Nats Enquirer

Davey Johnson: "I don’t give a rat’s ass what anybody else thinks."

So, that settles it -- the Washington Post's Adam Kilgore finally got Davey Johnson to address the second guessing, and the upshot is that there is no second guessing Davey Johnson. Sorry, Drew Storen. Davey Johnson isn't willing to consider that he maybe made a mistake or two there in Game 5. Edwin Jackson? Davey doesn't give a rat's ass what you think. Not intentionally walking Kozma with Motte on deck? Davey doesn't give a rat's ass what you think.

"Let me tell you something. Any manager in baseball, they will tell you, if you can get to your closer with a lead, you’ve done good. I don’t give a rat’s [butt] what anybody else thinks. If it’s a one-run lead, a two-run lead, you did it. ...One thing, in all the years I’ve been managing, if I think about all the options I have in every minute of that game, I never second-guess myself. Anytime you get to your set-up guy and your closer, you get a lead with your closer in there, you’re good to go."
(Davey Johnson, via Nationals Journal, 10/16/2012)

Way to take one for your closer, Davey! See you in 2013...

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Cards: "Gio looked like he didn't want to be out there...We smelled blood"

A must-read for Nats fans this morning: St. Louis Post-Dispatch Sports columnist Bernie Miklasz goes into painful detail about The Collapse, straight from the mouths of Cardinals players.

Most interestingly, an anonymous Cardinal is quoted as saying that Gio looked like he didn't want to be out there Friday night:

"Gio looked like he didn't want to be out there. The guy has a 6-0 lead, then 6-1, and he's panicking out there. We smelled blood."
(Some anonymous Cardinal, via StLToday.com, 10/15/2012)

See screen cap of Gio above, moments before he walked Allen Craig with the bases loaded in the fifth (via TBS/MLB.com). Here's more from Cardinals second baseman Skip Schumaker:

"A lot of guys had the bright-eyed, deer-in-the-headlights look. And I'm not going to mention names, but we saw them taking a couple of deep breaths between pitches, and they were up four or five runs. When we saw that, we started talking. We weren't taking any deep breaths. We were the ones trying to push. It felt like we had the momentum, which is crazy to say because we were behind. But it really felt that way."
(Skip Schumaker, via StLToday.com, 10/15/2012)

Go Giants.

(H/T Adam Vingan of NBCWashington.com, who posted about this yesterday.)

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Apparently Bryce Harper grabbing his crotch after striking out in the 9th in Game 5 was a big deal

So Bryce Harper struck out on three pitches for the second out in the 9th inning of NLDS Game 5 against Cardinals closer Jason Motte. (Note: We had to go back and watch the video on MLB.TV to verify this and get the screen caps above, because, honestly, we've blocked out nearly everything that happened in that 9th inning from the ol' memory bank. You could say a unicorn and grizzly bear attacked Teddy in the 9th and we wouldn't have had a clue if you were lying).

After Harper whiffed on that pitch up around his eyes, he stood for a beat, then grabbed his crotch before returning to the dugout. Apparently the Cardinals saw this gesture as an attempt to insult Motte; even St. Louis Post-Dispatch Sports columnist Bernie Miklasz took offense to it in a barf-bag piece in which he quoted Cardinals about the comeback (and even quoted an anonymous Cardinals player about how Gio looked like he didn't want to be out there Friday night):

Motte retired the Nationals in order in the bottom of the ninth. Jayson Werth flied out. The second hitter was the brash Nationals' rookie Bryce Harper. Motte struck him out, and Harper responded by grabbing his crotch in a gesture meant to insult Motte. The 'diss didn't work out the way Harper had intended. (That's a clown move, bro.) A few of the Cardinals that saw it hooted at Harper. After disposing of the immature Harper, Motte got Ryan Zimmerman on a pop up to Descalso, and the Cardinals sprinted from the dugout to begin a wild celebration. (via StLToday.com, 10/15/2012)

Brash. Immature. Oh, and Bernie got a clown reference in there. Good one.

Just for the record, we're totally OK with that gestture if it was intentional, but only if it was directed at [bleeping] Kozma.

(Screen caps via TBS/MLB.com)

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Here's Bryce Harper's dog Swag helping him unpack

Oh, hey, Bryce Harper Tweeted the photo above of his famous puppy "Swag" upon his return home to Vegas last night ("Swag helping me unpack!hah #beast.").

Maybe it's the angle of the photo, but Swag also appears to be depressed about the Nats, just like the rest of us.

Chin up, little doggie: here's the video of your owner's solo home run in Game 5 -- he joined Andruw Jones as the only teenager to homer in a postseason game:

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The wrong team is playing the Giants in NLCS Game 1...

Apparently the five stages of grief come in the following order: 1. Denial 2. Anger 3. Bargaining, 4. Depression. 5.  Acceptance.

On a personal note, we've been cycling through all five stages in no particular order since the final out of NLDS Game 5.

Up above, a screen cap (via FOX) of the first pitch of Game 1 of the 2012 NLCS. Madison Bumgarner pitching to Jon Jay. Wait, there's a problem here: Shouldn't that be Bumgarner pitching to Jayson Werth?

Quick, someone get on the phone with Bud Selig and the suits at MLB. Theres's been a terrible mistake! The wrong team is playing the Giants in Game 1 tonight?

Still can't believe it. Looks like we're back to the first stage all over again.

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Video: Drew Storen faces the media after Game 5

Gotta say: We had nothing but respect and admiration for Drew Storen before the Game 5 nightmare; but we might have even more respect and admiration for him now after watching him stand up and face a phalanx of reporters after the game. Stand up guy. Mike Wise of the Washington Post has a fairly painful-to-read account of Storen in the clubhouse after the game. Gut wrenching doesn't begin to do it justice.

Video here of Storen facing the media after the game:

How many days until pitchers and catchers report for Spring Training?

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Nats season ticket holders got an email from the Nats this morning for an exclusive World Series ticket presale

Adding salt to the gaping wound, Nationals season ticket holders received an email from the Nationals (sent by MLB) at 7:01 Saturday morning announcing an exclusive World Series Ticket Presale on Monday, October 15. Because there's nothing like waking up the morning after the soul-crushing elimination of your team from the postseason and receiving an offer to buy World Series tickets.

Update: According to DC Sports Bog, it was MLB Advanced Media, not the Nationals, who were responsible for, and apologized for, this "stunningly stupid" error.

How many days until pitchers and catchers report?

(Email via @Nati2de.)

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I don't believe what I just saw.

"I'm sorry. We'll make it up to 'em next year. It was a fun ride. Lot of character. Really enjoyed managing this year. You know, I've been on the other end of the stick where there's one out, and you live on, and we couldn't get it. We had the right people there, just got a little too cautious."
(Davey Johnson, 10/13/2012)

NLDS Game 5: Cardinals 9, Nationals 7. Gutted. One strike away in the 9th, and somehow the wrong team ended up popping champagne and spraying beer in a clubhouse at Nationals Park.

There's heartbreak, and then there's what happened tonight.

Amazing season. How many days until pitchers and catchers report?

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Video: Ryan Zimmerman's first inning home run

There it is above: Ryan Zimmerman's first inning home run in Game 5. Honestly, that thing probably would've caused the roof to blow off Nationals Park if The House that Anthony Williams Built had a dome on it. Video here, also. Think Zim's happy?

(Screen cap via TBS/TV)

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Where Bryce Harper's 3rd inning home run landed...

...Out there in right field, above the October Natitude sign, five or so rows up. But off the bat it looked like that thing might hit the Jumbotron. Bryce Harper's first postseason home run, folks. Video here.

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