Shark of Hope

The Shark and the Nationals wrapped up a 3 game series against the hated Phillies last night on national television.  There was a lot of hype going into the game...  The Nats won game one in extras, with an exciting Rhino walk off then Gio Gonzalez pitched a gem in game two, as the Nats routed the Phillies.  Everything was leading up to the ESPN Sunday Night Baseball showdown and I (Terry) was representing Sharkadina and ready for a good night of baseball.

The night started out VERY well.  As we mentioned on Friday, Sharkadina submitted a photo for a Nationals Natitude contest.  The rules were simple: tweet a picture with to the Nationals Twitter account that demonstrates #Natitude.  6 winners were chosen over the weekend, then from those winners, a grand prize winner was picked.  The grand prize was a GAME USED SHARK JERSEY!  I guess we must have displayed enough Natitude at the games, because, HOLY SHARK, WE WON THE GAME-USED SHARK JERSEY! My excitement was literally bubbling over (how is that even possible?).  Here is a picture of me in the jersey:

It's hard to see but there is a slit cut in the back for the Shark's dorsal fin.

Then the game started and...

BRYCE HARPOON STOLE HOME! wow!

And:

BRYCE HARPOON HAD 2 HITS! yes!

But then...

JAYSON WERTH BROKE HIS WRIST...ouch...

and...

THE NATIONALS PUT IN XAVIER NADY...blech...

then...

THE PHILLIES SCORED 6 RUNS IN THE 9TH...sick...

And the Phillies were leading 9-1 and everything seemed terrible...

But then, there was a shark of hope..

The Nationals put 2 batters on with 2 outs in the 9th inning, and the Shark came in as a pinch hitter.  With Jayson Werth out for 12 weeks to recover from the horrific wrist injury, Bernadina got one more chance to show he is an everyday and...

SHARK CASHED IN!

RBI double down the right field line to pull the Nationals to within 8... 

While the Nationals ended up losing the game, the Shark demonstrated that he is up for the challenge to fill the hole vacated by The Great Werth's wrist.   Going forward, the Nationals will be moving Bryce Harpoon to right field, and platooning Shark and Xavier in left.

There is even a chance the Shark will start on Thursday for Sharkadina Night!

Finally, just a quick shark shout out: I got to go because I know some jawsome people.   Masha's (AKA The Blond Shark) roommate, and new Shark fan Natalie received 4 tickets i for volunteering her time at a chili cook-off (a real do-gooder).    We were in Section 237, in the row L with seats down the line in right field.  They were amazing seats.  The great company made for a fun time and made the blow from the loss hurt less.  THANKS NATALIE!

More to come.