Instant Analysis: Guardians 3, Nats 2

Unable to take advantage of early and late scoring opportunities, the Nationals missed a chance at a series sweep in Cleveland

Photo by Serena Brown / ALL-PRO REELS

An otherwise spectacular road trip for the Nationals ended with a bit a dud this afternoon.

Seeking a sweep in Cleveland after taking two-of-three in Atlanta, the Nats were shut down offensively by right-hander Gavin Williams and were done in by one three-run rally by the Guardians in the fifth inning.

As they did throughout this winning road trip, the Nationals struck first, jumping out to a 1-0 lead when CJ Abrams delivered an RBI single in the top of the third, scoring James Wood. But they could not take advantage of more early opportunities to get to Williams, going 1-for-6 with runners in scoring position against the Cleveland starter, who settled down after that and made it all the way through seven innings.

PJ Poulin, serving as the Nats’ opener for the second time in the series, came through with a scoreless bottom of the first before handing it over to Miles Mikolas. The veteran starter was again effective, posting three straight zeros before faltering in the fifth, when Travis Bazzana doubled home Austin Hedges (who had reached on a Curtis Mead error) and then scored himself on José Ramírez’s sacrifice fly.

Manager Blake Butera decided to play this one aggressively and pulled Mikolas after only 3 2/3 innings and 60 pitches. That strategy backfired when Richard Lovelady allowed one inherited runner to score, plus another of his own making to complete the Guardians’ three-run rally. They didn’t need another one the rest of the afternoon.

The Nationals tried to mount a last-ditch rally in the ninth against closer Cade Smith, getting back-to-back singles from Mead and Abrams to put the tying runners on base. But they could only get Mead home from third on Daylen Lile’s sacrifice fly, ultimately stranding Abrams in scoring position.

HITTING HIGHLIGHT: The team as a whole may have had a rough day at the plate, but James Wood kept doing what he did throughout this series and raked. With a leadoff walk in the top of the first and a double in the third, he improved to 8-for-10 with two homers, two walks and two stolen bases for the series. And though he finally made another out in the fifth, it came on a 103.9-mph laser to the wall in left field, with Angel Martínez making a leap catch to rob Wood of another extra-base hit.

PITCHING LOWLIGHT: After a week’s worth of pitching highlights during this road trip, someone was bound to have a rough outing. And that someone today was Lovelady. The left-hander was summoned with two out in the fifth and the go-ahead runner in scoring position and proceeded to give up three straight singles and a four-pitch walk before finally recording an out. The real problem: Four of the five hitters Lovelady faced were left-handed. What should be an advantageous matchup, though, has often not been this season for the veteran reliever, who has allowed lefties to bat .350 (15-for-40) against him compared to .204 (10-for-49) for righties.

NOTABLE: After forcing Williams to throw 61 pitches over his first three innings, the Nationals saw only 33 from the Guardians starter over his next four.

UP NEXT: Having finally completed their stretch of 16 games in 16 days, the Nats will enjoy Thursday off. They’ll return Friday at 6:45 p.m. for the opener of a weekend series against the Padres. They haven’t yet announced their pitching probables. TV: Nationals TV RADIO: 106.7 FM