Wilson Ramos’ Great Night
The MVP of last night’s game had to be the Nats’ catcher, Wilson Ramos. After having four hits in the first four games combined, Ramos went 4-for-4 with two RBI’s, including the game-winning single that hit umpire Bob Davidson in the fifth inning.
Plus, he added on a key insurance run in the seventh with a base hit to right that also drove in Zimmerman, like he did in the fifth wit the base hit to left field.
In addition to his strong night at the plate, he was also able to throw out Mallex Smith trying to steal second to end the top of the fourth inning. Smith would eventually leave the game in his Major League debut for Drew Stubbs after having a cut on his forehead.
As for Ramos, he has now thrown out three of the five runners who have tried to steal this year. James Wagner of the Washington Post tweeted during the game about a new tactic the Nats are using to try to catch runners stealing:
Nats have encouraged pitchers to hold on to the ball longer with a base-stealing threat on 1B to mess up timing. Ramos gets Smith stealing.
— James Wagner (@ByJamesWagner) April 12, 2016
From an offensive standpoint, Ramos is doing a good job of hitting the ball to the right side of the field and taking advantage of the shift teams play on him, especially the Braves. He is 8-for-15 at the plate in three games against Atlanta this season after hitting .286 with eight RBI’s against them last year.
Next: The Lopes Impact