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A crowd of 26,148 at Nationals Park spent all afternoon looking for a reason, any reason, to cheer for the home team.
The home team provided few such moments. The only significant crowd reactions for most of the day, if you want to call them that, came when security guards corralled and escorted two fans who ran onto the field in separate incidents during the course of the Nationals’ 4-1 loss to the Rays.
Such disruptions have been incredibly rare in the 18 seasons of the ballpark’s existence. Far less rare: Tepid offensive performances like the one the Nats put on display today during their seventh straight loss.
Though they narrowly avoided getting shut out for the 12th time this season thanks to an eighth-inning run, the Nationals never came close to mounting any kind of serious threat against Tampa Bay’s pitching staff until that point. Through seven innings, they totaled one hit and four walks, nothing else. They never put more than one runner on base in any individual frame, going 0-for-4 with runners in scoring position one day after going 0-for-12 in those situations in the series opener.
"It's about preparation," interim manager Miguel Cairo said. "We still have young kids. Young, talented baseball players here. They're learning. But you've got to go out there and execute your plan. The pitchers don't dictate what you're going to swing, first of all. You've got to have a plan. If it's not your pitch, OK, let it go. But if it's in the strike zone, you've got to be ready to hit."
Offensive inconsistency is nothing new for this team, but the manner in which the Nationals gave themselves so few opportunities today stood out more than typical. They actually showed some patience for a change, drawing four walks and making Rays starter Ryan Pepiot work the extent he had to be pulled after 93 pitches during five scoreless innings of one-hit ball.
But there was precious little loud contact the entire afternoon, until the bottom of the eighth, when they finally showed signs of life. Luis García Jr. doubled, Robert Hassell III singled and James Wood hit a 113.9 mph laser to right-center for an RBI single that elicited the first real roar from the crowd.
Even that, though, was short-lived. Rays manager Kevin Cash summoned Griffin Jax from his bullpen, and the right-hander proceeded to strike out both CJ Abrams and Paul DeJong (who struck out four times in as many at-bats as the team’s No. 3 hitter) before walking Josh Bell and getting Riley Adams to tap a slow roller to third to kill the team’s best – actually, only – rally.
"I've had a lot of opportunities the last two days to drive in runners, with runners in scoring position, and I wasn't able to execute," Adams said. "For me personally, it just starts with that. I need to do better for this team and come up in those situations and drive runners in."
The Nationals pitching staff did what it could to keep the game within reach and give the lineup a shot, retiring 24 of the final 25 batters faced from the second inning on. But the first inning once again loomed large for Jake Irvin, and not in a good way.
When Irvin induced a 6-4-3 double play off the bat of the Rays’ No. 2 hitter, Yandy Díaz, the right-hander was on the precipice of a quick and clean opening frame. Alas, to quote a beloved, retiring college football TV analyst: "Not so fast, my friend."
The third out of the top of the first proved far more difficult for Irvin to record than expected. Brandon Lowe singled up the middle. Junior Caminero worked a nine-pitch walk. And then Josh Lowe launched a 93 mph fastball to straightaway center field for the three-run homer that turned a potentially nice-and-easy inning into another nightmare.
By the time it was over, Irvin had actually only retired one of the six batters he faced, aided by the early double play and then a nice throw by Adams to nab Jake Mangum attempting to steal second. He threw 27 pitches. He trailed 3-0. And his first inning ERA for the season rose to an major league-worst 9.96.
"It was just one pitch," Cairo said. "The only difference was one pitch."
What looked like another abbreviated start for Irvin still was salvaged in the end. As ugly as the first inning was, his next five were remarkably effective. He proceeded to retire 15 of the next 16 batters he faced, completing five innings on a mere 56 pitches.
The lone blip during that extended run? Another home run by Josh Lowe, this one a fourth-inning shot that also went to center field, this time off a curveball. Those two homers by the Rays outfielder in his first two at-bats of the days matched the entire output of his brother, Nathaniel, over his final 35 home games playing for the Nationals earlier this season.
Not wanting to risk anything going south after his starter finished on a high note, Cairo pulled Irvin after the sixth, even with a modest pitch count of 83. The two homers stung, for sure, but he still looked much better in this outing than in most other recent games.
"I felt great all game. The results were unfortunate," Irvin said. "When they hit three balls to the outfield and two of them leave the yard, it's even more unfortunate. I've got to find a way to keep the ball in the yard. But pleased with the way we attacked the zone and went right after guys."
