And I Thought That The Only Thing That Stunk Came Out Of D.C. , Happened Up On Capitol Hill And Within Both Houses of Congress ?

Can things get much worse for the Washington Nationals at this present moment in time ? The team took it upon themselves to fire their manager Manny Acta . Within the NL East at present, the team sits firmly afoot at the bottom of the division . With little or no hope in sight of them turning things around.

Manny Acta who was fired by the Washington Nationals as the team's manager. The team posted a 26-61 record this season the worst in the majors. In his stead the team has appointed Jim Riggleman as its interim coach. picture appears courtesy of ap/photo/ John Raoux ..........

With a 26-61 record it’s hard to see where the team can go from here. They’re mired in complete banality both on and off the field of play. And many of their personnel moves have come into question , in some form or another. And to make matters worse despite playing inside a brand new ballpark befitting a major league franchise. The stadium is barely filled to capacity for the team’s home games. Which’d suggest that the fans in D.C. and the surrounding area have little or no interest in the team whatsoever.

Jordan Zimmerman of the Washington Nationals pitches in the fourth inning of the team's loss to the Houston Astros 5-0. The game was played in Houston , Texas. picture appears courtesy of ap/photo/ Pat Sullivan ...............

But then again with football season just around the corner. Perhaps they’re pinning their hopes on the Washington Redskins and how they might fare ? In the sport’s pecking order in around the D.C. area I’d dare say that the Nationals are indeed somewhere beneath that of the Redskins , Washington Capitals and perhaps Congress’ softball team ? But then again I’ve never seen Congress’ softball team play. However I do hear that they tend to play like a bunch of softies when it comes to trying to be competitive. Something I feel that not even the Nationals are capable of doing at present.

Cristian Guzman reacts to called strike against the Astros . picture appears courtesy of ap/photo/ Pat Sullivan ................

The malaise of this team has been frightening and the very fact that they expect the public to watch the drivel that they supposedly placed out there as a brand and product . It has to be said that is an insult to the game and the very fans whom they expect to consume it all. It somewhat reminds me of the Kevin Costner movie “Field of Dreams” and the scripted dialogue therein ….. “if we build it they will come” . Well the fact of the matter is the fans came and they most definitely did not like what they had seen . And with attendance figures for the team’s home games steadily on the decline as well as their on their on the field performances. One can well understand the reason why things have now taken a turn for the worse.

Josh Willingham scores a run during the first inning of the game played against the Houston Astros on Sunday. The run was drove in his Nationals' teammate Adam Dunn. Also seen in the picture is the Astros' catcher Humberto Quintero. picture appears courtesy of ap/photo/ Pat Sullivan .................

In Acta’s stead , the position of manager will now be filled by Jim Riggleman , who’ll be given the interim manager’s tag until the end of the regular season . That’s merely placing a noose around his neck without tightening it. Anything that Riggleman can proffer up to the team will be merely his baseball experience and very little else at this juncture. As a bench coach and a subordinate of Acta . Whatever he in-fact brought to the table did little to change the fortune of the team as a whole. And this can be borne out by the sheer ineptitude as their performances and record indicates.

And when one looks at the team’s roster there’s very little there that one can find to be inspirational. Save for the experience of season veterans such as Adam Dunn , Cristian Guzman , Ryan Zimmerman, John Lannan and Jordan Zimmerman . There’s very little to feel encouraged about on this team. The team’s continued struggles and the lack of real leadership from within the clubhouse , much less from the coaches themselves. It has merely exacerbated things and prolonged the pain for the long suffering fans of the Washington Nationals.

And it has not only been the club’s hierarchy that has done the fans a disservice but also Major League Baseball as well. With their complete lack of attention to detail. They were of the belief that the game could survive within the nation’s capitol. Little did they think that the club’s owners would put out on the field of play such a putrid product to begin with. Thereby doing the game and the fans a great disservice.

Riggleman in the foreground is seen here prior to an inter-league game played against the Toronto Blue Jays. Riggleman was today named the interim manager of the Washington Nationals after Acta's firing by GM Mike Rizzo. picture appears courtesy of ap/photo/ Charles Dharapak ..............................

One can contend that in dire economic times that teams will struggle to remain competitive. But there was little to suggest to begin with, the Nationals wanted to be viewed as such a team. They merely felt that being within the midst of the nation’s capitol would be enough to entice the fans to come out and watch the team play. And the team’s play as such has been marginally above that of a mediocre girls’ softball team. The strange thing is I have my doubts that the Nationals could actually beat a mediocre girls’ baseball team . Such has been their woes around the diamond.

Manny Acta seen here leaving the dugout after the team's 2-1 victory of the Toronto Blue Jays in an inter-league game this season. Alongside Acta is then bench-coach Jim Riggleman. Who has since been promoted to interim manager of the team after Acta's firing. picture appears courtesy of ap/photo/ Manuel Bale Cenata .............................

