Top 1: Mike Stanton struck out swinging against Stephen Strasburg

Top 3: struck out swinging against Strasburg

Top 6: grounded out to shortstop against Strasburg

Top 9: struck out swinging against Drew Storen

Top 11: struck out swinging against Collin Balester

Top 13: doubled to left field against Balester

Final Line: 1-for-6, 2B, RBI, 4 K

Notes: Stanton’s golden sombrero on Saturday against the Washington Nationals was his second of the season.  Two of his four strikeouts came against Strasburg, who only struck out three over six innings.  With a chance for platinum in the 13^th inning, Stanton picked up his first hit of the game with a two-out, RBI-double that gave the Marlins a 4-1 lead.

Total 2011 Sombreros: 117

---

Subscribe to The Golden Sombrero by Email

---

---

Top 2: Cole Garner struck out swinging against Jordan Zimmerman

Top 5: Garner struck out swinging against Zimmerman

Top 7: Garner struck out swinging against Ryan Mattheus

Top 9: Garner struck out swinging against Drew Storen

Final Line: 0-for-4, 4 K

Notes: I’ll be honest: I had no idea who Cole Garner was prior to his sombrero on Sunday.  In his six at-bats for the Rockies this season, Garner has fanned six times. I’m impressed, but for the wrong reasons.

Total 2011 Sombreros: 69

---

Subscribe to The Golden Sombrero by Email

---

---

Less smiling more hitting, Willie.

Bottom 1: Willie Harris struck out swinging against Jason Marquis

Bottom 2: Called out on strikes against Marquis

Bottom 5: Singles to right field off of Marquis

Bottom 7: Called out on strikes against Chad Gaudin

Bottom 10: Harris struck out swinging against Drew Storen

On the day: 1-5 with a run scored, four strikeouts

---

Subscribe to The Golden Sombrero by Email

---

---

I just wanted to pass along the first article that I wrote for Bleacher Report called, “10 Relief Pitchers Who Will Immediately Help Your Fantasy Team.” I will continue to post any articles that I write for them and I hope that everybody enjoys them.

“10 Relief Pitchers Who Will Immediately Help Your Fantasy Team”

It’s official.  Baseball is back in the nation’s capital.

A casual fan might point out that no, baseball actually returned to Washington in April of 2005, when the Nationals played their first game in DC after 36 years as the Montreal Expos.  Others might say that it came on March 30, 2008, when they played their first game at Nationals Park, a 3-2 win over the Braves on Opening Night that ended with a walk-off home run off the bat of Ryan Zimmerman. And those fans might have had a point before last night.  But on June 8, 2010, that all changed as former number-one draft pick Stephen Strasburg made his major league debut.

(more…)