After years of heartbreak, Washington Nationals fans finally had a reason to celebrate at home in the postseason. With a come-from-behind 4-3 victory Tuesday night over the Milwaukee Brewers in the National League Wild Card Game, the Nationals advance to face the Los Angeles Dodgers in the National League Division Series.
Students from Towson University’s sports journalism class provided live commentary on the game and provided instant analysis following the instant classic. Relive it here:
By Tim Klapac
What Just Happened: The Washington Nationals rallied to defeat the Milwaukee Brewers 4-3 in the National League Wild Card game.
The Game Was Over When: Nationals outfielder Juan Soto hit a bases-clearing double to right field with two outs in the bottom of the eighth inning. This gave Washington the lead for good.
Key Statistic: Nationals relief. Stephen Strasburg and Daniel Hudson combined for four innings of shutout pitching, limiting the Brewers to three hits in those four innings.
What’s Next: The Nationals will face the Los Angeles Dodgers in the National League Division Series. Game 1 is Thursday at Dodger Stadium.
Game Recap:
It was one groundout after another and a feeling all too familiar for Nationals fans. Memories of Octobers past flooded through the minds of the sellout crowd inside Nationals Park as Washington appeared to inch effortlessly closer to another early playoff exit, trailing the Milwaukee Brewers 3-1 heading into the eighth inning.
Given the Nationals’ tortured playoff history — going 0-for-elimination games — few would have predicted what happened next.
After the Nationals loaded the bases, left fielder Juan Soto faced off with Milwaukee closer Josh Hader — one of the best in baseball. Soto pulled a pitch to right field for what looked to be a routine single.
“For me, [the goal was to] get a base hit through the middle and try to tie the game,” Soto said.
Soto did more than that as the ball was misplayed by Brewers right fielder Trent Grisham, allowing third baseman Anthony Rendon to score what would be the game-winning run in Washington’s 4-3 victory in the National League Wild Card game.
“[There was] top spin coming up, so I was getting ready to throw home,” Grisham said. “[The ball] kind of took a little funky hop off me, cause I came off-balance.”
Grisham, who replaced the injured MVP candidate Christian Yelich in mid-September, attempted to quickly gather the ball in hopes of making a play at home plate. Brewers manager Craig Counsell praised Grisham for his efforts in getting their team to this point.
“Trent got us here,” Counsell said. “It was just kind of an ugly inning.”
Soto was tagged out trying to advance to third base on Grisham’s error, forcing the Nationals to quickly shift to protecting this sudden lead. Manager Davey Martinez made a decision that has historically hurt Washington in the postseason. Martinez elected to turn to his bullpen, giving relief pitcher Daniel Hudson the ball in the ninth.
Hudson would not let his team down, closing out the game, Washington’s first victory in a winter-take-all game in franchise history. Seeing his team celebrate on the field may have been tough to imagine for Soto when the Nationals were 19-31 on May 24. But Washington turned things around in the summer months and have extended their season into the fall.
“Everything changed, the energy of the team changed,” Soto said. “All of the fans, they never leave, they’ve been behind us, pushing us and the energy in the clubhouse is amazing.”
As the Nationals prepare to head to Los Angeles to face the Dodgers in the National League Division Series, they will take a moment to enjoy a victory that has been a long time coming.
“It’s an emotional game,” said Nationals pitcher Max Scherzer, who started the game for Washington. “It took all 25 of our guys, our whole roster, down to the last player. We final caught a break and this is just so great for this city and this team and this organization.”
Scherzer’s elation is understandable, given that he surrendered all three of Milwaukee’s runs in the game’s first two innings. Scherzer allowed a two-run home run to catcher Yasmani Grandal in the first, then a solo home run to first baseman Eric Thames in the second.
Washington shortstop Trea Turner hit a solo home run in the third inning, the final run scored until that eighth.
As the fans filed out of Nationals Park, they get to do what so many other teams’ fans have done on their streets: celebrate.
