WASHINGTON – Jake Irvin gazes over at MacKenzie Gore’s stall in the Washington Nationals clubhouse and ponders the relative gifts bestowed upon and developed by major league pitchers.

There’s no sense in trying to disguise the differences between Washington’s ace and its other, more human starters, so Irvin steers into it.

“He’s got incredible stuff,” Irvin says of the lefty who has a pair of 13-strikeout games this season, averages 95 mph with his fastball and through five starts is displaying the All-Star pedigree expected of a former No. 3 overall pick.

“Does a lot of things that we don’t do.”

Yet there’s no jealousy in Irvin’s voice, not when the right-hander and his rotation mates are taking another methodical step forward and climbing the National League’s pitching charts – emphasis on the pitching.

“Velo’s great. But you gotta pitch,” he says. “You gotta keep guys off balance. Changing speeds wins more than anything.

“You can out-stuff guys. But at this level, you gotta pitch.”

And goodness, are the Nationals pitching – regardless of pedigree.

While Gore’s starts can produce a thunderclap of ball hitting mitt, the Nationals are slower and lower-key the rest of the week, producing weak contact and scoreboard zeros in equal measure and comprising, on a shoestring budget, one of the NL’s finest rotations.

They rank fifth in the NL with a 3.55 rotation ERA, led by arguably the league’s greatest success story this year – left-hander Mitchell Parker. The 25-year-old lefty’s 1.39 ERA ranks third in the NL, and on Wednesday reached a high-water mark: Eight shutout innings of one-hit ball against the Baltimore Orioles.

Like Irvin, Parker lives in a lower velocity district than Gore; both average 92 mph on their fastballs. Throw in veteran right-hander Trevor Williams, whose fastball now averages 87 mph, and the Nationals feature the only rotation in the major leagues whose Nos. 2-4 starters don’t reach 93 mph with their heaters.

Velocity doesn’t always win, but it almost always pays; the Dodgers feature the hardest-throwing foursome in the game in Yoshinobu Yamamoto (96 mph, $325 million contract), Rōki Sasaki (96 mph, $7 million rookie signing bonus), Tyler Glasnow (95 mph, $130 million deal) and Dustin May (95 mph, $2.14 million deal). For good measure, Blake Snell’s mending on the injured list with a $182 million contract after averaging 96 mph on his four-seam fastball a year ago.

The Nationals? They’re paying their front four a combined $11.4 million this season, a number that will balloon once Michael Soroka ($9 million) returns from the IL.

You could say they’re getting lots of bang for their buck, though that may overstate the snap of the ball hitting mitt most nights.

No fear

At 6-foot-4 and 240 pounds, Parker moves with a skosh less athletic grace than his rotation mates. Manager Dave Martinez keeps a keen eye on Parker during his starts, to make sure he’s utilizing the significant base in his lower half and not dropping his arm slot.

Yet if there’s one thing at which Parker excels, it’s listening and learning and doggedly applying what he gleans.

“I truly believe he worked his tail off to get here,” says Martinez of Parker, who debuted on April 15, 2024. “When I first saw him it felt like he had the ability to pitch up here. We didn’t know where – starter or reliever. But he had stuff. The biggest thing with him was to command the zone. You can’t pitch up here if you’re walking guys.

“He went and worked on it and gave us the confidence to say hey, let’s bring him up. Let’s see what he can do here. Since then, he’s been getting better with every outing.

“And he’s not afraid to throw the ball over the plate.”

That he did against the Orioles, moving east and west masterfully in the strike zone, striking out four but allowing just three baserunners. Both his curveball and slider play well against left-handed batters, and despite all the contact – Parker’s struck out just 20 in 32 ⅓ innings so far – he’s given up just one home run.

Parker parlayed his early call-up last year into a 29-start, 151-inning opportunity, then outlasted a handful of comers to grab the last rotation spot this spring.

Wednesday night, with a 92-mph fastball, he simply kept putting up zeroes.

“Just trying to go out on that little dirt hill out there and doing it over and over again,” he says, while hoping he simply passes that on to his rotation mates.

“It’s the confidence,” he says. “Pitching well keeps the confidence up and it’s contagious among the pitching staff when we’re all throwing well.”

