Photo by Marlene Koenig for TalkNats
The Nationals had good starting pitching from A.J. Cole to earn him his 3rd win of the season which also happens to be the team’s 95th win matching the season’s total from 2016. All the offense needed was that 2-run home run from Michael Taylor along with 3 1/3 shutout innings from the Nationals bullpen and Sean Doolittle’s 21st save for the Nationals.
The Nationals only scored 3-runs in this game, and they were 1-for-6 in RISP spots and the only RISP hit came from Victor Robles who entered the game as a pinch-hitter. The Nationals only had 8 hits and 2 walks in the game. A.J. Cole had his first career hit tonight.
With six games remaining in the regular season, the Nationals still have a chance to lock up home-field-advantage against all playoff teams, but reasonably the Diamondbacks and Astros are the ones the Nats can top with these wins. The Astros also have 95 wins and are playing tonight with 6 games remaining after that.
