Stop moving Bryce Harper around in the lineup!! That's what The Big Hurt and Gabe Kapler say at least, check out the link somewhere below. The Washington Nationals beat the Miami Marlins in dramatic fashion on Wednesday night. 4:05 pm EDT today for Game 3 of 3 w/ the Fish.
ESPN's Home Run Tracker says the "true distance" that Bryce Harper's fourth inning three-run blast off Miami Marlins' lefty Brad Hand last night traveled was 416 ft into the upper deck in right field in Nationals Park. It landed 3-4 rows deep in the third deck and got Washington back into the game which they trailed 5-0 before Harper went yard for the first time this season in dramatic fashion. Harper's blast got the Nats back in the game. It was a thing of beauty for sure. Have another look why don't you:
More impressive, according to Nationals' skipper Matt Williams was Harper's line drive single to left in the at bat after his home run. With Ian Desmond on first after reaching on a swinging bunt that drove in the game's tying run, Harper took a first pitch slider from Marlins' lefty Dan Jennings to left field for an opposite field single, sending Desmond first-to-third™ before he scored the go-ahead run on Jose Lobaton's misplayed grounder back to the mound.
"I'm more impressed with the next at bat," Williams said of the single which followed Harper's first home run of the season. "Taking the ball the other way. He's going to hit homers, we know that, but his consistency with which he takes the ball the other way is key for him. So it was a good night for him."
Harper ended the night 2 for 4 with a run scored, two Ks and three RBIs.
Is it the kind of night that can turn things around for Harper? We'll see. The Nats' left fielder and his teammates play another one with the Fish in just a few hours.
Until then, it's links, bat flips, blasts and lineup suggestions via The Big Hurt. Links and lots of them, starting... RIGHT NOW!!!:
• THE BIG STORY!!!:
• NATS BEAT:
• "In a back-and-forth game, with leads lost and gained, it was Werth who struck the game’s defining blow." - "Jayson Werth, Bryce Harper launch Washington Nationals past Miami Marlins, 10-7" - James Wagner, The Washington Post
• "It took 62 tries, not until a June 9 doubleheader against the Twins, before the 2013 Nationals came from three runs down to win a ballgame." - "Bryce Harper, Jayson Werth launch home runs to lead Nationals comeback" - Mark Zuckerman, Nats Insider
• "Blown leads, multiple replay reviews, monstrous homers, more blown leads, plays at the plate, late-game strategy ... this game have enough in it for you?" - "Nationals Pastime: Williams meets with the media after wild 10-7 Nats win" - Dan Kolko, MASNSports.com
Per ESPN's Home Run Tracker, Bryce Harper's homer into the third deck had a "true distance" of 416 feet.
— Adam Kilgore (@AdamKilgoreWP) April 10, 2014
• "In the fourth inning, Harper battled left-hander Brad Hand for 10 pitches before he hit a three-run homer that landed in the upper deck." - "Harper snaps out of slump with big game" - Bill Ladson, nationals.com: News
• "Jayson Werth’s grand slam, in audio and video" - Dan Steinberg, Washington Post
• "Nationals reliever Craig Stammen, who kept the Marlins off the board for three and 1/3 innings, said it doesn't take too much to get Werth going..." - "Intentional walk to get to Jayson Werth backfires on Marlins" - Byron Kerr, MASNSports.com
• "Nationals third baseman Ryan Zimmerman was back where he belonged for Wednesday night’s game against the Miami Marlins..." - "Nats 3B Ryan Zimmerman back on the field vs. Marlins" - Brian McNally, Washington Times
ICYMI: last night, after the game, talking Nats baseball with @DaveNicholsDSP, @federalbaseball & Doghouse from FBB: http://t.co/QnVSCKdAIl
— Tom Bridge (@tbridge) April 10, 2014
• "The euphoria in the Nationals dugout late Wednesday night – 'unbelievable,' Bryce Harper said..." - "Craig Stammen and what makes comebacks happen" - Adam Kilgore, Washington Post
• "Where to begin? We’ll start with Jordan Zimmermann, who was downright awful in getting roughed up for five runs in only 1 2/3 innings..." - "Instant analysis: Nats 10, Marlins 7" - Mark Zuckerman, Nats Insider
• "Blown leads, multiple replay reviews, monstrous homers, more blown leads, plays at the plate, late-game strategy ... this game have enough in it for you?" - "Nationals Pastime: Williams meets with the media after wild 10-7 Nats win" - Dan Kolko, MASNSports.com
• ""Marlins manager Mike Redmond then decided to intentionally walk Anthony Rendon, which loaded the bases for Werth." - "Miami Marlins at Washington Nationals - April 9, 2014" - Bill Ladson, MLB.com WSH Recap
• Your Daily Message from the Dalai Lama on Twitter (@DalaiLama):
If tragedy strikes, don’t lose hope. Transform it into an opportunity to make things better.
