Gore-Soto showdown highlights Nats' win in San Diego (updated)

SAN DIEGO – As he stalked off the mound, MacKenzie Gore looked directly at Juan Soto, who was looking directly back at the Nationals left-hander. Words were spoken. Heads were nodded. Competitive juices flowed.

There was no disrespect from either party, just an acknowledgment that one had bested the other on this afternoon and that there surely will be future meetings between these two ballplayers forever connected via trade.

"I like him," Gore insisted. "He talks some junk, and he's competitive. I've never played against him much, but I like him."

If future encounters between the two produce the same results as today, the Nats will happily take it.

Gore’s high-energy strikeout of Soto – his third of the afternoon against the former D.C. star – may have come in the fifth inning of what wound up an 8-3 Nationals victory thanks to a parade of late-game hits by the visitors. But it was still the signature moment of a day that included a number of exciting moments but none as important in the long-term picture for this franchise.

With nine strikeouts over five electric innings against the club that traded him (and five others) for Soto (and Josh Bell), Gore offered another glimpse of his immense potential to be a future ace. He wasn’t perfect, and his elevated pitch count of 104 forced him from the game far earlier than he would’ve liked, but the 24-year-old lefty gave the Nats and their fans plenty of reason to smile about the present and dream about the future.

"This was big for us," Gore said. "We've struggled some here in June. And a big series win (against) a good team. Try to build off this and keep the road trip going in the right direction."

When he faced the Padres last month in Washington, Gore was understandably amped up. So much so that he was firing 99 mph fastballs in the first inning and wound up surrendering three early runs as a result.

This time, he was far more under control, his fastball clocking 94-95 mph. So much so that he opened his afternoon with six consecutive strikeouts, becoming the first pitcher in Expos/Nationals franchise history to pull off that feat.

"That was fun," the understated lefty said. "That's cool. Obviously, the fastball was good. But I threw some sliders in there for strikeouts. Just solid."

Gore didn’t surrender his first clean hit until there were two outs in the fourth (though an earlier error on Jeimer Candelario was changed to an infield single well after the fact). He surrendered his lone run on Fernando Tatis Jr.’s two-out RBI single in the fifth.

That left the game tied 1-1 and brought Soto to the plate as a sellout crowd of 41,503 rose and roared for this premium showdown. It lasted six pitches, the count running full. It ended with Soto whiffing at a 96 mph fastball beyond the outer edge of the strike zone, leaving the big slugger 0-for-3 with three strikeouts against the top pitching prospect he was traded for. (Gore joined Hyun-Jin Ryu and Max Fried as the only pitchers to strike out Soto three times in a game in his career.)

Gore exclaimed with glee as he hopped off the mound and said a few words toward Soto, who said a few words back as he nodded his head. It all made for great theater on a Sunday afternoon in which there were several more theatrical moments still to come.

"That was probably my last hitter; I don't know what the pitch count was," Gore said. "I made a good enough pitch on 3-2 and got him to chase."

Gore’s teammates made sure to put him back in line for the win when they re-took the lead in the top of the sixth, getting three straight singles from Luis García, Candelario and Joey Meneses, then a sacrifice fly from pinch-hitter Stone Garrett.

They nearly gave the lead right back in the bottom of the sixth when Mason Thompson, returning to the mound after throwing 25 pitches during Saturday’s win, loaded the bases with three walks. Manager Davey Martinez summoned Joe La Sorsa, his long-awaited left-handed reliever, to face right-handed pinch-hitter Gary Sánchez. And La Sorsa responded with a seven-pitch strikeout, letting out his own primal scream as he hopped off the mound having stranded the bases loaded.

"This is the big leagues; you've got to pretty much expect anything," said La Sorsa, who just joined the club last week less than a month after making his major league debut for the Rays. "It's not like you can just coast through here, racking up service time, getting easy appearances. If you want to make a name for yourself, you've definitely got to earn it. Everything here is 100 percent going to be earned. I'm glad I was able to take a leap forward today and gain some experience with that."

Then came the hit parade, and ultimately a lopsided lead. The Nationals scored five runs in the seventh, taking advantage of two throwing errors by Padres reliever Tim Hill, a two-run double from Candelario and yet another clutch hit from Meneses, who is now batting a robust .446 with runners in scoring position (an unfathomable .540 when considering only at-bats vs. right-handers).

"He puts the ball in play," Martinez said of Meneses. "He tries to stay in the middle of the field, and he knocks in big runs for us."

It all made for a most enjoyable afternoon on another beautiful San Diego afternoon. A Nats club that was blown out Friday night for its 15th loss in 18 games somehow left town with back-to-back wins.

"It feels great, especially coming of a bad little run there where we weren't winning many games at all," Meneses said, via interpreter Octavio Martinez. "To come in here and win, and beat a good team in general, it gives us a little extra confidence. it's a great feeling."

So was the sight of the young lefty they acquired for one of baseball’s biggest stars last summer offering further evidence he's the real deal.

"It was a big moment for him," Davey Martinez said. "I'm proud of him. He came out, he checked his emotions and kept us in the game."