It's Only Funny Until Someone Loses An Eye

There's losing and there's losing with dignity; one of these things is reflected in the standings, and the other stays in the hearts and the minds of fans. To the Nats credit, they managed to hang in there for 4 innings before sinking into a predictable rut -- Matt Chico escaped with one earned run on his line thanks to some appaling defense by Dmitri Young and Ron Belliard. Not that tossing 100 pitches in less than 5 innings is anything to take great pride in, but the shit didn't hit the proverbial fan until journeyman reliever Ray King entered in the 8th.

I think his name is Ray King 'cause the other team starts raking when he's on the mound. 2/3 of an inning, 3 walks and 4 earned runs eanred King last night's "King Goat" award. Prize: an inflamed shoulder. Anything to escape another nightmare like that. Here's the deal with King: he seems like he has actually been a pretty reliable presence over the course of his career, but the stats don't tell the full story:

1) The guy gives up way too many free trips to first base
2) Dude blew 6 saves in 0 save opportunities for St. Louis in '05
3) King averaged 80 games, but less than 60 innings during his best years

He's the very definition of a "situational lefty," which, with the sad state of the Nats rotation, is a luxury the team can't afford right now. That set-up works great if you can guarantee 5-6 innings from each of your starters, but the Nats need to dump this guy in favor of a swingman or someone who can throw heat for more than 1/3 of an inning without worrying about boo-boos. And now Acta's letting him take up space on the active roster instead of sending him to the DL -- at least the Phillies have been active on the waiver wire to combat early season blahs.