With the O's on an off-night last evening, I decided to watch the Nationals-Astros game. After watching the Nats squander about five runs, and blow a three run lead in the sixth, I decided to turn it off. Luckily, I had that option, but Nationals announcer Rob Dibble didn't, and he made sure the viewing audience knew that.

Dibble spoke with Ray Knight on the post game show after the loss, and not only called the team tough to watch, but even accused players of "mailing it in". Via DC Sports Bog....

"Well, I've seen it all year," Dibble said. "You have a team that came off a 102-loss season....Guys just aren't getting to balls, they're not trying, they're not diving, and more importantly, guys aren't calling them out....

"Listen, our guys aren't doing as well as the other team," he continued. "They need to be playing a lot harder than they are. What I'm saying is, it's not so much mailing it in physically, but mentally, some of these guys, they're happy after a ball game when they get their butts whipped, they're happy and smiling like it's funny when they're getting beat in day in and day out and embarrassed on that field. I know Manny Acta and I know these coaches are busting their butts to get the most out of these guys, but the players, they don't expect that out of each other in that locker room. That's what I'm saying.

"Somebody needs to point a finger in there and say, 'Enough's enough. You guys are on my team, you've got to go out there and back me up.' John Lannan deserved better out of his bullpen, he deserves better defensively, and he definitely damn well deserves better offensively after what he's done the last six outings on a bad ballclub....So for me to watch a guy like John Lannan, who I think has a huge heart, and he goes out there, he never mails it in, I think there's a lot of guys who should apologize to him."

Obviously I'm not able to agree, because I've been to one Nats game all year (against the O's), but as Ray Knight pointed out later in the talk....when you have 90 errors at the All-Star break AND a .298 winning percentage....something has to change. It's refreshing to hear an announcer tell the truth on-air, but if I were Rob Dibble, I'd watch my back. People who are bash their employer like that usually don't last too long.

You can also watch the video here, if you'd like.

Rob Dibble on the Nats: "It's Pathetic" (DC Sports Bog)

I've had back and forths with people on Twitter, but I've never had a fight with someone. In fact, I didn't really know it was something that went down on a regular basis. Well, ESPN's Rob Neyer decided to combine a Twitter feed and a column to attack Rob Dibble, and the analyst decided that he need to respond via the social networking platform....

Rob Neyer: "Really, I just wanted an excuse to write about Rob Dibble. For years, I was less than a fan of his work at various networks. So you can imagine my shock, when I realized that I sort of like him in his current role with the Nationals. Yes, he's still a blowhard who believes that if you didn't play the game, you don't know anything about it. But he's got a good voice, he's quite a bit smarter than you probably think, and he's not been pulling his punches while the Nationals have become the biggest joke in the game."

Rob Dibble: "It's funny to have college dropout Rob Neyer transcribe MASN broadcasts*, hey Rob, I've got a leaky roof, can you come over and fix it? lol"

"The fact that Neyer and Keith Law have HOF votes proves writers should no longer have the right to vote..."

Well then. I understand that journalists fight with each other from time to time, but that's taking it a bit too far on both ends. The funny thing about Twitter, is that certain people almost act like people won't see what they write. Until you know how to use a technology, it's best to be a tad more careful. What you don't know, could really get you in trouble.

Twitter Fight! (Federal Baseball)
Nats Dunn Can't Fight City Hall (ESPN)