Bullpen falters in final game before All-Star break
It has been so good for so long it was almost a shock to see the Nationals’ bullpen look mortal.
Closer Tyler Clippard last gave up an earned run May 16. The last time he threw a wild pitch? He couldn’t remember. Sean Burnett entered Sunday’s game against the Colorado Rockies with a 1.42 ERA. But Burnett was charged with a pair of runs in the eighth inning and Clippard gave up another in the ninth as the first half ended for Washington with a disappointing 4-3 loss at Nationals Park.
The Nats (49-34) still will take their position given the injuries that have swamped them this season. They are four games ahead in the National League East and have the league’s best record with a four-day break looming.
– Brian McNally
| Johnson will alter rotation after break |
| The Nationals have a tentative plan for their starting rotation after the All-Star break, manager Davey Johnson told reporters Sunday. They will push ace Stephen Strasburg back but probably not to the fifth spot, which would have given him maximum time off. Strasburg is on an innings limit this season, his first full one back from Tommy John surgery, and eventually will have to be shut down. |
| Johnson emphasized that he could change his mind but said before a 4-3 loss to Colorado that Jordan Zimmermann was his likely starter Friday at Miami. That’s the first game back from the four-day break. Gio Gonzalez would get the nod Saturday in his hometown. And then Strasburg, who last pitched Friday, would probably throw next Sunday in the series finale against the Marlins on eight days’ rest. Edwin Jackson then would stay in his slot as the No. 4 starter, and Ross Detwiler would remain the No. 5. Strasburg and Gonzalez both will be pitching in the All-Star Game in Kansas City, Mo., on Tuesday for the National League. |
| “It could change, depending on what happens in the All-Star break, over the All-Star Game,” Johnson said, labeling it a 50-50 proposition. “But I was kind of thinking with [NL manager] Tony [La Russa] and knowing what he probably would do with my guys.” |
But after Burnett gave up a leadoff home run to Eric Young and then two singles in the eighth, he was replaced by Michael Gonzalez, who uncorked a wild pitch that allowed Dexter Fowler to score. Just like that a 3-1 lead was gone.
Clippard allowed a leadoff double to Jordan Pacheco in the ninth. A sacrifice bunt pushed him to third, and pinch hitter Jason Giambi struck out. But Clippard bounced a change-up in the dirt, and Pacheco scored from third. His last wild pitch? It was almost exactly a year to the day — July 7, 2011, at home against the Rockies in a 3-2 loss.
“The bullpen and pitching staff has been so good all year,” Burnett said. “To have it slip up there in the last two innings before the break kind of stinks. But you can’t let a couple innings set us back for what we’ve done the last two months.”
There were chances early. Ryan Zimmerman was stranded on second base after a two-out double in the first. Ian Desmond was left there in the second. A single by Bryce Harper, a walk to Zimmerman and Harper’s steal of third provided one more opportunity in the third inning. But Michael Morse grounded out.
“[The bullpen] should never have been in that situation to begin with. We had opportunities in the game that we could have cashed in on,” said Desmond, who hit his team-high 17th home run. “But maybe it’s a blessing in disguise. It’ll get us to come back after the break and still be hungry. Kind of good to go out on a little bit of a sour note.”
The loss spoiled another strong outing by starter Jordan Zimmermann, who on another scorching day tossed seven innings with three hits allowed and one earned run. Zimmermann was handed another no-decision — his sixth of the season — and his 5-6 record doesn’t tell the story of his year. His ERA dropped to a team-low 2.61.
“It was such a good game and it was so hot out there, I wasn’t going to give [Zimmermann] a chance to lose it [in the eighth],” Washington manager Davey Johnson said. “But what a great effort, and it’s just a shame we wasted it for him.”
