Nats rise in 9th: 'Guys are just not quitting'
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SAN DIEGO -- The Nationals and Padres swapped zeros for three late innings, pushing a tied game into the ninth to see who would strike on offense. In this case, it turned out to be on defense.
When San Diego called on recently acquired closer Josh Hader to maintain a tie, Washington had other plans. A wild top of the ninth inning led to a 6-3 victory on Friday night at Petco Park, giving the Nats two straight wins to open the four-game series.
“I’m really excited about how our guys are just not quitting,” said manager Dave Martinez. “They’re playing hard. I’ve always told them, ‘We’re going to play 27 outs every day’ -- and they’re doing that.”
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The hard-earned walk
Victor Robles entered the night having drawn just 14 walks in 101 games. Before he stepped to the plate to face Hader to lead off the frame, the coaching staff reiterated the importance of looking for the ball in the strike zone.
“Lay off the breaking pitches and look for the fastball,” Martinez said. “He did a great job.”
Robles worked a full count in a six-pitch at-bat that included five sinkers and a slider. After reaching 2-2 against Hader, Robles showed patience against a pair of sinkers to take first base and represent the go-ahead run.
The defensive miscues
After going 0-for-4 leading up to the ninth, Lane Thomas connected on a soft ground ball toward the mound. Hader mishandled the throw, firing the ball past first baseman Josh Bell and into right field, where it evaded Juan Soto, who tripped chasing after it.
As this defensive chaos unfolded, Robles dashed home from first to give the Nationals a 4-3 lead.
“When [Robles] got on base, I said things could happen and things could happen quickly,” Martinez recounted. “We had the top of the order coming up. And sure enough, Lane hit a little dribbler. [Hader] throws the ball away, and here we go.”
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The on-call insurance runs
A one-run advantage does not guarantee a win against a team with offensive power playing in its home ballpark. Alex Call followed Thomas in the batting order -- but only after Luke Voit was a late pregame scratch (back tightness) and Martinez bumped him from the No. 7 spot to hit second.
Call had studied Hader on the virtual reality Oculus WIN Reality program on Thursday and felt ready for him on Friday night. The 27-year-old rookie -- designated for the assignment by the Guardians on Aug. 5 before he was picked up on waivers by the Nationals -- overcame an 0-2 count to crush a 97.1 mph sinker into the left-center-field seats for two insurance runs.
It was his first Major League home run following six years in the Minors.
“I’ve definitely visualized it hundreds of times,” Call said. “It felt so good just rounding the bases. I mean, the ninth inning off Josh Hader -- definitely something that you’ll remember for the rest of your life. I enjoyed every step around the bases, that’s for sure.”
Call’s home run provided a cushion for closer Kyle Finnegan, who pitched a scoreless bottom of the ninth and left a packed Padres home crowd disappointed.
“These last two games have been intense, but it’s been fun,” Martinez said. “I think the guys are really enjoying it, which says a lot, especially for our young guys, that the atmosphere doesn’t bother them, that they’re going to go out there and play.”
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