CJ Abrams’ World:
CJ Abrams entered last night’s series opener in Arlington, Texas, hitting .317/.414/.700 with five doubles, three triples, four home runs, and eight walks in 70 at-bats. , reached base safely in 15 consecutive games. He achieved consecutive on-base streaks with 14 of his 15 hits (Reached via HBP with 3 nights without a hit in the only no-hitter game during this period.).
Abrams hit seven home runs and walked two in the series finale in Miami on Monday night, but manager Davey Martinez said how important those walks are for the shortstop to continue his development. talked about.
“We always talk about him walking, so I said, ‘You’re going to have to do that. “Go to the next guy.” If it’s a walk, it’s a double, a triple,” Martinez told the Nats’ 23-year-old infielder, repeating his persistent message to Abrams.
“He’s doing great, he really is. And like I said, he’s improved a lot in his game overall.”
His captaincy and Nationals fans aren’t the only ones who have noticed Abrams taking things to a new level this season…
CJ Abrams is far too good a player to be acquired in the trade for Mackenzie Gore, James Wood, Robert Hassell and Jarrin Susana. pic.twitter.com/ogHDoL1xww
— Grant Paulsen (@granthpaulsen) April 29, 2024
Abrams also hit the bag in the final game against the Marlins, which was his sixth of eight attempts this season.
Last night at Texas, Abrams reached base with an infield hit in his first at-bat, extending his on-base streak to 16 straight games, stole his seventh base, and scored on Luis Garcia Jr.’s two-out single. The first run of the game was a 1-0 drive to left.
talk to abrams The Sports Junkies on Audacy on 106.7 the FAN in DC Last Wednesday, general manager and team president Mike Rizzo noted that last June was a turning point for Abrams. Abrams is a 2019 first-round pick acquired by the Padres in the deal that sent Juan Soto and Josh Bell to San Diego in 2022.
“I remember we sat down with CJ,” Rizzo recalled.under him [their] He played wing and taught me how to prepare and create a routine as a major league player. ”
“And I know [Third Base and Infield coach] “Ricky Gutierrez has been very instrumental in our defensive work,” the GM added. [Hitting Coach] Darnell [Coles] I’ve worked with him many times in the batting cage. ”
“His pursuit rate is down…The pitches he’s swinging at are better pitches and he knows what he can handle,” Rizzo explained. “And when he first got up to the major leagues and was playing in San Diego, he was struggling with his pitches, but he worked really, really hard to make up for it and overcome it. I did.
“When you start with really talented players, they develop a really good work ethic, they have some kind of bossy attitude, they have the attitude of a kid who wants to be great but doesn’t settle for being good. , and I feel like we’re just scratching the surface of what this guy could be as a player.”
Gore, Texas:
Evan Grant, who has been covering the Rangers for the Dallas Morning News since 1997, previewed last night’s game with an ominous tweet against the home team at Globe Life Field.
One thing to keep in mind tonight is that Washington LHP Mackenzie Gore throws a 97 mph fastball that hits 55% of the time.
The Rangers are hitting .181 against LHP fastballs this year, which ranks 28th in the majors. Their xwOBA of .274 ranks him 30th.
— Evan Grant (@Evan_P_Grant) April 30, 2024
The Rangers haven’t had a good shot at hitting fastballs from left-handed pitchers, but Gore started the series with an overall BAA of .278 on his fastballs this season after opposing batters hit .279 in 2023.
Gore held the Rangers to three games, but allowed three consecutive hits in the fourth inning, and Nathaniel Rowe, Adris Garcia, and Jonah Helm hit the second, third, and fourth hits from southpaw as a team to tie the game. I caught up. 1-1.
The Nationals’ starting pitcher struck out two and got three consecutive outs after a hit on a weak grounder, then threw 74 pitches overall, 31 pitches in the fourth inning, and 17 whiffs (5 people with heater, 6 people with curve, 5 people with change, 1 person with slider.r), a total of six strikes were called that night.
With one out in the fifth inning, Marcus Semien hit a triple on Gore’s 1-0 fastball, and the dribbler in front of the plate aimed at Corey Seager’s bat and scored, putting the Rangers ahead. He hit this bat that the Nats starter angrily threw to first base. The winning point was decided and the score was 2-1.
With two outs, Gore issued his first walk of the game on the 88th pitch, struck out the next batter on the 89th pitch, but struck out third and interfered with runners on both bases on the 91st pitch.
Mackenzie Gore’s line: 5.0 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 7 Ks, 91 P, 59 S, 5/3 GO/FO.
Gore finished the night with 18 strikeouts, added one strike on a curveball in the fifth inning, and focused on his curveball overall, throwing it 25% of the time (up from his season average of 18%). He threw 45% and 15% of his fastballs. Changeup, %15 slider. [ed. note – “Checks math, twice.”]
The Rangers extended their lead with a 3-run run by Tanner Rainey in the 8th inning and won the opening game of the 3-game series 7-1. Jordan Weems allowed one run in the sixth inning, and Jacob Burns allowed one run in the seventh. , ending the Nationals’ winning streak at four.
Outside of Abrams’ early run, the Nationals couldn’t do much against Jon Gray (1ER in 3H in 8.0 IP), dropping the first of three games at Texas.
“We played well,” Martinez said after the loss. “We hit the ball really well before we got here, so let’s come back tomorrow and try to go 1-0 tomorrow.
“The batters weren’t doing well today, but it’s just one game so we won’t lose sleep.”
The manager praised Gore’s appearance, saying the starting pitcher has put together a solid turn in the rotation.
“You know, he gave up two runs, right? He threw the ball really well. His pitch count was up. Going into today, we knew we were going to keep him around 90 pitches. I hit 102 pitches in the last game, and I thought I threw a really good ball.”
Bonus quote:
The loss leaves the Nationals in fourth place in the National League East at the end of last night’s game, with just over a month of the 2024 season at 14 wins and 15 losses.
Speaking to reporters in Arlington, Davey Martinez had this to say about the first month of the season:
“Looking back, there were some games we could have won and we might have been over .500. But overall, we played good baseball and played hard. The pitchers have been doing well, the bullpen has been pretty good except for today, so we’ve got to keep going. It’s April, and it’s nice to win an April game. I break it down into parts and always say to myself, “Winning 15 games in a month is pretty good.” So let’s win 16 games next month. ”
