The Nationals put themselves in position to win tonight’s game against the Mets thanks to a much-needed and improved offensive approach against Kodai Senga and another solid start by Brad Lord, at least until it nearly fell apart on him in the top of the sixth.
All of which left Miguel Cairo, and then Henry Blanco once Cairo was ejected during that same inning, to try to piece together the final 11 outs of this game with a bullpen loaded with inexperienced arms.
And then one by one, those inexperienced arms performed like seasoned veterans, four relievers coming together to deliver 3 2/3 innings of scoreless ball to secure a hard-earned 5-4 victory over New York.
The unlikely quartet that got the job done against one of the more imposing lineups in the National League? Cole Henry, Shinnosuke Ogasawara, Clayton Beeter and Jose A. Ferrer. That may not be how anyone would’ve drawn things up as recently as a month ago, but it’s what the Nationals have right now, so it’s what they used to beat the Mets.
Henry had to pitch his way out of a bases-loaded jam in the top of the sixth, all while Cairo was getting ejected by plate umpire Todd Tichenor. Blanco, who assumed the bench coach job when Cairo ascended to the interim manager’s job last month, called the shots the rest of the way (perhaps with some help from the dugout tunnel).
Ogasawara was tasked with the top of the Mets lineup in the seventh and impressed with a 1-2-3 inning against Francisco Lindor, Juan Soto and Starling Marte. Beeter was given the top of the eighth and also retired the side, needing only nine pitches to do it.
Ferrer then finished it off in the top of the ninth, recording his third save with his sixth consecutive scoreless appearance since replacing Kyle Finnegan as the team’s closer.
Thanks to that collective pitching effort, the Nationals made sure their earlier offensive performance didn’t go to waste. After watching his lineup flail away helplessly at everything David Peterson flung toward the plate Tuesday night, Cairo made it clear what needed to change tonight against Kodai Senga: “We’ve just got to make sure he keeps the ball up in the strike zone.”
That’s, of course, easier said than done with any pitcher whose entire game plan involves staying down in the zone and trying to induce weak contact on the ground. But Cairo’s point was simple: If the pitch comes in low, just let it go. And slowly but surely, the Nationals followed that advice.
It took until the third inning for anyone to reach base off Senga, but when they did, they did so with a pair of walks drawn by Dylan Crews and James Wood (plus a catcher’s interference call when Drew Millas whacked Luis Torrens’ mitt on a swing). With the bases loaded and one out, the Nats managed to push two runs across the plate via CJ Abrams’ infield single (he beat out a grounder to first) and Josh Bell’s sacrifice fly to center. It wasn’t much, but it was enough for a 2-0 lead.
The louder contact came after that, in the form of four extra-base hits in a span of eight batters across the bottom of the fourth and fifth. Paul DeJong and Crews each doubled down the left field line, with the former scoring on the latter hit. Millas then followed with a ball ripped down the right field line for his first career triple, scoring Crews to make it 4-0.
And though the Mets got on the board in the top of the fifth when Brett Baty launched a ball into the second deck off Lord, the Nationals immediately responded on one of the best swings of Josh Bell’s season. The big guy connected off a cutter from Senga to the tune of a 112.5-mph exit velocity, the ball soaring to right field for his 16th homer, prompting him to belt out a celebratory yell as he approached first base.
That tack-on run proved important, because the Mets finally got to Lord in the top of the sixth. Facing the lineup a third time, the rookie immediately got himself into a jam with back-to-back walks. And though he struck out Marte looking at a 94 mph fastball, he proceeded to surrender back-to-back, cue-shot doubles down the opposite field lines to Pete Alonso and Jeff McNeil. Those two well placed hits scored three runs, turned a 5-1 lead into a 5-4 nailbiter and ended Lord’s night.
The rookie’s final line (four runs allowed in 5 1/3 innings) didn’t look good, but it wasn’t reflective of how well he pitched most of the outing. He posted four straight zeros to begin the game, helped out by a pair of inning-ending double plays. He did so on 52 pitches, conveying confidence throughout, as he has all year long.
Nevertheless, the Nationals were forced to turn to their bullpen in the sixth inning of a one-run game, with Cairo turning to Henry right then to try to keep the score where it was. The right-hander did, though not without some harrowing moments that left the bases loaded. He found a way to respond by retiring Cedric Mullins and Torrens to leave all three Mets on base and send this compelling ballgame into the late innings.