D4 EZ M2 THE WASHINGTON POST.FRIDAY, JULY 31 , 2020
Baseball
so MLB scratched their games
until the team’s health status is
better known.
Second, in a vote so stunning I
hardly know how to process it,
every Nationals player except one
refused to go to Miami. Their
problem was not with the sick
Marlins. They simply refused to
go to the hot spot city of Miami.
In the season’s early days, the
Nationals have shown signs of the
same pandemic distraction that
nags many teams. Sometimes
they keep their minds on their
business. Shortstop Trea Turner’s
dive to start a game-saving double
play Wednesday was worthy of
any red-circle play last season.
Max Scherzer (21 strikeouts in two
starts) and Patrick Corbin (six
dominant innings against the
New York Yankees) have been
stellar.
The bullpen, so historically
awful last season that it could
improve enough to compensate
for the loss of Anthony Rendon,
entered Thursday with a 1.56 ERA
in 25 appearances. Daniel
Hudson, who got the save
Thursday, and Tanner Rainey look
like the present and, perhaps,
future closer. If Sean Doolittle
regains his late 2019 velocity, he
and Will Harris finish a fine back
end.
Yet the Nats, who have been
without stars Juan Soto (positive
coronavirus test) and Stephen
Strasburg (nerve irritation in his
thumb), also have looked
distracted and rattled at times.
They made five errors in one
game, got the tying run thrown
out at third with no outs in the
ninth and knocked a teammate’s
glove — with the ball in it — over
the fence for a home run.
Starlin Castro, 30, a four-time
all-star, was presumed to be an
upgrade at second base, where he
has played 570 games. He is
coming off a season in which he
hit .280, belted 22 home runs and
had 86 RBI. So far, he has had
some jitters (three errors) in the
field. But his four hits Thursday
hint at why General Manager
Mike Rizzo thought Castro was
his offseason steal, an overlooked
quiet star with an ideal team-first
attitude. When Soto returns to the
middle of the lineup, that should
take pressure off Castro, Eric
Thames and Howie Kendrick.
Usually, after so few games, you
tell yourself: “The kinks will work
out. Soto and Strasburg probably
will be back next week. So just
chill.” This year, you hear pundits
saying, “A slow start is a disaster.”
Yes, Saturday is Aug. 1.
Two weeks ago, to hype
October interest and make extra
TV bucks, MLB introduced a one-
year, 16-team postseason format
that is a disgrace to the sport. And
a calming consolation to any team
that starts poorly.
The first round this year will be
a three-game series with the
higher seed playing all three at
home. It’s fluke-ball, not baseball.
But it also means that the team
with the best three-man top of the
rotation — if it protects those
stars and keeps them healthy —
may have the best chance of
anybody to survive the first
round.
Who has the game’s best topBOSWELL FROM D1 three? Houston lost Gerrit Cole to
free agency and now sees Justin
Verlander’s season threatened by
an elbow strain. The Los Angeles
Dodgers lost Hyun-Jin Ryu to free
agency, saw lefty David Price opt
out of the season and now have
watched Clayton Kershaw, who
gets hurt more often and earlier
every year, and Alex Wood miss
starts. Other elite arms, such as
Texas’s Corey Kluber, may be out
for the season.
Scherzer, Corbin and
Strasburg, if he is brought back
with patience, are the Big Three
you want. That’s not assurance
you will advance, but it does
resemble insurance.
The Nats’ main job in August,
aside from keeping as many arms
healthy as possible, is to find their
best post-Rendon lineup once
Soto returns. Entering Thursday,
just three teams had scored fewer
runs per game than the Nats.
With runners on base, are they
thinking, “Where’s Juan?”
If Castro can find his pull-and-
lift stroke from the second half of
last year, he’s the answer. But he
hasn’t yet. Hitting third is
probably asking too much of vet
Asdrúbal Cabrera despite his
91 RBI last year, and top rookie
Carter Kieboom’s probable
ascension to the middle of the
order is at least a couple of
seasons away. Kendrick and
Thames work best when they hit
in the Nos. 4 and 5 spots.
Someday, Victor Robles will hit
high in the order. But now he is
tinkering, perhaps trying to
change his history of being a
human fastball target. He has
moved off the plate, opened his
stance and, with the outside
corner vulnerable, fanned in 10 of
his first 19 at-bats. He will figure it
out.
Perhaps none of this will
matter. Three more Philadelphia
Phillies games were canceled this
weekend because two members of
the team’s staff tested positive for
the virus. All over baseball, in the
wake of the Marlins’ outbreak,
there’s talk about how 2020 may
be a giant and foolish waste of
time. Players wonder whether
they should opt out now, play it
safe and go home.
But, day-to-day, there has never
been a greater need to focus on
“Go 1-0 today.” The Nationals’ win
Thursday may have been their
most crisp game of the season;
their bizarre virus reward is four
days off.