— Dalai Lama (@DalaiLama) April 8, 2014
• NATIONAL(S) BEAT:
The #Nats lineup is on point tonight. Here's where @TheBigHurt_35 and I think Harper should hit on a regular basis: http://t.co/eTors8It7I
— gabe kapler (@gabekapler) April 10, 2014
• "Frank [Thomas] was frustrated by the fact that the Nats randomly place Harper into various positions in their lineup." - "Lineup optimization: Where should Washington bat Harper?" - Gabe Kapler, FOX Sports on MSN
• "After a hard-luck outing against the Braves, Stephen Strasburg is looking to rebound on Thursday afternoon." - "Miami Marlins at Washington Nationals - April 10, 2014" - Joe Frisaro, MLB.com Preview
• "Jayson Werth entered Washington's eighth game of the season with zero homers and a grand total of one RBI." - "'You play that long, you want to win': Werth's slam, Harper's shot lead Nats past Marlins 10-7" - Howard Fendrich/AP, Times Colonist
• "Hamilton's reaction is a whole lot stronger than Washington Nationals manager Matt Williams' measured, 'It's certainly a work in progress.'" - "Upon further review, instant replay a mixed bag" - Paul White, USA TODAY Sports
• "At one point, the Houston Astros, Toronto Blue Jays, or Washington Nationals were heading our way. A stadium site in Palm Beach Gardens was turned down." - "How many springs left for spring training?" - Jon Shainman, wptv.com
In today's Daily Puig, Bryce Harper crushes an upper-deck shot while Jayson Werth shows off his bat flip skills http://t.co/lOxLzW8MSt
— Marc Normandin (@Marc_Normandin) April 10, 2014
• "The umpires had a busy night making replay reviews in the Nationals' 10-7 win over the Marlins on Wednesday night." - "Umpires go to review three times in Nationals-Marlins game" - Joe Frisaro, nationals.com: News
• "The nation’s capital was most inhospitable for the Marlins a season ago." - "WASHINGTON: Miami Marlins squander five-run lead, lose to Washington Nationals" - Clark Spencer, MiamiHerald.com
• "The nation’s capital was most inhospitable for the Marlins a season ago." - "WASHINGTON: Miami Marlins squander five-run lead, lose to Washington Nationals" - Clark Spencer, MiamiHerald.com
• "Manager Mike Redmond said Turner sustained the injury, a right shoulder strain, while practicing with the team's other pitchers inside the batting cage..." - "WASHINGTON: Miami Marlins’ Jacob Turner out with shoulder injury; Brad Hand takes his place" - Clark Spencer, MiamiHerald.com
• "You're about to see a grand slam -- a grand slam at the expense of the Marlins and off the cudgel of Nationals warrior-poet Jayson Werth." - "VIDEO, GIF: The triumphant grand slam and bat-flip of Jayson Werth" - Dayn Perry, CBSSports.com
• "In the end, the worst pitching performance of the season and a sloppy defense was the Marlins’ undoing Wednesday night." - "Miami Marlins fall 10-7 to Washington Nationals, who get..." - Tom D'Angelo, www.palmbeachpost.com
• "But despite any and all concerns, it was inevitable that an extra-base hit was coming, and it came in a big way against Miami Marlins left-hander Brad Hand." - "Bryce Harper’s first home run in 2014 was an upper deck shot in Washington" - Mark Townsend, Big League Stew - Yahoo Sports
• "Losing an early 5-0 lead Wednesday night stung the Marlins." - "Miami Marlins lose two leads, series to Washington Nationals" - Juan C. Rodriguez, Sun Sentinel
• "Jayson Werth hit a go-ahead grand slam in the eighth inning off Carlos Marmol after Bryce Harper’s upper-deck..." - "Werth’s Grand Slam Lifts Nats Past Marlins" - CBS DC
• "Rendon is hot at the plate and providing the Nationals with an insurance policy that allows ailing Ryan Zimmerman to move to first base." - "Fantasy baseball stock rising: Anthony Rendon, Melky Cabrera, Michael Morse" - Dustin Hockensmith, PennLive.com
• NATS MINORS:
