AFL Update: Oct. 16, 2019
The Sagauros continue to roll in the AFL as they spun their third straight shutout, 3-0 against the Javelinas, for their sixth straight win.
Just two Nationals appeared in the game.
• Luis Garcia (pictured above) batted second started at shortstop but was hitless for second time in three games. In the field, he had three assists, including a the start of 6-4-3 DP.
• Nick Banks, the hero from Monday night, batted sixth and went 1-for-4 with a run scored. In right field, he handled both balls hit his way – a single and a flyball.
It’s off to Glendale tonight for a matchup between 1st and 3rd place. Peoria’s magic number is down to five.
Any word on what happened to Condra-Bogan? He’s been removed from the roster and replaced with Pearson McMahan. He also hasn’t pitched since October 9th (also the last time Raquet and Lee pitched, excluding the ASG).
It would be a big shame to lose JCB in addition to Reetz, as both have dominated the AFL. JCB’s ERA still sits at 0.00.
That’s very strange. McMahan? He didn’t even play above Sally League this year, did he?
McMahan is a strange one in general. He was drafted by the Rockies in 2017 as a JC pick in the 4th round, then the Rockies released him after an underwhelming 2018 in low A. You just don’t release 4th round picks after a bad 60 innings. I have to assume there was something disciplinary about it rather than solely performance related, but anyway, the Nats rightly jumped on the chance to sign him, and he had a stellar (albeit limited) 2019 season. The Nats moved him to the bullpen and he only joined Auburn in mid June, started well and got a promotion to Hagerstown in August, where he was dominant: 0.66 WHIP, 1.98 ERA and 12K:0BB.
Given he threw 68 innings last year, and only threw 29 this year, it makes sense to stretch him out a bit more. He’s also 23 years old, so he’s no spring chicken, despite lacking the experience of most other 23 year olds. Come to think of it, he’s actually a very similar comp to Condra-Bogan, who the Nats picked up late in the season under strange circumstances, then saw them rise quickly through the system.
We talked about this earlier in the year; McMahan was released for reasons other than performance on-field. Sometimes it takes a release to wake somebody up. He looks ticketed for High A in 2020.
Would be a major bummer if Condra-Bogan is hurt given his performance.
Luke,
Second thoughts about calling for the Nats to move on from Rizzo?
Nope. It’s one thing to win a World Series, it’s another to do it without mortgaging the future. Don’t believe me? Ask Dave Dombrowksi.
from a poster on the Athletic:
Nationals fans can thank Fresno, California for their good fortune. The SF Giants won 3 World Series when their AAA team was here. Then Fresno became the Astros’ AAA team. And the Astros then won the WS. Now Fresno is the AAA team of the Nats. And now the Nats will win the WS. You can thank Fresno!!
Pffft. I’m sure it was the lucky underwear.