The Washington Nationals spent most of the season’s first two months searching for themselves, never fully healthy, occasionally brilliant, frequently agonizing. This week at Nationals Park, albeit against subpar competition, the search may have ended. They played flawless defense, their starting pitchers dominated, their offense shellacked opposing staffs and Ryan Zimmerman returned.
A greater challenge awaits them on the West Coast, but Thursday afternoon the Nationals completed a sweep of the beleaguered Philadelphia Phillies with a 4-2 victory. Doug Fister fired seven breezy innings, Adam LaRoche socked a two-run homer off Phillies starter Kyle Kendrick and the Nationals won for the fifth time in six games.
The Nationals (30-28) have won in five consecutive starts made by Fister, who allowed two runs on four hits and struck out five. Washington’s three starters in the series – Jordan Zimmermann, Stephen Strasburg and Fister – combined for 20 strikeouts and one walk.
In the past week, no National League team scored more or allowed fewer runs than the Nationals. They outscored the Texas Rangers and Phillies, 38-12. It may have happened against the most injury-riddled team in the majors and one of the worst teams in the National League. But the Nationals splattered opponents for two series in a row and, with a lineup finally getting healthy, played up to expectations.
The Nationals’ latest victory inched them to within one game of the first-place Atlanta Braves, the closest they have been since May 18.
“The division is tight,” Manager Matt Williams said. “You look at it and say, anybody can go on a run and make some hay here. If we get too far ahead of ourselves, we tend to get in trouble. Everybody understands where we’re at in the standings and how the season has gone. We have a chance.”
With Anthony Rendon on second and first base open, Kendrick showed no inclination of giving LaRoche anything to hit, throwing him a 3-0 curveball in the dirt. On Tuesday, the Phillies had pitched around LaRoche to face Zimmerman, and he responded with an RBI double. Thursday, Zimmerman punished them again, ripping an RBI single through the left side, tying the score at 1.
Denard Span lasered a double off the top of the left field fence. Rendon’s fly ball to the warning track moved Span to third, and Jayson Werth smoked the third hard-hit ball of the inning, a single into center that nudged the Nationals ahead, 2-1.
Kendrick still had to deal with LaRoche, who reminded the Phillies why they had been pitching around him all series. The count ran to 2-2, and the right-hander tried to sneak a 92-mph sinker past LaRoche at the top of the strike zone. LaRoche pummeled it into the Nationals’ bullpen, and the Nationals took a 4-1 lead.
The lead stood as insurmountable considering how Fister carved through the Phillies’ lineup. Three batters into the game, Chase Utley’s RBI single up the middle gave the Phillies a 1-0 lead. Fister retired 17 of the next 19 hitters, allowing only one of them to advance past first base. When Jimmy Rollins doubled with two outs in the third, Fister responded by striking out Utley swinging at a 74-mph curveball.
John Mayberry’s solo homer to lead off the seventh interrupted Fister’s dominance. But he left with a two-run lead. Tyler Clippard’s scoreless eighth and Rafael Soriano’s 12th save sealed the evening.
Fister made an arresting impression with acrobatic defense. In the first, after Ryan Howard’s grounder to LaRoche, Fister raced to cover first as the Nationals attempted to complete a 3-6-1 double play. A first baseman in junior college, Fister did a full split, both legs flat on the ground, as he lunged to catch Danny Espinosa’s throw. That the ball trickled out of his glove made the play no less striking.
In the third inning, Ben Revere slapped a grounder back up the middle. Fister drifts to the left side of the mound after he finishes his delivery. He fell to the ground, stopped the ball with the reflexes of a hockey goalie, spun on his right leg, hopped to his feet and tossed the ball to LaRoche for an out. In the sixth, Fister vacuumed Revere’s leadoff bunt attempt and flipped to first.
With the Phillies in their wake Thursday night, the Nationals boarded a flight to San Diego. The next 10 games – three against the Padres, then seven against standard-bearers San Francisco and St. Louis – will help define their summer. At least they know they can play as they are capable.
