The Home for Washington Nationals Game Talk

The Nats won 3-out-of-the-4 game series, and drop this finale in extra innings 7-6. The Nationals committed five errors, and the last one cost the Nationals the lead as it turned out.

Gio Gonzalez had a few rough patches in his appearance today and only made it to 5 2/3 innings putting stress on the bullpen as Yusmeiro Petit relieved Gonzalez who finished with giving up 4 runs (3 earned) and left the game with a 6-4 lead. The Nationals couldn’t add-on any runs after the 6th inning. Petit exited the game with a 6-5 lead and bases loaded and no outs and Blake Treinen threw 1 pitch and got a doubleplay allowing the tying run to score.

As the game went into extra innings, with Jace Peterson up with 2 outs and a 3-2 count he smoked a line drive into the rightfield bleachers for the game winning walk-off home run.

Bryce Harper was the offensive star for the Nationals as he hit a three-run home run and had two hits on the day. Chris Heisey also had a home run and two hits on the day.

The Nats 1-3 hitters today were Turner, Espinosa, and Murphy and they combined for 0-12 with 2 walks and a HBP.

The team now heads back to Washington, D.C. for their short road trip for a 2 game series in Baltimore.

If you knew that the Nats scored 11 runs tonight with Max Scherzer on the mound, you are thinking ‘laugher’. Scherzer went 6 1/3 innings and left with a runner on base with a 9-3 lead. Blake Treinen relieved Scherzer and allowed the inherited runner to score. The defense failed Matt Belisle once again to where he gave up 2 runs (0 earned), and Dusty would need 5 relievers on the evening as only Shawn Kelley had a clean frame tonight.

Koda Glover came in for the 9th in a non-save situation and quickly gave up 1 run and left 2 runners in scoring position and Dusty went to Mark Melancon to get the final out of the game in a Save situation. The first batter Melancon faced hit a single with 2 outs to score 2 runs and make the score 11-9. That closed the book on Koda Glover who was charged with 3 runs on his statline. Melancon got the next batter to pop-up for the final out for his 6th save (36th overall) as a Nat, and a 11-9 win.

The Nationals offense had 9 hits and 8 runs scored in the 4th inning for the most productive inning in Nats history. The add-on runs were needed to keep that final margin at 11-9 win in a 17 hit assault with 3 walks in this game. Continue reading →

We got to witness two of the most incredible defensive plays of the season tonight to debate in Nationals history with the greatest plays ever with Roger Bernadina’s 9th inning catch in Houston and Steven Souza’s catch to save Jordan Zimmermann’s no-hitter. Ben Revere robbed a HR tonight going above the wall to take away a Freddie Freeman HR, and Trea Turner went ‘Jeter jump throw’ to rob a hit as he ranged far beyond 2nd base on the outfield grass with his momentum taking him towards leftfield. Revere also made that ‘Willie Mays’ catch earlier this month and a play against the wall in Nats Park at the Red Porch seats as part of his highlight reel.

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Clint Robinson came through in the top of the 9th with the game winning RBI single, and Mark Melancon saved (number 5) the game for a 7-6 win. Continue reading →

The Nationals had a 1:15 minute rain delay tonight, but that did not affect Reynaldo Lopez who struck out 11 batters in his outing tonight where he went 7 innings with only 1 earned run tonight on his way to earn his 2nd big league win.

The Nationals clung to a 3-2 lead until the top of the 8th innings where they exploded for 5 runs that began with a swinging bunt single and followed by walks, HBP, and a single.

Jayson Werth continued his on-base streak with his 46th consecutive game, and tonight it came on 2 hits.

The Nats accumulated only 6 hits tonight to go with 7 walks and a HBP.

With this win the Nationals widened their lead in the NL East to 9 1/2 games over the Marlins.