If a playoffs and World Series
actually happen, some teams,
with hindsight, will admit they
just couldn’t stay focused through
so much hardship, capricious
weirdness and raw worry.
The Nats surely have the Big
Three, probably have the
improved bullpen and, with
enough lineup mixing and
matching, may have enough
offense to make another run if
there is an October.
As long as this season lasts, can
they keep their mind off the
world’s huge problems and focus
instead on all the game’s details
and subtleties that were their
passion a year ago — and a core
reason they now wear rings?
[email protected]For more by Thomas Boswell, visit
washingtonpost.com/boswell.THOMAS BOSWELLAttention to detail is key
to Nationals’ title defense
BY DAVE SHEININMajor League Baseball’s long-
odds struggle to weave a
6 0-game regular season through
a global pandemic suffered an-
other damaging blow Thursday
when the Philadelphia Phillies
announced two staff members
tested positive for the novel
coronavirus — raising fears the
recent outbreak centered on the
Miami Marlins had jumped to a
second team.
While there was no clear evi-
dence the Phillies’ infections —
which the team said were of a
coach and a member of the home
clubhouse staff — came from the
Marlins, the teams played three
games over the weekend at Phila-
delphia’s Citizens Bank Park,
even as the Marlins’ outbreak
grew from one player Friday to
four by Sunday. By Thursday,
with both teams temporarily
shut down, the Marlins were up
to 17 players and two coaches
testing positive.
No Phillies players have tested
positive, and MLB has reported
zero positive tests of any player,
outside the Marlins, since
July 24. However, three Phillies
staff members have tested posi-
tive since the weekend, including
a visitors’ clubhouse attendant.
A statement from the Phillies
on Thursday said all activity at
Citizens Bank Park was canceled
“until further notice,” and the
Phillies’ three-game series this
weekend at home against the
Toronto Blue Jays was postponed
— bringing to 14 the number of
games postponed in the wake of
the Marlins’ outbreak.
In attempting to play this
season outside the “bubble”
models used by the NBA, the
WNBA and MLS — instead keep-
ing its 30 teams in 30 different
stadiums and traveling between
cities — MLB was aware of the
risk of outbreaks and accounted
for them, in part, by allowing
teams to carry 30 players each,
with an additional 30-man sup-
plemental roster.
However, the extent of theMarlins’ outbreak surprised
MLB officials, who before the
season drafted a 113-page docu-
ment containing the health and
safety protocols for 2020.
Even as MLB investigates theorigins of the Marlins’ outbreak
and weighs changes to those
protocols, another immediate is-
sue is maintaining the flow and
competitive integrity of the sea-
son schedule.The rash of postponements in
the wake of the Marlins’ out-
break altered the schedules of six
teams. The Marlins, who remain
in self-isolation at their Philadel-
phia hotel, and the Phillies aresidelined until at least Monday,
by which point they will have
been off for a week.
The Blue Jays and Washing-
ton Nationals will have the
weekend off as a result of the
postponements. The Baltimore
Orioles and New York Yankees
had two games postponed this
week.
As of now, the Phillies are
scheduled to travel to Miami
next week for three games, but it
appears likely there will be addi-
tional alterations to the schedule
affecting at least those games, if
not more. On Monday, Nationals
players voted near-unanimously
against playing a three-game se-
ries in Miami this weekend — a
series that ultimately was post-
poned by MLB, avoiding a poten-
tial clash.
The postponements and the
small window in which to make
up games make it likely some
teams will wind up playing
fewer than 60 games this sea-
son, even if the season is com-
pleted, in which case division
standings and playoff berths
could be decided by winning
percentage.
[email protected]Phillies report two positive coronavirus tests for sta≠ers
MITCHELL LEFF/GETTY IMAGES
None of the Phillies’ three positive tests since their weekend series against the Marlins involve players.After M arlins’ outbreak,
the new cases add
to MLB’s tough weekaround a solo homer in the
seventh, came Rainey and Hud-
son for the finish. The pair have
already emerged as the manag-
er’s most-trusted relievers this
season, even with Will Harris
and Sean Doolittle in the bull-
pen.
Rainey allowed a homer to
Teoscar Hernández, his fourth of
the series, but settled down to
avoid more danger. Then Hud-
son entered, Victor Robles
crashed into the wall to make a
leaping catch behind him, and
soon a double-edged break be-
gan.
[email protected]into his glove while exiting. He
has allowed no runs in five
innings and struck out a third of
the batters he has faced. Only
two relievers in baseball have
shouldered a heavier workload.
“His ability to mix up pitches
and throw strikes,” Martinez said
of what’s impressed him most
with Harper. “He very seldom
gets behind on a hitter.”
