Instant Analysis: Nats 7, Reds 1

Behind a bunch of clutch hits and nine strong innings from the bullpen, the Nationals completed only their second three-game sweep of the season

Photo by Billy Sabatini / ALL-PRO REELS

How did the Nationals pull off their first three-game sweep since April? Behind a stellar performance from their bullpen, believe it or not.

Thanks to the combined efforts of four relievers who covered all nine innings, the Nats shut down the Reds this afternoon to complete only their second series sweep of the season, the previous one coming way back in April in Milwaukee. They’ve responded to their seven-game losing streak by winning four of their last five, getting back to within two games of .500 at 59-61.

Opting for a true bullpen game instead of officially replacing Zack Littell in the rotation for now, the Nationals watched as Brad Lord, Will Dion and Trevor Williams combined to allow just one run over eight strong innings. Lord set the tone with 2 2/3 innings of one-run ball on 51 pitches before handing it over to Dion, the newly acquired lefty who totaled three scoreless innings on 41 pitches. Williams retired six of the seven batters he faced, maintaining his 0.00 ERA since returning from elbow surgery. Jake Bird then pitched the ninth in his club debut.

The pitching staff spent most of the afternoon working with a lead, one provided by the bottom of the lineup. Dylan Crews, Jorbit Vivas and Keibert Ruiz each singled off Brady Singer in the bottom of the second, with Jacob Young adding a sacrifice fly to complete a two-run rally. Abimelec Ortiz then notched his second homer of the week, a solo shot to the opposite field in the bottom of the third to extend the lead to 3-1.

The Nats made it 4-1 in the seventh thanks to Daylen Lile’s lefty-on-lefty, two-out RBI single off reliever Brock Burke. They then made it 7-1 in the eighth thanks to Young’s fielder’s choice and Andrés Chaparro’s two-run double, creating plenty of cushion for the bullpen. Not that the group needed it on this afternoon.

HITTING HIGHLIGHT: It’s still really early, but so far there’s plenty to like about Ortiz’s ability to hit MLB pitching. The husky slugger showed off his opposite-field power today when he took an outside breaking ball from Singer and drove it to left field for his second career homer. Ortiz later added a single to raise his (admittedly small-sample-size) batting average to .273 and OPS to .895. So far, he’s faced almost exclusively right-handers, going 0-for-2 vs. lefties. But if the Nationals were worried about a dramatic drop-off in production at first base after trading Luis Garcia Jr., so far Ortiz has adequately filled the hole.

PITCHING HIGHLIGHT: The Reds lineup is very right-handed-heavy, which is why Blake Butera gave Andrew Alvarez a quick hook Saturday night and used only right-handed relievers the rest of the way. So, who predicted the most important pitcher on the mound today would be the left-handed Dion? Butera went to the former Guardians reliever with two outs in the third, matching up with the left-handed-hitting JJ Bleday. Dion struck him out to end the inning, then returned for the fourth. And the fifth. And the sixth. He wound up retiring nine consecutive batters (only two of them left-handed) before finally surrendering a double to Bleday with two outs in the sixth. All that, that turned into three scoreless innings of relief for the newcomer, who proved he can be more than just a matchup guy.

UP NEXT: With their 17-games-in-17-days streak finally complete, the Nationals now get to enjoy a much-needed day off before opening a three-game series against the Cubs. They haven’t announced pitching plans yet for Tuesday’s 6:45 p.m. home game. TV: Nationals TV RADIO: 106.7 FM