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In the last week before his son Grayson was born, Nationals shortstop Ian Desmond continued to say that the fact he was about to become a father wasn't affecting him on the field. That's the smart thing to say, even if Desmond's errors were piling up and manager Jim Riggleman sat him on Sunday because he thought Desmond "has a lot on his mind."
But Desmond's performance in his first game back from paternity leave would suggest that something's changed. He tripled with one out in the fourth inning, scoring the Nationals' second run, and just blasted a homer to center field - after his triple nearly went out of the park. He's got the two toughest legs of the cycle out of the way, and the Nationals lead the Mets 4-3 in the sixth.
It's also worth noting that Desmond has made a couple solid plays at shortstop, throwing strikes on close calls at first base. It's just one game, but he looks more comfortable and confident on the field. It'll be interesting to hear what he has to say about it after the game.
