SHARK IS BACK WITH A VENGEANCE

I wrote earlier today that May 7th would be a day that lived in infamy.  I'm just going to go ahead and pat myself on the back, now.

The Nationals pulled out a convincing 5-2 victory over the Marlins (and their second place NL East status) led by The Shark.  Leading off and playing CF, Roger Bernadina went 2 for 4 with 2 singles and a walk.  He also scored the first run of the game and stole the only base of the game. The rest of the Nats, inspired by the Shark's return, helped out as well, with Daddy Desmond and  Jerry Hairston each contributing 2 hits.

Jayson Werth and Ian Desmond each had a sacrifice fly during the game.  In response, after the game, Marlins players Hanley Ramirez and Chris Coghlan sacrificed Wes Helms in the hopes that it would appease the Shark enough for him to go easy on the Marlins tomorrow.  Unfortunately for Helms, it won't work.

The Great Werth had an outfield assist, gunning Mike Stanton at first as he rounded the bag a bit too far. "I was in awe of playing in the same field as the Shark.  I was looking at him to make sure he saw my single.  Did he see it?? Was he impressed?? Did he liiiiiiike ittt??" Stanton said when asked about the miscue.

HEY KIDS, WANNA LOOK LIKE ROGER BERNADINA?? 

Print out this mask, color it, and then wear it to your next Nationals game!  I DESIGNED IT MYSELF!!

Don't worry, it's Shark approved

There is a new Sharkadina Downloads page!  All the wallpapers and coloring projects you could desire!

More to come.

A Date Which Will Live in Infamy....

Today, May 7, 2011 - a date which will live in infamy. The Washington Nationals suddenly and deliberately, became a force to be reckoned with in the National League....

At 7PM tonight, the Nationals play the second game of their three game series with the Marlins.  The Nationals won yesterday in 10 innings but seemed a bit short handed.  Tonight will be different.  The Nationals now have the Sharkplug back on the team.  We saw in spring training what Bernadina can do when pitted against the Fish.  And now, with The Shark in the lineup and starting in center field, we will see what he can do with the Marlins in the regular season.

To catch up all the new Sharkadina followers (hi mom!),  Roger Bernadina started the season in the minors, was called up when Daddy Desmond went on paternity leave(going 2 for 3 in the two games), was sent back to Syracuse (much to the chagrin of the Atlantic), and has now just been recalled, with the Nationals placing officially placing RicK AnKiel on the Disabled List.  Now the Shark is back and ready to hit his way into a full time starting role.

Ideally, we will remember this day in history as the day that changed the Nationals forever.  All of Sharkadina Nation is rooting for the Shark and so too can YOU!

Breaking News:
Justin Verlander of the Detroit Tigers just threw a no hitter against the Toronto Blue Jays. Great job! The first thing Justin said after the game, "So glad the Shark's in the National League! Couldn't have done it otherwise... Thanks Roger!"

Roger Bernadina reportedly met up with Chris Volstad this afternoon, although Volstad hasn't been seen since...

Roger Bernadina pictured with Chris Volstad

 More to come.

Return of the Shark: Volume 2

Adam Kilgore just reported "Rick Ankiel going to the DL? Roger Bernadina was pulled in the 4th inning in Syracuse, apparently without injury."

Could this mean the Return of the Shark??  More details to come as they trickle in....ideally from the Shark himself!


It has been confirmed!!!!!

SHARK'S BACCCCKKKK!!!!

Update: Apparently the word has spread in the Nationals clubhouse and in an effort to prepare the way for the Shark, the Nats crunched the Marlins 3-2!  Adam LaRoche knew that Fish was the Shark's delicacy and served up the winning sacrifice fly.

More to come.

FASTER THAN A SPEEDING BULL SHARK

After a weekend beating up the 2010 World Champion Giants, the Nationals went into Philadelphia with high hopes. They had a .500 win record and had the confidence of Roger Bernadina.  And then the Phillies handed them 3 embarrassing lifeless and shark-less losses, topping it off with a gruesome 7-3 trouncing last night.  The Nats struck out 12 times in total including 3 from Layne NiKKKs.  Shockingly, none of those strike outs came at RicK AnKiel's expense (because he is still out after jamming his hand).  Injuries are not new to RicK AnKiel who has missed most of the last 3 seasons dealing with them.  Right now, AnKiel is expected to be back soon, but if a DL stint is in order, we will hopefully see The Shark back in Nats red.

