You won’t find a loss more soul crushing than what the Nats just went through in Houston. Down 3-2 with two outs and two strikes in the ninth they get a single from Mike Morse. Then Willie Harris’ fly ball – looking at worst like a bloop hit – lands fair and pops over the head of left fielder Carlos Lee as he rumbles toward the foul line. Instead, it’s a run-scoring hit to tie the game. Harris then scores on a Cristian Guzman single to put Washington ahead, 4-3.
Now flip to the bottom of the ninth and reverse everything I just wrote. This time Guzman was the goat, dropping a sinking line drive in right field that would have ended the game. Instead, Michael Bourn scores to re-tie it at 4. Closer Matt Capps tried to shake it off. But his 1-1 pitch caught too much of the plate and he didn’t even look as Lee ripped it into the Crawford Boxes in left. Game over. 6-4.
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When you think about Tuesday’s 8-7 loss – a check swing by Lance Berkman with two outs and two strikes in the ninth should have ended things before Berkman’s game-winning single – it adds up to a painful end to the 10-game road trip. Once 2-2, the Nats finish it 3-7 and limp home a season-worst three games under .500 at 26-29 with the Cincinnati Reds (31-23) – tied with the Cardinals for first in the N.L. Central – waiting for them.
Yes, Bryce Harper will be chosen by the Nats No. 1 overall in the Major League Baseball draft on Monday and rookie pitcher Stephen Strasburg will be up on Tuesday. But part of the excitement of 2010 has been how well this team has played. It gets harder and harder to sustain that interest if the losses start to pile up again.
You have to wonder about the decision to keep Guzman in the outfield late in the game. To be fair, manager Jim Riggleman needed his bat in the top of the ninth and Guzman came through. Riggleman pinch hit Morse – the extra outfielder – earlier in the ninth and he had come through, too. In the eighth inning, a double switch took Roger Bernadina out of the game. Harris took over in right before switching to left when Ian Desmond entered at short. That sent Guzman to right. But after the Nats went ahead Riggleman was suddenly out of defensive options in the bottom of the frame. Justin Maxwell is playing center in Syracuse, after all. That led to the Guzman fiasco and eventually another loss. I’m guessing we won’t see that again this season. It smacks too much of the Lastings Milledge experiment in center last spring despite the overwhelming evidence from the year before that he couldn’t actually play the position. No question the ball Berkman hit knuckled on Guzman. There’s also little doubt Bernadina and Harris make that catch – or Maxwell for that matter. Even Morse has played 30 big-league games in the outfield. Guzman has played there seven times prior – all this season.
Washington had its chances earlier, but couldn’t break through against Astros starter Brian Moehler and the middle relievers. The Nats left a runner on second in the first inning. Leadoff singles in both the fifth and seventh were erased by double plays. With two out in the sixth, Adam Kennedy grounded out with runners at second and third.
Starter J.D. Martin could be the odd-man out when Strasburg is added to the roster this weekend. He did go 5 2/3 innings on Thursday, giving up eight hits and a walk. Just two of the three runs against him were earned. The Nats’ defense continues to falter. Guzman made three errors – two at short – the day after Desmond made three. That absolutely won’t get it done.
Have to give it up to Ryan Zimmerman, who was 4-for-7 with two doubles, a homer, four RBI and seven runs scored in this four-game series. What would have happened if Houston actually pitched to him? Instead, the Astros walked Zimmerman nine times and hit him with two more pitches. That puts the third baseman’s OPS at 1.014 – best in the National League. Not even the great Albert Pujols can say that. But that’s a small consolation after a rough trip. The most exciting homestand in team history begins tomorrow night. We’ll see if that’s enough to get the Nats through this rough patch – or if this is the end of the line for 2010. They are now 6-14 since May 15.
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