Good to hear from the fans again...
It's good to hear from you all again, and I'm glad I can be answering some of your questions and have the chance to thank those of you who have taken the time to write in your kind words.
Keep the questions coming, and we're all looking forward to some good baseball here in NatsTown!
Donnie Parr: Keep up the great work, Manny. I'm a converted Cubs fan... I was one for 25 years, but I'm hooked on the Nats now and I'm not going anywhere. We have a solid line-up and I appreciate the tough job you have and the way you're handling it day in and day out. You guys are heading in the right direction. Great win last night over the Dodgers, by the way! GO NATS!
Manny Acta:Donnie Parr, Thanks for becoming a Nats fan... Welcome to NatsTown! We understand if you still have some feelings for the Cubs, but they are in the central division...so your support is appreciated.
jackson meyer: Why do you feel the need to replace Dunn late in the ballgames with the pitcher spot? It's been a couple times this year and a couple games have been lost because of it. Don't you feel that he should be in the whole game to get the most runs possible?
Manny Acta: Jackson Meyer, We take Dunn out of the game when we have the lead and his spot in the line-up is not coming up again. It is done to have a better defense to protect the lead. If Dunn's spot comes up again, after we have taken him out, it means that we have blown the lead. You can't leave him out there thinking that you are going to blow the lead. If we protect the lead, his turn to hit will never come back again. So the theory of scoring more runs if he stays the whole game is out the window since we always take him out when we have the lead and he is not due to hit for the next 2 innings, especially as a home team.
John: I love that we are the ones to end the Dodgers' streak! Especially the first game after Ramirez gets suspended. Keep it up Manny!
Manny Acta: John, It was a very nice win, especially since it was a very busy day at the park with Manny's news.
natsfan1a: Another nice win last night. How about that Austin Kearns-Jesus Flores combo?
Manny Acta: natsfan1a, What a nice play that was. Kearns showed very good instincts by throwing to the plate, and Flo made a good catch. It's tough to pick throws with the shape of the catcher's mitt.
BetsyC: Dear Manny, the 'Nats are playing some exciting, intelligent, FUN baseball lately! It's thrilling to see. Logan Kensing and Alex Cintron seem to be really struggling though. What can we even say about Ryan Zimmerman? Every game is a 150% effort. He's amazing. Josh Willingham has really turned it on lately, and it sure would be great to see him play more. How do you feel about the team's progress? What are you most happy with, and what would you like to see improved? Thank you. It sure has been a treat watching those Nationals these days!
Manny Acta: BetsyC, Zimmerman has been amazing. Willingham is heating up and that really helps our offense; plus he has put some pressure on the other outfielders to continue to perform well. It also gives me an opportunity to play them all and keep them fresh. I feel that we are getting closer to the team that I anticipated out of spring training. We still need improvement out of our bullpen, and we are going to keep trying to find the right mix.
Thanks for your comments and questions,
-MA
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Categories (click for archive)MASNblogs | Manny Acta |
2 questions, Manny:
1) Shouldn't it be time to give Daniel Cabrera his walking papers (pardon the pun)??? Isn't there ANYONE willing to step in the #5 pitching slot and shore up the back end of the rotation??
2) Any thought to making Ryan Zimmerman our captain?? Since we know he's gonna be here these next 5 years (and personally, I'd rather he NEVER leave!!!), shouldn't he have the responsibilities that go with leadership??
I agree with Gary on both questions.
Daniel Cabrera is pitches pretty decent for 4-5 innings minus his walking at least 1 batter/inning then something goes wrong in his pitching thought. He seems to change his pitching after those 5 innings and ends up walking too many batters. He needs to at least step down to the bullpen.
Ryan Zimmerman should become our captain, I mean look at his defense and his hitting this season (especially his hitting streak). Ryan should win the spot at 3rd base for the ALL STAR game in St.Louis. The only 3rd baseman in the NL he'll have to beat out is probably David Wright(Mets) but he's currently on a hitting slump and he's been even boo'ed in NY this season.