We are now past the 30 game mark for the season, and the Nationals starting outfielders are batting .232 or lower. Based off the stats on www.baseballreference.com, I will now give you some comparisons between the Nationals current outfield and the Sharkplug that is Roger Bernadina.

• In 26 times more at-bats in the majors this season, Mako Morse (78 AB) has as many doubles as Roger Bernadina (3 AB).
• Roger Bernadina has as many assists (4) for the Syracuse Chiefs as RicK AnKiel, Jayson Werth, and Mako Morse have combined.
• Jayson Werth has infinitely more errors (3) than Roger Bernadina (0).
• Mako Morse has 18 hits in 26 games played for the Nats.  Roger Bernadina has 19 hits in 19 games for the Nats and Chiefs.
• Roger Bernadina has hit into zero double plays this season. Rick Ankiel (2), Mako Morse (2), and Jayson Werth(3) have combined for 7.
• Roger Bernadina(2 games) has twice as many hits as Matt Stairs (18 games) has for the Nats this season.
• Roger Bernadina has a 7 game hitting streak. Mako Morse has 4 hits in his last 7 games.
• For the Syracuse Chiefs, The Shark has as many stolen bases (8) as RicK AnKiel, Jayson Werth, and Mako Morse have combined.

Pay close attention to that last statistic.  The Shark had 2 more stolen bases last night.  Combined with Ian Desmond's apparent base stealing prowess, the Nats could be a running force to be reckoned with. 

After the Chiefs game last night, scientists tested Bernadina and found that it was true. He is...

FASTER THAN A SPEEDING BULL SHARK

The bull shark even had wheels!

More to come.

SHARK COOKING!

For the second straight day, the baseball world was Shark-less....

As expected, it sucked.

The Syracuse Chiefs followed their rained out Tuesday game with a Wednesday off-day.  No vicious attacks (on baseballs and players) or amazing feats of power were reported. A day lacking Bernadina is a day worth forgetting.  The Nats lost 7-4 to the dreaded Phillies.  They are Shark-less and are not afraid to show it.  The game did have its moments, especially in the 9th, which included a Danny ESP 3-run home run and sharkingly, Matt Stairs putting a ball in play, snapping his 16 game hitless game streak.  Jerry Hairston Jr, the starting CF for the game, went 0-4 with a K (filling in perfectly where Ankiel left off).  The final game of the Phillies series is tomorrow, so lets hope the Nats act more like a Great White than a minnow SO THEY CAN CRUSH THE PHILS.  I think that by now, you should know what my suggested solution will be.  Just to be safe...  PROMOTE THE SHARK!

The one redeeming piece of today was this great article on Roger Bernadina.  The writer, Lindsey Kramer, apparently interviewed the Shark to write this article (which is a dangerous situation in itself).  Below are some highlights of the article.

• "He got his love of baseball and a favorable set of athletic genes from his father, a big-time baseball player in that country, and his mother, a national-caliber softball player."
• "[The Shark] had an interest in cooking growing up, and by the time he was in the lower minors he was a popular roommate for his ability to whip up a variety of Italian dishes, his specialty."
• "Bernadina, signed by Montreal as a free agent in 2001, is the longest-tenured player in the organization."

Like I said, the article was great.  If you have 94 seconds, I would really recommend checking it out.  Learn a few things about the Shark, and jump on the Bernadina/Shark bandwagon (especially you Ben Goessling).

Who knows, maybe he'll cook you up something fiercely tasty....on the field?

Shark is always ready with a meal.

More to come.

