Washington Nationals News: Blake Treinen searching for consistency
Good evening DoD readers, and welcome to today’s District Daily! Get caught up on the latest Nats news with some great Washington Nationals articles from around the web.
In today’s Daily, the Washington Times’ Tom Schad discusses Nationals reliever Blake Treinen and how inconsistent he has been this season. As Schad notes, Treinen has shown flashes of brilliance out of the bullpen, but he has also struggled mightily at times.
For the Nationals, it seems to be a matter of which Treinen will take the mound on any given day. If they’re lucky, it’ll be the Treinen who pitched two scoreless innings and earned the win in today’s game against the Yankees. If not, it could be the Treinen who gave up two runs in an inning against the Cubs earlier this week.
Treinen’s inconsistency is reflective of the struggles of the bullpen as a whole this season. Apart from closer Drew Storen, who has been absolutely dominant, the bullpen has hurt the Nationals on numerous occasions this season. Sometimes the ‘pen gets the job done, other times it implodes.
It’s unclear what the Nationals are going to do to address their bullpen needs, or if the current ‘pen will be able to get it together down the stretch. One thing’s for certain, they’ll need consistency out of all of their relievers if they want to accomplish their goals this season.
Also in today’s Daily, the Washington Post’s James Wagner discusses Bryce Harper and the fact that he finally faced a pitcher who is younger than him in today’s win over the Yankees.
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Be sure to check out both articles below, they’re definitely worth a read. And as always, stay tuned to DoD for all your Washington Nationals needs.
Blake Treinen searching for consistency out of Nationals’ bullpen
NEW YORK — Life as a relief pitcher can be rewarding but cruel, thrilling but infuriating, confounding but simple. Blake Treinen, a converted starter, is still learning this. Last week was proof.
In a span of six days, Treinen appeared in four games. Twice, he was utterly dominant, striking out two batters and turning in a scoreless inning. And twice he struggled, walking some batters and giving up extra-base hits to others. He allowed five earned runs in those appearances and recorded a total of five outs.
In a Washington Nationals bullpen filled with inconsistency, perhaps nobody has shifted as frequently between dominance and self-destruction as Treinen. Not too long ago, the 26-year-old was pitching the eighth inning in place of the injured Casey Janssen and viewed as a possible long-term option there. In the weeks since, he has pitched everywhere from the third inning to the ninth, searching for consistency along the way. Read full article here.
Bryce Harper — finally — faced a pitcher younger than him
(James Wagner, Washington Post)
In his 2,303th plate appearance and 554th game in professional baseball between the minors and majors, Bryce Harper finally faced a pitcher younger than him. The moment happened when Yankees starter Nathan Eovaldi was replaced by left-handed reliever Jacob Lindgren in the eighth inning of Wednesday’s game.
Lindgren, a prospect picked out of Mississippi State by the Yankees in the second round of last year’s draft, is 22 years and 90 days old while Harper is 22 years and 237 days old — a difference of 147 days. Lindgren was called up on May 24 and pressed into action in the eighth inning on Wednesday because the Yankees were shorthanded in the bullpen with Andrew Miller’s injury. Harper, on the other hand, was drafted by the Nationals first overall five years ago and reached the majors in 2012. Read full article here.