While most Washingtonians were watching the Washington Commanders victory over the Giants, the Nationals decided to put together a thrilling win of their own. It was a pitchers duel for most of the afternoon, but the Cubs looked like they had the upper hand. However, a ferocious 9th inning rally by the Nats gave them the victory.
In his second career start, Andrew Alvarez was solid but did not reach the thrilling heights of his debut. He did a good
job limiting the damage, but Alvarez was inefficient. Alvarez only lasted 4.2 innings while throwing 87 pitches. He was erratic, allowing three walks, but limited the damage.
In the second inning, the Cubs opened the scoring, with Alvarez allowing a solo homer to catcher Carson Kelly. That would be the only run of the first four innings, but the Nats would get going in the 5th.
Daylen Lile and Luis Garcia Jr. have been two of the hotter hitters in the Nationals lineup lately. They combined to get a rally started in the 5th. Lile got a base hit and then Garcia hit a weird ground rule double that got caught in the ivy. Brady House would drive in Lile with a sac fly. However, the Nats could not capitalize further as Dylan Crews struck out to end the inning.
In the bottom of the frame Alvarez got himself in some trouble. After the Nats got an out with a play at the plate, the rookie’s day was done. Miguel Cairo turned to Clayton Beeter, who promptly gave up a single to give the Cubs the lead.
However, Beeter would get out of that inning and overwhelm Cubs hitters in the 6th. Beeter has been very good since coming over from the Yankees, posting a 2.40 ERA in 16 outings in DC.
However, the offense was stuck in the mud. The combination of Drew Pomeranz, Colin Rea, Caleb Thielbar and Brad Keller gave Nats hitters fits. After another Carson Kelly homer in the bottom of the 8th, all hope seemed lost.
The scrappy Nats had other plans. With Cubs closer Daniel Palencia in the game, the Nats made something happen quickly. Robert Hassell started the inning by stroking a home run to left center to make it a one run lead. It was very nice to see Hassell show life with the bat.
Now the top of the order was up and the Nats had hope. After an infield single by CJ Abrams and a walk by James Wood the boys were in business. Then Miguel Cairo made a change that won the Nats the game.
He pinch hit Josh Bell for Riley Adams. While Bell has been cold lately, Cairo trusted his big slugger to make something happen. Bell did just that on the first pitch of the at bat. He drove a fly ball that seemed to hang up in the air for an eternity. Eventually, it dropped into the seats for a 3-run home run. It gave the Nats a two run lead and the Wrigley crowd was stunned.
The Nats weren’t done either. Triples master Daylen Lile struck again, hitting a ball down the right field line for his 8th three bagger of the year. Brady House would drive him in with another sac fly to make it 6-3.
Despite allowing a couple base runners, Jose A. Ferrer shut the door and the Nats got the win. They snapped an 81 game losing streak when down by 2 or more runs after the 8th inning.
This was truly a stunning win and one of the more fun victories of the season. With football season underway, not many people were tuned into this one, but boy was it a thriller.
