Ian Desmond is one of my favorite Nationals players.

If I made that statement to my 2010-11 self, I would probably get laughter in return.  Back then,  I couldn’t imagine Desmond as a part of a winning Nats team.  I said all the time that he had to go.  REALLY had to go.

But the past two seasons he has been nothing short of great, catapulting into the upper echelon of Major League shortstops and winning the hearts of baseball fans in Washington.  After missing out in the final fan voting for the All-Star Game, he captured that change on Twitter, showing just how aware athletes can be of their relationship with fans.

Our fan-player relationship has come a long way over the last few years. I really appreciate you guys going all out for me. Thank You
— Ian Desmond (@IanDesmond20) July 11, 2013

He’s one of those guys you know every baseball fan would love if he were on their team.  He plays hard all the time, really cares about doing things the right way and does great things off the field.  His team photo for this season features not short of an epic mustache.  Oh and this week he shaved his goatee during the game.

So, 2010-11 Chris, I wish you had more foresight and could have been in on the Ian Desmond ground floor, but I’m glad we’re all where we are now.  It’s a far better place.

The world is changing.

For years, Major League Baseball players have been selecting the songs that play when they walk up to the plate.  They often reflect his personality or include a tongue-in-cheek nod to something about him, like Jayson Werth‘s choice of “Werewolves of London.”

On Friday though, I heard a song I was not ready to experience in that context.  The speakers at Nationals Park boomed Bryce Harper’s name, then music from Miley Cyrus.  Someone on Twitter pointed out that Harper used a Justin Bieber song earlier this season, so this shouldn’t be a shocking development.  And given that he’s also about a month older than Miley, it makes sense that he would have songs from a different generation of artists than say Adam LaRoche.

Still, it caught me off guard, which brings up something I think would be a genius move for a hitter.  Pitchers are so used to hearing certain songs that it becomes just like listening to a favorite radio station that has a certain playlist day after day.  But what if a batter dropped something truly off the wall and broke the pitcher’s concentration just a bit.  Wouldn’t that be an advantage?

Imagine you’re on the mound, you’re psyched up to throw to Harper, and all of a sudden this song starts blaring:

How could that not break your concentration?  If Harper picked it, he would know it was coming, and would have the focus edge.  Plus, since he’s someone who changes up his music all the time, the pitchers could never guess what he’s bringing next.

The first player to use the My Little Pony song as their walk-up music gets my eternal praise.  Unless of course they play for the Phillies.  I can’t support that.

A new baseball season starts today, and I enter the season with one hope — a World Series for my beloved Nationals — and one ambitious goal.

This arose from a discussion with my brother Pat at a game last year about celebrities and their engagement with fans.  Too much of the season was already gone to try it then, but with 2013 fresh, I’m giving it a shot.  I’m going to try to get all 23 members of my fantasy baseball team to sign a single baseball.

This baseball, to be exact:

I haven’t figured out all of the logistics of making this happen, but it will involve both contacting teams and engaging with players through social media.  My hope is to get a few of the more-likely-to-help guys first, and have that snowball to help convince the more reluctant.

As for the players, I naturally wanted guys I generally like.  So I drafted two teams to be safe, allowing myself to make two roster changes to each one.  After careful consideration, and consultation with another adviser, here’s my squad:

-Ryan Doumit C/OF Min
-Adam LaRoche 1B Was
-Howie Kendrick 2B LAA
-Ryan Zimmerman 3B Was
-Ian Desmond SS Was
-Bryce Harper OF Was
-Adam Jones OF Bal
-Michael Morse OF Sea
-Josh Willingham OF Min
-Nick Markakis OF Bal
-Wil Myers OF TB
-Jason Kubel OF Ari
-Jed Lowrie SS Oak
-Logan Morrison 1B/OF Mia
-Stephen Strasburg P Was
-David Price P TB
-Ross Detweiler P Was
-Sergio Romo P SF
-Tim Lincecum P SF
-CJ Wilson P LAA
-Tommy Milone P Oak
-Josh Becket P LAD
-Tommy Hanson P LAA

I feel pretty good about this group, both about the chances of this project being a success and also my team doing well in the fantasy league.  Naturally, I cannot make any changes as the year goes on, so I’m rolling with what I’ve got.

