Washington Nationals: Three Takeaways From NLDS Game 5
Oct 13, 2016; Washington, DC, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers center fielder Joc Pederson (31) celebrates with third base coach Chris Woodward (45) after hitting a solo home run during the seventh inning against the Washington Nationals during game five of the 2016 NLDS playoff baseball game at Nationals Park. Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports
This morning, we give you our three takeaways from last night’s Washington Nationals Game 5 NLDS loss against the Dodgers
It was another heartbreaking postseason loss for the Washington Nationals last night. The four-run seventh inning the Dodgers had ended up being enough as Los Angeles won the game 4-3 and will be heading to Chicago to begin the NLCS on Saturday.
When you look back at this game, the Washington Nationals will regret not taking advantage of their chances with runners in scoring position. The offense went 1-for-10 with men in scoring position and stranded 11 runners on base.
The biggest mistake of the game came in the sixth inning when third base coach Bob Henley sending Jayson Werth home on a double by Ryan Zimmerman in the sixth. Werth was thrown out by a mile at the plate and the game seemed to flip from there.
Max Scherzer gave the Washington Nationals six strong shutout innings.But, Joc Pederson led off the seventh inning with a game tying home run to left field. Against the Nats bullpen, the Dodgers got clutch RBI hits from Carlos Ruiz and Justin Turner to take a 4-1 lead.
While the Washington Nationals showed a lot of fight when Chris Heisey hit the two-run home run in the seventh, they were unable to get one more run against the duo of Kenley Jansen and Clayton Kershaw, who ended up getting the save by getting Daniel Murphy to pop out and Wilmer Difo to strike out swinging.
Before we look ahead to the offseason, here were my three takeaways from last night’s wild 4-3 loss:
Oct 13, 2016; Washington, DC, USA; Washington Nationals left fielder Jayson Werth (28) is tagged out by Los Angeles Dodgers catcher Yasmani Grandal (left) at home during the sixth inning during game five of the 2016 NLDS playoff baseball game at Nationals Park. Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports
Decision To Send Werth Looms Large
Many years from now, when Washington Nationals fans look back at this game, the decision by Bob Henley to send Jayson Werth in the sixth inning is going to be something everyone will question.
With the Nats up 1-0 and two outs, Zimmerman doubled into the left field corner. Andrew Toles was able to get to the ball quickly for the Dodgers and Henley decided to send Werth home, but he was out by a mile, which ended the inning.
Now, Danny Espinosa was on deck and would’ve had to hit with men on second and third. But, Espinosa was having a good night at the plate. His RBI single in the second inning against Rich Hill was the Washington Nationals at that point in the game.
This season, the Washington Nationals were an aggressive team at the bases. But, that was a terrible decision by Henley to send him. If you watch the play, the Nats third base coach is not in a position to see whether or not Toles got to the ball.
Once that inning ended, you got the sense the momentum switched over to the Dodgers because that game wasn’t going to stay 1-0 for very long. On the first pitch of the following inning, Joc Pederson hit a home run off Scherzer to tie the game.
During this game, the Washington Nationals did steal four bases, but you could look back at the seventh inning where Bryce Harper stole second on a Werth strikeout as a pivotal point. If Werth doesn’t strikeout, the Dodgers don’t intentionally walk Daniel Murphy (second time in the game). In the end, Henley’s decision is going to haunt the Washington Nationals for a long time.
Oct 13, 2016; Washington, DC, USA; Washington Nationals starting pitcher Max Scherzer (31) pitches during the first inning during game five of the 2016 NLDS playoff baseball game against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Nationals Park. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
Scherzer’s Great Effort Gets No Offensive Support
When the Washington Nationals signed Max Scherzer a couple offseasons ago, they got him to pitch in these kinds of ballgames. While Scherzer didn’t get the win last night, he kept the Nats in the game and was dominant at times. He went six innings, gave up one run on five hits, struck out seven, and walked two on 99 pitches (65 strikes).
Another question about last night’s game was how long Dusty Baker should’ve let Scherzer stay in the game. Baker let Scherzer pitch to Pederson, who had three strikeouts in four at-bats against left-handers, and that decision came back to bite him. Pederson hit a first pitch fastball over the wall in left.
Even at 99 pitches, I would’ve let Scherzer stay in the game to face Yasmani Grandal. Grandal went 2-for-16 in the series and his best at-bat of the night at that point was a walk against Scherzer in the third. Marc Rzepczynski came in to face Grandal and he ended up walking him.
Despite getting a no-decision, Scherzer had his changeup working in this game. According to Brooks Baseball, the right-hander threw 16 of his 23 changeups for strikes and got nine swings and misses.
Scherzer didn’t give up a hit until the fifth inning (Josh Reddick single), but Justin Turner’s 13-pitch at-bat that resulted in a walk in the fourth inning ended up hurting Scherzer down the road. He didn’t get the win, but the ace of the Washington Nationals was able to rise to the occasion. If the Washington Nationals could’ve got more timely hitting, the result would have been better for Scherzer.
Oct 13, 2016; Washington, DC, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw (22) reacts after the final out during the ninth inning against the Washington Nationals during game five of the 2016 NLDS playoff baseball game at Nationals Park. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
Roberts Outsmarts Baker With Bullpen Moves
Since Kershaw was used as the starter in Game 4, Dave Roberts was going to have to get everything out of his bullpen last night to win the game. Rich Hill didn’t make it out of the third inning despite striking out six hitters. But, Roberts went to Joe Blanton with two on and two out in the third and he got Anthony Rendon to fly out to center.
In the top of the fifth, the Dodgers turned to Julio Urias for the first time in the series and the 20-year-old rookie showed no nerves. He gave up one hit, struck out two, and picked off Bryce Harper at first base (although his pickoff move looked like a balk).
When Grant Dayton gave up the two-run home run to Heisey in the seventh, Roberts decided now was the time to go to his closer in a high leverage situation. Kenley Jansen ended up getting seven outs. While he walked four batters, he gave up one hit and struck out four on 51 pitches (career high) before Kershaw closed it out.
As for the Washington Nationals bullpen, it was a strength for the first four games of this series. Last night, Dusty Baker used six pitchers in the seventh innings, but those pitchers combined to give up four runs. Sammy Solis gave up a RBI single to Carlos Ruiz and Shawn Kelley gave up a two-run double to Turner.
Of course, the big concern after the game was Kelley having to leave the game in the seventh because of an injury. After the game, Kelley told the media he was okay, but that injury looked serious and Kelley has had two Tommy John surgeries in his career:
During this series, the chess match between Roberts and Baker was always fun to watch. Last night, Roberts was able to slightly outmanage Baker and his gambles ended up paying off in a big way.
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