A potential ace arrives

Developing pitching was a longtime bugaboo of general manager Mike Rizzo’s regime, what with World Series heroes Max Scherzer and Patrick Corbin imported as nine-figure free agents, and generational talent Stephen Strasburg a slam dunk No. 1 overall pick.

Yet the blockbuster trade for Juan Soto in 2022 netted Gore, an ace-profile arm the club lacked for years. The January 2024 hiring of former closer Sean Doolittle as pitching strategist significantly modernized the infrastructure at the big league level, just as Irvin, a fourth-round pick in 2018, and Parker (fifth round, 2020) were bubbling up.

And then there was Gore, who struggled with command and pitch efficiency along with harnessing that fastball he’d run up to 98 mph. He’s now operating a tick down on the radar gun, yet has completed six innings in four of his five starts, including those 13-punchout efforts on opening day against Philadelphia and Saturday at Colorado.

“With Doolittle coming in, with (pitching coach Jim) Hickey who’s been around a long time, we’ve got a great mix of being around,” says Gore, “and some forward thinking, and the other side of pitching. It’s a great mix and we’ve needed it. Those two together, that’s why we’ve all continued to improve as a player.”

It doesn’t hurt to have some esprit de corps. Even if Gore has a fifth gear to his heater, there’s no shortage of insider trading the group can partake in.

“Yeah, I throw harder than everyone else, but there’s shapes that are similar with offspeed pitches,” says Gore. “Mitchell has vert on the heater like me; definitely a different look but there are similarities.

“Understanding that when you do what you’re supposed to as a pitcher, you’ll have success.”

It’s translated into mixed results for the Nationals, who are 11-13 largely because their bullpen – whose 6.96 ERA ranks last in the majors – has betrayed them about as much as their starters have propped them up.

Nonetheless, developing reliable starting pitching remains the industry’s white whale. Irvin was the only pitcher in the majors to make 33 starts last season, throwing 187 ⅔ innings, and through five starts this year has shaved his ERA to 3.68.

A lot can change, but the Nationals have a strong foundation, regardless of which lane they choose to cruise.

“They’ve become very, very close. On and off the field,” says Martinez. “They do a lot of stuff together which is awesome. Those guys are always watching. They’re out there before the games watching bullpens and warm ups.

“In that clubhouse, they’re very close. It’s awesome to see.”  

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Even before TNT NBA analyst Stan Van Gundy made the reference early in Game 2 of the Golden State-Houston series, I had the same thought after watching the Rockets’ Amen Thompson get clobbered by a screen and watching the Warriors’ Draymond Green and the Rockets’ Dillon Brooks grab and clutch and crash to the court.

It’s 1980s and 1990s NBA – reminiscent of the Detroit Pistons, Miami Heat and New York Knicks teams that punished with their physicality and sometimes crossed the line to do so.

And I wondered, with all the supposed complaints about the style of today’s NBA and the idea that players shoot too many 3-pointers: is that the kind of NBA we want to watch? A football game on the basketball court?

The physical series also had its contrast – the back-and-forth shotmaking between the teams near the end of the first half when Golden State’s Steph Curry and Houston’s Fred VanVleet, Alperen Sengun and Jalen Green traded 3-pointers.

What would you rather watch? The game was certainly more entertaining when it wasn’t a wrestling match.

After dropping Game 1 to the Warriors at home, the Rockets responded with a 109-94 victory in Game 2 Wednesday, tying the best-of-seven first-round Western Conference series at 1-1.

It was a great sign for the Rockets who have solid veterans but also have important players under 23 (Sengun, Green, Thompson, Jabari Smith Jr. and Tari Eason) getting their first playoff experience.

It’s not easy winning a playoff game, and it’s definitely not easy beating the Warriors in the playoffs. Now, Golden State’s Jimmy Butler left the game late in the first quarter after he fell hard to the ground when he was inadvertently undercut by Thompson on a rebound attempt. He didn’t return with what the team called a bruised pelvis. He will underdo an MRI. Starting guard Brandin Podziemski played just 14 minutes because of an illness.

The Warriors had just one player in double figures through three quarters, and that was All-Star Steph Curry who finished with 20 points.

Still, the Rockets needed to make shots, and they did. Jalen Green scored a team-high 38 points and contributed six assists, four rebounds and three steals, joining Rockets greats Elvin Hayes, Hakeem Olajuwon, Moses Malone and James Harden as the only players 23 or younger in franchise history to score at least 30 in a playoff game.

