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The game started off with a bang and ended in a whimpering loss 5-4. The 4-0 lead that starting pitcher  Patrick Corbin was handed before he ever took the mound in the bottom of the first  inning evaporated quickly. Corbin was not sharp again. While he was only charged with 3 earned runs after a costly error, the five walks he surrendered killed him in this game. The lefty barely lasted 5.0 innings as he labored through a 101 pitch count as his fastball was not located most of the outing.

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Like an instant replay for Trea Turner!

The Nats blew the save but did not blow the game as Trea Turner sends 28,910 fans home happy on a walk-off 2-run blast! The Nats have their first 4-game winning streak of the season and have now won four consecutive series and nine of their last eleven games to get back to 5-games under .500. For Turner, he picked up his bullpen that blew a 3-run lead, and what should have been an Anibal Sanchez win. This was Trea Turner’s third career walk-off home run and his second of the season as he got the Nationals their first win of 2019.  In a bit of history, Turner is the first shortstop since 2006 to have two walk-off home runs in the season and last accomplished by Carlos Guillen. Turner is also the first player in MLB this season with two walk-off hits, and he has done this in just 21-full games, and in 19 of those games he has been swinging with only nine fingers wrapped around the bat. That was Turner’s first home run since returning from the IL. Continue reading →

Photo by Lynn G. for TalkNats

The Nationals were down by 5-runs and came back with 9 unanswered runs to win this for the team’s 8th win in their last 10 games. There were so many little things done right in this game like Yan Gomes blocking a curveball in the other batter’s box to save a run to Gomes throwing out a runner on the bases. Trea Turner started the 5th inning rally that put 6 runs across the plate from an 0-2 count he smashed a double into the gap and then tormented the White Sox pitcher Reynaldo Lopez who then walked Adam Eaton in a 3-2 count before giving up the game winning 3-run home run to Anthony Rendon who was the offensive star of the game. Stephen Strasburg earned his 100th career win because he never gave up in this game. Continue reading →

The Nationals won this series in Cincinnati making it three series wins in a row and 7-wins in the team’s last 9 games. Scherzer pushed the pedal to the metal and redlined to 120 pitches of which 84 were strikes. He was at 104 pitches in the 7th inning with a 4-1 lead, and his manager, Dave Martinez, sent him out for the 8th inning. Was there any question? When Scherzer was at 117 pitches, his manager came to the mound, and Martinez did not pull Scherzer who seemed very animated with a few choice words for his manager. Scherzer stayed and struck-out Joey Votto on 3-pitches to complete his outing on that 15th strikeout.

The question is whether it was necessary for Scherzer to push himself to that level? Sometimes you win the battle and lose the war, and we just saw that with Patrick Corbin who pitched a dud on Friday after a complete game shutout pushed him to 116 pitches in his previous outing. Scherzer is certainly known as a workhorse but he is also 35-years-old in July. Based on the regular season schedule,  Scherzer should make 19 more starts. He lowered his ERA to 3.06 on the season with this one-run game. Continue reading →