Moments That Mattered: How Sweep It Is
By Andrew Flax
Source:
I don’t know for certain, but I am somewhat confident that in addition to overcoming their biggest runs deficit of the season during this game, the Nats also came back from their longest odds of winning of the season. After Pedro Florimon‘s two-run homer put the Nats’ odds of winning at 20.8%, all seemed loss, especially for this team that has been quite light-hitting all season. However, much to our surprise, the Nationals managed some very consistent offense to climb back into it. They scored in five of the game’s first seven innings and pulled out a nice win to crawl back to .500.
Most Important Nationals Hit: Denard Span‘s game-tying triple (+22.7%)
Jun 5, 2013; Washington, DC, USA; Washington Nationals center fielder Denard Span (2) is congratulated by Anthony Rendon (6) after scoring a run during the first inning against the New York Mets at Nationals Park. Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports
Span missed the first game of the doubleheader against his former team after fouling a pitch off his foot yesterday, but he made his presence felt in the nightcap. With a runner on first and two outs in the sixth, he knocked in the tying run and motored to third as he did so. However, he was stranded by Ryan Zimmerman after Roger Bernadina walked. If players will triple every time they play their former team, the Nats should get a new outfielder from every other team as fast as they can.
Most Important Nationals Pitch: Chris Herrmann‘s two-run double (-19.8%)
Herrmann had eight career at-bats coming into this game, but he looked like a seasoned veteran today. After two walks put runners on in the second inning, Herrmann delivered with a ball off the wall in right field that pushed through both runners and turned a 1-0 Nats lead into a 2-1 deficit. However, with the Nats’ potent-for-today offense, the lead was not safe.
Champ of the Game: Span (+21.4%) was only 1-4 with his RBI triple, but he also walked once and scored a run earlier in the game. Herrmann (+31.1%) was 3-4 with a walk and two RBI, and now has a .500 average on the season (6-12).
Chump of the Game: Nate Karns (-31.9%) had major struggles with his location today, walking three batters and hitting another. He allowed four runs on five hits in just three innings, and was lucky not to take the loss. Minnesota’s Anthony Swarzak (-28.7%) entered the game with a 4-3 lead, but left trailing 5-4 after four hits and a walk let the Nats score two more to turn the tide.