They played the Phillies tough, but their fatal flaw was exposed: the bullpen.
Fix the bullpen and let’s see what this team can do. The rest of the team does not look like a fluke. They have played well against good teams. Are they a juggernaut? No. But they are more than competitive.
Eight Wild Card teams have won the World Series, and the Rangers won it after winning 90 games in the regular season in 2023. In a short series, almost anything can happen.
The encouraging part is that these players are actually getting better as the season goes on. This is not as crazy as it sounds.
And get ready to make the pirates walk the plank! We gotta take the series and hopefully sweep them over the July 4 weekend! NatsTown should be rocking with a lot of bang-zoom this weekend! And a lot of ship horns baring!
I like how this team put last night behind them and let the bats do the yapping today. The Nats really seem to know who they are. They just keep bouncing back after a difficult short period or heartbreaking losses. I am still amazed at how much the expectations have changed since late March.
It seems to me the fans overplayed the fight more than the players did. At the time of the "fight" the Nats were losing 1-0. If anything, it lit them up as they went on to outscore Boston 18-2 over the remaining innings.
Nice win Nats! How many times have these kids (god forbid if I call those young men boys) lost the first game of a series, only to win the next two to take the series win?! So proud of them. Players and coaches alike. Come on POBO Tobo, get them a little help to make a playoff run. Doesn’t take our best players on the farm to do that. Get some salary dumps and part with some kids that don’t have much of a chance with us anyway. But get some help! Let’s have fun this summer and fall!
What they talked about on the Podcast with Mark's chat with Toboni is that they are constantly reevaluating what they are going to do. A challenge Toboni brought up is this season is there are about twice as many teams that are in the space where they could decide to be buyers than there are teams that are almost certainly sellers. That means prices are going to be high and selling GMs are going to wait until the last minute to milk everything they can. A lot will not only depend on what the players do, but how the field plays out over the next 4 weeks.
After all the emotion from Tuesday night, the Nationals answered the best way possible: by playing really good baseball. Outscoring Boston 18-2 after the incident says a lot.
The road record is becoming a real story too. Winning seven of their last eight road series is not a fluke. If this team somehow makes it into the Wild Card race, all this success on the road could be a real plus, especially as a Wild Card team.
Almost everyone in the lineup is showing improvement, and you could see that in today’s game with everyone contributing. This really was a complete win.
Butera and Toboni both said they wanted the players to be better in September than they were in April, and so far the players are holding up their end of the bargain. Now I think it’s Toboni’s turn to hold up his end and improve the bullpen.
And Butera has mentioned on multiple occasions the notion of "going for it" in his pressers. Toboni and his staff have quite the task in front of them over the next month, especially if the club continues to win series. Can they remake the bullpen without giving away too much of the future?
I think they can do it, as long as the Lerners are willing to pick up some contracts. Rental relievers usually do not cost top prospects, and you can also include international money in some deals.
Go get a decent closer and another lefty for the bullpen and see what happens. There is no guarantee this team will hit this well next year.
I doubt they will hit this well next year because there won't be any games, unless the two sides miraculously come to an agreement. Maybe a 1/2 season in 2027.
My only worry is ownership taking a deep breath and spending a little money. I don't think it would take a fortune either. Maybe a couple of steady relivers. They would make it back in increased attendance and possible playoff money.
Dropping the first game on the road in a series and then coming back to win the 3 game set (which they just of course did in Baltimore and seemed to have done a fair amount this season) shows real grit — and is a far sight better than winning the first two and then failing to get the sweep!
Didn’t see or hear the game till the 8th inning when it was out of hand. So Chapparo and Nunez powered them to a win with early homers - just as everyone would have expected…. Sounds like the team reached an additional level of intensity during the game last night that carried over to today. For Boston it had to be demoralizing to get trounced like this the past two days. One minor complaint and maybe it’s not fair, but it sure sounded on the radio that Nunez should have scored an additional run but let off the intensity. After the Giants meltdown and subsequent blown saves, I wrongly thought the Nats would never think any lead was too comfortable.
Currently the Nats project to 80 or so wins. One hot week and they are firmly in the playoff conversation. Didn't see that coming. Onward to a series with the Bucs in DC.
