Nats Pitchers Shut Out Rockies 8-0

Game three with the Rockies this afternoon. Series tied one each. We need this one for a

winning road trip and to get back over .500.

Cade Cavalli starting today for Washington. He’s doing well this year with a 6-4 win-loss

record and a 3.78 ERA.

Gabriel Hughes goes for Colorado. He’s only pitched 14.1 innings for the Rockies this

season, with a 0-1 win-loss record and a 3.14 ERA. Hughes made his MLB debut on July 3rd

of this year.

It was a pitchers’ duel going into the top of the 5th

, when the Nationals finally broke through.

Jorbit Vivas led off the inning with a triple to right field. Two batters later he came home off

James Wood’s sacrifice fly to left. 1-0 Nationals.

Cade Cavalli pitched the first 6 innings for the Nationals, giving up 4 hits and striking out 8.

Gabriel Hughes had a good outing for the Rockies, pitching 5 innings and giving up only 1

run while striking out 5.

The Nationals broke it open in the top of the 7th

. Daylen Lile and Jorbit Vivas both drew

walks. Nasim Nunez singled to left field. Lile scored on the hit and Vivas scored on a

fielding error by Mickey Moniak. Later in the inning, Luis Garcia hit a home run, his 21st

, to center field, scoring Nunez. Then 3 consecutive singles by Jose Tena, CJ Abrams, and

Dylan Crews, plus throwing errors courtesy of Cole Carrigg and Brett Sullivan plated

Abrams and Tena. 7-0 good guys.

Washington added to the lead in the top of the 8th after Keibert Ruiz doubled to start off the

inning and later scored when Nasim Nunez singled to left. 8-0 Nats.

And that is all she wrote…a shutout by our Nationals’ pitching staff. Besides the great start

by Cavalli, Eddy Yean pitched 2 innings of shutout baseball and Max Kranick got the save by

pitching a scoreless 9th inning. The staff gave up 6 hits and struck out 10. Nice job!

Yean was just called up yesterday from Triple A Rochester Red Wings. He’s on his second

stint with the Nationals. Good job today, Eddy.

Kranick has fought through some major injuries during his MLB career. He signed a major

league contract with the Nats this past May. Keep up the good work, Max.

Washington takes the series from the Rockies 2 games to 1 and went 4 wins and 2 losses on their 6-game road trip. Not bad. They are once again above .500 with a record of 52 wins and 51 loses. Tomorrow, the Nats have a well-deserved day off and then open a 6-game home stand Friday against the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Dave’s Dime…

Third Wild Card Spot It is going to be a fun and tense and exciting race for the third Wild Card spot in the National League this year. And it’s not too early to start watching that scoreboard. Let’s see if you can keep up… With around 50 games left for most teams, the division leaders are pretty well set. Atlanta is leading the East with a 58-42 record and the Philadelphia Phillies 4 games behind at 56- 46 and currently holding on to the 2nd Wild Card spot. The Miami Marlins at 52-50 and our Washington Nationals at 52-51 are still contenders The Milwaukee Brewers are sitting pretty in the NL Central division at 63 and 38 with a 6- game lead over the Chicago Cubs, who currently hold the 1st Wild Card spot. The Pittsburgh Pirates are playing well at 53-49, with another win earlier today, and currently hold the 3rd Wild Card spot. Still in contention are the St. Louis Cardinals at 51-49. The Los Angeles Dodgers rule the NL West, as usual, at 64-38, and are 11 ½ games ahead of the Arizona Diamondbacks. Arizona’s record is currently 52-49. I’d also throw in the San Diego Padres, who still have a chance with a record of 50 and 51. I truly hope that wasn’t at all confusing. Another thing we need to closely watch is the Nationals’ upcoming schedule. Let’s look at the next two and a half weeks. And, believe me, it’s a doozy. After tomorrow’s day off, Washington plays 18 straight games without a break: 4 at home vs. the Diamondbacks. 3 at home vs. The Blue Jays 4 at Atlanta vs. the Braves 4 at Philadelphia vs. the Phillies 3 at home vs. the Reds That’s a tough stretch of games, my friends. As far as the 40-man roster goes, we’ll just have to wait and see. The Nationals are at a critical point in their season. Sellers or buyers? What do you think? By the way, multiple teams are looking at 1 st baseman Luis Garcia Jr and All-Star pitcher Foster Griffin. What a time to be a Washington Nationals fan!

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