Of course, this being related to fantasy baseball, my team needs a cool name.  This one is called RutherfordMaysHayes:

The other squad, which I will be comparing at the end of the year, has an even better logo to go with the name GrumpyNat:

I will be posting regular updates here as the season goes on.  To make it simple, this link will bring everything from this project, with the latest post on top.  I’m also creating a separate blog specifically to track it, which I envision also including a little talk of how the team is performing.

Now go enjoy Opening Day!  I’ll be taking in the Nats’ opener at this wonderful spot:

I did everything right.  By that I mean, I did everything right as a quirky baseball fan. 

After seeing an epic walk-off win for the Nationals in Game 4 of the National League Division Series, I went back to Nats Park for the deciding fifth game.  I wore the same jeans, Zimmerman jersey, grey long-sleeve shirt, shoes and hat.  I ate at the same pizza place near our seats.  I held the giveaway #Natitude rally towel under my right arm, just as I had in Game 4.  When things went wrong, I moved it to the left arm.

But a game that began with the Nats clubbing a double, then a triple and a home run ended in heartache.  A game they led 6-0 at one point left the record crowd only with despair.  A game that had our star closer on the mound with a lead and two strikes and two outs — two times — finished with the dizzying sight of Cardinals runners scoring on base hits and the long-time face of the Washington franchise popping out to right field.

After the game, thousands of us waited in hopes that the Nationals would stumble back out onto the field so that for one last time we could show our appreciation for the season we had just witnessed.  Yes, they blew a big lead in the most important game that many of them had ever played or that any of us had ever seen.  But what they did since the end of last season brought us to a point we hadn’t experienced before.  It was something we did together, game after game, week after week, watching with cautious optimism, hoping we would be in that stadium in October instead of watching other parks on television.

I saw someone post on Facebook after the game questioning why Nats fans were saying they were proud instead of being mad at what just happened.  But as disappointing as those final moments were, this team gave everyone in attendance and a record number watching at home the chance to taste what playoff baseball is like.  And this wasn’t even supposed to be the year for that to happen.  The young talent was supposed to get better, have a winning season, but probably fall just short of qualifying for the postseason.  It was supposed to be the learning year that propelled them into real contenders in 2013 or 2014.  Being a strike away from the National League Championship Series was playing with house money.

I know it’s a marketing slogan (which I first saw as part of a focus group) but #Natitude really became something.  This group of players embraced one another and a style of playing the game that you can’t help but enjoy watching.  Just about all of them are already under contract for next year, and all of the key players are signed for several more after that.  With our ticket package renewed for the 2013 season, we’re certainly ready to bring our #Natitude for another year, too.  And if the Nats want to schedule another doubleheader on my birthday, I’d be okay with that.

I’ve been to a lot of baseball games in my life, but tonight’s contest was by far the best I’ve ever experienced.  There was an electric crowd, stellar pitching by both teams and an ending fit for Grimm.

With his team on the brink of elimination in their first playoff series, Nationals lefty Ross Detweiler methodically worked through the Cardinals lineup, allowing just three hits and one unearned run in six innings of work.  That’s Detweiler, the Nats’ fifth starter during the regular season, and the guy who never would have started tonight if Stephen Strasburg were on the roster.

After Detweiler it was time for the bullpen, which late in the year was shaky at times, but brought its absolute best when it counted.  Jordan Zimmerman, Tyler Clippard and Drew Storen pitched to 11 batters in the final three innings with the score tied 1-1.  The result?  Eight strikeouts, no hits and the loudest crowd reactions I had ever heard.

