Werth bobblehead doll strikes out as Nationals postpone promotion
The Washington Nationals held a wildly successful Jayson Werth Chia Pet night earlier this month. So it stands to reason that a similar promotion involving a bobblehead of the team's bearded outfielder would cause similar enthusiam.
Guess again.
From the @Nationals - a sneak peak at the Jayson Werth WalkOff Bobblehead - that giveaway is Sunday, 8/30. #nats pic.twitter.com/wl0qcLJOKl
— Alex Parker (@ParkerSports) August 20, 2015
The Nationals opted to postpone Sunday's scheduled giveaway of the Werth bobblehead for pretty much the same reason why the team is 5 1/2 games out of first place in the National League East: failed expectations. Washington issued a statement Friday explaining why the promotion was postponed until the offseason.
@benjaminsumner I've never been so scared of a bobblehead... And I've seen alot of bobbleheads
— Andy Wallace (@AWallace39) August 21, 2015
@clintonyates that thing is scary
— DEinDC (@DEinDC) August 21, 2015
@ParkerSports @CrazyGabey @Nationals That is terrifying.
— OhioUBobcats (@OhioUBobcats) August 28, 2015
Fan reaction likely played a huge part in Washington's decision to shelve the bobblehead. Alex Parker, the sports director at station WJLA in Washington, posted a sneak peek of the bobblehead on Twitter just over a week ago and it was met with considerably less fanfare than Werth's Chia Pet promotion on Aug. 5.
The idea behind the bobblehead was to commemorate Werth's walk-off home run in Game 4 of the NL Division Series against the St. Louis - possibly the high point of the team's first 10 years in Washington.
The Washington Nationals have issued the following statement on Sunday's bobblehead giveaway: pic.twitter.com/USUw4Axm6W
— Washington Nationals (@Nationals) August 28, 2015
While the Nationals diplomatically said they were not satisfied with the finished product, a columnist in the Washington Post went so far as to label the bobblehead as "obscene" and terrifying."
(h/t Washington Post)
