MLB Mon, Jul 25, 2005
Nats skip: `We don`t have a chance`
Josh Hansen
Fed up with his team’s poor plate performance of late, Frank Robinson laid it all out on the table for bettors looking at tonight’s game against the Braves.
“If we go into Atlanta and hit the way we`re going, we don`t have a chance," the Washington Nationals’ manager said after his team lost for the fifth time in seven games Sunday.
“We have to start thinking about how we can get back to what we were doing and how we were doing it offensively."
What they were doing was playing tight, one-run ball games. Washington relies on its strong pitching and small-ball strategy to win games.
But the law of averages says it`s only a matter of time before your luck runs out. The Nationals are no different. Scoring 10 less runs than they`ve allowed may have helped Washington through the first part of the season, but it`s killing them so far in the second half.
"I think if you take a look at their roster, this is still the Montreal Expos from last year," says Covers Expert Bryan Leonard.
"To expect them to come out and do that again in the second half, i don`t think so, not after so many one run games."
Almost as if they had walked through a time warp at the All-Star break, the Nationals began sinking faster than a flyball at RFK. Everything from their runs per game, to batting average plummeted like a led zeppelin, leaving bettors wondering how many more times they could afford to back Washington.
While a number of factors from the displeasing hitting at RFK Stadium to the nagging injuries to Nick Johnson, Jose Guillen and Vinny Castilla can be blamed for Washington’s offensive woes, manager Frank Robinson feels too many players are swinging for the fences, as opposed to trying to put the ball in play.
"Something is missing here with this ballclub," said Robinson, whose team is averaging a mere 2.8 runs per game on .219 hitting since the break.
"Whatever it is, I`ve got to try to find out. This is not the same ballclub that played most of the first half here. And I don`t mean personnel wise, I`m talking about the way we`re going about our jobs and the results."
The results couldn’t have been worse for baseball’s feel good story of the year. The Nationals are no longer perched atop the NL East, but instead, sit tied with Tuesday night’s opponent, the Atlanta Braves.
Oddsmakers opened Washington as +155 underdogs, with a total of 7 1/2 runs.
Nats skip: `We don`t have a chance`
Josh Hansen
Fed up with his team’s poor plate performance of late, Frank Robinson laid it all out on the table for bettors looking at tonight’s game against the Braves.
“If we go into Atlanta and hit the way we`re going, we don`t have a chance," the Washington Nationals’ manager said after his team lost for the fifth time in seven games Sunday.
“We have to start thinking about how we can get back to what we were doing and how we were doing it offensively."
What they were doing was playing tight, one-run ball games. Washington relies on its strong pitching and small-ball strategy to win games.
But the law of averages says it`s only a matter of time before your luck runs out. The Nationals are no different. Scoring 10 less runs than they`ve allowed may have helped Washington through the first part of the season, but it`s killing them so far in the second half.
"I think if you take a look at their roster, this is still the Montreal Expos from last year," says Covers Expert Bryan Leonard.
"To expect them to come out and do that again in the second half, i don`t think so, not after so many one run games."
Almost as if they had walked through a time warp at the All-Star break, the Nationals began sinking faster than a flyball at RFK. Everything from their runs per game, to batting average plummeted like a led zeppelin, leaving bettors wondering how many more times they could afford to back Washington.
While a number of factors from the displeasing hitting at RFK Stadium to the nagging injuries to Nick Johnson, Jose Guillen and Vinny Castilla can be blamed for Washington’s offensive woes, manager Frank Robinson feels too many players are swinging for the fences, as opposed to trying to put the ball in play.
"Something is missing here with this ballclub," said Robinson, whose team is averaging a mere 2.8 runs per game on .219 hitting since the break.
"Whatever it is, I`ve got to try to find out. This is not the same ballclub that played most of the first half here. And I don`t mean personnel wise, I`m talking about the way we`re going about our jobs and the results."
The results couldn’t have been worse for baseball’s feel good story of the year. The Nationals are no longer perched atop the NL East, but instead, sit tied with Tuesday night’s opponent, the Atlanta Braves.
Oddsmakers opened Washington as +155 underdogs, with a total of 7 1/2 runs.
