PHILADELPHIA -- Leading up to their road series against the Phillies, the Nationals exemplified seizing the moment of a single pitch or swing with two gritty walk-off wins against the NL East-leading Mets.
The Nats arrived at Citizens Bank Park on Tuesday poised to battle yet again against a division rival. Like those two victories over the Mets, the series opener was a down-to-the-wire battle of tenacity. But unlike those games, the Nationals were on the losing end of a walk-off, 7-6.
“We had a chance to win,” said manager Dave Martinez. “They come back and they scored that extra run at the end there. But we’ve got to keep battling. I’m really proud of them. We could have folded early, we didn’t.”
When the Nationals entered the ninth inning trailing by three runs, they displayed the poise that had lifted them over the Mets this past weekend.
In front of 38,387 fans, the Nats locked in without trying to do too much. A single by CJ Abrams, an RBI double by James Wood and Amed Rosario reaching first base on a throwing error by Trea Turner -- putting the ball in play led them to having runners on second and third with two outs for Nathaniel Lowe.
Down to what could have been the final strike of the game, Lowe got the job done. He sent a 101.1 mph fastball from right-hander Orion Kerkering high out to right field over the wall for a go-ahead run.
The Nationals were on the cusp of their fifth comeback win of the season. They understood, though, how quickly that can change.
“That’s the roller coaster that we sign up for,” said Lowe. “Elation, really happy to get some runs across when we needed them. ... And we didn’t make plays at the bottom of the ninth.”
Washington turned to closer Kyle Finnegan, who entered the game tied for third among all relievers in saves (9). He had not allowed a run in his last three appearances.
“I feel like I let one get away from us there,” said Finnegan. “We had a great chance to steal a really important game for us -- first game of the series against a good team. The boys battled the entire game, late comeback. It’s a game that we should have won, and I didn’t do my job.”
Finnegan opened the inning by allowing a single to Alec Bohm, followed by a walk to Bryson Stott. Max Kepler advanced Bohm to third on a sacrifice fly and Stott stole second.
“The walk is inexcusable, letting two guys on to start the inning, letting the go-ahead run get on,” Finnegan said.
Like the Nats against the Mets, the Phillies weren’t backing down at home, either. Johan Rojas sent a fastball from Finnegan 246 feet into right field. Dylan Crews made the catch for the second out, and Bohm was on the go.
“I obviously knew they were going to have a chance to throw me out because it was kind of in between depths and Crews can throw and all that -- but you’ve got to take a chance,” said Bohm.
The rookie Crews fired off an 83.4 mph throw home that made a second bounce just feet in front of -- and past -- catcher Keibert Ruiz. In the frenzy of an outstretched Ruiz and a sliding Bohm, the Phillies erased the Nationals’ comeback and evened the score.
“Gutsy call by [third-base coach Dusty Wathan] at third base to send Bohm, but I think it was the right call,” said Phillies manager Rob Thomson. “Guy’s got to make a good throw and you’ve got to catch it clean and make the tag.”
A ninth-inning rally shifted to hopes of competing in extra innings for the Nationals. They didn’t get there. Finnegan delivered a two-out, wild pitch in the dirt to Turner that allowed Stott to score the game-winning run from third.
“You have a base open there and respect the hitter in the box,” said Finnegan. “But you're still competing, trying to go after him. I'm trying to get him to swing and miss. Just an unfortunate result."
The Nationals have been on both ends of the emotions of late-game comebacks and walk-offs. From the batters who will look to jump on scoring opportunities throughout the game to the pitchers who will try to maintain the lead, there are lessons learned.
“We’re rehashing the idea that we need to capitalize when we get runners in scoring position,” Lowe said. “We, as a unit, left a lot of guys out there tonight. We could have really given ourselves some breathing room, and we didn’t. That’s just part of it. That’s something that as a team we need to improve on, and tomorrow we’ll bounce back and ideally do a better job of it.”