Gratuitous Nats Posting

Yesterday afternoon was a miserable slog home through the Dee Cee sauna, but as some commenters here rightly suspected, it wasn't half so miserable as it could have been, given that a couple hours earlier the Nats had taken down the Phillies by a score of 2-1, thereby winning the latest series between them. (I saw a figure on the history of the match-up. This is something like the third out of the last 20 in which the Nats came out on top.)

The Nats had dominated the Phils 10-2 the previous evening, primarily with fantastic pitching and wide-awake bats. This game was much more of a defensive battle, with Laynce Nix making a stupendous diving catch in left field in the 6th to stop the Phils from busting the thing open. (You can see it on the highlights page over at the Nats' website.) Normally, we lose games like this to the Phils. But yesterday, the Nats gutted it out in the 100+ degree heat and hung on. Well done.

I mention all of this because these games represent what this team is capable of doing. We're no longer the hapless Natnals, bumbling and beclowning ourselves into triple-digit loss records. These guys are far more talented and far more aggressive than I've ever seen before. The frustration now is not that of waiting for a season of embarrassments to be over, but of waiting for everything to click into place finally and firmly. I think that clickage is no great way off. When it comes, there are going to be some seismic shifts in the NL East.

GO, NATS!!!

UPDATE: SB Nation has a good overview of the young heart of the team, which is the secret to the clickage I'm talking about, including 2nd Base Danny Espinosa, who positively blew me away with his hustle the first time I saw him play late last year and who looks to me like a young Michael Ironside. I should also mention that part of yesterday's victory involved Danny sending a laser shot from shallow right to Wilson Ramos at the plate, nailing the Phils' Mayberry dead to rights (also available at the Nats' highlight linkie).