Nats Chat

The Nats staged a thrilling win on July 4th in D.C. as Jesse Winker's pinch-hit Solo homer lifted the home team to a 1-0 triumph over the Mets. Mark & Al marvel at Jake Irvin's best start yet as he tossed eight shutout innings and point out that he seems to be rounding into the form of an "Ace". The only blemishes on Irvin's day was the walk he issued in the 2nd and the single he allowed in the top of the 3rd. Irving ended the dominant outing by retiring 17 straight New York hitters.

(14:00) Derek Law was the only reliever needed as he threw a clean top of the 9th to earn the save. Law had a dramatic entrance into the game as he rode the bullpen cart while holding an American flag.

(17:00) The game was scoreless until Winker's home run in the bottom of the 8th. Winker came into to replace Harold Ramirez, who was 0 for 3 as Thursday's DH.

(25:00) Joey Meneses hit cleanup in the game and then afterwards was optioned to AAA-Rochester. Meneses has been with the Nationals ever since Juan Soto was traded in early August 2022. Meneses' OPS this season is just .597 and is far lower than last year when it ended at .722. What is next for the 32-year-old right handed hitter?

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The Nats overcame a 5-0 deficit to beat the Mets 7-5 on Wednesday evening to end their three game skid. Al & Tim begin with Luis Garcia Jr., who slugged a pair of homers in the victory. Garcia hit a 3 run HR in the bottom of the 6th and then added insurance in the bottom of the 8th with a Solo shot. He has nine homers so far this season, already equaling his career high.

(07:00) James Wood's first career RBI put the Nationals ahead for good in the bottom of the 7th. He immediately followed it up with a stolen base.

(15:00) Riley Adams is back in D.C. and fellow catcher Drew Millas was optioned back to Rochester. This comes after the two swapped roster spots a month ago and Adams was expected to work at 1B while in AAA.

(21:00) Mitchell Parker gave up the most runs of any outing so far and a trio of homers in the process, but did make through six innings.

(25:00) Hunter Harvey pitched for the third straight day and recorded a crucial strikeout of J.D. Martinez to preserve the lead. Kyle Finnegan took over in the 9th and notched his 23rd save of the season, the second most in the NL.

(35:00) The Nats will continue their July 4th tradition on Thursday by hosting an 11:05AM game. Jake Irvin will take the mound as Washington looks for the series split.

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Tuesday night ended eerily similar to Monday as the Mets offense teed off against the Nats bullpen in the top of the 10th. Mark & Al meet after the 7-2 loss to discuss New York scoring five runs off of Robert Garcia in extra innings. Hunter Harvey struggled again as he allowed the tying run in the top of the 8th.

(16:00) DJ Herz had a solid outing as he had ten strikeouts and didn't issue any walks. Herz has made six starts since being called up and two of them have reached the double digit strikeout plateau.

(21:00) James Wood went 0 for 3 and drew a walk in his second game with Washington. Wood was caught stealing at a costly time in the bottom of the 9th when the game was tied. Wood only so far has faced lefties and that will change on Wednesday evening (Christian Scott).

(27:00) CJ Abrams was picked off for the 9th time this season.

(30:00) Josiah Gray's rehab has been shut down due to elbow discomfort and is expected to have a new MRI this month. Gray has been on the IL since early April and has only made a pair of starts this season. Hear Mark explain why "the red flags are all over the place" in terms of Gray potentially having to get surgery.

(33:00) Cade Cavalli has been sick with the flu and that is why his rehab has also been put on pause.

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James Wood made his much anticipated debut on Monday night as the Nats lost to the Mets 9-7 in ten innings in D.C.. Mark & Al start with Wood who singled, reached on an error, and drew a walk in the affair. Wood was slotted sixth in the lineup and played in LF in his first MLB game.

(14:30) The offense totaled 11 hits and almost staged a major comeback in the bottom of the 10th. Following the six run Mets 10th, the Nationals scored four runs and had the go ahead run at the plate.

(20:00) It was not a good night for the bullpen, but an especially bad appearance for Hunter Harvey as he gave up five runs in the top of the 10th. Harvey's ERA is now 4.24, much worse than when it was 2.68 on June 19th. The hosts express concern with Harvey's recent performance this summer.

(28:00) MacKenzie Gore brought a shutout into the 6th and struck out eight Mets. Gore was lifted in that frame because of a very high pitch count and Al puts in perspective just how much of a continued issue that stat is for the lefty.

(31:00) A discussion on the attendance figure of 26,719.

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The Nats were blanked 5-0 on Sunday afternoon to drop the series in Tampa Bay. Mark (From Tropicana Field) & Al look ahead to Monday as James Wood will make his much anticipated MLB debut in D.C. vs. the Mets. Where will he hit in the lineup?

(12:00) The offense only came through with three hits and combined for 16 strike outs on Sunday. Joey Meneses was the main culprit as he struck out in all four at bats and his OPS entering July is .597.

(15:00) Patrick Corbin gave up a pair of homers and four runs in the loss. Meanwhile, Josiah Gray struggled in AAA-Rochester as he allowed seven runs in just three innings. This means that Gray will make at least one more start in the minors before returning to Washington.

