Going Deep with The Nats

The Washington Nationals won this game by a final score of 7-6, but it should have been a blow-out win. Starting pitcher Erick Fedde went 6.0 innings only giving up 2-runs and departed with a 6-2 lead which almost fully evaporated in the bullpen. Fortunately Trea Turner‘s 3-run home run and RBI single in the 7th inning made the difference in the end. The first batter of the game ambushed Fedde on the first pitch of the game for an oppo home run, and Fedde settled down after that with some help of his defense. It also helped that he had a lead to work with after Matt Adams hit a 2-run home in the first inning. Continue reading →

The Nats won this game that on paper looked like a “lock” for a Mets win with Jacob deGrom on the mound facing Anibal Sanchez. While deGrom gave up no earned runs, he exited in a 3-3 tie after the 5th inning due to three unearned runs, and the Nationals pounced on the Mets bullpen giving Sean Doolittle a 3-run lead to work with after a Victor Robles 2-run home run in the spot once occupied by Juan Soto who exited with a sprained ankle. It was Asdrubal Cabrera, the former Mets infielder, who knocked in 2-runs for the game winning RBI in this 7-4 win. Continue reading →

Fernando Rodney (Photo by Tom Cicotello @42skidoo for TalkNats)

It was déjà vu all over again with another bullpen blown save and loss.  Tonight’s blown save came in the 8th inning as Fernando Rodney gave up a leadoff home run to the light hitting Luis Guillorme who had not hit a home run this year, and that tater blew the 3-2 Nats lead then the Mets scored the winning run on a sacrifice fly. Juan Soto had two home runs and all three of the Nats’ RBIs which were a consolation prize in another devastating loss.   Continue reading →

Photo from Getty Images

The Nationals lengthened their lead in the top of the 9th inning for closer Sean Doolittle to a 3-run cushion to work with to face the 5-6-7 batters in the Mets order, and he gave up a double, single, and a 3-run home run to blow the save in a combined total of just 9 pitches. It literally happened that fast and before Doolittle could even record an out. The Mets crowd went wild, and the game was not even won at that point.

After that, Doolittle’s job turned to salvage mode where he just needed to maintain a tie game to get his offense another chance. But that became a difficult task also.  With two outs and two runners on-base via singles, Doolittle then gave up a walk-off single to lose the game. This should have been an easy save after Stephen Strasburg gutted through 7.0 innings while never allowing the Mets to take a lead, and Daniel Hudson got the hold with a scoreless 8th inning while facing the top of the Mets order and their biggest slugger Pete Alonso. So many of the Nats players contributed to what could have and should have been a Nats win.

There are few ways to explain what happened here besides some very poor pitches. The 3-run home run to blow the save came off of the bat of Todd Frazier in the 9th inning on a pitch that could not have been more center-cut, and Frazier bat flipped on Doolittle as if the wound was not sliced deep enough. The crazy part was that Frazier did not win the game and just tied the game, and the Nats could rally back if Doolittle could hold the tie at 6-6, but he could not even do that. Continue reading →

Photo by Kevin Nibley for TalkNats

When everyone wondered if Joe Ross was going to be able to throw as well as he did in Arizona, he actually did better with a 6.0 inning 3-hit shutout and 5 strikeouts. If Asdrubal Cabrera snagged a low liner, Ross probably gets through that outing with no stress. All of the offense the Nats needed was the oppo 3-run home run by Gerardo Parra against the team that DFA’d him in May. That is what is known as poetic justice. The Nats offense only had nine hits in the game, and five of those came from the table-setters of Trea Turner and Adam Eaton. The other big blast of the game came from pinch-hitter Andrew Stevenson who almost hit a home run in centerfield but settled for a double. Stevo has some impressive numbers in San Francisco. The Nats bullpen held the Giants to one run in three innings while resting Sean Doolittle and Fernando Rodney in this 4-1 game.  Continue reading →