Nationals Break Losing Streak in Extra Innings

Game three tonight of a four-game series with the Phillies. Start time delayed about 20 minutes due to weather concerns.

Starting tonight for the Nationals was Jake Irwin who has a 2 win 5 loss record for the season with a 5.56 ERA.

Pitching for the Phillies tonight was Andrew Painter who is 1 and 8 for the year with a 6.72 ERA.

The Nationals started the scoring. CJ Abrams led off the top of the 1st by getting hit by a pitch. Abimelec Ortiz then singled to right, sending Abrams to 3rd base. Abrams then scored on a single courtesy of Keibert Ruiz. 1—0 Nationals.

Luis Arraez tied it up for the Phillies in the bottom of the 2nd with his 5th home run of the year and 1st since the trade with the Giants. Alec Bohm then singled to right. Bandon Marsh forced Bohm out at 2nd base. J.T. Realmuto also singled to right sending Marsh to 3rd. Bryson Stott then walked loading the bases. Marsh then scored off a sac fly from Justin Crawford. 2-1 Phillies.

Jake Irwin lasted 5 1/3 innings for the Nats, giving up 2 runs on 3 hits with 3 strike outs.

Andrew Painter went 4 innings for the Phillies surrendering only 1 run on 3 hits with 4 strike outs.

Both starters did quite well, considering their ERAs.

And that’s the way it stood until the top of the 7th. Pinch hitter Brady House connected for his 8th home run of the season. House was recalled from Triple A Rochester on July 26th after the Curtis Mead trade to the Red Sox. House has spent his year splitting time between the Red Wings and the Nationals, and can hopefully make the most out of this latest call up.

Jacob Young followed with a double to right field and scored off a single by CJ Abrams. 3-2 good guys!

Well, that lead didn’t last long as the Phillies came back in the bottom of the inning after Alec Bohm led this off with a walk and went to second on a single by Brandon Marsh. Bryson Stott singled to left scoring Bohm. Kyle Schwarber was later hit by a pitch loading the bases. But the Nats escaped when Trea Turner flied out to deep right field. Game tied 3-3.

And now we’re in extra innings…

Top of the 10th, Andrew Pinckney already on 2nd. Daylen Lile hit by a pitch. Andres Chaparro walked loading the bases. And then Nasim Nunez walked scoring Pinckney. 4-3 Nationals!

In the bottom of the 10th, Derek Hill, the runner placed on 2nd base to start the inning, promptly stole 3rd. He later scored on a sacrifice fly by Trea Turner. Game tied 4-4.

And then the top of the 11th happened. Brady House starting at 2nd base. Jacob Young walks. Then CJ Abrams tripled to center field scoring both Young and House. 6-4 Washington. Miles Mikolas then reached base on a sacrifice bunt, scoring Abrams. 7-4. Dylan Crews and Harry Ford both walk, loading the bases. Andres Chaparro doubled to left scoring Crews and Mikolas. Nasim Nunez then sent Ford home on a ground out. 10-4 Washington. Where has that half-inning been?

And the Phillies went down 1-2-3 in the bottom of the 11th. Game over.

A total of 16 pitchers were used in tonight’s game. Yes, that’s right…16! 9 by the Phillies and 7 by the Nationals. What a game! What a way to break a losing streak!

Game 4 in the series is tomorrow at 6:05 ET.

Dave’s Dime…Roster Moves

There have been quite a few players coming and going this week due to trades and injuries. I’m having a hard time keeping up!

Andrew Pinckney was called up yesterday from Triple A Rochester after James Wood went on the IL. Pinckney hit .271 with 13 home runs and 51 RBIs in 94 games this year with Rochester. He has some mad skills but needs to cut down on his strike outs, say the scouts. This is his first visit to the big time. Good luck, Andrew.

On Monday, the Nats brought up Yovanny Cruz, whom they acquired from the Yankees as part of the Luis Garcia Jr. trade. Cruz has a big arm and should be able to help out our relief staff.

Will Dion was called up to the Majors and Eddy Yean was sent down to Rochester following Monday’s game. Dion was part of the deal that sent Foster Griffin to Cleveland. Dion had a 4.58 ERA this year while pitching in 12 games for the Guardians. He had 25 strike outs in 19 2/3 innings. Not bad…

Also, just today Brad Lord returned from a 15-day stint on the injured list. Lord has a 5-2 record this year with a 3.88 ERA

Zach Littell was designated for assignment after starting yesterday’s game for the Nationals, giving up 4 runs on 7 hits in 6 2/3 innings. Littell went 7 and 8 for the year with a 4.97 ERA in 112 1/3 innings pitched. He was signed by the Nats this past March to a one-year-deal that guaranteed him $7 million. It’s too bad that didn’t work out. Hopefully, he’ll get another chance somewhere else.

Joey Wiemer was released from the organization. Weimar was claimed off waivers from the San Francisco Giants this past January. He got off to quite an auspicious start for the Nats, tying a Major League record for the most consecutive plate appearances (10) safely reaching base to start a season. His streak consisted of 2 home runs, 1 triple, 5 singles, and 2 walks. That record was first established back in 2002 by Carlos Delgado. He ended up making only 32 appearances for the Nats this year, batting .286 with 3 home runs and 12 RBIs. Joey is now a free agent and here’s hoping he’ll bounce back with another team.

A Little Baseball Trivia…

On August 5th, 1921, in Pittsburgh, the first-ever Major League Baseball radio broadcast filled the airwaves. It was on KDKA straight out of Pittsburgh, PA, and called by the one and only Harold Arlin.

On August 5th, 1922, Rogers Hornsby, from the St. Louis Cardinals, hit his 28th home run for the year, setting a new National League record for home runs in a season. The old record of 27 dingers for the year had stood since 1884!

On August 5th, 1936, Joltin’ Joe DiMaggio hit his 1st career grand slam for the Yankees in an 18-1 win over the White Sox. As true baseball fans already know, DiMaggio is best known for being one of Marilyn Monroe’s three husbands, and his 56-game hitting streak in 1941. His marriage lasted only 9 months, not much longer than his hitting streak, which went from May 15th to July 17th. That’s 2 months.

On August 5th, 1973, Phil Niekro pitched the first no-hitter in Atlanta Braves history while defeating the Padres 9-0. I think all his pitches were knuckleballs.

On August 5th, 2007, Tom Glavine won his 300th career game, becoming the 23rd pitcher to do so, and only the 5th left-hander to reach that milestone. Randy Johnson was the last pitcher to join this exclusive club in 2009. No pitcher has since reached that level. And considering the changes in how starters are used, with pitch counts, and five-man rotations, we may never see another 300-game winner. The closest right now is Justin

Verlander with 266 wins. But he’s retiring after this year with no chance to reach that elusive

number.

Retiring…something I’ll never accomplish as long as I’m married. LOL.

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