Going Deep with The Nats

Where have the bats gone? Photo by Andrew Lang for TalkNats

For weeks this team has been out of balance; starting pitching, the offense, and the bullpen have rarely been clicking together. Yesterday, the Nationals got 5 2/3 innings from spot starter Austin Voth, and he departed with a 1-0 lead. In the final 3 1/3 innings, the bullpen gave up 10-runs, and the Nationals never scored any more runs. In this series, the Nats scored all of one run in the first two games against the Braves in their final games of the 2019 regular season. The Braves have already punched their ticket to the postseason while the Nats are clinging to their diminished lead in the Wild Card race.  Continue reading →

Photo by Marlene Koenig for TalkNats

This is one of those games that the Washington Nationals find themselves as underdogs on the betting lines, and it is understandable as the Nats have the inexperienced Austin Voth starting today. Last night the Braves clinched the season series 10-7. There was a point where it looked like the Nats had the Braves number. The Nats took the first three games in their head-to-head matchups, and since that point, the Braves have dominated. Continue reading →

From @Nationals Instagram

Five days ago, Max Scherzer beat the Atlanta Braves, and he once again will face them and rookie Mike Soroka in the first of a three-game series which will be the last series they will meet in this regular season. In the last game, Scherzer played the role of the stopper, and today he plays a much better role of being the pitcher to continue the winning ways into a 3-game winning streak. Fortunately for the Nats’ Cy Young hurler, he flew ahead of the team yesterday afternoon as his teammates did not land until 5:01 AM at Dulles Airport. The Nats have shown resilience in the past like their weekend in Chicago that they can still get the job done with sleep deprivation.  Continue reading →

Photo by Andrew Lang for TalkNats

Tonight’s weather could cooperate like last night or Mother Nature could throw a curveball  on a night where the Twins scheduled a late night game on a “getaway” date. In the last hour, the forecast looks better than it did earlier. If the game was postponed, neither team has an opening in their schedule until the first day after the season ends so MLB has the decision-making on this one as to the weather, and a postponed game would only be made up if needed for postseason implications. Again, the hope is that they can get the game started on-time.  If not, it will be a very long night travelling for our Washington Nationals. In fact, D.C.’s weather forecast for Friday is somewhat dicey as the Nats will face the Braves, again. After tonight, the Nats only have five remaining series against the Braves, Cardinals, Marlins, Phillies, and Indians. Tonight’s game will also determine the winner of this series. Continue reading →

Photo by Lynn G for TalkNats

Every win that Stephen Strasburg tallies is another for the Washington Nationals as well as a new high in his illustrious career. He is tied for the lead in the NL with 16 wins with Max Fried, and with a win tonight, Stras would be the leader in wins at 17 plus he would lead the NL in innings pitched ahead of Madison Bumgarner, Aaron Nola, Jacob deGrom, and his teammate Patrick Corbin.  While innings pitched is not an awards category, it does show a lot about the pitcher as an iron man, and once Strasburg throws his 56th pitch tonight, he will take the NL lead in pitches thrown too. Stras is coming off of a season high 115-pitches thrown six days ago in his start on Thursday against the Braves.  Continue reading →