Act Two: Lopez Looks Good the 2nd Time Around

BASES LOADED. INFIELD IN. Bottom of the 10th. One out. Game tied.

At the plate, Felipe Lopez had a chance to be the hero. It wouldn't take much. Just about any hard-hit ball would win the game. Lopez, though, bounced back to the pitcher, who promptly started a 1-2-3 double play to end the inning.

"It wasn't the pitch I wanted," Lopez said. "I couldn't get it done."

This was just last week against the Braves, but for Lopez it may as well have been last year. Last year, no one disputes, was a bad year.

Lopez was an All-Star in 2005, and he saw himself that way. But in 2007, he hit .245 and he sulked. By this spring, the organization didn't even see him as a starter.

He began the season on the bench, with Cristian Guzman holding down shortstop and Ronnie Belliard beating out Lopez for the second base job.

"Bench? Hell, no," he told The Washington Post this spring when asked whether he would accept a second-string role.

But manager Manny Acta spoke with Lopez, and his stance softened. Lopez admitted that personal problems a year ago may have contributed to his struggles. He vowed to change.

When Elijah Dukes was injured opening night, Lopez volunteered to play left field — no small adjustment for a career middle infielder. He adapted quickly and hit well. Soon, with Belliard struggling, Lopez had a chance to retake the second-base job.

He seized the opportunity. It's about second chances for Lopez now.

Take, for instance, the game against the Braves last week. After his 10th-inning failure, Lopez came to bat in the bottom of the 12th inning.

Bases loaded again. Infield in again. Game tied again.

This time, though, he drove a long fly ball over the left fielder's head. It dropped safely, the winning run crossed the plate and teammates mobbed Lopez in the infield, peppering him with congratulatory punches to the ribs and gut.

"If we would have lost the game, I know how the kid would have felt," Acta said. "He got another chance, and he redeemed himself."

Lopez is the Nationals' leadoff hitter now, and he's batting .276. The slate is not yet clean, though. There is much to be gained and little room for failure. Much like that 12th-inning at bat. And it's that simple.

Said Lopez: "I was just saying to myself, 'I gotta get it done this time.' So, you know, I did."

Written by Express contributor Derek Turner
Photo by Doug Benc/Getty Images