Relief comes in the form of the Washington Nationals. Finally a team we can look down on! Of course, we can only look down on them the way a guy with an 85 IQ looks down on a guy with an 84 IQ, but I'll take it. This is the first game in a week that I won't look forward to with a sense of dread.

Of course the down side of this is the fact that it also represents an opportunity for the Dodgers' woes to reach new depths. But I take comfort in the fact That Ned Colletti had the guts to say that he won't do whatever it takes to win the division this year. I find that to be a wise course. This team is not as horrifically bad as it seems right now, and the possibility of winning the division is far more remote than it seems. Just look for good deals. Maybe someone will overpay for a bona fide leadoff hitter like Kenny Lofton.

Tonight we celebrate the 1981 team (the Avengers for those of us who lived through '77 and '78) with a Steve Garvey Bobblehead. Just keep it away from your daughter's Barbie collection.

Go Blue.

The Pitching Match-up:

Tony Armas, Jr.* (RHP, Nationals) vs. Chad Billingsley (RHP, Dodgers)

For your (46-56) Washington Nationals:

Don't know, `cause I'm leaving for the game right now

For the (47-55) Los Angeles Dodgers:

Ditto.

*I wonder if Charley Steiner will refer to him as "Armas, Jr." every time he mentions him.