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Washington Nationals News: Win over Giants a reminder of Nats’ immense potential

By Pablo Roa

Aug 7, 2016; Washington, DC, USA; Washington Nationals relief pitcher Mark Melancon (43) celebrates with catcher Wilson Ramos (40) celebrate after defeating the San Francisco Giants 1-0 at Nationals Park. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports
Aug 7, 2016; Washington, DC, USA; Washington Nationals relief pitcher Mark Melancon (43) celebrates with catcher Wilson Ramos (40) celebrate after defeating the San Francisco Giants 1-0 at Nationals Park. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports /
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Today’s District Daily has more on the Washington Nationals’ big win over the Giants today and the pitch that makes closer Mark Melancon dominant on the mound.

Good evening DoD readers, and welcome to today’s District Daily. Get caught up on the latest Nats news and opinions with some great Washington Nationals articles form around the web below.

In today’s Daily, the Washington Post’s Thomas Boswell writes a great column about today’s win over the Giants, and what it says about the Nationals. As Boswell writes, everything went well for the Nationals in Sunday’s win, and it added to the growing sense that something special is happening with the team this season.

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As Boswell writes, the Nationals treated this game like a playoff game, and the atmosphere agreed with that assertion. Of course, there’s still plenty of baseball to be played.

But based on how the last few weeks (and the season as a whole) have gone for the Nats, it definitely feels like “something” is happening — a feeling that we haven’t had with this team since 2014.

Also in today’s Daily, the Washington Post’s Jose Castillo discusses new Nationals closer Mark Melancon. Specifically, Castillo write about the pitch that made Melancon one of the best closers in baseball — his Mariano Rivera-eque cutter.

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.

Nationals’ latest win over Giants a reminder of just how good they can be

(Thomas Boswell, Washington Post)

At times, a few brilliant moments in a sterling game are enough to make your mind jump out of its everyday rut of baseball details and instead see a much bigger picture. That happened in the Washington Nationals’ 1-0 win Sunday over the San Francisco Giants. Tanner Roark outdueled Madison Bumgarner, the Giants’ postseason legend. The only run came on a Wilson Ramos homer just minutes after an amazing, over-the-head catch at the 402-foot sign in center field by Ben Revere had robbed the Giants of two runs.

On days like this, you wonder: Is something special going on here? It sure feels like “Yes.” Read full article here.

The pitch that made Mark Melancon the Washington Nationals’ new closer

(Jorge Castillo, Washington Post)

For four years, Mark Melancon watched as Mariano Rivera pumped cut fastballs into catchers’ mitts. Melancon and Rivera were teammates on the New York Yankees — only in spring training for the first two years — and Melancon witnessed the ball’s movement, the future Hall of Famer’s legendary ability to confound hitters even when they knew what pitch was coming. All the swings and misses. All the broken bats. Save after save. It was a cheat code.

One spring training a pitching coach named Billy Connors had shown Melancon the grip, a variance from the standard four-seam fastball grip, but he was hesitant to incorporate it. Read full article here.

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