After Harper came two jour-
neymen in Freeman and Guerra.
And after Guerra, who pitchedsecond start at third base, added
two singles and two walks. He
has reached base in six consecu-
tive plate appearances.
Harper soon polished off his
second multi-inning effort of the
young season. He says he can
throw every day thanks to a
shoulder program that keeps his
right arm perpetually loose. He
uses a curveball around 50 per-
cent of the time. He also can
make it move in a half-dozen
directions, giving him multiple
pitches for the price of one.
To end his outing in the fifth,
he elevated an 88-mph fastball
that Vladimir Guerrero Jr.
bounced to short for a double
play. That the pitch was well over
the plate and right where Guer-
rero should handle it showed the
deception of Harper’s stuff. Not
one for theater, he clapped oncesummer. “They’ll get it. They’ll
start hitting the ball.”
Because the Miami Marlins
are shut down for the rest of this
week and the Nationals won’t
travel to face them, Washington’s
next game will be against the
New York Mets on Tuesday. Mar-
tinez is calling it a “mini all-star
break.” They will simulate in-
nings this weekend, hoping to
stay fresh by hitting and pitching
against each other.
But what Martinez really
wants is for his club to get
healthy. Juan Soto is expected to
work out Saturday after testing
positive for the novel coronavi-
rus July 23. The District will clear
him only after he stays isolated
for at least 10 days, a Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention
guideline for anyone who con-
tracts the virus. And beyond
Soto, who has yet to play this
season, the Nationals have been
without first baseman Howie
Kendrick, starter Stephen Stras-
burg and reliever Wander Suero.
Kendrick, 37, missed a second
straight game with upper-back
stiffness. Strasburg, 32, missed a
second straight start and has
dealt with nerve irritation in his
right hand throughout July. He
threw a mix of his pitches on flat
ground Thursday and, as Marti-
nez put it, is “not feeling that
little nerve issue anymore.”
Suero went on the injured list
for undisclosed reasons July 13.
He has been throwing in Freder-
icksburg, Va., with the other
alternate players, but his cutter
velocity has yet to tick up. Marti-
nez also revealed that reliever
Will Harris is dealing with groin
soreness, something the Nation-
als hope to fix while their sched-
ule is paused.
In the meantime, the Nation-
als had to wrestle Thursday with
Blue Jays starter Hyun-jin Ryu.
The left-hander leaned on his
change-up and slider, an attempt
to keep the Nationals off-balance
and guessing. But they were able
to juice his pitch count in the
early innings, starting with Cas-
tro’s 12-pitch at-bat in the first.
Then they jumped on Ryu
throughout.
“I would love to play another
game tomorrow. We’ve had some
success the last couple days,”
Kieboom said. “I know we would
all like to kind of build off of that
and keep going because we’re
heading in the right direction.”
The early support was needed
— Kurt Suzuki’s two-run double
in the third and Michael A.
Taylor’s two-run homer in the
fourth to give the Nationals a 4-1
lead — once Fedde’s start took a
sharp nosedive. His command
wavered in the fourth when, in
the span of three batters, he
yielded a solo homer, a single and
a walk. That led Martinez to
come get Fedde, who threw just
57 pitches before Harper jogged
in.
Harper, acquired in a trade
with the Minnesota Twins this
offseason, has been equally dura-
ble and efficient. This was al-
ready his fourth appearance in
seven games. After he stranded
Fedde’s last two runners, the
Nationals stretched their lead
back to three runs on Asdrúbal
Cabrera’s RBI double. Castro,
who finished with three singles
and a double in five at-bats,
scored on the hit. Kieboom, in his
NATIONALS FROM D1
Nats hit mini-break on a winning note
JOHN MCDONNELL/THE WASHINGTON POST
Nationals center fielder Victor Robles leaps to catch a ball hit by the Blue Jays’ Danny Jansen.NATIONALS ON DECKvs. New York MetsTuesday7:05 MASN2
Wednesday6:05 MASN2vs. Baltimore OriolesAug. 76 :05 MASN,
MASN2Aug. 86 :05 MASN,
MASN2Aug. 91 2:35 MASN,
M ASN2at New York MetsAug. 10 7:10 MASN
Aug. 11 7:10 MASNAug. 12 7:10 MASN
Aug. 13 1:10 MASNRadio: WJFK (106.7 FM)Nationals 6, Blue Jays 4
WASHINGTON AB RHBI BB SO AVG
Turner ss........................ 400101 .259
Eaton rf.......................... 511002 .296
Castro 2b........................ 524001 .360
Cabrera 1b...................... 501100 .222
Suzuki c.......................... 501201 .263
Harrison dh .................... 400001 .000
Kieboom 3b .................... 222020 .444
Robles cf ........................ 402001 .304
Taylor lf.......................... 311201 .143
Thames ph ..................... 101000 .250
Stevenson pr-lf.............. 000000 .000
TOTALS 38 613628 —
TORONTO AB RHBI BB SO AVG
Bichette ss..................... 512002 .286
Biggio 2b-rf.................... 511101 .200
Gurriel Jr. lf.................... 403100 .318
Guerrero Jr. dh............... 400000 .172
Tellez 1b......................... 401000 .182
Hernandez cf.................. 423200 .321
Fisher rf ......................... 100000 .273
Panik 2b ......................... 301001 .214
Jansen c......................... 200021 .235
Drury 3b ......................... 300000 .125
McGuire ph..................... 100000 .222
TOTALS 36 411425 —
WASHINGTON..............002 210 010 —613 0
TORONTO.....................100 100 110 —411 0
LOB: Washington 8, Toronto 7. 2B: Suzuki (2), Castro
(2), Cabrera (2), Bichette 2 (2). 3B: Hernandez (1). HR:
Taylor (2), off Ryu; Hernandez (3), off Fedde; Biggio
(2), off Guerra; Hernandez (4), off Rainey. RBI: Suzuki 2
(3), Taylor 2 (3), Cabrera (6), Turner (2), Gurriel Jr. (3),
Hernandez 2 (6), Biggio (4). SB: Stevenson (1). CS: Her-
nandez (1). SF: Turner.