(25:00) The Nationals begin an eight game home stand on Monday after going 3-6 in the three city road trip. The final game before the All Star Break is on Sunday July 14th.

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The Nats routed the Rays 8-1 on Saturday afternoon to snap their four game losing streak. Mark (From Tropicana Field) & Al convene after Jake Irvin bolstered his All-Star credentials by only allowing one hit in six innings of work. Irvin made six starts in June and gave up more than two runs in only one of those outings.

(10:00) Despite the big lead, both Hunter Harvey and Kyle Finnegan threw an inning on Saturday. The hosts note this as the team will not have an off-day until the All Star Break begins on July 15th.

(13:30) The offense collected thirteen hits and broke the game open with a six run top of the 7th. CJ Abrams homered and Al points out that his June is even better than his scorching April. Luis Garcia had a trio of hits and reached base four times in the victory.

(25:00) Josiah Gray is pitching in Rochester on Sunday as opposed to rejoining the Nationals. Why does he need at least one more outing in the minors?

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The Nats lost 3-1 at the Rays on Friday night, but the main news of the day came in the afternoon. Mark (From Tropicana Field) & Al begin with the reports that James Wood will be promoted from AAA and will join the Nationals on Monday when they host the Mets. Wood played Friday night for Rochester and the hosts wonder if he should still be in the lineup in the minors this weekend.

(09:00) Jesse Winker made a fantastic diving catch in the 1st inning but afterwards left the game. He is expected to be OK, but this came after most people have eyed Eddie Rosario as the player that most likely will have his roster spot taken by Wood. Rosario has an OPS of .555 so far this season and his batting average is .183.

(17:00) Jacob Young had a busy Friday night as he doubled twice, stole a base, scored the lone run, committed an error, and made a base running blunder. It seems the plan is for Young to stay in CF with Wood in LF next week.

(24:00) CJ Abrams yet again was picked off and it leads to wonder how much criticism should be levied at Gerardo Parra, first base coach, for this continued problem.

(28:30) Mitchell Parker had an so-so start as he allowed six hits and two runs in five innings of work. Jordan Weems pitched a scoreless bottom of the 8th and has not given up a run in five of his past six appearances.

(35:00) We close with a look at 3B Brady House who is currently in AA-Harrisburg. Where does he fit into the organization's plans?

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The Nats lost 8-5 in San Diego on Wednesday afternoon completing a three game sweep. Al & Tim discuss how this series was a humbling one for Washington as they now are four games below .500 in the standings. All the runs they scored came in the top of the 9th against the back end of the Padres bullpen.

(6:00) Lane Thomas doubled in the game and continued his stretch of consistently getting on base in the month of June. Al notes that there is a potential decision for the team to make next month on Thomas ahead of the trade deadline.

(15:00) DJ Herz was lifted in the bottom of the 4th after the lefty allowed six hits and four runs. Herz has made five starts this month and will likely stay in the rotation because Josiah Gray will make at least one more start in AAA.

(24:00) Tanner Rainey gave up a grand slam in the bottom of the 8th to make it an eight run deficit. This was the first instance of Rainey pitching on consecutive days for the Nats since April 20th.

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The Nats lost 9-7 in San Diego on Tuesday night in a game that saw the benches clear in the bottom of the 1st inning. Al & Tim examine the circumstances that led to Keibert Ruiz and Jurickson Profar getting into each other faces before Profar's at bat. MacKenzie Gore then hit Profar with a pitch, but was not ejected from the game.

(14:00) Gore only lasted five innings and allowed five runs in the outing. Gore has not had a stellar June as in three of five starts this month he has given up at least four runs.

(18:00) Profar hit a grand slam in the bottom of the 6th when facing Derek Law to extend the Padres lead to 9-4. Law inherited all the runners from Dylan Floro, who struggled in less than an inning of work. The back end of the 'pen did pitch well in the final few frames (Jordan Weems & Tanner Rainey).

(21:00) CJ Abrams had three hits and reached base five times, but inexplicably made two outs while on base.

(28:00) Josiah Gray thew six innings for AAA-Rochester and only allowed one run. It is unclear if Gray's next start will come in the minors or with Washington.

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The Nats lost 7-6 on Monday night in San Diego after Hunter Harvey allowed four runs in the bottom of the 10th. Al & Tim start with Harvey's blown save as he could not hold onto the 6-3 lead that he inherited. A win would have put Washington at .500 on the season, but they instead fall to 38-40.

(08:00) The Nationals had five extra base hits, four doubles and Nick Senzel's 2 run HR in the top of the 10th. CJ Abrams and Joey Meneses each had a trio of hits and prior to extras Meneses drove in all the team's runs.

(15:00) Patrick Corbin overcame a tough 2nd inning to last seven innings on Monday. It is performances like this one that complicate the situation in the rotation once Josiah Gray returns. Who wins out between Corbin and DJ Herz?

(23:00) Harold Ramirez, recently picked up from waivers, is now on the major league roster and Trey Lipscomb was sent back to AAA. Lipscomb has now been optioned to Rochester three times this season.

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