Only Jayson Werth could make us louder.  The right fielder who struggled last year after signing a mammoth contract in Washington spent all of 2012 showing why we stuck with him.  He’s a professional, he always tries and brings a presence to his team that helped define the group they have become.

His hallmark is being a patient hitter, making pitchers work to get him out.  Cardinals reliever Lance Lynn threw Werth 13 pitches to lead off the bottom of the ninth.  Werth watched as those outside the strike zone went by and relentlessly fouled off pitches that dared cross the plate.  In the stands, we stood and cheered, belting out chants of “Let’s Go Nats” and clapping until our hands hurt.

Werth deposited Lynn’s final pitch into the bullpen in left-center field, flipped his bat toward the dugout and pointed at his teammates as they streamed to home plate.  He rounded first base with his right hand in the air, red fireworks bursting above all our heads.  After rounding third, Werth flipped his helmet high in the air — a solid 30 feet — and leapt onto the plate as his teammates mobbed the scraggly looking hero of the night.

The Nats will play game five Friday night in an atmosphere I can only imagine for now, but will get to absorb when it happens.  That’s a far cry from 2005 when the team played in a makeshift stadium in front of fans — including myself — who were happy to see any baseball, even though our team was never a threat to anyone.

And no matter what happens tomorrow, I’ll always have the magical intensity of tonight.  That’s #Natitude.

[I encourage you to head to the Washington Post to check out these great pictures of Werth’s home run trot.]

The Washington Nationals will soon be debuting an awesome combination of bullpen cart and t-shirt cannon called T-Shirt-Tank.  Now, the team hasn’t actually announced any plans to do this, but recent events suggest it’s only a matter of time.

Two years ago, my brother and I spent a game talking about things we would do if we owned a team (albeit a minor league team).  I wrote about a few of those ideas, including the T-Shirt-Tank and a water slide.

Another proposal was to have “grab bag” promotion near the end of the season to get rid of any remaining giveaway items that weren’t claimed at earlier games.  These would be from the times we had t-shirts ready for the first 5,000 fans and only 4,971 showed up.

Guess what the Nats are doing this week?  That’s right, all season ticket holders have a coupon to stop by a conference room at the stadium where they have tables of these promo items for our choosing.  We scored Stephen Strasburg bobbleheads left over from the April 14 game:

Not quite sure how any of these were still around given that the other extra bobblehead choices were Adam Dunn and Nyjer Morgan — neither of which played for the Nats this season.

At a game a few weeks ago my brother and I were discussing the idea of someone creating a smartphone app people could use to order food in the stadium.  This was more of a thought for a rogue entrepreneur — not a stadium employee — who would take the orders, get food from the various concession stands and deliver it to the patrons in their seats.

What did the Nats launch a short time later?  Their very own app to do just that.

Since they listen to all of our ideas, the T-Shirt-Tank can’t be far behind.  If you have anything else you’d like to see, just let us know.

Now I know what it’s like to watch a baseball game like P. Diddy.  Or at least, what I imagine it’s like to watch a game like P. Diddy.

As “season ticket” holders for the Nats (I use quotes because we have a 21-game plan, not the full season) we have a bunch of perks, including rewards points.  Last night my brother and I redeemed all of our points for two seats in the amazingly posh club section behind home plate.

The view of the game was pretty amazing, as were the fresh baked cookies and buffet stations inside the club area itself.  Even the sky above our seats was picturesque.

But what really made me think this is where I would spend my time if I won the lottery was the moment in the middle of the game when a guy came wandering around our section handing out ice cream bars.  We don’t get that in our normal seats.  I’m also pretty sure the people in the nearby “normal” sections hated us.

The game itself was pretty awesome with six home runs by the Nats, who extended their division lead to 7.5 games.  Ryan Zimmerman even overcame the curse of me wearing his jersey to join the home run parade:

I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of seeing this sight: