Nationals Pitchers Struggle, Lose 4-2

Apr 17, 2014; Washington, DC, USA; Washington Nationals pitcher

(38) throws during the second inning against the St. Louis Cardinals at Nationals Park. Mandatory Credit:

-USA TODAY Sports

It was a rough day for the Washington Nationals. First we learned that Bryce Harper needs a disabled list stint with his hand injury and then, as if that wasn’t enough, we watched Nationals pitchers walk eight Padres hitters in a 4-2 loss at Nationals Park.

It was clear early in the first inning that velocity and command were not there for Nationals starter Taylor Jordan.  He was only throwing 86, and he normally throws in the low 90s.  The first run was scored in the bottom of the first when Anthony Rendon crushed a double off the scoreboard in right. Jayson Werth then plugged the gap in left center field, scoring Rendon.

The Padres scored their first run in the fourth on a Gyorko sac fly which allowed Denorfia to score from third. It was impressive to see Jordan allow only one run in the fourth, as there were runners on second and third with no outs.

After the fourth inning, Taylor Jordan was pulled in favor of Ross Detwiler. Many were worried it was due to possible injury but Matt Williams announced after the game that he was battling the flu.

Everth Cabrera reached base for the Padres in the fifth inning and proceeded to steal second and then advance to third, before he came around to score on a single by Denorfia.

The sixth was the real interesting inning. Ross Detwiler started the inning but only managed to get one out before being pulled in favor of Barrett. Barrett struggled with command, walking in two runs with the bases loaded and making it a 4-1 game.

The Nats got a run in the eighth on a Nate McLouth home run, his first of the year. But that was all the damage the Nationals could do with the bats and the Padres held on to win the final game of this four-game series. With the loss, the Nationals split their series with the Padres and drop their record to 14-12.