The Nationals' Week in Review: 22-28 September, 2024

As the season draws to its conclusion today, let's take a look at the Box Score Roundup for one last time in 2024. Next stop...well, depending on who you ask, either the Arizona Fall League, Premier12, or West Palm Beach.

22 SEPTEMBER
(69-87) WSH 0-5 CHC (80-76)
WSH LF James Wood 2 for 4, 2B (13)
WSH 2B José Tena 2 for 4, K

CHC RF Mike Tauchman 1 for 2, 2 BB, HR (7), RBI
CHC 1B Michael Busch 2 for 4, GIDP, 2B (28), HR (21), RBI, K
CHC C Miguel Amaya 2 for 3, 2B (13), HR (8), 2 RBI

WSH SP Jake Irvin 4.0 IP, 4 H, 5 ER, 4 BB, 3 K, 3 HR

CHC SP Shōta Imanaga QS (19) 7.0 IP, 6 H, 0 R, 4 K

The Nationals' final road game of the 2024 season was uninspired. They got eight hits, just two of them for extra bases, did not walk once, and went 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position. Keibert did do my favorite thing he does--a back-pick--but that was about the only highlight as far as run prevention went, as Jake Irvin allowed 3 home runs in 4 innings while standout lefty Shōta Imanaga went seven strong.

24 SEPTEMBER
(83-74) KCR 1-0 WSH (69-88)
---FINAL/10---
KCR SS Bobby Witt Jr. 2 for 4, BB, SB (31) -- +31.1% WPA

WSH LF James Wood 1 for 3, BB
WSH 1B Juan Yepez 1 for 3, BB, GIDP, K

KCR SP Cole Ragans QS (21) 6.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 6 K
KCR RP Kris Bubic SD (7) 1.0 IP, H, 0 R
KCR RP Sam Long SD (10) 1.0 IP, H, 0 R, K
KCR RP Ángel Zerpa SD (14) 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R
KCR RP Lucas Erceg SD (23) 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 K -- +44.6% WPA

WSH SP Mitchell Parker 5.0 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 5 K
WSH RP Derek Law SD (22) 2.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, BB, 3 K
WSH RP Jose A. Ferrer SD (7) 2.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 K

25 SEPTEMBER
(84-74) KCR 3-0 WSH (69-89)
KCR 2B Michael Massey 2 for 4, RBI, K
KCR C Salvador Pérez 2 for 4, R, E2 (4)
KCR 1B Yuli Gurriel 1 for 3, BB, GIDP, 2B (3), R
KCR DH Robbie Grossman 1 for 4, 2 RBI, 2 K

WSH SS Nasim Nuñez 1 for 2, BB, SB (7), K

KCR SP Michael Lorenzen 2.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 2 K -- Exited early (Fatigue)
KCR RP Daniel Lynch IV SD (4) 2.2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, BB, 2 K -- Stranded 1 inherited

WSH SP DJ Herz 5.0 IP, 3 H, ER, 3 BB, 3 K
WSH RP Eduardo Salazar MD (3) 0.0 IP, 3 H, 2 ER

Things got no better when the Nats got back home. Mitch Parker and DJ Herz combined for 10 innings and one total run in their final starts of 2024, but the offense went scoreless for a season-worst 30 innings dating back to last Sunday's win over the Cubs. Bennett's already done his own dive into this atrocious run of offensive inadequacy, but these games were prime examples of "who wants it less," which is concerning when you're playing a team that was in the thick of a heated American League Wild Card race (that has since sorted itself out). The Nats went 0-for-20 with runners in scoring position across the Cubs finale and first two games of the Royals series.

26 SEPTEMBER
(85-74) KCR 7-4 WSH (69-90)
KCR LF Tommy Pham 1 for 5, RBI, R, K
KCR RF Hunter Renfroe 1 for 3, HR (14), RBI
KCR PH-3B Adam Frazier 1 for 1, SB (3), 2 RBI, R

WSH DH Juan Yepez 2 for 4, RBI, R
WSH 2B Luis García Jr. 1 for 4, HR (17), 3 RBI

KCR SP Michael Wacha 5.0 IP, 5 H, 4 R/3 ER, BB, 2 K, HR
KCR RP Ángel Zerpa SD (15) 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, K
KCR RP John Schreiber SD (23) 1.0 IP, H, 0 R
KCR RP Kris Bubic SD (8) 1.0 IP, H, 0 R, 2 K

WSH SP Patrick Corbin 5.1 IP, 6 H, 4 ER, BB, 3 K, HR
WSH RP Derek Law SD (23) 1.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, K
WSH RP Jose A. Ferrer SD (8) 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R
WSH CL Kyle Finnegan MD (10) 0.2 IP, 2 H, 3 ER, 3 BB -- -46.7% WPA

Slowly but surely, the energy started to shift on Thursday. I mean, it didn't exactly shift enough for us to not get swept by the playoff-bound Royals--sorry, Minnesota, but you kind of did it to yourself--but the Nationals took advantage of an E4 by Maikel García in the first to put a run on the board and quickly break the 30-inning shutout streak. Luis García Jr. hit his 17th homer of the year--of the players who've been on the roster the whole season, he's been shockingly the most consistent--but Kyle Finnegan was unable to hold a 4-4 tie in the 9th, allowing a 2-run single to Adam Frazier after failing to locate the strike zone. The 3-run implosion where he yielded 5 baserunners and got just two outs was his tenth meltdown of the year.

