Labor Day was the final marking post of the baseball season as teams prepared for the final kick to the postseason (or as we sometimes see, be kicked to the curb).
And after posting their first winning month since June of 2021, it looked as if the Washington Nationals had a chance to, if not make the postseason, at least continue to make noise. They got to face a struggling Miami that was teetering — going 13-25 since the All Star break — and they were home.
Actually, upon further review, getting swept by the Marlins in D.C. shouldn’t have come as a complete surprise.
First off, the Nats were 2-7 against Miami entering the four-game series. And second, this is one of six MLB teams that has a worse record at home than on the road. The select club the Nationals are in is an intriguing bunch: two teams that led their divisions entering Sunday’s games (Houston and the Orioles), two that were scraping on the fringes of the Wild Card chase (Cincinnati and Toronto) and two sub-. 500 squads (Nats and Detroit).
Of the team’s 24 remaining regular season games, 12 are at home and 12 are on the road. Can the “Home Nats” (29-40 this year) catch the “Road Nats” (33-36)? Three of Washington’s final four series are against contending clubs (eight of 12 games), while they play seven of 12 remaining games in D.C. against winning teams. Prepare yourself for one unforgiving final month as the Nationals play 15 of their final 24 games against playoff teams.
Digesting the Division: Atlanta (90-46) owns a magic number of 12 after taking two of three from the Los Angeles Dodgers in a potential playoff preview. Philadelphia (75-61) is enjoying the hot bat of another former National as Trea Turner hit .391 with four homers and 11 RBI last week.
Miami (70-67) is afloat thanks to their dominance of the Nats. Since Aug. 14, they’ve won five of seven against Washington while going 2-8 against everyone else. The New York Mets (63-74) have reclaimed fourth place as Pete Alonso’s monster season (41 homers with 100 RBI) won’t completely be in vain. Washington (62-76), after getting out of the cellar one week ago, are back in their familiar surroundings.
Break up the Birds: If the Orioles (85-51) simply go .500 over the rest of the season, Toronto (the first team out in the Wild Card chase) would need to go 23-2 to catch them. Youth is being served: Gunnar Henderson in his rookie season has an outside chance at reaching 100 runs, and he’s just one of eight starting position players in their 20s. Four of five rotation pitchers are under thirty and the same case is true for four of the five most-used relievers.
After taking two of three against NL Wild Card contending Arizona, they catch a break with the Los Angeles Angels (no Shohei Ohtani on the mound and no Mike Trout at the plate or in the field) before visiting Boston. While they can’t technically eliminate the Red Sox, they can certainly kneecap their AL East competitor’s fading playoff hopes at their own ballpark.
Last Week’s Heroes: Lane Thomas belted three homers to give him a career-high 23 for the season, while Jacob Young batted .300. The rookie center fielder also had a huge throw to the plate to help preserve their only victory of the week. MacKenzie Gore allowed one run over five innings while Jose A. Ferrer and Jordan Weems each notched three scoreless innings over three outings.
Last Week’s Humbled: For starters, a rough week. Joan Adon allowed five runs over five innings, while Patrick Corbin surrendered six over five frames. Trevor Williams coughed up eight earned runs over four innings.
The bullpen is going to enjoy the day off. Cold bats include Keibert Ruiz (.158), Joey Meneses (.150) along with CJ Abrams and Ildemaro Vargas (both batting .083 for the week).
Game to Watch: The Nats visit the New York Mets with a chance to get out of the basement. On Tuesday, they start Patrick Corbin (9-12, 4.90 ERA), as the lefthander tries to build off of his best month (4.13 ERA in August). He’s also 2-0 against the Mets this year.
Game to Miss: On Sunday, the Nationals wrap up their series with the Los Angeles Dodgers at 1:35 p.m., and if memory serves, it always seems to be the hottest weather of the year when LA comes to town (or perhaps it’s my irrational Dodgers fan friend).
