Thomas leads the way to Nats victory

SAN FRANCISCO -- The Nationals drew some attention during Spring Training when they emphasized the following message for their pitchers: "I don't care how fast you throw ball four."

Perhaps Nats position players put their twist on the saying when they stepped in against Giants starter Blake Snell on Monday night.

Patience won the day as Washington took advantage of some early wildness to spoil the reigning National League Cy Young Award winner's season debut with an 8-1 win to open a three-game set at Oracle Park.

Outfielder Lane Thomas led the charge, as he has begun to look more like his usual self with every passing day.

After beginning the 2024 campaign in a 2-for-28 rut through his first seven games, Thomas has multiple hits in three consecutive games. On Monday, he went 3-for-5 and launched his first home run of the season.

"He's getting himself ready a little earlier at the plate. … He's done really well," manager Dave Martinez said. "He's playing good baseball, he's running the bases well, he's doing everything right. Today he gets that first one out of the way, which was nice and helped us win a big game."

Thomas jumped on a 1-0 curveball over the heart of the plate from Giants rookie right-hander Landen Roupp, sending it a Statcast-projected 402 feet at 110.6 mph off the bat for a two-run shot in the fifth inning.

He was also the first to reach base against Snell when he singled in the top of the first, and he added some insurance with an RBI knock in the ninth.

"There's a lot that goes into it," Thomas said of finding his rhythm early in the season. "Timing. Your heart's beating a little faster with a lot of people. The guys are just better.

"I mean, you see a lot of guys in Spring Training who are trying to make the teams. … Once you get here, these guys are ready to roll and they're trying to take money out of your pocket."

Thomas was one of six Nationals batters to work a full count against Snell in the first two innings, elevating the already limited pitch count for the Giants' southpaw. With his lengthy free agency leading to a rapid ramp-up to game action, Snell struck out five but showed some rust.

Washington took advantage of the situation, tagging Snell for three runs on three hits and two walks while forcing him to throw 72 pitches (39 strikes) across three innings.

"He didn't win a Cy Young for no reason, right? … His breaking ball, his changeup and even his fastball, they're all electric pitches," Martinez said. "Our focus was just, 'Hey, make him throw strikes, work deep counts and accept your walks. Don't chase.'"

Even though Thomas got off to a slow start at the plate, he leads the Nationals with seven RBIs after his performance on Monday. His six stolen bases also pace the team, though Trey Lipscomb might give him a run for his money.

Lipscomb, the club's No. 16 prospect per MLB Pipeline, went 3-for-3 on the basepaths and became just the fourth Nationals rookie to steal home, joining CJ Abrams (2022), Trea Turner ('16) and Bryce Harper ('12).

With a trio of singles, Lipscomb also had the seventh three-hit, three-steal game -- and the first by a rookie -- in Nationals history.

Lipscomb has four stolen bases in nine games, and he's been running more than he did in the Minors -- he swiped 12 bags in 2022 and 10 in '23. He attributes that to the greater availability of information in the big leagues.

"Now that we have the video, you can go in there and see what the pitcher does, and when to go and when not to go," Lipscomb said. "I think we pick good counts to run and [it] makes you more successful."

Of the five Major Leaguers to steal three bases in a game this season, three of them are Nationals -- Lipscomb on Monday, Thomas last Sunday and Abrams on March 30.

If the Nats can continue to get on base like they did against Snell and the Giants, their approach on the basepaths that Martinez termed "aggressively smart" could play a critical role in the team's run production.

"We always talk about, 'Hey, we're always thinking about going to the next base, so be ready at any given moment,'" Martinez said. "They've done really well with it."