Nats Blown Out Again 12-6

Well, that little bit of momentum the Nationals thought they had after a three-game sweep of the Reds has come to a screeching halt with their second straight loss to the visiting Chicago Cubs.

The Nationals actually started off the scoring in the bottom of the 2nd. Harry Ford singled to right and was followed by another single off the bat of Andrew Pinckney. Jacob Young hit into a force out that moved the runners up a base. Daylen Lile then ran out an infield single scoring Ford. 1-0 Nats.

It took the Cubs a while to get started, scoring their first runs in the top of the 5th. Pedro Ramirez singled to left and Dansby Swanson walked. Pete Crow-Armstrong then doubled to right, scoring Ramirez. Alex Brengman then hit a 3-run homer to center, his 14th, scoring Crow-Armstrong and Swanson. 4-1 Cubbies.

Jackson Kent started for the Nationals, lasting 4 innings while giving up 3 runs on 3 hits with 5 walks and 6 strike outs. This was Kent’s Major League debut, having just been called up from the minors after veteran pitcher Miles Mikolas was designated for assignment. Nice job, Jackson.

The Nationals managed to tie it up in the bottom of the 5th. Andrews Chaparro walked to lead off the inning. Chaparro was forced out at 2nd by Brady House, who took his place at 1st base.

House then stole 2nd and scored on a double off the bat of Harry Ford. Andrew Pinckney walked and went to 2nd on a single by Jacob Young. Harry Ford standing on 3rd. Daylen Lile then singled to center, scoring Ford and Pinckney. 4-4 tie.

David Peterson started for the Cubs, going 5 innings while giving up 3 runs on 9 hits with 3 walks and 6 strikeouts. He now has a record of 7 wins and 7 losses with a 5.35 ERA.

Chicago blew it open in the top of the 6th. Ian Happ singled to left. Pedro Ramirez reached on an error. Dansby Swanson followed with a double to left field, scoring Happ. Seiya Suzuki later singled to center scoring Swanson and Ramirez. Alex Bregman followed with a 2-run homer, his 2nd of the game and 15th overall. 9-4 Cubs.

The Nationals got one back in the bottom of the 6th off a home run to right field courtesy of Abimelec Ortiz, his 3rd. 9-5 Cubbies.

Chicago piled it on in the top of the 8th. Dansby Swanson led off the inning with his 18th home run to center field. Seiya Suzuki later singled to center and scored on another 2-run

homer off the bat of Alex Bregman. That was his third dinger of the night and 16th of the season. 12-5 Cubs.

The Nats tried to stage a comeback in the bottom of the 9th. With 2 outs, Jose Tena hit his 6th homer of the year to center field. But that’s all they could muster. Final score 12-6 Chicago.

Alex Bergman had a night to remember for the Cubs. He hit three home runs, walked twice, and ended up with seven RBIs. Nice game, Alex. Oh, and he hit his home runs off three different Washington relief pitchers.

Well, that drops the Nationals another game under .500 with a record of 59 wins and 63 losses. The Cubs are now sitting at 71 wins and 50 losses. They’re 8 and 2 in their last 10 games and are only three games behind the National League Central Division leading Milwaukee Brewers.

The final game of the series is tomorrow afternoon at 4:05 ET.

Dave’s Dime…The Season So Far.

(All these stats were researched before today’s games.)

The Washington Nationals have played a total of 121 games this season with 41 left on the schedule. They have 59 victories and 62 losses. They sit 13 ½ games behind the Atlanta Braves in the National League East and are currently 4 ½ games out of the third and final Wild Card Spot.

Let’s look at some team statistics to try and figure out how they got to where they are today.

As far as offense is concerned:

The Nationals are sixth in the Major Leagues with a .252 batting average. The Dodgers lead with a .261, and Seattle trails everyone else with a team average of .228.

Washington leads all of baseball with 174 home runs. The Yankees are second with 167 and Milwaukee trails the pack with 110. However, as of this writing, the Brewers have the best record in the Major Leagues. Hmm…?

The Nationals also lead the Major Leagues in RBIs with 620. The Chicago Cubs are second with 585. The Mariners trail all the rest with 447.

Washington is third in the Majors as far as hits are concerned with 1,045. The Pittsburgh Pirates lead with 1,068. The Cincinnati Reds trail the pack with 897.

Washington also leads the Major Leagues in stolen bases with 130. The Miami Marlins are second with 125. The Detroit Tigers trail the rest with only 35. That’s a slow team.

Now, let’s look at some pitching statistics:

The Yankees lead the Majors as far as team ERA is concerned with a 3.28 average. Washington is 27th with a 4.22. The Athletics trail the rest with a bloated 5.49.

Tampa Bay relievers lead the Majors in saves with 48. The Toronto Blue Jays are second with 40. Washington is surprisingly tied for 12th with 33. The Angels are way behind with 17.

Philadelphia pitchers lead the Major Leagues with 15 shutouts. Detroit is second with 13. The Nationals are tied for 27th with 3. The Rockies have 1. I’m actually surprised they have that many.

The team with the highest total strikeouts by their pitchers is the Philadelphia Phillies with 1,187. The Brewers are second with 1,169. Washington is 26th with a total of 1,077. Arizona trails them all with 1,028.

Leading the Major Leagues with the least hits allowed are the Los Angles Dodgers with 858. Second are the Brewers with 874. The Nationals are 28th, surrendering 1,077 hits. And Colorado brings up the rear with 1,207. No surprise there.

The Dodgers have the most quality starts with 62. In second place are the Mariners with 54. Washington is 27th with 27, and the Rockies are riding the caboose with 20.

For those of you who may have forgotten, a Quality Start is awarded to a starting pitcher who throws at least six complete innings while giving up three or fewer earned runs.

Now a fielding stat or two for you:

Fielding Percentage is calculated by using this “simple” formula: (Putouts + Assists) divided by (Putouts + Assists + Errors).

The team leader in Fielding Percentage is the Chicago Cubs with a .990. The Nationals are dead last with a .980.

The Cubs are tied with the Diamondbacks for the fewest team errors with 44. Washington again brings up the rear with 88.

So, let’s put all this together, using the Nationals as an example.

The Washington Nationals lead the Major Leagues in home runs, RBIs, and stolen bases.

The Nationals are 27th in team ERA, 26th in pitcher strikeouts, 27th in Quality Starts, 27th in team shutouts, and 28th in hits allowed.

And, as far as Fielding Percentage is concerned, the Washington Nationals are dead last. And I imagine being the team with the most errors this season now makes sense.

So, what do all these statistics tell us?

It may be exciting for the fans to see their team smack home runs, drive in base runners, and steal those bags; but if you don’t have the pitching and you can’t field the ball, you’re not going to be around come playoff time.

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