Sengun, a first-time All-Star this season, had 17 points, 16 rebounds, seven assists and two steals, and Eason scored 14 points. Veterans VanVleet, Brooks and Steven Adams are perfect matches for the young players. It’s a fun Rockets team that should only get better over the next few seasons.

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Even though the Rockets earned the No. 2 seed with a 52-30 record, the seventh-seeded Warriors were a reasonable pick to win the series, especially with their late-season success following the trade for Butler.

The series is far from over though Butler’s health will play a big part in the outcome.

The Rockets showed they can win with force and finesse. They clobbered Golden State with a 47-33 edge in rebounds and also made 15 3-pointers.

The Rockets need to stick to that without letting Draymond Green and the Warriors rattle them with experience, trash talk and instigating tactics.

Follow NBA columnist Jeff Zillgitt on social media @JeffZillgitt

The popularity of the NFL draft isn’t the only thing surging.

So is demand for VIP experiences at the three-day football extravaganza, as well as the cost to secure them.

The packages, which range in price from $650 to $15,000, include seats in the coveted NFL Draft Theatre along with amenities such as food and beverage. By Wednesday, all of the packages had sold out, according to the website of On Location, the NFL’s official hospitality provider. Almost 400 all-rounds packages for $6,500 apiece sold one week after they went on sale to the public in February, said Deanna Forgione Carey, who is the company’s GM of NFL Business.

‘Over 80% of it should be accessible to fans,’ Carey said of the draft, ‘and I think we’ve seen there’s a market for a premium experience beyond that.’

The VIP packages (392 all-rounds packages sold) will generate well over $2.5 million in gross revenue, based on prices and figures provided by On Location. Add in the eight elite packages priced at $15,000 and that number pushes to over $2.6 million. It’s a modest sum for a league that made more than $20 billion in 2024. But Benjamin Posmanick, an assistant professor of finance at St. Bonaventure who has written about the NFL, said the profit represents something larger.

“The NFL is the best run league in professional sports worldwide,’ Posmanick said. “They are not only remarkably popular, but have an uncanny ability to monetize their product.’

Capacity for the NFL Draft Theatre in Green Bay, Wisconsin, is about 1,800, and 400 seats will be set aside for people who purchased VIP packages through On Location, according to the NFL. On Location also said it has a separate hospitality lounge with a direct view of the Theatre that seats about 200 people.

Tyler DePina, a representative of On Location, declined to provide exact figures for the other packages sold, saying the company is unable to share specific number breakdowns for its various events because it’s part of a publicly traded company, TKO Group Holdings.

The NFL stresses that the vast majority of people attend the draft for free, and attendance has skyrocketed. Last year a record-breaking 775,000 people attended the draft in Detroit, according to the NFL. The previous record was 600,000 for the 2018 draft in Nashville.

About 200,000 attended the draft in Chicago in 2015, when the NFL moved the event out of Radio City Music Hall in New York and took the show on the road.

NFL sells hope

The all-rounds VIP package for the 2010 draft was about $1,800, according to Forgione Carey of On Location. This year the first-round package is $3,000, the Day 2 package (for rounds 2 and 3) is $1,000 and the Day 3 package (for rounds 4-7) is $650.

‘In 2010, the event was first-round tickets, a chalk talk on Friday, a picture at the podium,’ Forgione Carey said. “And now we’ve basically created customized experiences where you’re selecting the type of seat that you’re sitting in.’

For the right price, they’ll bring in a recliner-type cushion seat, according to Forgione Carey. Who knows, maybe even set you up in that chair from NFL commissioner Roger Goodell’s basement, made famous during the 2020 virtual draft.

“You’re getting hospitality prior to the draft,’ Forgione Carey continued. “You’re then the next day getting a signed gift from a Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee. You’re having lunch at times with the same inductee that gave you the gift. It’s a much more curated, bespoke experience.’

There’s another element baked into it all, said Aju Fenn, a professor of economics and business at Colorado College who in 2010 co-wrote a paper entitled “Profit Maximization In The National Football League.’

“What they’re really selling here, what the latest thing they’re able to monetize is hope,’’ Fenn told USA TODAY Sports. “This draft, if you think about it in a way has become a sporting event in and of itself. Enough is known about the players, the participants that buy tickets and go, ‘did your team win the draft?’

