Sunday, June 9, 2013

Instant Analysis: Nats 5, Twins 4

Photo by the Associated Press
Game in a nutshell: The Nationals went down early thanks to an unfortunate outing by starter Nathan Karns, but rallied to chip away the lead and eventually leave with the series win. It took almost their entire bullpen and even featured a bizarre 12-minute rain delay as the Nats kept the game close before Ian Desmond drove in the go-ahead run in the seventh inning. He followed up an Adam LaRoche double with a two-bagger of his own, putting the Nats up 5-4 and extending his career-best hitting streak to 12 games.

Hitting highlight: Roger Bernadina had easily his best game of the season, providing just what the doctor ordered out of the two hole. He quietly reached base in his first four at-bats with two hits and two walks, coming home to score twice off Jayson Werth singles. He has struggled all season, but stepped up in a game the Nats desperately needed.
Pitching lowlight: Karns left after three with four earned runs allowed, forcing the Nats to use six different relievers across the final six innings. Karns gave up five hits, three walks, and a home run on 74 pitches. He was all over the place and made for a long first third of the game.

Key stat: The Nats scored more runs across today's two games (12 total) than they had scored in the month of June combined so far.

Up next: The Nats have Monday off before they travel to Colorado to play the Rockies. Before they leave, however, everyone awaits the second opinion for Bryce Harper from Dr. James Andrews. Just because it’s a day off, doesn’t mean it will be boring.

85 comments:

Faraz Shaikh said...

nice wins.

Holden Baroque said...

Thanks for sticking with us, Chase.

Drew said...

All right!

The Nats are 31-31 with 100 games to go.

Let's get Harper and Strasburg back and fire up a 59-41 stretch run.

GYFNG!

David Proctor said...

As I said in the other thread:

This was a great game. We clawed back from behind, 1 run at a time. Did we waste opportunities? Yes. But we never gave up and just kept chipping away. This is a great win for the team. And we win the series!

Secret wasian man said...

Great to see the guys fight back. they showed a lot of heart today.

JaneB said...

We came from two down! We did it! Yayyyyyy!

Gonat said...

Ex-Nats really helped out in this win. Blue tightens up the K Zone for the superstar Mauer and that stinks. That was a strike all night!

Manassas Nats' Fan said...

Games 3 nd 4 of our 8 game losing much better.

Or is this first two of an 8 game winning streak.

Gonat said...

JaneB said...
We came from two down! We did it! Yayyyyyy!

June 09, 2013 10:41 PM
__________________________

Even better, Nats came back from 3 down! They were losing 4-1.

natsfan1a said...

Double wooooooooooo hooooooooooo!! (Credit MicheleS etc.)

Manassas Nats' Fan said...

You are right. That though really a ball, it was called a strike all night.

MrsB loves the Nats said...

What a game huh.... No make that... What 2 games... Love the sweep today....

I had a feeling we would win this game... It was so good to see the offense consistent thru out the game....

Got the series!!! Back to 500.... Nice job my Nats!!!!

David Proctor said...

Hey remember when people guaranteed we'd be swept?

Gonat said...

Secret wasian man said...
Great to see the guys fight back. they showed a lot of heart today.
______________________________

Whoa, look at you joining us for a Victory party. Your pessimistic views during the game is getting old though.

MrsB loves the Nats said...

Anyone know Karns ERA?

BigCat said...

I should talk bad about Shark more often. Good game Roger!

Gonat said...

Nationals PR‏ @NationalsPR
Tonight's 5-4 victory was the #Nationals 11th come-from-behind win of the season. The 3 run deficit was the largest they've overcome in 2013
___________________________

Heart!

Sunshine_Bobby_Carpenter_Is_Too_Pessimistic_For_Me said...

Davey sez TyMo is going back down to SYR

Gonat said...

Tyler Moore back to AAA.

David Proctor said...

Tyler Moore is going to AAA. Davey said he'd be back soon but he wants him to get regular at bats.

BigCat said...

I should talk bad about Shark more often. Good game Roger!

MrsB loves the Nats said...

Wait.... Did Davey just say that Tyler Moore was being sent back down?

That is absolutely the right move... He needs to play every day....

They said change was coming....

Gonat said...

Next move has to be Corey Brown for Chad Tracy. Rizzo has to make that happen.

David Proctor said...

Karns ERA is 7.50.

MrsB loves the Nats said...

So maybe next is Brown for Tracy???? Or does Tracy's leadership mean that much to the club...

Drew said...

Wow. Tyler's going down.

Marrero has earned another look. I like what Kobernus can do for the club.

The question is who will be the LH power bat off the bench whenever Chad Tracy leaves. Maybe that will be Corey Brown's chance.

MrsB loves the Nats said...

Argh GoNat..... Sorry... Didn't know you posted that.....

Thanks David.... I was thinking it was 10....

Nats 128 said...

What Davey said about TylerMo is what we all have been saying for several weeks. Why dont Rizzo see this earlier instead of at 2 1/2 months into the season.

When will they see the same with Chad Tracey.

MicheleS said...

Karns is next pitcher to go down when Det comes back. I wonder who goes down when Bryce comes back?

Manassas Nats' Fan said...

Not only swept but 8 losses in a row.

Remember I belueve we still win the division, though it won't be easy.

Manassas Nats' Fan said...

7.50

Manassas Nats' Fan said...

Hits good against AL teams

Gonat said...

MicheleS, Karns may be gone for Wednesday as the Nats are short a starter.

David Proctor said...

How about the series Denard Span had against his old team, by the way? If Span keeps hitting like he did this series, we'll be just fine.

Gonat said...

MrsB loves the Nats said...
Argh GoNat..... Sorry... Didn't know you posted that.....
___________________________

Thinking alike. :)

baseballswami said...

Another pitcher when Stras is back-- Cedeno? He looked good today. Davis?

Manassas Nats' Fan said...

Davey said same thing needs hits. glad he got ahit in 8,th of first game.

Anonymous said...

Trainwreck's stop to watch Karns.

Manassas Nats' Fan said...

I believe Koberus goes back when Harper comes.

David Proctor said...

I've unsold on Davis and did not think Cedeno looked good today. I like Krol and he's a lefty which adds value. I think Cedeno is probably the first to go down, but i'd be fine with Davis too. Or both.

Gonat said...

All starting position players got hits in both games today except Suzuki in the 1st game.

Manassas Nats' Fan said...

Rizzo slower than us for sure, i guess he gets paid by the hour.

MrsB loves the Nats said...

I would think Kobernus goes back down when Harper comes back....

Manassas Nats' Fan said...

Cedano

Manassas Nats' Fan said...

Would be nice to walk more, but a couple hits a game is fine.

Gonat said...

Manassas Nats' Fan said...
I believe Koberus goes back when Harper comes.

June 09, 2013 10:58 PM
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Tracy, Marrero or Kobernus are all on the clock.

MrsB loves the Nats said...

Dangit... I'm like 2 minutes slow on the discussions.... Sorry MNF...

Agree with David @ 10:58

Manassas Nats' Fan said...

I am guessing Cedano, but could be Little Clip

Drew said...

They've got to send Xavier Cedeno down before they send down Kobernus.

With Abad and Kroll, they don't need Cedeno.

Gonat said...

Nobody mentioned it, Nats back to .500 and in sole possession of 2nd place!

Manassas Nats' Fan said...

Krol and Abad both been good, guves us 2 lefty arms, much better balance

Manassas Nats' Fan said...

I remember clearly we are in the middle of an 8 game losing streak headed for 4th

Get Your Re(n)d On said...

Don't be surprised if it's a Detwiler-Stammen tag team on Wednesday. Detwiler only pitched 3.2 innings yesterday and was in the dugout today. He'll probably be on the plane to Colorado tonight.

Gonat said...

David Proctor said...
I've unsold on Davis
________________________________

Me too. I just don't see his put away pitch. These aren't good hitters he was facing and just didn't look dominant.

It's going to be interesting when Christian Garcia and Ryan Mattheus are ready as this bullpen is going to look real good with depth.

Get Your Re(n)d On said...

"Gonat said...

Nobody mentioned it, Nats back to .500 and in sole possession of 2nd place!"

That comment is sooooooooo 2011. As Span said the other day, if you're not in first place it doesn't matter if you're in second or third or whatever.

Gonat said...

Caps Fan, that gave me a good laugh. Hearing the local sports radio guys jibber jabbering about the Nats falling into 3rd behind the Phoolies was hard to hear. Of course the NL East is the goal but like Desi said 1 game at a time.

MrsB loves the Nats said...

Omg.... I totally forgot about Mattheus..l. Seriously, I did....

I like Krol, like Abad.... I like Davis but wont be surprised if he goes... I actually want Cedano to go back down....

tayo said...

Great mini comeback win for the Nats. Karns definitely still needs some more polish at AA or AAA. I actually would much rather they had tried Rosenbaum even though his raw stuff isn't close to being as good as Karns.

Gonat said...

Caps Fan said...
Don't be surprised if it's a Detwiler-Stammen tag team on Wednesday. Detwiler only pitched 3.2 innings yesterday and was in the dugout today. He'll probably be on the plane to Colorado tonight.
_____________________________

Detwiler was in the dugout so I'm sure he will be on the plane to Colorado. Whether they activate him for Wednesday is certainly a possiblility in the scenario you mentioned.

baseballswami said...

Coors Field terrifies me. But even when some of these guys go back down, I am glad they were here and will be confident in the future when we need them again. Maybe Karns needs a little more time than the others. And I sincerely hope we don't need any of them for a while, but it's been fun getting a preview.

NCNatsie said...

Yeah, how bout that bullpen. 6 shutout innings. PFB, I'd say.

Gonat said...

Nats are still carrying 4 starters and 8 relievers but if they do go with Det on Wednesday he can take Karns spot and keep the 8 relievers until Strasburg comes off the DL.

MrsB loves the Nats said...

Wait... So Haren starts Tuesday? Det Wednesday? They gonna skip over SS?

MrsB loves the Nats said...

Yeah NCN... Bp did its thing... Stammen came in and got the momentum shifting our way.... There were some scary moments but they got the job done...

Coolhandbane (formally Bob Saget) said...

Great wins Nats.

Karns gets sent down for the pitcher who will start Wednesday

The pitcher who got called up for Wednesdays games gets sent down when Strasburg comes back.

Either Cedano or Davis gets sent down when Det comes back. I say Cedano since Nats need another reliever other than Stamman who can be our 2nd long reliever.

Kobernus gets sent down when Harper returns.

Unknown said...

to me it looks like Krol and Abad will stay up for the time being unless they blow up, to me it looks like davis and cedeno go down for mattheus and det, then probably kobernus for Harp

Gonat said...

Chase Hughes ‏@chasehughesCSN
LaRoche said he likes where the #Nats are at, a .500 team. Says it makes them focus more each day as every game is important.
______________________________________

Glad there seems to be some urgency now.

baseballswami said...

Mrs. B - Stras on the DL for a bit longer. 16 th I think.

MrsB loves the Nats said...

Thanks swami...my days are all mixed up... Injuries suck....

Nevertheless, I'm not a Haren fan but Lord knows I hope the Good Haren shows up on Tuesday....

tayo said...

And its early but its looking like Rizzo got another steal of a trade in the Morse Trade. Krol is looking great so far and Cole has had some dominants starts at potomac.

Drew said...

I don't think Kobernus gets sent down.

Remember: With Tyler Moore gone, you lose a backup outfielder. Marrero can't play that role, but Kobernus can.

I certainly could be wrong -- Lombo returns to the uber-utility role when Harper comes back.

But Kobernus and Lombo are both so versatile. For instance, in a game like tonight's, with Bernadina already starting, Kobernus is the guy who can pinch run and gain the critical base.

I'd love to keep Lombo AND Kobernus on the bench.

MrsB loves the Nats said...

Going to bed.... Great games and wins tonight guys!!!

See y'all tomorrow!

baseballswami said...

Off day-- again!! That's 3 of 5 days. Of course we packed a lot in the other two days.

Manassas Nats' Fan said...

He cant come oof DL until Saturday, he cant plat, not eligible so not skipped

Manassas Nats' Fan said...

Cards have scored 7 in the top of 10.

Rookie first batter, matt Holliday hit grand slam.

Drew said...

Matt Holliday's grand slam fuels the Cardinals' seven-run 10th inning. The Cards now lead the Reds 11-4, helping the Nats a bit in the wild card chase.

The Nats are 5.5 games behind the Pirates for the second wild card spot.

Colorado is directly in front of the Nats, 3.5 games out. Let's get a piece of the Rockies.

Unknown said...

Drew said:
I'd love to keep Lombo AND Kobernus on the bench.


Agree. Need 2 powers also, one from each side.

A DC Wonk said...

tayo said...

And its early but its looking like Rizzo got another steal of a trade in the Morse Trade. Krol is looking great so far and Cole has had some dominants starts at potomac.


Morse is hitting .245, WAR is negative, and he's a free agent after this year.

Gee, ya' think? ;-)

pwilly said...

Amazing what a little run support can do for a ball club. Without a few runs we'd be talking about another error by Zimm, Rendon can't catch a pop fly, Karns is terrible, LaRoche boots another one... We've got great pitching, adequate defense and a good manager. It's all about hitting.

Drew said...

Maury:

I was at Coors Field Thursday night as the Padres beat the Rockies 6-5 in 12 innings. The Rockies roared back from a 4-0 deficit, only to lose at the end.

The obvious lesson was that you're never out of a game at that ballpark.

The Rockies' pitching and defense weren't very impressive.

The key to handling the Rockies is their extraordinary 3-4-5 of CarGo, Tulo and Michael Cuddyer, the right fielder who is having an All Star-caliber season.

SonnyG10 said...

Just got back from the game...good win in front of a small crowd. I think Karnes and Davis need more seasoning. Karnes was throwing 93 to 95, but he got hit pretty good. I wonder if his fastball lacks movement.

Chat more tomorrow. Good night everybody!

tayo said...

About the upcoming series in Colorado. It really is simple, they are probably going to score more than a few runs against us so we have to be prepared to score more. Its probably not going to be a pitchers duel so be ready to strings a bunch of hits together and score some runs.

Holden Baroque said...

"Without a few runs we'd be talking about another error by Zimm, Rendon can't catch a pop fly, Karns is terrible, LaRoche boots another one. It's all about hitting."

What he said.

Whack-a-Mule said...

Mule Notes:

Yesterday brought faint glimmers of what this team was once, and what it needs to be every day.
With the Braves on a pace to win 100 games this season, they cannot be caught unless they falter badly and we continue to play at > .630 clip (i.e. we need to win at least 63 of the remaining 100 games to garner 94 wins, while hoping the Braves lose a few more along the way.)
Possibly just a pipe dream, but pray that the Nats at least keep trying.

The replacement of Espinosa with Rendon must be permanent; the job should now be Rendon's to keep (or lose) based upon his play in future.
Espinosa's offensive production was inadequate in 2012 (.230 BA, 175 K's etc.), when he was "healthy". He is a liability in 2013 and mustn't be considered for re-instatement until shoulder and hand are fixed/recovered and he can prove the ability to hit >.275 with fewer than 12 K's per 100 ABs (i.e. <75/season).

Mule is completely baffled by the E5 situation (with 2 more this weekend). Even hitting >.400 with RISP, Zimmerman's overall offensive production does not offset his defensive liability. If Zimmerman's defensive skills cannot be re-established , perhaps he follows in the footsteps of Michael Morse (D.H. in A.L.).

Eric said...

Mule, Zim is fielding .920; Rendon is fielding .896 (.885 at 3B, .909 at 2B). Zim is at 0.7 WAR and Rendon at 0.3 WAR so far this season.

Not sure how you can call for entrenching Rendon at 2B but shuttling Zim off to DH in the AL.

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