Nats let early lead slip away in loss to Cubs (updated)

The Nationals returned home from the West Coast as one of the hottest teams in baseball. Entering tonight after a 4-2 road trip, their 11-5 record since May 14 was the fourth-best in the major leagues.

Their next challenge? The Cubs, who were tied for the best record in the majors over the same stretch at 12-4 and who were singularly the best over a longer stretch at 15-5 in their last 20 games.

A great litmus test for this young Nats team that started this homestand only three games below .500.

Unfortunately, the Nats now find themselves four games under .500 after tonight’s 8-3 loss to the Cubs in the series opener, a game in which they let an early lead slip away.

“It was a weird game," manager Davey Martinez said after his team lost for just the second time in their last six games. "A couple of mistakes on defense. And then, really, the one inning it was the walks. The walks got us that inning, and then a base hit. So we just got to come back tomorrow. We try to eliminate all that stuff. And today was just weird.”

Offensively, the Nationals were able to jump on Cubs rookie right-hander Cade Horton from the get-go. CJ Abrams, who has been battling a recent slump at the plate, got things started with a leadoff single in the first, then stole second base and reached third on a groundout. Luis García Jr. then gave the Nats a quick lead with a two-out opposite-field RBI single.

With the game tied 1-1 in the third, the Nats’ first hitter of the frame got another rally going. José Tena drew a leadoff walk and Daylen Lile doubled (on a ball that first baseman Michael Busch couldn't field) to put the first two runners in scoring position. An Abrams groundout and James Wood sacrifice fly later, the Nats led 3-1.

But the Cubs kept punching back, as the best teams often do.

Trevor Williams also struggled against leadoff hitters throughout his outing. But his were more frequent and damaging. Four of five leadoff hitters reached base against the right-hander, with three of them coming around to score.

Ian Happ’s leadoff walk to start the game was made a moot point after Williams struck out the next three batters in the first. But Busch led off the second with a triple that Lile had trouble with in the right field corner and scored on Dansby Swanson’s sac fly.

After a perfect third, Williams gave up a leadoff double to Pete Crow-Armstrong (for whom Williams was traded in a deal between the Mets and Cubs in 2021). After the Cubs’ budding star stole third, Tena fielded a routine grounder from Carson Kelly, but chose to hold Crow-Armstrong at third and allow Kelly to reach first.

“My main focus was to get the ball," Tena explained via interpreter Mauricio Ortiz. "I should have thrown to first right away. But I was looking at the runner at third, and he was so close to the base. But you learn from those errors.”

That mistake proved costly because Busch followed with an RBI single to right and Swanson added his second sac fly of the night to tie the game again at 3-3 in the fourth.

And when University of Maryland product Matt Shaw led off the fifth with a double, things got out of hand quickly for Williams and the Nats.

Happ’s infield single moved Shaw to third, allowing him to give the Cubs a 4-3 lead on Seiya Suzuki’s sac fly. That brought manager Davey Martinez out to the mound for a pitching change.

But Andrew Chafin didn’t retire any of the three batters he faced, giving up a walk and single to load the bases before issuing a bases-loaded free pass. And although Cole Henry struck out Swanson for the second out, he gave up a two-run single to Nico Hoerner to bust this one open at 7-3.

“Just weird," Martinez said. "I mean, the play at third base, where Tena should just look him back and throw the ball to get the out at first, he didn't do either. Cole's been throwing the ball really well. Today he was yanking everything. Chafin has been really good against lefties. He walked two left-handed hitters. So that, to me, is weird.”

Williams finished 4 ⅓ innings with five hits, five runs, one walk and four strikeouts on 76 pitches (50 strikes), his ERA inflating to 6.03 over 12 starts.

“I think we executed pitches early," he said. "I have to do a better job of shutdown innings. Especially when our offense puts up one run or two runs, I have to do a better job of that. Work in better counts for myself. I did a poor job today of not winning the 1-1 counts or the 0-0 counts. But even in terms of that, I thought we executed well. It's just one of those with an offense like the Cubs and the pressure they put on us throughout that lineup, I think I just need to do a better job of shutdown innings.”

But Cubs leadoff hitters weren’t done yet. Busch greeted Zach Brzykcy with a leadoff home run in the seventh for Chicago's final blow and to finish a double away from the cycle.

Cubs leadoff hitters finished the night 4-for-8 with two doubles, a triple, a home run, a walk and four runs scored.

Meanwhile, the Nats only had five baserunners after the third inning, proving that they’ll have to be a lot better to beat the best in the league.

“We swung bats pretty good early. Just couldn't get nothing going," Martinez said. "And then all of a sudden, they have a big inning. I think we got just a little flat, a little down. So we gotta come back tomorrow and get ready to do it again.”