Photo from Nats Instagram
Click here to watch Nats win #38 on June 25th on MASN via MLB.TV at 6:30 pm tonight with the rest of us. Just a quick reminder of what we are doing if this is your first time: As a group, we are going to be re-watching all 105 wins from the Nats 2019 season in chronological order at 6:30 pm each night. We will all try to sync up to the same point in the game, and this is a work in progress to maneuver to the same point in the game. Feel free to ask in the comments section where everyone is in the game so you can sync up. Many people are joining in at different points, and most people are not commenting — rather just following along.
The MLB.TV library is unlocked and free to everyone for the 2018-2019 season courtesy of MLB. This win #38 came in the 78th game in the 2019 season, and the Nats took the a 37-40 record into this game. Manager Dave Martinez was preaching “Go 1-0 every game” and eventually the Nats turned their losing record into a winning record. It took the Nats until June 28th to reach a winning record and they got to 12 games above .500 on August 21st. They dug themselves a deep hole, and it took much longer to dig out of it.
The Nats had just lost two games in a row to end their five-game winning streak, and Max Scherzer needed to be the stopper for this game as the team was in the final week of June. Yes, not only was Max Scherzer the stopper, he pitched a gem in this game to get the Nats back to within two-games of the .500 mark.
What the Nats really needed was another long winning streak, and Miami was a good place to start such a streak. Scherzer would face-off against Trevor Richards who was pitching well to start the game and the Nats got to him as they often did after the second and third time through the lineup.
This game was also the first sighting of Fernando Rodney in a Nats uniform as he would make his debut in this game. General Manager Mike Rizzo was busy as the Nats released Trevor Rosenthal while the team was still Atlanta, and he did not get on the plane to Miami and the same for RHP Kyle McGowin who was optioned back to the Fresno Grizzlies. The team also bolstered the bullpen with lefty Jonny Venters, but he did not stay long. To make room for Venters it was also the last we would see of RHP Jeremy Hellickson who was transferred from the 10-day IL to the 60-day IL with a stiff right shoulder. Rizzo still was not done as he optioned both RHP Erick Fedde and Joe Ross to the Triple-A Fresno Grizzlies and called up Austin Voth from Harrisburg Senators.
Clubhouse manager Mike Wallace had to be extremely busy setting up new lockers and getting new uniforms ready. Rizzo and Davey Martinez were certainly shaking things up. The fifth starter spot never really got fixed and was the weak link along with a bullpen that was improving but was still shaky. In the short-term, Rodney was a positive addition as the Nats were 37-days from adding Daniel Hudson to the bullpen and finally had a bridge to closer Sean Doolittle who was very overworked. Of course Rizzo added Hunter Strickland and Roenis Elias at the trade deadline and neither were much of a help for Davey’s team.
The rest of the team was healthy and clicking to start putting together some winning streaks. This was also the week last year that Rizzo was signing draft picks and assigning them to minor league camps.
