Reaction To Potomac Nationals Vs Frederick Keys Game

Last night I went to the Potomac Nationals game at their home stadium in Woodbridge, VA as they took on the Frederick Keys. A few weeks ago I had made the trip up to Frederick to watch the P-Nats win in extra innings so I was hoping to see another Nats victory this go around. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case as the Keys won the game 2 to 0 and limited the P-Nats to just one hit.

There was some good news, however, as Terrence Engles pitched 8 2/3 innings for the P-Nats which is the longest any of their pitchers have gone this season (in other words, they haven’t had any complete games). Although he did give up 8 hits, Engles was able to get out of some tough situations and was able to make sure that his team had a chance to win. After all, he only gave up two runs -- both of which were scored in the third inning. If his team had given him a decent offensive game he would have walked away with the victory to go along with his solid performance.

There were also a fair number of scouts at this game, many of whom were there to see the Frederick Keys’ starting pitcher - Nate Nery. I talked with one on the condition that I not reveal which organization he worked for and was told that Nery was someone who is viewed to have a bright future which is likely to include time in the majors. He also mentioned that some of the folks at the game last night were there to see how he was doing with Frederick because the left handed pitcher had recently been moved up from the Orioles’ Low-A affiliate in Delmarva. When you consider that the only hit Nery gave up during his appearance was a grounder that the second baseman simply wasn’t able to get to in time, it’s safe to say that he deserved to be getting some attention from the scouts. That being said, I still think it’s going to be at least two more seasons before we see Nery in the majors.

This was the first of a four game series which runs through Sunday and I’m planning to make it out to at least one more of the games – though I will also be going downtown for at least two of the games between the Washington Nationals and the Atlanta Braves.