EVEN MORE SHARK FACTS

Well, after dealing with some technical difficulties here at Sharkadina, we are back online and better than ever (exactly the same).  Allow me to catch you up:  The Nationals lost last night 4-1 to the dreaded Philadelphia Phillies.  Phillies pitcher Cole Hamels went 9 strong, giving up only 1 run with 6 Ks (it was later discovered that he had reportedly used "Black Magic" and had "sharked up" prior to the game.  A dangerous combination).  The Nationals could only manage 5 hits off of Hamels.  I would like to point out that in Roger Bernadina's career, he has a .333 On-Base Percentage against Hamels (albeit on a hit by pitch).  He would surely have helped the Nats...

As Roger Bernadina progresses through life, we learn more about him.  Several month ago, we posted Shark Facts with some general info about Bernadina.  More recently, we posted More Shark Facts.  When I say "more recently," I mean that it was almost 2 months ago...too long.  Seeing as the Shark's game in Syracuse was rained out yesterday, it seems like a perfect opportunity to supply you with even more Shark facts...

1. Sharks and dinosaurs lived together between 64-450 million years ago.  Then Bernadina got sick of dinosaurs.
2. Every shark attack in history was caused because "the victim" said Roger Bernadina's name in vain.
3. Like some other sharks, Roger Bernadina is considered endangered because he is the only Shark of his kind.  Scientists agree, however, unlike other sharks, Roger Bernadina has no chance of becoming extinct.
4. The hydraulic rescue tool, Jaws of Life was modeled after Bernadina's own jaw.
5. In the 1960's live action Batman series, Batman is seen battling a shark with Shark Repellent Bat Spray, which causes the shark to explode. Fear of Bernadina's backlash caused ABC to take the show off the air and urge the Surgeon General to ban the spray.
6. Some shark's skin can be up to 14 cm thick. Shark detractors are very lucky this is the case...
7. There was a common myth that sharks don't attack in the middle day.  This was disproven at Roger Bernadina's first professional day game.
8. In addition to his baseball skills, Roger Bernadina is the best damn pool player on earth.
9. "Hammerhead Attacks a Tarpon" YouTube video, which prominently features Roger Bernadina, has 8 million views.  Sadly, 7.5 Million of those views are by us at Sharkadina.
10. Roger Bernadina can catch anything.

Who thought grenade baseball was a smart idea?

More to come.

Nats, Chiefs, and AMERICA WIN

Now that Osama Bin Laden is dead (and buried in presumably shark-infested waters), the US government can turn its attention to more pressing matters.  Such as reforming America's schools.  Education Secretary Arne Duncan was kind enough to send us a photo of new curriculum that is being tested out in schools across the country.  Here are flash cards from a sample lesson:

Remember kids...anything is possible!

In actual baseball related news, Tom "The Sloth" Gorzelanny pitched a great game to lead the Nationals over the San Francisco Giants in a 2-0 win, bringing their season record up to .500!  The Syracuse Chiefs also won and Bernadina was 1-3, bringing his season batting average to .281.

If you want to read analysis from the Nats game, I highly recommend checking out the recaps at  Federal Baseball.  They give you the some of the top plays and storylines as well as sweet Fan Graphs.  If you want to see funny pictures of sharks and read about animal nicknames for Washington Nationals players, well, you're in the right place.

More to come.

SHARK CANNON

At the 500th home game in Nationals history, the Nationals pulled out a 5-2 victory against the Giants. In your face Matt Cain!  Amazingly, they managed to do it without The Shark.  (Overall, now have a 238-262 record at home since coming over from Montreal) After falling behind early, the Nationals had to chip away against Cain and after taking the lead, held it for the day.  Jordan Zimmerman pitched very well.  Had the Shark been in left, it would have been a shut out.  Nate Schierholtz blooped a double in the 2nd, which the Shark would have devoured that ball... or if he hadn't, he would have gunned the Miguel Tejada and Mike Fontenot at the plate, cause guess what....

THE SHARK'S GOT A CANNON FOR AN ARM

No excuse for this picture...

In Syracuse today, despite the 9-6 loss, Roger Bernadina went 1 for 5 but gunned a Red Wings player Toby Gardenhire at home.  His arm is one important aspect of what makes him the Shark.  Defense wasn't an issue in today's game but with the problems the Nats outfield has had defensively, they could definitely use a Shark with a cannon...cause honestly, that sounds like the most intimidating thing ever.

More to come.