Washington Nationals Rapid Reaction: One Max Scherzer Wild Pitch Makes A Difference

Jul 19, 2015; Washington, DC, USA; Washington Nationals right fielder Bryce Harper (34) reacts after striking out in the seventh inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Nationals Park. Los Angeles Dodgers defeated Washington Nationals 5-0. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports

When the pitching matchups were first announced for this series between the Washington Nationals and Los Angeles Dodgers, everyone circled the matchup between Zack Greinke and Max Scherzer that took place yesterday at Nats Park. It was a battle between two pitchers that are in the running for the NL Cy Young Award.

While Scherzer put together another good start for the Nats, it was Greinke, who was just a little better as he is on an historic streak right now. By throwing eight scoreless innings yesterday, not only did the Dodgers’ right-hander get his ERA down to 1.30, but his scoreless inning streak is now at 43.2 innings, which is the longest streak since Orel Hershiser’s streak was 59 innings back in 1988.

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That being said, in all three matchups in this series, the Nationals had trouble pushing runs across against any of the Dodgers starters. Against Mike Bolsinger, Clayton Kershaw, and Greinke, the Nats scored one run in 20 innings. That run was on a Bryce Harper fielder’s choice in the bottom of the third inning on Friday. It culminated on Sunday when the Nats could not get one batter to reach second base until Harper got there on an error by Jimmy Rollins in the bottom of the ninth.

When you have an offense that is struggling to put together big innings, one small mistake by a great starter can make a difference. For the Nats, that was Max Scherzer’s wild pitch in the third inning that made the difference as the Dodgers took a 1-0 lead and never looked back. After winning that first game, which was played over two days, the Nationals now find themselves two games ahead of the Mets in the NL East with a crucial three game series against New York starting tonight at Nats Park.

Before Matt Harvey takes on Gio Gonzalez tonight, here are my takeaways from yesterday’s 5-0 loss:

Next: Scherzer Gets No Help From Offense

Jul 19, 2015; Washington, DC, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers right fielder Andre Ethier (16) slides into home and scores on Washington Nationals starting pitcher Max Scherzer (31) wild pitch in the fourth inning at Nationals Park. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports

Scherzer Pitched Well, But Got No Help

This battle of the aces had the same result as Scherzer had when he went up against Johnny Cueto on July 7, but he put up a much better performance against the Dodgers. He went six innings, gave up one run on seven hits, struck out eight, and walked one on 98 pitches (70 strikes).

Right out of the gate, the Dodgers had a chance to score in the opening inning when they loaded the bases with two outs. However, Scherzer was able to get out of it by getting Yasiel Puig to miss a 95 mile per hour fastball to end the inning. Normally, against Scherzer, when you miss that chance to score in the early innings, that means another dominant start for the Nats ace.

But, yesterday was a different story. The Dodgers found a way to get that key run against Scherzer in the fourth inning that would make the difference. After a leadoff double by Andre Ethier, the Dodgers played small ball by having Yasmani Grandal bunt Ethier over to third.

Two batters later, Scherzer made that one mistake when he threw his fourth wild pitch of the season against Alberto Callaspo. Wilson Ramos had a chance to make the play at the plate, but his throw went wild and the Dodgers on the board.

For the second time in three starts, the Nationals did not score a run for their ace. In fact, they have a scored a total of four runs in Scherzer’s last four starts (1-3 in those outings). When Scherzer gets 0-2 runs of support in an outing this season, he is 1-7 with an ERA of 2.60. To be fair, the Nats went up against a really good pitcher in Greinke, but they have to find a way to help their ace out and get him that big inning to put the game way.

Next: Treinen Struggles In 9th Inning

Jun 25, 2015; Washington, DC, USA; Washington Nationals relief pitcher Blake Treinen (64) throws to the Atlanta Braves during the ninth inning at Nationals Park. The Washington Nationals won 7 – 0. Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports

Blake Treinen Lets Dodgers Break Game Open

Despite the Nationals having their issues at the plate against Zack Greinke (three hits over the first eight innings), it was only a 1-0 game heading into the top of the ninth. Felipe Rivero, Aaron Barrett, and Casey Janssen were able to get the job done.

With Drew Storen pitching yesterday, Matt Williams went to Blake Treinen to start the ninth, but it was a disaster. Justin Turner and Joc Pederson led off the inning with back-to-back singles. Two batters later, Los Angeles would break the game wide open with a RBI single from Andre Ethier, one from A.J. Ellis, and a two-run single by Yasiel Puig.

Ultimately, that would be in for Treinen. The 27-year-old right-hander gave up four runs on five hits in 1/3 of an inning on 28 pitches. One of the main issues for Treinen this season has been his control. In his last three relief appearances, he has walked a combined five batters.

While Treinen had eight straight appearances without allowing a run, it exemplifies how valuable David Carpenter was to the Nats bullpen before he went on the disabled list due to shoulder inflammation Friday. Casey Janssen has been solid in his last few outings, but the Nats still could use another reliable bullpen piece in the middle innings.

Treinen does have the fastball to be successful, but he has to be more consistent with his location. Otherwise, he is going to have more outings like he had yesterday. Otherwise, the Nats need to think about using Aaron Barrett in those situations. Barrett has not given up a hit to the seven batters he has faced since coming off the DL.

Next: Ramos And Desmond's Struggles Continue