Clean slate: Nats break out for 10 runs in comeback 'W' in extras
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ST. LOUIS -- The day after the Nationals were no-hit for the first time at Nationals Park by Padres right-hander Dylan Cease, they took the field in a different ballpark in a different city. It was a blank canvas to draw up offense on Friday in the series opener against the Cardinals at Busch Stadium.
“We forget about that one and we get ready for today,” manager Dave Martinez said pregame. “[Cease] was really good, but today we face another really good pitcher. The key is, just focus on each at-bat.”
From a no-hitter to extra innings, the Nats responded by recording 11 hits and topping the Cardinals, 10-8, in 10 innings at Busch Stadium. They snapped a three-game losing skid and improved to 3-7 on the season in extras.
“It’s in the past,” said Juan Yepez, who matched a career-high three hits. “Turn the page and just be aggressive, trust our talent, swing hard, put the ball in play and play for the team. I think that’s what we did, and that’s how we got the win.”
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Entering Friday, the Nationals had not collected a hit since Nasim Nuñez singled in the eighth inning on Wednesday. They placed an emphasis on getting on the board early, having been 24-14 this season when scoring first.
They got off to a quiet start with three consecutive strikeouts by CJ Abrams, Lane Thomas and Jesse Winker in the first inning. But the former Cardinal Yepez, whose 15-game hitting streak was snapped on Thursday, got back on track with a single to lead off the second inning. Second baseman Luis García Jr. put the Nationals ahead, 2-0, with a two-run double that drove in Yepez and Keibert Ruiz.
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“Today, the whole message was, ‘We have to stay on the fastball,’” Martinez said. “Those guys did, and they got some big hits for us early, and the other guys kind of followed suit towards the end there.”
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After the Cardinals scored five runs in the third inning off southpaw MacKenzie Gore -- off home runs by Masyn Wynn and Nolan Arenado -- García (2-for-4, three RBIs) trimmed the gap in the fourth by plating Yepez with a line-drive RBI single to right field.
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The Nationals chipped away at the Cardinals’ 6-3 lead in the fifth. Yepez drove in his first run of the night with a double, and Nats No. 1 prospect (MLB No. 2 overall) James Wood made it a one-run game with an RBI groundout. They scored five of their runs off St. Louis starter Sonny Gray, who exited after five innings.
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It was Yepez again who evened the score at six apiece with a sacrifice fly in the seventh to drive in Abrams, setting the stage for a clutch at-bat from No. 9 hitter Jacob Young.
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The Nationals rallied in the 10th with two outs. Right-hander Ryan Fernandez intentionally walked García, and rookie Trey Lipscomb battled through an eight-pitch at-bat to load the bases with his 12th walk of the season.
“You’re talking about a guy that probably hasn’t played 100 games, and he’s doing stuff like that -- it’s just awesome to see that type of resiliency and to win at-bats like that,” Young said.
On a 2-0 count, Young jumped on a slider from Fernandez and sent it a Statcast-projected 305 feet into right field. The line drive soared just past a tumbling Dylan Carlson, clearing the bases as Young sped to third base. Young’s first triple of the season led to tying his career-high three RBIs.
“He smoked that ball,” said Martinez. “It was a great swing by Jacob.”
When they were no-hit for the first time in Nationals history (2005-present) on Aug. 9, 2023, by then-Phillies righty Michael Lorenzen at Citizens Bank Park, they scored two runs off 10 hits the following game, a 6-2 loss to Philadelphia. On Friday, they bounced back with offense and a victory.
“I think there’s been a lot of ups and downs this year, and we’re a young team, and I think we’ve done a great job of trying not to sit in those lows for too long,” Young said. “Yesterday’s no-hitter, it happens. It’s the same thing as losing a one-run ballgame -- all losses count the same, all wins count the same. Just trying to move on.”