The Washington Nationals knew their eight-game stretch on the road against Atlanta and Philadelphia wouldn’t necessarily make their season, but consecutive four-game series against the beasts of the NL East could certainly break it.
Seven losses in eight games dragged the Nats under .500 and put the front office squarely on the “sell side” of the trading deadline market.
The “summer of possibilities” turned into another “summer of discontent.”
But wait!
A three-game sweep of Cincinnati has the team within striking distance of .500. Can they continue their bounce back ways against the contending Chicago Cubs?
Digesting the Division: Atlanta (71-47) owns the second-best record in the NL after dropping two of three to the New York Yankees.
The Braves have been boosted this month by the bat of Matt Olson who has five homers in eight August games (including one Sunday to help stop a two-game slide).
Philadelphia (63-56) took three of four from Washington last week and once again doing the damage was Derek Hill (he belted a grand slam last week and is hitting .462 against the Nats this year).
Miami (60-59) isn’t just getting an outstanding season from Sandy Alcantara (his 13 wins are the second-most in his career), but the 30-year old just set the team record for career innings pitched.
Washington (59-61) remains on the fringe of the playoff race while the New York Mets (52-67) have a division elimination number of 25 and are dealing with more bumps and bruises (Carson Benge is day-to-day with a bad wrist).
O’s Woes: Baltimore (57-61) was within a whisker of the last playoff spot in the American League before dropping three in a row. Two of those losses came to Texas, who’s currently holding down the third Wild Card. Next up? A four-game series with American League-leading Tampa Bay (O’s are 3-3 against the Rays this year).
Missing You?: While Curtis Mead is on the injured list with a broken wrist, Luis Garcia Jr. is hitting .211 with the New York Yankees. And after going 2 for 4 with a two-run homer in his Pinstripes debut, the ex-National is batting 2 for 19. Foster Griffin in his first start for Cleveland allowed five runs over four innings.
Diamond King:聽Abimelec Ortiz is making the most of his opportunity, belting his first two major league homers while driving in four runs. There will be chances for Ortiz and other young players to fill the void left by those traded.
Last Week’s Heroes: Rookie Andrew Pinckney is one of those players and hit a homer for his first big league hit Thursday. Keibert Ruiz hit .529 while Daylen Lile drove in a team-high seven RBI. Cade Cavalli struck out eight over six innings to post his ninth win of the season while Andrew Alvarez allowed three earned runs over 11.2 innings in his two starts. Clayton Beeter posted two wins and one save. Miles Mikolas as a pinch-hitter drove in a run and scored in the Nats’ extra inning victory at Philadelphia.
Last Week’s Humbled: Mikolas did not fare better the next day as he allowed six earned runs over five innings to drop to 3-9 on the year. Zack Littell allowed four runs over 6.2 frames. James Wood went on the injured list with a strained oblique, and fans have visions of last year’s second half (seven homers after 24 before the All-Star break). Jorbit Vivas hit .182, Jos茅 Tena Jr. batted .154, and Nasim Nu帽ez went .087 at the plate.
Game to Watch: Wednesday, the Nationals play their second game of a three-game series with the Chicago Cubs. Miles Mikolas tries to turn around what has been a disappointing stretch (6.62 ERA in July, 8.18 ERA in August). The Cubs counter with former New York Met David Peterson, not to be confused with Don Peterson or even Dan Prescott (I鈥檝e mistakenly been called each over the years).
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