Nats vs. Marlins August 2019

We saw the final game in the late August series with the Washington Nationals hosting the Miami Marlins. The first two games were victories for the Nationals, so we felt good about the prospects for this game. We again got discount seats through the Washington Post, this time overlooking right/center field.

View from our seats

The only bad thing about the seats was that we were under an overhang that blocked our view of the big scoreboard. We couldn't see the replays or any of the audience cam bits or the quiz shows between the innings.

Nationals Park has been offering free kids' meals through the end of summer. We picked up ours, though I think my youngest wasn't happy with his choice of drink.

Free food always has the longest line

Smiling as best he can

Not sure about the soda

I had some chicken tenders with fries and a Devil's Backbone Trail Angel Weiss Beer. The beer was really good on a hot day--not too dark or too heavy or too bitter. It was a great hit.

Beer!

The pull

The game was exciting. An early homer put the Nationals up 1-0. The Marlins made a comeback later, taking the lead 3-2 in the top of the fifth inning. The Nats scored two runs in the bottom of the fifth, never looking back from that point. They won the game 9-3.

The presidential mascot race seemed normal at the start, with George Washington leading Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Jefferson, and Theodore Roosevelt.

Regular mascot shenanigans

A twist came up when they got to some balls along the outside track. A game of dodge ball erupted among the mascots!

George gets first pick of balls

As everyone knows, Teddy is the manliest of all American presidents and he easily won the dodge ball game. The announcer said dodge ball was invented in 1905, so it was only naturally that Teddy was able to play it better than the others.

Teddy leaves his fellow presidents in the dust, literally

The game was a lot of fun. We got picked up outside the park. We went to M and South Capitol Streets, only to find a Catholic church on the corner. The church has a big banner offering Mass before the game!

St. Vincent De Paul Church, DC

Sign close up

We weren't sure if the Mass was offered up for the team, the game, or just for the fans. The other challenge is the dress code. Usually we dress very casually for the game; Mass is a whole other ballgame. We may check it out in the future, but it might have to wait till next year since we are already in September with no plans for another game. Maybe there will be playoff games?