I just saw them both on the news and like/respect what they said. Cade asserted leadership IMO in the words he chose and how he owned how his words could be interpreted by others (e.g., kids). No matter if we care or not or whether the players cared or not - he addressed it as an adult in the public eye.
Toboni is culturally aware/sensitive. You knew he wouldn’t let that slide. I’m happy they nipped this in the bud. Cade is trending on social media for all the wrong reasons right now, but eventually the outrage machine will move on.
Was another great day at the park. Too hot to enjoy the clam chowder but fun to watch a silent home Boston crowd slink into the shade as the Nats offense pounded away. Why not us!
The previous administration and the current one sold off really good bullpen pieces to obtain players who aren't close to contributing anything. At the time it may have looked sound but in retrospect it's looking very unfortunate.
It just may pay off big time down the road also. It’s always a shot in the dark and certainly given the team track record no one expected these results with the new coaching staff.
That was warp speed!
After the Phillies series, they needed this one. Well played.
They played the Phillies tough, but their fatal flaw was exposed: the bullpen.
Fix the bullpen and let’s see what this team can do. The rest of the team does not look like a fluke. They have played well against good teams. Are they a juggernaut? No. But they are more than competitive.
Eight Wild Card teams have won the World Series, and the Rangers won it after winning 90 games in the regular season in 2023. In a short series, almost anything can happen.
The encouraging part is that these players are actually getting better as the season goes on. This is not as crazy as it sounds.
Only feasible if they can somehow fix the bullpen
A drama free, all-around superb effort by the Nats! Enjoy your off day tomorrow!!
And get ready to make the pirates walk the plank! We gotta take the series and hopefully sweep them over the July 4 weekend! NatsTown should be rocking with a lot of bang-zoom this weekend! And a lot of ship horns baring!
Cannon balls on deck
Wild to have gone that whole series without seeing Chapman. The Red Sox sell off at the deadline is going to be gnarly.
Maybe Toboni is already having some conversations with his buddies in Boston. Rizzo did that a lot with his peeps in Arizona over the years.
I like how this team put last night behind them and let the bats do the yapping today. The Nats really seem to know who they are. They just keep bouncing back after a difficult short period or heartbreaking losses. I am still amazed at how much the expectations have changed since late March.
GO NATS!! ⚾️⚾️⚾️⚾️⚾️⚾️⚾️⚾️⚾️⚾️
They won last night . What did they need to put behind them ? The fight?
Yep, the fight and emotions coulda carried over today as a distraction.
It seems to me the fans overplayed the fight more than the players did. At the time of the "fight" the Nats were losing 1-0. If anything, it lit them up as they went on to outscore Boston 18-2 over the remaining innings.
Especially Bean fans.
Who seemed to have no problem with Larry Bird trash talking his opponents and calling them “boy”. 🙄
Nice win Nats! How many times have these kids (god forbid if I call those young men boys) lost the first game of a series, only to win the next two to take the series win?! So proud of them. Players and coaches alike. Come on POBO Tobo, get them a little help to make a playoff run. Doesn’t take our best players on the farm to do that. Get some salary dumps and part with some kids that don’t have much of a chance with us anyway. But get some help! Let’s have fun this summer and fall!
I hadn’t thought of it, but the Caps had GM GM. The Nats have POBO TOBO. I like it very much. Hope it catches on.
We've been calling them "the boys" since they arrived in DC, dc.
What they talked about on the Podcast with Mark's chat with Toboni is that they are constantly reevaluating what they are going to do. A challenge Toboni brought up is this season is there are about twice as many teams that are in the space where they could decide to be buyers than there are teams that are almost certainly sellers. That means prices are going to be high and selling GMs are going to wait until the last minute to milk everything they can. A lot will not only depend on what the players do, but how the field plays out over the next 4 weeks.
After yesterday’s benches clearing kerfuffle, it’s nice to come back out for the rubber match and put a boot to their throats from the get go.
Special to see so many balls over and off of the Green Monster. We only play there every other season!
After all the emotion from Tuesday night, the Nationals answered the best way possible: by playing really good baseball. Outscoring Boston 18-2 after the incident says a lot.
