No Harper, No Problem: Washington Nationals are playing unstoppable baseball
By Pablo Roa
May 20, 2015; Washington, DC, USA; Washington Nationals shortstop Ian Desmond (20) high fives third baseman
Yunel Escobar(5) after hitting a home run in the first inning against the New York Yankees at Nationals Park. The Nationals won 3-2. Mandatory Credit: Evan Habeeb-USA TODAY Sports
No Harper, No Problem: Bats and bullpen come through
While Bryce Harper didn’t do damage in last night’s game, the team was not short on heroes as they completed their two-game sweep of the Yankees.
After Washington fell behind early, home runs by Ian Desmond and Tyler Moore quickly tied the game at two. Of course, that didn’t come as a surprise.
Throughout the team’s dominant month of May, the Nationals have regularly fallen behind only to tie the game and pull ahead in the end for the win. Early in the season when the offense was all but inexistent, allowing two runs in the first inning would have all but certainly led to a loss. Now, it’s almost expected that no defecit is too large to overcome for the Nationals, and there’s never a cause for panic when the team falls behind.
Last night was no exception, as the power bats of Desmond and Moore brought the Nationals right back in the game. A few innings later, Denard Span came through with a big single to give the Nationals a 3-2 lead.
Just as the team overcoming deficits has become seemingly automatic, closer Drew Storen has been automatic as well. Storen, who has only blown one save all season, recorded his 12th save of the season and brought his ERA down to a minuscule 1.04 last night.
Storen, along with reliever Matt Grace, kept the 3-2 win intact for Zimmermann and the Nationals and secured the two-game sweep for the home team.