“So they’re still selling that winning feeling and that’s why the draft is able to be monetized.’

While only a fraction of those attending the draft will have purchased VIP packages, hordes will buy NFL-licensed merchandise before leaving the grounds. How much does the league generate in merchandise sales during the draft?

‘I’ve never seen or heard a number on merch sales,’ said Brian McCarthy, Vice President of Communications for the NFL. 

One of Forgione Carey’s hopes: That eight of the $15,000 ‘elite’ packages launched would find buyers. They did. Very quickly. Likely thanks in part to some of the amenities: Intimate Brunch with Green Bay Packers wide receivers, including Antonio Freeman, Jordy Nelson, Greg Jennings, James Jones, and James Lofton; personalized gifts signed by Hall of Fame inductee Sterling Sharp; and an opportunity to announce a pick.

Theatre creates draw

Working to ensure that are the NFL’s Bobby Gallo, Senior Vice President of Club Business Development , and Jon Barker, Senior Vice President of Global Event Operations & Production.

In 2019, Barker produced the NFL draft in Nashville when music was added and the event took on a festival vibe.

“We’ve only seen considerable growth in the popularity of the event since ’19,’ Barker said. “And that’s driving the desire for people to think of it as an event, an event that you buy a ticket to and an event that you want to come and experience.’

Ironically, the NFL moved the draft operation out of Radio City Music Hall and then proceeded to fully operational theaters at its annual draft sites. A part of the footprint is set aside for On Location and people paying for the VIP packages.

“We’ve built it out to make sure that the experience inside the theater is the same experience that you would have if you were going to go to Radio City Music Hall,’ Gallo said. “The theater continues to grow and we continue to look for ways to expand that access.

“But the focus, 99% of the focus, is on free accessible events.’

That would be the 99% who won’t buy the $15,000 elite packages – either because they don’t have the money or the packages already have been sold.

Steve McMichael, the Pro Football Hall of Famer and member of the Chicago Bears’ Super Bowl 20 team, has died. He was 67 years old.

‘The NFL is heartbroken to hear of the passing of Super Bowl champion and Hall of Famer Steve McMichael after a brave battle with ALS. Our thoughts and condolences are with his family and loved ones,’ the NFL said in a statement on X.

In 2021, McMichael was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and in August 2023 was confined to a bed, which is where he learned of his Hall of Fame selection, surrounded by friends and former teammates. He was officially inducted in August 2024. McMichael earned his spot in the Hall of Fame via the senior committee.

With that selection, McMichael became the sixth member of the famous 1985 Bears team to earn Pro Football Hall of Fame enshrinement, joining Jimbo Covert, Richard Dent, Dan Hampton, Walter Payton and Mike Singletary.

Payton’s son, Jarrett, announced McMichael’s death on X and said he was ‘grateful to have been with (McMichael) in his final moments.’

McMichael, a defensive tackle, was selected in the third round of the 1980 NFL draft by the New England Patriots out of the University of Texas. The Patriots released McMichael after just one season and he was picked up by the Bears, with whom McMichael excelled.

After two years as a reserve, he established himself as a star in 1983 in the Bears’ second season under coach Mike Ditka. McMichael controlled the interior of the line for the Bears’ famed ’46 defense’ that is considered to be one of the NFL’s best defensive units after leading Chicago to an 18-1 record and allowing only 10 points in three playoff wins, including a 46-10 demolition of the Patriots in Super Bowl 20.

In all, McMichael played 13 seasons in Chicago, earning two Pro Bowl selections and two first-team All-Pro nods. McMichael ranks second on the Bears’ all-time sack list behind Dent.

‘Steve McMichael told everyone he would fight ALS with the same tenacity he showed for 15 seasons in the National Football League. And he did just that,’ Pro Football Hall of Fame president and CEO Jim Porter said in a statement.

‘Everyone who played with or against Steve shares the same opinion: No one battled longer or harder from the snap until the whistle than Steve the player. That legendary will to fight allowed him to experience his enshrinement as a member of the Hall’s Class of 2024. And the love his teammates showed him throughout this difficult journey says everything about Steve the man.’

McMichael, nicknamed ‘Mongo,’ enjoyed a post-NFL career that included becoming a pro wrestling fixture.

This story has been updated with new information and video.