The road record is becoming a real story too. Winning seven of their last eight road series is not a fluke. If this team somehow makes it into the Wild Card race, all this success on the road could be a real plus, especially as a Wild Card team.
Almost everyone in the lineup is showing improvement, and you could see that in today’s game with everyone contributing. This really was a complete win.
Butera and Toboni both said they wanted the players to be better in September than they were in April, and so far the players are holding up their end of the bargain. Now I think it’s Toboni’s turn to hold up his end and improve the bullpen.
And Butera has mentioned on multiple occasions the notion of "going for it" in his pressers. Toboni and his staff have quite the task in front of them over the next month, especially if the club continues to win series. Can they remake the bullpen without giving away too much of the future?
I think they can do it, as long as the Lerners are willing to pick up some contracts. Rental relievers usually do not cost top prospects, and you can also include international money in some deals.
Go get a decent closer and another lefty for the bullpen and see what happens. There is no guarantee this team will hit this well next year.
Yup, getting a real closer is ESSENTIAL.
I doubt they will hit this well next year because there won't be any games, unless the two sides miraculously come to an agreement. Maybe a 1/2 season in 2027.
If there's no baseball in 2027, then that's even more of a reason to go for it in 2026!! We are talking rent-a-player moves to patch the bullpen.
Toboni is definitely thinking in that direction now. You can hear what he said this morning on the Sports Junkies show via the Audacy app.
Exactly!
Yes, please.
My only worry is ownership taking a deep breath and spending a little money. I don't think it would take a fortune either. Maybe a couple of steady relivers. They would make it back in increased attendance and possible playoff money.
Dropping the first game on the road in a series and then coming back to win the 3 game set (which they just of course did in Baltimore and seemed to have done a fair amount this season) shows real grit — and is a far sight better than winning the first two and then failing to get the sweep!
Didn’t see or hear the game till the 8th inning when it was out of hand. So Chapparo and Nunez powered them to a win with early homers - just as everyone would have expected…. Sounds like the team reached an additional level of intensity during the game last night that carried over to today. For Boston it had to be demoralizing to get trounced like this the past two days. One minor complaint and maybe it’s not fair, but it sure sounded on the radio that Nunez should have scored an additional run but let off the intensity. After the Giants meltdown and subsequent blown saves, I wrongly thought the Nats would never think any lead was too comfortable.
Yes! Nas was too casual heading for third. That was *very* disappointing! Totally not his M.O.
Currently the Nats project to 80 or so wins. One hot week and they are firmly in the playoff conversation. Didn't see that coming. Onward to a series with the Bucs in DC.
LIke Earl Weaver used to say, "Everything changes everything." I think Boswell stole it and likes to use it, too. 🙂
Cavalli got a talking-to from Toboni. Cade beat himself up plenty and he learned. That’s the end of it.
I just saw them both on the news and like/respect what they said. Cade asserted leadership IMO in the words he chose and how he owned how his words could be interpreted by others (e.g., kids). No matter if we care or not or whether the players cared or not - he addressed it as an adult in the public eye.
Indeed.And to those who called for him "to go," it's over. Let's move on.
Toboni is culturally aware/sensitive. You knew he wouldn’t let that slide. I’m happy they nipped this in the bud. Cade is trending on social media for all the wrong reasons right now, but eventually the outrage machine will move on.
Was another great day at the park. Too hot to enjoy the clam chowder but fun to watch a silent home Boston crowd slink into the shade as the Nats offense pounded away. Why not us!
The previous administration and the current one sold off really good bullpen pieces to obtain players who aren't close to contributing anything. At the time it may have looked sound but in retrospect it's looking very unfortunate.
It just may pay off big time down the road also. It’s always a shot in the dark and certainly given the team track record no one expected these results with the new coaching staff.
Looks like Wood is get right. Keep it up! Will be at the Park 7/4. No Skenes for the Bucks series.
Getting
ESPN, in their gamer, refers to Wood in the headline and throughout the article as James Woods. Sigh.
Major pet peeve of mine!
Mine too, big time:))
Ugh. With all that money you'd think they'd get the little things right. My services are available to copy edit. Lol