The Nationals have struggled to play as a team . And consistency has never been one of their virtues as a team. They’re coming off a one game losing streak but having lost 7 of their last 10 games . And possessing the worst record in baseball , being well out of contention even within their own division. One can only conclude the sooner the season is over for the team. The better off things will be for the club as a whole. Perhaps then they can regroup and take a long look as to the missteps made from within.

Nationals' owner Theodore H 'Ted' Lerner . The billionaire businessman and entrepreneur is trying to steer a path of financial restraint whilst trying to make the team team competitive on the field of play. Clearly the standards are not being met in terms of success and competitiveness for that matter. picture appears courtesy of ap/photo/ Shaun Waldren ...............

Occasionally there has been a spark of competitiveness shown by the team. But far too often it has been but for a brief moment. Defensively the team has had its struggles with its pitching. And the roster there will no doubt be purged, come the end of the season. But then that doesn’t leave out the fact that offensively, there too the team has had to rely on Adam Dunn for his prowess. But there’s been very little support offered up by his teammates in that particular endeavor .

Nationals' GM Mike Rizzo (left) and Team President Stan Kasten (right) seen here at the team's headquarters in Wasington D.C. picture appears courtesy of afp/photo/ Mike Collyer ..........................

And with the firing of Acta we now have one of the Nationals’ players in Ryan Zimmerman expressing his concerns as to the firing. Albeit that the player , himself hasn’t seen fit to look inwardly at himself and that of his teammates. Much of his conversation with the press in St Louis on the eve of the All-Star game is filled with a great deal of rhetoric.

mlb.com: Article written by Ian Brown of mlb.com

Zimmerman: Acta took fall for poor first half

All-Star third baseman reacts to manager’s dismissal

St Louis- Because of the news cycle being what it is, Nationals’ third baseman Ryan Zimmerman spent the first 13 minutes of his All-Star media session Monday afternoon talking about his team’s managerial shakeup.

The news first filtered out late Sunday night that Manny Acta had been dismissed as manager of the Nationals. Jim Riggleman will take over as the interim.

As the Nationals’ only All-Star representative , Zimmerman’s thought on the switch carried weight.

“We’re a lot better team than we’ve done this year, and unfortunately Manny had to take the fall for that”, said Zimmerman. ” I think he did a lot of things in Washington that will help us become a better team , and when it does happen, he’ll be responsible for a lot of it. It’s tough . Any time something like this happens , it’s tough to pinpoint what went wrong where. It’s always hard.”

Whether or not it was Acta’s fault , Zimmerman, a young leader for the Nationals said the culture of the team needs to change. Washington has a 26-61 record at the All-Star break, the worst in the Majors.

“I think there needs to be accountability and some responsibility taken”, said Zimmerman. “We have the built-in excuse of being young, but I don’t think that we’re really that young anymore. I think a lot of our starting pitchers have enough innings , and they have enough experience to get past point where they’re not young anymore.”

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Nationals' 3rd baseman Ryan Zimmerman . The player is his team's lone representative at the All-Star game in St Louis Missouri. picture appears courtesy of latimes.com/sports/photo/ Hector Rodriguez .........

So if the Nationals are to turn things around . Then the duty will be placed squarely upon the shoulders of its executives and that of its management staff. Owner Ted Lerner and his executive management staff in the guise of Team President Stan Kasten and GM assistant Mike Rizzo will have a great deal of work to do , come the end of the regular season. Theirs is a task that won’t be easily solved , nor will it be completely dealt with in a manner amicable to all. But at this juncture it’s best to abate a malignant tumor rather than have it further metastasize into something far more rampant.

And as of now the fans of the Washington Nationals can only ponder what the future may well now hold for the franchise. Clearly for them the suffering has continued for far too long. And much of the blame for that rests with club’s executive and the forlorn coaching staff. But just as much blame can also be apportioned upon the players. They too bear a certain amount of responsibility as to the team’s malaise.

If nothing else once the resumption of the season begins after the All-Star break. We ought to see once and for all whether or not this team can acquit itself and start to turn things around. If it’s more of the same , then answer will be a resounding …no . However should there deemed to be an improvement then we could surmise that they’re heading in the right direction. But as alluded to before much of that will be predicated upon the resolve and mindset of the club as a whole.

Ah Those Pesky Mets Much Like Their AL Neighbor They’d Rather Talk About The Past , Not The Present Or The Future

As a die-hard Marlins’ fan I once had a debate with a contributor within the Foxsports.com website as to the merits of the New York Mets and my Florida Marlins . The individual whose identity I won’t make public was of the opinion that the Mets were a far better team than the Marlins. And if anything they were by far the best team in the entire NL East. Suffice to say that’s about what I’d expect from someone who probably was either on prescriptive medication. Or who basically is still reliving the days of the Mets’ last World Series triumph , much less their last appearance in the World Series. If memory serves me correctly that was in a much vaulted ‘subway series’ against the New York Yankees.

