Since the Nats brutal west coast trip, the team has played very well to close out the season. They are 8-3 since that 7 game losing streak and got another series win this afternoon. The Nats bullpen game strategy worked like a charm and the bats picked things up in the middle innings. On the season, the Nats now have 75 wins, a milestone that felt unlikely before the year.
The beginning of this game was quite uneventful. It felt like the last getaway day of the season. Framber Valdez was carving up the Nats lineup early in this contest. Valdez was actually perfect through 3.2 innings before allowing a single to Brady House.
While the Nats bats were cold, the pitching kept them in the game. Richard Lovelady was the opener, giving the Nats four outs. After that Brad Lord replaced him and delivered 3.1 scoreless innings. This was the sharpest Lord has looked in a while.
In the 4th and 5th innings, the Nats bats were starting to wake up. Valdez’s command wavering and there was more traffic on the bases. However, they were unable to turn that traffic into runs. Things changed in the 6th inning though.
Andres Chaparro and Brady House both singled to start the inning. That brought up CJ Abrams, who has been red hot lately. Abrams delivered his 103rd RBI of the season on a single over the first baseman’s head. However, he got caught between first and second due to not being on the same page with Brady House.
After a really rough 6 week stretch, Abrams has really come alive lately. In his last 10 games, Abrams is hitting .308 with a .998 OPS. It is awesome to see Abrams end a tremendous season on a positive note. Even with the poor 6 week run, Abrams has an .800 OPS since the All-Star Break. This has been an outstanding season for Abrams and hopefully it is not his last in DC.
When Abrams got caught on the bases and Dylan Crews flew out, it looked like the chance for a big inning had gone. However, Yohandy Morales had other ideas. The Nats rookie hit a mammoth home run to left center to give the good guys a 3-0 lead. Comerica Park is a big stadium, so to see him leave the yard to left center was very impressive.
Morales has looked like the real deal since being called up. He is hitting .279 with a .930 OPS in 15 games. Morales still has his flaws, he is whiffing quite a bit and still has not walked as a big leaguer. However, he is showing that his consistent hard contact translates to the big league level. He has made a real statement since his overdue call up in early September.
As you know if you have watched the Nats, a 3 run lead is not secure by any means. The Tigers showed that right away with a leadoff homer in the bottom of the 6th. Outside of that homer, Will Dion did a nice job in relief.
Nasim Nunez singled and then used his legs to help manufacture a run in the 7th. Nunez actually set the single season record for stolen bases by a National. We know Nunez’s limitations with the bat, but he could still have value in a much more limited role.
In the 8th, things got a little sketchy. Erik Tolman came in for his 4th appearance in 5 days. The lefty did not look sharp, with his velo down and his command shaky. Tolman got two outs but walked two batters. Yovanny Cruz had to come in the game to clean up his mess.
Cruz went back out for the 9th inning and things got very scary. The hard throwing righty gave up three hits in the inning and brought the winning runner to the plate. Riley Greene had a chance to give the Tigers a walk off win. Cruz buckled down and got that final out to give the Nats a 4-2 win. The Nationals now have 75 wins on the season, a very impressive number for a year without much expectations.
For Cruz, I am more willing to see him get beat by singles compared to walks and homers. He showed good mental fortitude to keep firing strikes and it eventually paid off. After a day off tomorrow, the Nats finish the season with one final home series against the Mets. Let’s finish strong and stay out of last place!
