Commentary: Oh, the life of a Nationals fan

By Brian Reinhart     8/28/08 7:00pm

For years I have kept a deep secret about myself. Afraid of the reaction of my friends and family, scared of certain humiliation, I have concealed a forbidden passion in the closet. But it is time to finally confess my feelings to the public and to endure the shame and ridicule which I will surely face. Yes, I am a fan of the Washington Nationals.

It is, as always, a difficult time to be a Nationals fan. Our current team is the worst in baseball. We have lost almost forty more games than we have won, every regular member of our batting order has been injured this summer, and our star hitter, Elijah Dukes, is best known for texting death threats to his wife. The Nationals were swept by three teams in a row during July, and they have recently been swept again. But now, at last, there may be light at the end of the tunnel.

Until 2006 the brand-new Nats were owned by a consortium of all the other Major League Baseball teams, who, of course, had little interest in making the team competitive. The lineups were consistently awful, and the players had more nicknames than they had talent. Catcher Matt "Beer Truck" LeCroy, for example, allowed six stolen bases in one game, causing the team manager to burst into tears.

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Now with new ownership and better scouts, D.C.'s minor-league system is stocked with genuine talent, including at least a dozen pitchers who could someday make a major league rotation. Some of the youth movement, including 23-year-olds Ryan Zimmerman, Lastings Milledge and Emilio Bonifacio, are already on the big-league team. Bonifacio is probably the fastest player in the National League and once stole second base in an incredible 3.05 seconds.

The result of all this hard work is: the worst Washington team yet. This year's club is so bad that The Onion included "playing for the Nats" in a pie chart of ways Americans are "pissing away their summers." Our offense is one of the least productive in baseball history, and this year we have been shut out more than any other team in the MLB. Rookie starter John Lannan has a 3.95 ERA (better than CC Sabathia's), but due to the Nats' chronic inability to score runs, his win-loss record is a miserable 7-12.

Does this wasteland of defeat make me regret being a Nationals fan? No. I persist, partially for philosophical reasons, and partially because I am crazy.

Cheering on this team is always a hopeful enterprise. To be able to tolerate the Nats, you must be a dreamer, someone who can happily imagine what success the team's young talent will someday enjoy. You must learn almost monk-like patience, an ability to sit through all the bad times while expecting things will get better. Our mantra is "maybe next year," and it is upon this phrase that we pin our hopes.

Most importantly, fans of this team can truly appreciate the satisfaction of victory. Winning a game is a rare occurrence in D.C., so when it actually happens, the thrill we feel is that much more intense. A true Nats fan knows that victory is never easy, and that each triumph requires dedication and a heroic effort. If we are ever successful in the future, we will not, like the Yankees or Red Sox, complain about our wins, or single out players who could have done more. We will just be happy as hell to be there. When my Nationals win more games than they do now, I hope never to take victory for granted.

A win is a precious thing: That is the lesson of watching this D.C. club. Rice students are used to winning baseball games. I see this as an unfortunate philosophy, because it replaces the wonder of success with the burden of expectations. When your team is the Washington Nationals, you know to expect nothing and to cherish every positive moment, because they are so rare.

But someday soon, our young talent will come of age, and we will enjoy more success. Just you wait and see.

Maybe next year.

Brian Reinhart is a Wiess College sophomore.

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