Since May 13, the Nationals have been winning series (for the most part). They tied a 4-game series with the Mets and got swept by the Marlins (discussed in last post). By far the ugliest event since then, however, was the collapse in San Francisco on June 10 when leading 9-1 after seven innings. I was listening from Greece and, since it was after midnight, I turned off the radio at that point. Imagine my surprise to see the 11-10 loss when I woke up.
“I told them this one should sting,” manager Blake Butera said, per MLB.com. “This will probably be our worst loss of the year. It’s one of the worst losses I’ve been a part of.” Could this be a season turning point like our 50-game record in 2019?
I think so.
The offense keeps romping. In yesterday’s 10-1 win over the Mariners, every Nationals player had at least one hit (Wood and Ruiz each had 3 and Young had 2). Everyone is contributing on offense. The team still leads all of MLB in runs scored. We also still lead the league in errors but with the offensive output the errors lately do not seem as costly.
The team is working on pitching improvement. Since May 19, when Brady House went down to AAA and Dylan Crews came back up, the Nationals have executed 27 roster transactions, all of them related to pitchers. Coach Butera seems to be learning how best to manage the starters and long relievers. Yesterday, PJ Poulin was the opener for one inning and then Mikolas pitched 7 scoreless innings in relief (tying a team record). That was not on my bingo card for mid-June.
I wonder if the owners will consider spending some money to attract better pitching at the trade deadline. I sure hope so; in my view this team is on the verge of making a playoff run.
Wasn’t it great to see Victor Robles back at Nats Park? He seemed very touched by the ovation he received during his first at bat.
I’ve just spent two relaxing weeks on the island of Paros, Greece. The Aegean Sea is beautiful and peaceful. Highly recommend it.
Let’s be the envy of sports! No doubt we will if we keep winning series.
#thenatslady #theswarm
Leave a Reply