by-play. >> jim p.: we're good. you guys are struggling. >> bob: have a great evening. i'll see you tomorrow.   >> jim h.: it's time to bring you up to speed with the at&t rapid rewind. >> jim p.: the orals are not looking very good. they bring in mat albers, with the bases loaded. belliard, can't get a handle on it, but does get the force play. then right here, a really good pitch right there to austin kearns for the orioles to turn the double play. >> jim h.: at&t, the nation's fastest 3-g network. >> jim p.: ryan zimmerman tried to deliver a home run on that swing right there. johnson better down in the strike zone.