any body catch barry ask waxman about tejada during the post hearing press conference. way to go barry!!

post THAT video

Both McNamee AND Clemens came out of that hearing looking like sleazeballs, IMO, and by extension, the whole of baseball.

Does this mean I'll be asking for a refund for my 2008 partial-season plan? Nope.

So I guess that makes me a hypocrite, or something...

If Bonds or Tedaja does time so should Clemens.

Hey Juan-John,

... it doesn't make you anything more than a decent human being. Here are the first words from Kipling's "If". Your continuation to baseball after seeing today's hearing is along the same line.

If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you
But make allowance for their doubting too,
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or being lied about, don't deal in lies,
Or being hated, don't give way to hating,
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise

..... and so on ...

Come on Friday;

Go Nats!!

So, how about them Nats?

just two more days ...

just two more days ...

just two more days ...

THUD!

I think the door just closed on the Mitchell Report. I suspect nothing further will come of this.

I could be wrong. There could be further investigations, indictments and prosecutions. There could be an overhaul of baseball's testing programs.

But my sense is that the prosecutors will decide they have bigger fish to fry and that Clemens' perfect contrapasso is not a perjury conviction but rather something that should be imposed by the baseball gods.

Soon, pitchers and catchers will report, Spring (Training) will be in the air and the players, the public and the powers that be will be happy to move on to another subject.

And now for something completely different....

.... what we need now is a nice feature article on Austin Kearns. A nice guy, hard worker, salt of the earth type story extolling the virtues of playing the game the right way.

How about a feature article on "The Biggest Loser" in which Ray King battles with Dimitri Young for the title (the real reason that Livon did not sign with the Nats is he knew he could not win this particular competition).

Follow that up with an article on how Ross Detwiller spent his off-season.

Can I get an amen?

NatBisquit, you must be getting the Post confused with the Kansas City Star or Minneapolis Star-Tribune or something. Surely you know by now that the Post can't waste its space on such trivialities, they've got to save the space for the important stuff like where Jim Zorn ate lunch today. You know, the real "news".
-----
And now for something completely different....

.... what we need now is a nice feature article on Austin Kearns. A nice guy, hard worker, salt of the earth type story extolling the virtues of playing the game the right way.

How about a feature article on "The Biggest Loser" in which Ray King battles with Dimitri Young for the title (the real reason that Livon did not sign with the Nats is he knew he could not win this particular competition).

Follow that up with an article on how Ross Detwiller spent his off-season.

Can I get an amen?

Posted by: NatBisquit | February 13, 2008 05:33 PM

"And now for something completely different...."

Nii! Nii!

(We must resume griping about the paper, obviously. Also known as the "dead shrubbery edition.")

NatBisquit, with all due respect to CIL: Amen.

(And with a tip o'the hat to Bob L. Head, could we maybe get to vote even?)

Please! This is supposed to be a happy occasion. Let's not bicker and argue over who injected who[m].

