NATIONALS NOTEBOOK
Hernandez Looks Back
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Friday, April 6, 2007
Livan Hernandez spent the early part of yesterday afternoon overseeing a banana-eating contest in the Arizona Diamondbacks clubhouse, a clear indication of his comfort level since his trade from the Washington Nationals last August. But Hernandez can't come to RFK Stadium without thinking back to April 14, 2005, when he threw the pitch that brought baseball back to the District after a 33-year absence.
"It's great to come back and pitch over here," Hernandez said before last night's game. "It's exciting. You make history. It's a great feeling to see all the fans again."
Hernandez faced the Nationals twice after his trade -- for pitchers Garrett Mock and Matt Chico -- last Aug. 7, losing in a 7 2/3 -inning outing at RFK and beating them with eight innings of two-run ball in Phoenix. Hernandez will start the series finale Sunday at RFK, facing Shawn Hill.
Nationals right-hander John Patterson, on the other hand, came up through the Arizona organization before a 2004 trade to Montreal.
"Probably the first year, it was more of a 'I'll-show-you' kind of deal," said Patterson, who will face Cy Young winner Brandon Webb tomorrow night. "I think that's true if you ever get traded. It's not a personal vendetta for me now."
An Honor for Young
First baseman Dmitri Young was nearly overwhelmed when club officials asked him if he would like to wear jersey No. 42 on April 15, the 60th anniversary of Jackie Robinson's big league debut, when he broke baseball's color barrier. The number is retired by all 30 clubs, but Major League Baseball is permitting teams to allow players to wear it to celebrate the anniversary.
"He's a part of American history," Young said. "Forget baseball history. American history. What he went through, the road that he paved, I mean, it's everything."
UP NEXT Today vs. Diamondbacks7:05 p.m. Williams (0-2) vs. Owings (0-0) MASN2 Tomorrow vs. Diamondbacks7:05 p.m. Patterson (0-1) vs. Webb (0-0) WDCA-20, MASN