• Low-A Hagerstown: "The Hagerstown Suns (5-2) could not complete their first series sweep of the 2014 season as they fell to the Delmarva Shorebirds (3-4) on Wednesday night 5-3." - "Suns end homestand with 5-3 loss to Shorebirds" - Eli Pearlstein, Hagerstown Suns News
• High-A Potomac: "Lynchburg pounced on the P-Nats with two runs in the opening frame against eventual losing pitcher, Potomac RHP Brian Rauh (0-1)." - "Hillcats Eclipse Nationals 9-1 in One-Sided Affair" - Potomac Nationals News
• Double-A Harrisburg: "The Senators had their first lead in the third after a triple by Jason Martinson (3-for-4) and an RBI single by Destin Hood (2-for-4), but New Britain battled back to tie it..." - "Sluggish road trip ends with another loss for Harrisburg Senators" - Geoff Morrow, PennLive.com
• Triple-A Syracuse: "Left-hander Danny Rosenbaum tossed six-and-two-thirds innings of scoreless ball and center fielder Steven Souza, Jr. backed him with a home run and five RBIs." - "Rosenbaum, Souza power Chiefs past PawSox" - Syracuse Chiefs News
Ryan Mattheus needs just 10 pitches to shut the door for the Chiefs. Final. SYR 7, PAW 0. Souza finished 3-for-4, 5 RBI, HR for Chiefs
— Ben Meyers (@BenMeyers37) April 9, 2014
• "Double-A Harrisburg left-hander Sammy Solis is dealing with a back injury." - "Injury updates on Solis, Pleffner, Estevez and Ward" - Byron Kerr, MASNSports.com
• "Thursday’s News & Notes" - Luke Erickson, NationalsProspects.com
• "Jayson Werth's grand slam bat flip was magnificent" - Nats Enquirer
• "What a roller coaster ride of a baseball game between the Nationals and Marlins on Wednesday." - "Nats Top Marlins Behind Big Bats" - Joe Drugan, The Nats Blog
• "The Washington Nationals fell behind 5-0 after a stalwart starter got lit up. They clawed back to take the lead in the middle innings." - "Washington Nationals Game 8 Review: Werth’s slam in eighth wins crazy game with Marlins, 10-7" - Dave Nichols, District Sports Page
• NATSTOWN:
• "The Nats racing presidents did their part to speed things up during Wednesday night’s epic victory over the Miami Marlins..." - "Video: Teddy pulls ahead on Capital Bikeshare bicycle" - Presidents Race Fan, Let Teddy Win!
@NatsEnquirer You missed a monster of a GIF last night if you wanna use as well http://t.co/BRF7cCFK1x
— B Sheridan (@md_dc) April 10, 2014
• "Screech is a giant bald eagle in a Nats uniform. Unsurprisingly, his favorite band is The Eagles." - "The 35 official mascots of Major League Baseball teams" - Kevin Wells, Communities Digital News
• "At the home opener, when Nate McLouth came to bat we were stopped in our tracks by his walk-up music: "Kyrie" by 80′s band Mister Mister." - "Nationals 2014 Walk-on music review" - Todd Boss, Nationals Arm Race
• "Baseball is back and for the first time in my 23 years, I finally took in Opening Day live at a Major League ballpark." - "My First Opening Day and Nationals Park Through My Eyes" - Matt Shalbrack, Nationals 101
• "O RLY?" - Ouij, Natstradamus
• "Nats Save The Day From Going Full D.C. Sports" - Jamie Mottram, Mr. Irrelevant, a D.C. Sports Blog by the Brothers Mottram
• NL EAST UPDATES:
• Mets: "1962 — The New York Mets played their first game and lost 11-4 to the Cardinals in St. Louis." - "This Date In Baseball" - AP/NYTimes.com
• Phillies: "Roberto Hernandez allowed four runs (three earned) over five innings in last night’s start against the Brewers." - "Roberto Hernandez’s Bat-Missing Game Was on Point" - Bill Baer, Crashburn Alley
RECAP: @ErvinSantana_54 dazzles, throwing eight scoreless innings as #Braves top Mets, 4-3: http://t.co/V8ac5tte64 pic.twitter.com/DAYJV3GleJ
— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) April 10, 2014
• Braves: "Andrelton Simmons's defense is one of the is one of the very best things baseball has going for it right now." - "Andrelton Simmons Makes Impossible Throw Look Easy" - Tom Ley, Deadspin