VIERA, Fla. -- Nationals first baseman Nick Johnson was seen in the Space Coast Stadium clubhouse Wednesday afternoon and said that he is ready to start playing exhibition games -- and for good reason. He missed all of the 2007 season because of a broken right leg, which he injured on Sept. 23, 2006, against the Mets at Shea Stadium.
Johnson, who said his right leg is 100 percent, has already has hit off the tee and took batting practice since arriving in Florida on Sunday.
"It felt good [to hit in the cage]," Johnson said. "I have a lot of work to do to get the swing where I want it. We are going to take it slow and keep working."
During Johnson's absence, Dmitri Young was the regular first baseman, hitting .320 with 13 home runs and 74 RBIs. Young ended up winning the National League Comeback Player of the Year Award.
Now, Young and Johnson find themselves competing for the starting job at first base. General manager Jim Bowden already announced that Young is the starter entering Spring Training, and Johnson said he understands why that is the case.
"He had a great year," Johnson said about Young. "He is a good dude. We are just going to play baseball and let everything play out."
Speaking hypothetically, Johnson, 29, indicated that if he were to lose the first-base job to Young, he would not accept being a bench player.
"I want to play every day," Johnson said.
Asked if he would prefer to be traded if he lost the first-base job to Young, Johnson hesitated, laughed and said, "Yeah, I don't want to sit on the bench. I want to play every day. I love to play baseball. That's not my decision."
The last time Johnson played was in '06, and he ended up having the best season of his career. He hit .290 with 23 home runs, 100 runs scored and a .428 on-base percentage.
Getting work in: Washington's projected starting rotation -- Shawn Hill, John Patterson, Jason Bergmann, John Lannan and Matt Chico -- is already in camp and working out.
Bergmann believes the rotation could be one of the best in baseball provided that every one stays healthy. Last year, Bergmann, Patterson and Hill missed significant time because of injuries.
"We have several key members coming back from injuries -- Patterson and Hill. Word has it that they are 100 percent and ready to go," Bergmann said. "If they can anchor the top of the rotation, I think we have a solid rotation."
Although he is listed as a member of the rotation, Bergmann, who was 6-6 with a 4.45 ERA last year, isn't taking anything for granted and feels he is fighting for a spot on the 25-man roster.
"There were games where I was healthy and I didn't pitch well. That's not all me. There are some very good hitters, too. I have to be better. I have to be more consistent," he said.
A new man: Reliever Ray King arrived in camp in the best shape of his life. He lost 23 pounds and hardly has a gut. King decided to stay away from junk food and sodas and start working out with son. He said instead of going to In-N-Out Burger, King ate salmon instead.
King decided to lose weight after watching some video tapes of himself dating back to 2003, when he was with the Braves. He felt that being overweight changed his mechanics prevented him from making better pitches.
"I had a reality check," King said. "I felt I had to better myself physically. I feel good. I look back and I say, 'What if.' You can't dwell on the past. The only thing you could try to do is change it and see what you can do about the future. The main goal was to try to drop these pounds and see if it could make a difference."
A Wagner sighting: Reliever Ryan Wagner, who missed most of the '07 season because of a tear in his right shoulder, is throwing off the mound and able to throw all of his pitches -- but he may not start the regular season on time. Wagner pointed out that the Nationals want him to continue strengthening his arm.
"[Playing in] Spring Training games is not looking too likely -- not necessarily because I wouldn't be ready, but because there is no reason to rush it," Wagner said. "You don't know how good I could feel. A month from now, even though I'm feeling great now, it could be outstanding -- if they want to throw me into some games. We'll see. We are going to play it by ear. They are going to do what is in my best interest."
After having surgery on June 5, Wagner went back to Texas and realized how much he missed the game of baseball.
"I watched the game every night. Man, it felt weird. It was almost like skipping school when you know you are supposed to be there," Wagner said. "It's awesome to be back."
Going to Tampa: Infielder Felipe Lopez and Bowden were in Tampa for Lopez's arbitration case on Wednesday. A ruling is not expected until the next day. Lopez is asking for $5.2 million, while the Nats have countered with a $4.9 million deal. Lopez is coming off his worst season as an everyday player, hitting .245 with nine home runs and 50 RBIs.
Stat of the day: Manager Manny Acta made a Major League record 588 pitching changes in 2007.
Did you know? The Nationals were 27-24 in one-run games last year.
Bill Ladson is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

... I'll follow Hendo into the voting booth and pull the lever for more player profiles, and even a feature on Space Coast stadium and how it makes or breaks any given player. Anything like that would be most welcome.

Stories will be coming soon. I am happily sitting with my Baseball America 2008 Prospect Handbook, which arrived today. I wish every one of our tope 30 to 40 guys a major league future, either with us, or the the teams we rob when trading them away.

I would love to go to the Potomac game on July 4, although I am sure that we will be pulled into a big shindig with our friends. I do intend to see more P-Nats games, though, and hope to meet some of you there.

... just back from OxBlue gazing at Nats Park. Does anyone know when the sod/turf will be laid? Boy oh boy, it'd be great to see it with the new green in place.

... and thank you 'Thank You Bill Ladson' for the story. I'll enjoy every word.

Natscan: It's already there, napping peacefully under its blankie... those white tarps are to keep the sod warmer over the winter...

LMAO! So Ladson is already in Viera writing stories about the Nats and interviewing and getting quotes from players. While the Post's Nats beat writer is up on the Hill covering a different beat. The Post's commitment to covering the home team shines through yet again. Classic.

The most hypocritical (albeit unnoticed) moment of the day was Rep. Dan Burton's world-class chutzpah in calling out Brian McNamee for his lies. This is the same "born again" Dan Burton who confessed publicly in 1998 to having had a child out of wedlock through an extra-marital affair 15 years earlier. He only revealed this on the eve of a Vanity Fare expose. Lying about (through denial) of your own child's existence dwarfs any lie McNamee ever told.

How's this for chutzpah: I was a sponsor of the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994, a law that deregulated the supplement industry.

Regardless of who is lying or not, you have to believe Andy's affidavit. He could have easily said I don't recall the conversation, but he went into pretty good detail about it. He made it specific that he spoke to Roger about it. I mean, how can Roger keep lying over & over? Even his own wife admitted using it, but "without Roger knowing". Oh brother!!

lol, that guy is a big jerk. I wanted to reach out and grab him through the TV.

I am assuming Brian kept lying about everything until he was forced to. I mean, he was probably doing Roger and those guys a favor by lying or acting ignorant. He probably thought it would go away.

When the feds want answers, they don't make it easy for you to get out of it.

Like Brian said, "it is what it is". Would it be fair to point fingers at Andy and Chuck, and not Roger?

"The most hypocritical (albeit unnoticed) moment of the day was Rep. Dan Burton's world-class chutzpah in calling out Brian McNamee for his lies. This is the same "born again" Dan Burton who confessed publicly in 1998 to having had a child out of wedlock through an extra-marital affair 15 years earlier. He only revealed this on the eve of a Vanity Fare expose. Lying about (through denial) of your own child's existence dwarfs any lie McNamee ever told."