I was lucky enough to go to the Wednesday night game, and I am not sure I’ve ever attended a Nats game quite like that. Not only did the DC offense shine, Livan Hernandez pitched a simply incredible game. Mark Zuckerman has an article on how historically good it was for Livo. Suffice it to say that it was a complete game 3-hit shutout, the rest is just details I suppose.
You might be able to tell, if my cellphone had a telescoping lens, better focus, and a more skilled user, that picture on the left is the big righty still going strong in the 9th. In fact, at only 105 pitches on the night, I wouldn’t be surprised if he went to throw long toss after the game. I was thinking of going out to The Bullpen bar after the game and see if he was trying to hit 88 on the radar gun. Livan had a great game, but he wasn’t all there was to last night.
The offense also looked good – it’s hard not to when you score 10 runs. Mike Morse just continues to crush all comers, and thanks to 2 HR and a double last night, he’s now batting .312/.354/.561. That OPS ranks him 6th in NL – that puts him behind only Matt Kemp, Lance Berkman, Prince Fielder, Joey Votto and Ryan Braun. Pretty good company. Thanks to Morse’s dominating night, lost in the discussing just a bit may be Danny Espinosa. Putting aside another great defensive night, with at least one stellar grab, he hit another home run. His numbers may not impress you that much, but his .759 OPS tops all rookies in the NL other than Juan Miranda, a 28 year old first baseman. I think he’s got a great shot at rookie of the year, although a couple of pitchers (Gee and Collmenter come to mind) might take it away from him. But among hitters, I think he’d be the leader, especially if he can lift that average a bit. And maybe he is gonna do that. For the last month, since his season low AVG (.193) and OPS (.651) on May 15, he has hit .260/.333/.538.
What About the Food?
All of this is very important, but for those that like to attend games, another important thing is the game atmosphere itself. 
I ended up trying the Shake Shack, and I have to say, it was quite good. There was a long line, pictured here on the right, but it wasn’t as bad as some I’ve seen (like in the first few months of the stadium’s opening). The burger was very very good, if you’re in to that sort of thing. You know, delicious food. I think, outside of when I’ve been able to sit in a suite, it was the best food I’ve ever had at a stadium. A possible exception to the pierogies at PNC Park. Either way, it was a very good burger. I also was able to taste the garlic fries at Box Frites – and they were very garlicy, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing, because they were also quite tasty. I spoke to a few people who got food at the Taqueria and I definitely got mostly positive reactions. One person said that tacos were great, another just said they were ok. One woman sitting near me raved about the corn with the mayo and peppers on it. She said it was quite spicey, but very good. I’m hoping to try some Blue Smoke next time I’m there, if the Shake Shack doesn’t pull me in again.
You can’t tell all the details, thanks to this blurry photo, but you can tell the Nats are DOMINATING
