Three hits, one of them over the wall
Yohandy Morales waited 24 years for his first major league game. He needed about three hours to make it worth the wait.
The infielder singled, doubled and homered on Tuesday night, going 3-for-5 as the designated hitter while Washington beat Atlanta 9-5. Three at-bats, three hits, one of them into the seats. Not many debuts read like that.
He was not even the only newcomer who decided the evening. Jared Simpson, a 26-year-old left-hander, came out of the bullpen and worked three innings without allowing a hit or a walk. He struck out three and collected the win in his first appearance at this level.
Try it for $0.99.
Washington keep rolling, Atlanta stall
CJ Abrams had been scratched from Monday’s lineup with back soreness. He came back Tuesday with two hits and two runs driven in. Brady House added three RBIs of his own. That makes five wins in six games for the Nationals, who are finishing this season considerably better than they started it.
Atlanta walked into Washington on a seven-game winning streak and left having lost twice in a row. Ozzie Albies and Michael Harris II both went deep, which usually gets a team most of the way to a result. Not this time. AJ Smith-Shawver lasted four innings and gave up five runs on six hits, and nobody behind him closed the gap.
What it means for September
The timing hurts Atlanta. Rosters expanded this week, the calendar has flipped, and back-to-back defeats against a team playing for next year are the kind that get replayed in October if the wild card comes down to a game.
For Washington the interest sits elsewhere. Morales and Simpson both arrived on the same night and both delivered, which is exactly the sort of evening a rebuilding club is trying to manufacture in September. Whether Morales holds the designated hitter spot for the rest of the month depends on how quickly pitchers adjust the second time they see him.
Discover the rest of our MLB news on MathODDS!
in your pocket.
Real-time notifications & alerts
Leave a Reply