The date was October 11, 2012. It was a chilly Thursday evening, and the Washington Nationals came into the night trailing 2-1 in the National League Division Series against the St. Louis Cardinals, facing elimination for the first time since becoming the Washington Nationals.
St. Louis was a veteran team, with guys like Matt Holliday, Carlos Beltran, and Yadier Molina leading the lineup, with veteran pitchers Chris Carpenter, Adam Wainwright, and Game 4 starter Kyle Loshe, among others. The Nationals were tasting playoff baseball for the first time, after finishing the regular season with a 98-64 record and also clinching their first NL East title.
From top to bottom, this Nats team was loaded. Their lineup from 1-8 in this game went Jayson Werth, Bryce Harper, Ryan Zimmerman, Adam LaRoche, Michael Morse, Ian Desmond, Danny Espinosa, and Kurt Suzuki, with lefty Ross Detwiler on the hill. This team will always have a special place in my heart, as it was the first great team in Nats history, and I had the special privilege of being in attendance for this historic game.
The game itself was extremely nerve-wracking. A true playoff pitcher's duel, Lohse went 7.0 innings, allowing just 1 earned run on 2 hits, while Detwiler pitched 6.0 great innings as well, allowing just 1 unearned run on 3 hits, but both pitchers earned a no-decision. Both teams had just 3 hits apiece in the game, but obviously 1 hit was all that would be remembered.
In the 9th inning, with the game tied 1-1, the leadoff hitter for the Nats, Jayson Werth, came to the plate against Lance Lynn. What would happen over the next few minutes would go down as arguably the greatest at-bat in Nationals history. Werth took a pair of knee-high fastballs for strikes, immediately finding himself down 0-2. After an injury-riddled regular season in the second year of his massive 7-year, $126M contract, Werth was still lacking a true signature moment as a National. This at-bat seemed as if it was going to end in disappointing fashion, but Werth had other ideas.
Over the next several minutes, Werth would work the count all the way to 3-2, and on the 13th pitch of the epic at-bat, he would have the moment that would be the lasting image of his Nationals tenure to many fans. Werth hit a "Game-winning...season-saving home run!" (as called by Charlie Slowes) into the left field bullpen, sending the Nationals Park crowd into an absolute frenzy. The Nationals had extended their season for another night, and would force a winner-take-all Game 5...which of course, they would eventually lose in heartbreaking fashion.
As an 11-year-old sitting along the first base line for this game with my dad, I can still vividly replay this moment in my head forever, and this was truly a moment I will never forget. For as long as I live, I will always celebrate the anniversary of "The Werthquake," and I hope with this piece that you were able to as well. In case you missed my piece last week regarding the longest night in Nationals history, you can check that one out here.
12 years ago, today: The Werthquake#NATITUDE pic.twitter.com/PitBq8NP7z
— Bennett Lehmann (@DCBerk) October 11, 2024
Where were you during The Werthquake? As always, please let me know on X, @DCBerk.