The Nats outlasted the 1st place Dodgers in extra innings for a 7-6 victory on Saturday afternoon following a 4+ hour rain delay. Mark & Al wonder if Jake Irvin is sneakily the best story of the franchise's season after he threw another solid outing on the mound. His ERA is at 4.20; which is a far improvement from when he last faced LA in late May (5.67 ERA).
(13:40) Lane Thomas returned after sitting out all week due to an ailing back and homered for the fourth consecutive game that he's played in. Thomas now has 24 HRs, which is by far the most on the team (Ruiz in 2nd place with 16 HRs).
(19:45) Lost in the shuffle of all the organizational news this week was that Luis Garcia returned to Washington after spending August in AAA. Garcia on Saturday came through with a RBI single his 2nd game back from Rochester.
(32:00) MacKenzie Gore's season was effectively ended this weekend as he was placed on the IL due to blisters. His best month of the year came in April when he allowed more than a pair of runs on only one occasion.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Game 142: Chavis Scores on Wild Pitch to End Marathon Day

A Washington Nationals podcast offering recap and analysis after every game, plus all the breaking news throughout the year. Hosted by Mark Zuckerman of MASNsports.com & Al Galdi, host of "The Al Galdi Podcast". For sponsorship opportunities, contact Tim Shovers at natschatpodcast@gmail.com.

Sports

Baseball

The Nats lost 3-2 on Saturday afternoon in Cleveland for their second straight defeat. Mark (From Ohio) and Al have plenty of sloppy Washington play to sort through, both defensively and on the bases. All of the Guardian runs came in quirky ways when facing Mitchell Parker, including Jose Ramirez scoring from second base on a wild pitch.
(14:00) This season has had plenty of instances of poor base running by the Nationals and Saturday was no different. There was a miscommunication involving the third base coach (Ricky Gutierrez) and yet another player was picked off. The team has been collectively picked off seven times in the past nine games.
(20:00) Jacob Young was hit by a pitch in the third inning and a lot ensued from there. Hear the complicated explanation that led to a Davey Martinez ejection and Young being removed from the game due to swelling in his hand.
(32:00) CJ Abrams was a late scratch from the lineup and Mark explains the situation surrounding that.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Sloppy in a Bizarre Defeat

The weary traveling Nats lost 7-1 on Friday night in Cleveland. Mark (From Progressive Field) & Al open with the crummy logistics that preceded the Nationals for this series opener as they did not make it to their hotel room until 5 AM after flying in from Atlanta. Davey Martinez gave the team off from "BP" for additional rest.
(06:00) Washington only collected four hits and Luis Garcia Jr. had three of them. Garcia cooled off a bit at the plate in May as opposed to April (.253 vs. .311).
(10:00) Keibert Ruiz missed a tag on a play at the plate that brought in an early Guardians run. This leads to extended discussion on Ruiz's defense so far this season.
(15:30) Not a banner night for the bullpen as they allowed five runs in just two innings of work. The bulk of trouble belonged to Jacob Barnes and he was responsible for three runs while only recording one out. Why didn't Tanner Rainey pitch the bottom of the 8th when the game was out of reach?
(25:30) Patrick Corbin struck out five and allowed a pair of runs in six innings of work. Corbin continues the team's stretch of solid starting pitching.
(28:00) An update on where things stand with Victor Robles and his recent "DFA".
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Beaten in Cleveland

The Nats won 3-1 on Thursday night to take three out of four games this week in Atlanta. Al & Tim begin with what has become a familiar starting point for this podcast.... solid team pitching. Trevor Williams earned the victory as he lasted into the 6th and four relievers combined for a scoreless effort. The final six outs were recorded by the dynamic duo of Hunter Harvey & Kyle Finnegan.
(17:00) Joey Meneses had the hit of the night with a two run double in the top of the 3rd and came through with five hits during this series. Meneses is hitting .246 this month, which is much better than his April (.200).
(20:00) Jacob Young reached base multiple times and also stole his 17th base of the season. Young's speed created a lot of havoc on Thursday and led to a Braves throwing error.
(26:30) We read a pair of listener submitted email questions. Send us yours to natschatpodcast@gmail.com.
(33:00) As Josh Gibson's stats are very much in the sports news this week, we play a segment from our podcast's interview with Bob Kendrick in June of 2021 about Gibson. Kendrick is the President of the Negro Leagues Hall of Fame in Kansas City, MO.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

More Good Pitching Down South

The Nats beat the Braves 7-2 on Wednesday night to move to 25-29 on the season, putting them on pace for 75 victories this season. Mark & Al have another solid starting pitching performance to discuss as MacKenzie Gore earned the win and did not issue a walk along the way. Gore's ERA so far this season is 2.91 through 11 starts.
(14:00) The bullpen threw nearly four innings, but didn't need to use Kyle Finnegan. Hunter Harvey recorded four outs and pushed his WHIP down to 0.92.
(17:00) Lane Thomas had a big game as he hit a 3 run HR, doubled, singled, stole a pair of bases, and drew a walk.
(24:30) Joey Gallo was in the news on Wednesday and also had a bunt single in the top of the 8th. (https://www.tmz.com/2024/05/28/hayden-hopkins-expecting-child-mlb-player-joey-gallo-not-mark-davis/)
(28:30) Major League Baseball has officially elevated Negro League statistics and the legendary Josh Gibson now owns multiple major records in baseball history. Gibson played a portion of his career in Washington D.C. while with Homestead Grays.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Gore Strikes Out Ten in an Atlanta Win

Jake Irvin was excellent on Tuesday night in Atlanta, but the Nats were shutout 2-0. Mark & Al begin with Irvin who struck out a career high ten batters in six innings of work. This game continued a season long pattern of Irvin not getting a lot of support from his offense. Should he have returned to the mound for the 7th after he through 90 pitches?
(12:00) Max Fried was also superb as he tossed eight scoreless frames. The Nationals continued making costly outs on the bases, including CJ Abrams getting doubled off to stymie a 1st inning rally. Jesse Winker also was picked off and it seems to be a daily occurrence for the team.
(24:00) James Wood was placed on the 7-day IL due to right hamstring tightness. Wood has not played since he was lifted in the middle of Rochester's game on Thursday night. Will Wood make it to D.C. before the All Star Break?
(27:00) Victor Robles has not yet been claimed on waivers after being DFA'd by Washington on Monday. If someone else does pick him up, will it be in the minors?
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Game 142: Chavis Scores on Wild Pitch to End Marathon Day

Download our free app to listen on your phone