Manny Ramirez crosses homeplate having hit a home run in the Dodgers' 5-4 loss to the New York Mets in a game played at Citi Field in Flushing, New York. Mets' catcher Brian Schneider looks on. picture appears courtesy of getty images/ Jim McIsaac ..............................

The Mets as a team this season have underperformed. And once again we’ll hear the usual cacaphone of excuses as to the reasons why they’ve not played well. And the fact that injuries have played its part in the team’s poor performances on the field. Well these Mets are a team unlike any other who like other clubs in the majors have to meet and face adversity head on. It’s not how about the excuses you make but how you deal with the adversity that shows one’s resolve as a team. And that’s what you’ll tend to hear from even the most profound Mets’ fan more often than not.

Daniel Murphy of the Mets breaks his bat in the fifth inning with an infield single against the Los Angeles Dodgers. picture appears courtesy of getty images/ Jim McIsaac.....

With a record of 40-43 , 1 1/2 games under .500 and the season not yet having reached its midpoint. It has got to be said that even with the struggles and the resources at their beck and call. This is a team that seems to have lost sight of a goal. Ladened with a plethora of stars almost at every conceivable position on their roster . This is a team lacking in leadership but even worse , lacking in heart.

Summarily the woes of this team could be written off if they were anyone else. But we are talking about the New York Mets Their’s is a legacy built up around heroic deeds , a profound sense of history of the feats achieved from a bygone age. Whilst it’s valid to look back into the past as a way of guiding you towards the future. More often than it’s used by the Mets’ fans as a crux and a crutch for what ails them most.

Over their last ten games the team is a woeful 3-7 over that streak. And with both the Philadelphia Phillies , Florida Marlins and the Atlanta Braves seemingly having hit a rich vein of form . The Mets are now looking up at the triumvirate in the standings. With only the Washington Nationals as the division’s cellar dweller beneath them at this juncture.

David Wright of the Mets scores a run as he comes to home plate in the fifth inning of the game played against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Citi Field in Flushing , New York. picture appears courtesy of getty images/ Jim McIsaac .................

With the All Star break beckoning this may well give the team enough time to recuperate and lick many of its self inflicted wounds. For the team’s general manager Omar Minaya and that of their coach Jerry Manuel at the helm of the club under the auspices of owner Fred Wilpon and his family. One has to say that the club has ill served its fans a great deal ! With the club now playing inside the lavishly palatial Citi Field in Flushing , New York. And no expense being apparently spared when it comes to the assembly of this highly paid team . I’m really wondering how anyone in their right mind can believe that this team is really that much better than a team , wherein its payroll when compared to that of the Mets’ is minuscule to say the very least. Furthermore. as evidenced by the Marlins’ productivity on the field and their success when measured against that of the Mets. The assumption of this particular Mets’ fan is way off base ! .

Mets’ closer Francisco “K Rod” Rodriguez points to the skies in celelbration of the team’s 5-4 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers at Citi Field in Flushing , New York. picture appears courtesy of getty images/ Jim McIsaac …….

On paper he may well have had a valid point. But teams aren’t judged by how they look on paper. It’s what they do around the diamond that really counts at the end of the day. And this season the struggles of the Mets on the field of play has manifested itself in such a way that even the fans aren’t turning out in the numbers one would imagine for the games played at Citi Field. In-fact attendance at the Mets’ home venue are down over 200,000 in comparison at the same stage to last year. Economic woes or not there are some teams that’ll continue to have their struggles. And then there are those who just create even more for themselves by way of their lack of judgement managerially. Notwithstanding , the poor play of the players on the field . And by all accounts it has been this also which has now got to be leading to certain questions being asked in numerous circles as to the current plight of the New York Mets.

Citi Field in all of its grandeur and splendor . A vast edifice in which the Mets' fans can celebrate the team's triumphs and losses. picture appears courtesy of getty images/ Jim McIsaac ..................

At this juncture should the team fail to make the playoffs after the acquisitions of Johan Santana, J J Putz, Francisco Rodriguez as well as an aging veteran Gary Sheffield. It certainly would not bode well as to the fortunes of the of ball club. Not when you also consider with a multi-million dollar payroll the dividends returned have been less than satisfactory. And for players such as Carlos Beltran , David Wright , Jose Reyes and Carlos Delgado All of whom are highly paid stars on this roster. They if anything will have to take a look at themselves in the mirror and ask themselves . “Do they really like what it is that they see in return as a reflection” ? Chances are the answer may not well be to the fans’ liking. But then again the fans of the Mets at this juncture can ask …….. ” who ought we to blame ” ?