27 SEPTEMBER
(94-66) PHI 1-9 WSH (70-90)
PHI LF Austin Hays 2 for 3, HR (5), CS (2), RBI, K

WSH RF Dylan Crews 1 for 4, BB, 2B (5), 2 R, K
WSH 1B Juan Yepez 3 for 4, SAC, RBI, 3 R
WSH C Keibert Ruiz 2 for 5, 3 RBI
WSH DH Stone Garrett 3 for 4, BB, 2B (1), HR (1), 3 RBI, 2 R
WSH 2B Luis García Jr. 3 for 5, SB (22), R, K
WSH CF Jacob Young 3 for 4, RBI

PHI SP Ranger Suárez 2.0 IP, 7 H, 6 ER, 2 BB, 2 K, HR -- -35.8% WPA

WSH SP Trevor Williams 5.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 5 K, Pickoff (1)

I will always be a Stone Garrett fan. I was big on him when he was with the Diamondbacks (even if it was a bit of a "lodem" pick), gained a greater affinity for him when he became a playoff hero in an Out of the Park Baseball simulation I ran, and was pretty openly excited when we signed him. When he became the best hitter in a Nationals lineup trapped in the doldrums of summer, it felt almost like destiny, and then just as fate introduced us to Everyday Player Stone Garrett, it ripped him right back out of our hands when he broke his leg at Yankee Stadium.

Needless to say, when it was announced that Garrett was recalled from Triple-A Rochester on Tuesday, I was ecstatic. (The circumstances helped--Andrés Chaparro was deactivated not for medical reasons, but because he became a father.) When he finally got into game action on Friday, destiny struck again. Garrett homered in his first Major League plate appearance in 13 months, obliterating an otherwise decently-placed Ranger Suárez curveball 431 feet to left and let the emotion flow on his way around the basepaths. Stone would finish the day a triple short of the cycle, instrumental in the Nationals opening a series against the NL East-champion Phillies with an 8-run victory, the team's 70th of the year.

Also key in the win was Trevor Williams, who completed his abbreviated 2024 campaign with another strong start. Williams, who was questionable at his best in 2023, rebounded in a huge way in the first two months of the season before hitting the injured list with a flexor strain. His second start in September, and final of the year, locked him in at a 2.03 ERA in 13 outings and a high likelihood to earn a Major League job somewhere in the league in 2025.

28 SEPTEMBER
(94-67) PHI 3-6 WSH (71-90)
PHI SS Trea Turner 1 for 4, Game-tying HR (21) in 8th, 2 RBI, 2 K

WSH LF James Wood 2 for 4, Table-setting 3B (4) in 8th, Go-ahead HR (9) in 6th, 2 RBI, 2 R, 2 K -- +44.8% WPA
WSH C Keibert Ruiz 2 for 4, RBI, R, K
WSH DH Juan Yepez 0 for 4, 4 K
WSH RF Dylan Crews 2 for 3, BB, SB (11), R
WSH 1B Joey Gallo 1 for 3, BB, HR (10), 3 RBI

PHI SP Zack Wheeler QS (26) 6.1 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 11 K, HR
PHI RP Jeff Hoffman MD (8) 1.0 IP, 4 H, 4 ER, 2 K, HR -- -37.8% WPA

WSH SP MacKenzie Gore QS (11) KdS (3, 6th inning) 6.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, BB, 9 K
WSH RP Jose A. Ferrer MD (3) 1.1 IP, H, 2 ER, K, HR, HBP (2)

Saturday's game felt like a glimpse into the future of what this team has the ability to become. Let's start with James Wood. After Zack Wheeler dealt towards his MLB-leading 26th quality start through 5 innings, Wood took him deep to the opposite field--bet you haven't heard that one before--to put the Nationals in front and break the scoreless tie. Even when Trea Turner tied the game with a home run in the 8th, James was the catalyst for a bottom-of-the-inning rally, tripling off Jeff Hoffman to set the stage for Keibert Ruiz to drive him in and Joey Gallo to hit a dagger-sinking homer.

The Nationals also got a critical showing from MacKenzie Gore, who mowed down the Phillies lineup for six scoreless innings. Gore has been nothing short of a total monster in September, posting quality starts in three of his four outings, and he wrapped up this final start in a strong finish to his third major league season by striking out the side for the 3rd time this year. In poignant fashion, the batters in that inning: Kyle Schwarber, former National; Trea Turner, former National; and Bryce Harper, former National.

Gore got a little help from his defense, as Nasim Nuñez and Luis García Jr. each made excellent plays in the first two innings. Luis ran down a Trea Turner popup in the 1st, ranging all the way almost into medium-depth right field and catching the ball over his shoulder without missing a beat; while Nuñez stole a hit away from Alec Bohm in the 2nd by diving to stop a grounder in short left field and firing a laser cannon to Joey Gallo.

If Saturday's game is a sign of things to come for the Nationals, then I'm on board. Obviously, the team has coaching questions, and a need to solidify its roster in the offseason if it wants to contend sooner rather than later. But if ever there was a positive sign to wrap up another season, it's a series win against the NL East champions. Enjoy the season finale this afternoon, and I'll have another article for you next week. As usual, if you have any questions or comments, feel free to reach out to me directly @TheOttSpot on Twitter, or tag us as a whole @DistrictOnDeck.