Game 1 of the NLDS takes place Thursday at Dodger Stadium. First pitch is scheduled for 8:37 p.m. EST.
By Nick Sterling
What Just Happened: The Nationals defeated the Brewers 4-3 after Juan Soto hit a 2-run single and a third run scored on an error in the bottom of the eighth inning.
The Game Was Over When: Reliever Daniel Hudson, acquired at the trade deadline, shut down the Brewers in the ninth. He gave up one hit but gave the shaky Nats bullpen a feel-good story.
Key Statistic: Brewers closer Josh Hader faced 66 left-handed hitters during the regular season and only allowed one hit. The lefty Soto hit the game-winning single.
What’s Next: The Nationals take on the Dodgers in the NLDS starting Thursday night in Los Angeles. The Brewers are going home to wonder what could’ve been.
Game Recap:
The theme of the 2019 Washington Nationals? Resilience.
They lost their franchise player, Bryce Harper, to free agency last winter. They were 12 games under .500 in late May. Their coach had a heart procedure in the last weeks of the season and returned to the bench. One of their pitchers returned to the majors nearly four years after suffering one of the most gruesome injuries you’ll ever see.
All year long, the Nationals came from behind to win games. And in Tuesday night’s National League Wild Card game, they did the same — showing that same resilience.
Trailing 3-1 in the eighth inning, the Nationals needed some magic. Juan Soto stepped to the plate with the bases loaded and two outs. After working the count to 1-1, Soto smacked a single to right field to score two runs. The third run scored after Brewers right fielder Trent Grisham let the ball get past him. The Nationals completed an improbable 4-3 comeback win.
The sellout crowd of 42,993 went from silence to hysteria in just a span of 30 minutes. Many fans could be seen showering themselves and others with beer. Soto pumped his fist and screamed, even as he was tagged out in a rundown between second and third base.
Nationals manager Dave Martinez praised Soto for his contributions.
“How about him? He’s done it all year,” Martinez said. “These guys are relentless, and he’s one of them. … He loves big moments, and that was a big moment.”
Aside from a third-inning home run from Trea Turner, the Nationals couldn’t get anything going on offense.
Then came the eighth inning. All-star reliever Josh Hader hit Michael A. Taylor, allowed a broken-bat single to Ryan Zimmerman and walked Anthony Rendon.
That’s when Soto had his moment.
“These guys are amazing,” Soto said. “They’re always going to compete. They never give up. They show us how to never give up, so we just keep going and fighting.”
Nationals reliever Daniel Hudson pitched a scoreless ninth to earn the save. Hudson had to overcome two Tommy John surgeries in his career to get to this point.
For the first time in his MLB career, Stephen Strasburg pitched out of the bullpen. It was a memorable first: He pitched three scoreless innings.
The win temporarily heals the pain for a franchise that has grown accustomed to postseason failures. The Nationals were 0-3 in winner-take-all postseason games. But for now, Nationals fans can put that behind them.
Early in the game, it was looking like Nationals fans were going to have to deal with yet another postseason failure.
Max Scherzer walked the leadoff batter in the first. Then he watched as Yasmani Grandal hit a two-run home run to deep right field.
The second inning wasn’t much better as Scherzer allowed a solo shot to Eric Thames, putting the Brewers ahead 3-0.
Scherzer settled in after that and the Nationals didn’t allow a run the rest of the night.
Brewers pitcher Brandon Woodruff was strong in his four innings pitched. He allowed just two hits but one of them was the Turner home-run.
The Brewers bullpen took over the game and for their first three innings, it looked like they would shut down the Nationals offense. Until the eighth inning
For the Nationals, it’s onto Los Angeles to take on a Dodgers team that is looking to return to the World Series for the third straight season. Patrick Corbin is expected to start for Washington while Los Angeles has yet to name a starter. Washington will carry an eight-game winning streak into Thursday night’s game. First pitch is scheduled for 8:37 p.m. on TBS.