There was already plenty of energy surrounding South Capitol Street ahead of the Nationals’ series finale against the Tigers. People were making their way to Nationals Park to start their holiday weekend early. And about five hours before first pitch, James Wood announced he will participate in the Home Run Derby.
The icing on the cake would be a victory at the end of the night to clinch a series win over the best team in the American League.
It was a rocky start, but the Nats indeed were able to tame the Tigers one more time for a 11-7 win to allow the crowd of 31,599 fans to now enjoy the postgame fireworks, kicking off the Independence Day celebrations. It will be especially enjoyable for manager Davey Martinez, who earned the 500th win of his managerial career, all with the Nationals.
The Nationals offense carried over the momentum it built up in last night’s late-inning rally to win the doubleheader nightcap. Facing an early 3-0 deficit in the first, the Nats immediately rallied to take the lead with five runs in the bottom frame.
CJ Abrams drew a leadoff walk and James Wood singled to put the first two runners on against left-hander Dietrich Enns, who was making just his third major league start at 34 years old. They both would come around to score on Alex Call’s single to left field, bringing them back to within one.
Then up stepped Paul DeJong, making just his seventh plate appearance since being activated off the injured list Tuesday following his fractured nose after he was hit in the face with a pitch in Pittsburgh on April 15. And boy, did he pick a great time to hit his first home run as a National.
DeJong muscled a 93 mph fastball from Enns over the out-of-town scoreboard in right-center field, a three-run shot to completely flip this game on its head and suddenly give the home team a 5-3 lead.
The Nats offense cruised from there.
Of course, Wood had to hit a homer on the day he announced he will participate in the Home Run Derby. And he did so in a way that showed his unique skill set that might help him win the dang thing.
In the bottom of the sixth, Wood connected for his 23rd longball of the season, extending the Nats’ lead to 6-3. The 22-year-old lefty flicked a four-seam fastball the other way that needed every inch of the 361 feet it traveled to hit off the railing above the left field wall.
Wood would go on to drive in Abrams in the fourth for his 67th RBI of the year, though he was thrown out at second trying to stretch his single into a double. But that wouldn’t diminish his night as he finished 5-for-5 to set a new career high for hits in a game. Wood is now hitting .294 with a .958 OPS. He even came around to score on Luis García Jr.’s pinch-hit RBI single in the eighth to provide an insurance run.
Then the Nats cashed in on some sloppy play by the Tigers defense in the fifth, with Brady House driving in two runs after both runners reached on the first two of three total errors committed by Detroit in the inning.
The 11 runs on 15 hits, three walks, two wild pitches and three errors (with all nine starters reaching base safely at least once) were plenty for Jake Irvin as he tried to recapture the magic he found almost exactly a year ago when he pitched eight shutout innings against the Mets on the Fourth of July.
But the outing didn’t start off well for the right-hander. He too issued a leadoff walk and gave up a single to the first two batters he faced. And although he struck out the next two, he gave up a towering three-run home run to Spencer Torkelson to give the Tigers the early advantage. He then gave up another single before closing out the top of the first on 39 pitches, a bad omen for the rest of the night.
However, Irvin found something after that. That last single he gave up in the first would be the last hit he surrendered. He retired 16 of the final 18 batters he faced, the two runners only reaching via walks.
After getting a lineout to first base on his 107th pitch, Irvin gave a fist pump as he walked off the mound now in line for the win with a quality start. Despite the rough first inning, he finished six innings with three hits, three runs, three walks and four strikeouts.
And although the Tigers scored two runs off Cole Henry in the seventh and two off Brad Lord in the eighth, it wasn’t enough to overcome the large lead the Nats had built for themselves. Kyle Finnegan closed out the victory, allowing everyone in the park to settle in and enjoy the fireworks.