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O'Connor's return a nightmare
Marlins at Nationals
Date published: 5/11/2008
BY RICH CAMPBELL WASHINGTON-- The cheer went up from the Nationals Park crowd in the fourth inning last night when Manny Acta ascended the dugout steps and began his slow walk to the pitcher's mound. Most major league managers will try their best not to saddle a pitcher with the ignominy of being relieved in the middle of an at-bat, but Acta simply couldn't leave Mike O'Connor out there any longer.This cheer, then, was a thank-you to Acta. O'Connor had thrown 10 balls in 11 pitches, and the one exception was an RBI single by Florida Marlins right fielder Jeremy Hermida. As much as Acta wanted to spare O'Connor the embarrassment in his first major league start in almost 20 months, he had no choice. With a 2-0 count against Florida's Jorge Cantu, O'Connor handed the ball to Acta, received a swift pat on the back from his skipper and then jogged off the mound with his head down. His control problems ensured his demise and, ultimately, were the main culprit for Washington's ugly 11-0 defeat in front of 28,663. "The way I was throwing, I can't say anything about him taking me out at that point," O'Connor said. "I mean, it's his decision to make." It was the Washington's most lopsided loss of the season and its fourth in its last five games. The Nationals have lost seven of eight against the first-place Marlins this season. Even if O'Connor had been sharp, a Nationals victory was an improbability because of Florida starter Andrew Miller. The sixth-overall pick in the 2006 draft held the Nationals to two hits and struck out seven over seven innings and was simply overpowering in the best of his 21 career starts. O'Connor (1-1) was promoted to the starting rotation on Tuesday in large part because Matt Chico was demoted after six ineffective starts. The 27-year-old left-hander, went 3-8 as a starter for Washington in 2006 and was 2-0 with a 1.96 ERA as a starter at Triple-A Columbus earlier this season, so the Nationals wanted to give him a chance. This quickly turned into an avert-your-eyes performance. With about 12 family members and friends in attendance, O'Connor's night turned sour before fans had time to settle into their seats.
Date published: 5/11/2008
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