Nats lose to Reds on June 6

The whole city is talking about Nationals pitcher Stephen Strasburg’s MLB debut tonight with anticipation rivaling, oh say, Barack Obama’s inauguration, or to put it in a Detroit context, Bob Lutz’s arrival at General Motors back in 2001 — when the hopes of a whole city, nation, or very large corporation seem to hinge on the abilities of one man.

I’m listening to the game right now on my iPhone, and he seems to be achieving success the President and Maximum Bob can only dream of. He just achieved his 12th K. Wait, make that 13. No, 14. Seriously. The Nats fans are screaming their heads off. I can hear them from here, a mile and a half away. Wait, no, that’s a helicopter. That was Strasburg’s last pitch tonight, and fortunately, the Nationals went on to beat the Pirates, 5-2.

We went to a Nats game Sunday, which, sadly did not feature any pitching phenoms. The Reds won, 5-4, featuring a blown save by Matt Capps, which was depressing to watch. Also, no Pudge, who is just back in the lineup tonight after an injury.

Observations about the Nationals:

• Love the Racing Presidents
• Love the electric violin made out of a baseball bat
• Love the half-smokes
• Love the easy access by Metro. It was crazy crowded trying to leave, though, so we walked home, 1.8 miles. We couldn’t do that in Detroit.
• Thank you for singing Take Me Out to the Ball Game at the 7th inning stretch.
• Hate the ticket prices. Our share in the Comerica season tickets in row 22 behind home plate have a face value of $39. The same tickets at Nationals Park cost $170! Maybe that’s why no one was sitting there.

So I’ll look forward to seeing another Strasburg game sometime this summer. I miss the Tigers hugely, but it would be great to see some good baseball when I can walk home from the game.