DP: Washington 1 (Turner, Castro, Cabrera); Toronto 1
(Panik, Bichette, Tellez).
WASHINGTON IP HRER BB SO NP ERA
Fedde........................3.1 6222057 3.68
Harper.......................1.2 1000117 0.00
Freeman....................0.2 1000114 0.00
Guerra.......................1.1 1110221 2.45
Rainey.......................... 1 1110011 1.93
Hudson......................... 1 1000119 0.00
TORONTO IP HRER BB SO NP ERA
Ryu............................4.1 9551593 8.00
Hatch........................2.2 1001129 0.00
Font..............................1 3110021 6.75
Waguespack.............1.2 0000219 0.00
WP: Harper (1-0); LP: Ryu (0-1); S: Hudson (1).
Inherited runners-scored: Harper 2-0, Guerra 1-0, Hatch
1-0, Waguespack 3-1. T : 3:35.HOW THEY SCORED
BLUE JAYS FIRST
Bo Bichette doubles. Cavan Biggio grounds out. Bo
Bichette to third. Lourdes Gurriel Jr. singles, Bo
Bichette scores. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. reaches on a
fielder’s choice. Lourdes Gurriel Jr. out at second. Row-
dy Tellez grounds out.
Blue Jays 1, Nationals 0
NATIONALS THIRD
Trea Turner pops out. Adam Eaton singles. Starlin Cas-
tro singles. Adam Eaton to second. Asdrubal Cabrera
flies out. Adam Eaton to third. Kurt Suzuki doubles,
Starlin Castro scores, Adam Eaton scores. Josh Harri-
son flies out.
Nationals 2, Blue Jays 1
NATIONALS FOURTH
Carter Kieboom singles. Victor Robles strikes out
swinging. Michael A. Taylor homers, Carter Kieboom
scores. Trea Turner grounds out. Adam Eaton pops out.
Nationals 4, Blue Jays 1
Blue Jays FOURTH
Rowdy Tellez grounds out. Teoscar Hernandez homers.
Joe Panik singles. Danny Jansen walks. Joe Panik to
second. Brandon Drury grounds out. Danny Jansen to
second. Joe Panik to third. Bo Bichette strikes out
swinging.
Nationals 4, Blue Jays 2
NATIONALS FIFTH
Starlin Castro doubles. Asdrubal Cabrera doubles, Star-
lin Castro scores. Kurt Suzuki called out on strikes.
Josh Harrison flies out. Carter Kieboom walks. Victor
Robles lines out.
Nationals 5, Blue Jays 2
Blue Jays SEVENTH
Brandon Drury lines out. Bo Bichette strikes out swing-
ing. Cavan Biggio homers. Lourdes Gurriel Jr. grounds
out.
Nationals 5, Blue Jays 3
NATIONALS EIGHTH
Josh Harrison lines out. Carter Kieboom singles. Victor
Robles singles. Carter Kieboom to second. Eric Thames
pinch-hitting for Michael A. Taylor. Eric Thames sin-
gles. Victor Robles to second. Carter Kieboom to third.
Trea Turner out on a sacrifice fly, Victor Robles to third.
Carter Kieboom scores. Adam Eaton called out on
strikes.
Nationals 6, Blue Jays 3
Blue Jays EIGHTH
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. flies out. Rowdy Tellez flies out.
Teoscar Hernandez homers. Joe Panik pops out.
Nationals 6, Blue Jays 4