“To err is human, to forgive divine.” It’s easy to say and hear but not necessarily easy to stomach seeing it while watching baseball.
The Washington Nationals lead the MLB with 39 errors and 33 unearned runs. The left side of the infield has been the culprit this year, with shortstop CJ Abrams making a team-high seven errors, while third baseman Brady House has six miscues.
But there is promise: Thursday’s 7-5 win over Minnesota saw the Nats execute a 9-4-5-2-6 rundown to end a scoring threat in the third inning, one frame after Jacob Young’s throw to the plate prevented what would have been a third Twins run in the inning.
“To see us be able to execute a play like that and have our heads up to find out where the runner is, and execute the throw, execute the rundown and ultimately get the out, which was a huge out. Also, JY’s perfect throw home earlier in the game that nailed a runner, all those little things. They matter so much,” manager Blake Butera said. “Those are two huge runs — we end up winning by two. Those little things matter — they stack up.”
The Nats took a step back over the weekend, with five more errors resulting in two unearned runs at Miami.
“Looking for glove in all the wrong places,” indeed.
Digesting the division: Atlanta (28-13) faced a potential playoff preview over the weekend, taking two of three from the two-time defending World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers. The Braves pitchers held the high-octane Dodgers to seven runs over three games.
There’s a three-way tie for second at 19-22. How long does the “fired manager bounce” remain for Philadelphia? After winning eight of nine under interim skipper Don Mattingly, the Phillies have dropped three of five. Miami, after taking two of three from the Nats, improves to 8-5 in one-run games while Washington laments a lost opportunity to move over .500.
The New York Mets (15-25) misery continues with this intriguing stat: Bo Bichette and Mark Vientos lead the team with 16 RBI apiece while Aaron Judge paces the New York Yankees with 16 … home runs.
O’s woes: There was no way the Birds were going to beat the Yankees on the night following the passing of former longtime announcer John Sterling. Sunday’s win over the Athletics keeps Baltimore out of last place by a half game. But they now have to face the very team they were outscored by 39-10 during a four-game sweep to start the month. And the New York Yankees come to Camden Yards somewhat irate after being swept by Milwaukee.
Diamond kings: The catching combination of Keibert Ruiz and Drew Millas combined to hit .167 in April. But both have begun May in a different manner, with Millas belting a two-run homer against Minnesota on Wednesday and Ruiz going 3-4 with four RBI in Thursday’s win. And while their value remains from a defensive standpoint, it’s nice to see both having success at the plate.
Last week’s heroes: Abrams drove in a team-high nine runs and Jose Tena hit .357 while tying James Wood with a team-high five runs scored. Wood batted .318 with a homer and four RBI. Foster Griffin improved to 4-1 on the season by striking out nine over seven innings of one-run ball at Miami while PJ Poulin tallied a win and a save.
Last week’s humbled: Andre Granillo allowed four runs over two innings while Mitchell Parker coughed up five runs over 3.2 frames. Jorbit Vivas and Nasim Nuñez each hit .125 while Joey Wiemer went 0-3 at the plate and got caught in a rundown as a pinch-runner in the ninth inning of a one-run loss.
Game to watch: The Orioles drop by D.C. this weekend and Saturday’s game has Cade Cavalli on the mound facing Chris Bassitt (who averaged 12 wins with a 3.89 ERA for Toronto the last three seasons). It’s a 4:05 p.m. start and Golden Tempo pulling out of the Preakness downgrades that race considerably. Enjoy a Black-Eyed Susan at the ballpark.
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