Irving VS NYM Round 2:
Oppose Mets On July 4th in Washington, D.C., pitcher Jake Irvin threw 99 pitches over eight innings, allowing no runs on just one hit and one walk, and striking out eight of the 26 batters he faced, winning 1-0.
Irvin struck out 15 times.7 curveballs, 6 four-seam fastballs, 2 sinkers), 23 strikes (13 strikes on the curveball, 4 on the fastball, 6 on the sinker), and overwhelmed their opponents.
“It was just unbelievable,” Nationals manager Davey Martinez said after the 11:05 a.m. holiday game.
Photo by Jim MacIsaac/Getty Images
“He was good all day. He mixed his pitches well, but he kept guys off balance. His fastball was really good today.”
Irvin said his success as a starter was the result of attacking batters throughout all eight innings on the mound.
“Just stay in attack mode and control what you can control,” he explained.
“At the end of the day, I’m just trying to go out there and pitch and attack that lineup.”
His manager said it’s another step in the development of the 27-year-old, who was selected in the fourth round of the 2018 draft.
“He understands who he is and what he needs to do,” Martinez said. “The biggest thing is he gets more confident every time he takes the mound. He understands how to pitch. That’s the biggest thing. Talking to him, sitting with him, he’ll tell me, ‘My two-seam isn’t feeling so good, so I’m going to throw more of my four-seam. My curveball isn’t feeling so good, so I’m going to throw a changeup,’ and vice versa. So he really knows himself, he talks to the catcher, he just goes at the hitter. He goes at the hitter. It’s great.”
Playing the Mets in a rotation on consecutive nights is always going to be a challenge.
“I think he’s just going to have to focus on what he’s really good at and get through it. For me, he’s got to focus on the first few innings. Everyone’s seen what he’s capable of and he’s not going to change anything. He’s got to attack the strike zone and get a lead.”
“The last time we faced Irving he pitched really well, so he’s going to compete there and hopefully get outs and get ahead of these hitters, because if he gets behind these hitters, they’ve got good hitters.”
Irvin, who took the mound at Citi Field this time, allowed a single to the leadoff batter and a walk with one out in the first inning, but allowed a walk with two outs and consecutive singles in the second inning.
Francisco Lindor singled in the first inning early in the game, then got his second hit in the second to score a run, before Brandon Nimmo hit a fastball down the middle of the zone to left field for a three-run homer the other way and the Mets took a 4-0 lead.
Irvin held his own through the fifth inning, but Lindor hit a 2-1 fastball cut to center field into right field in the sixth for a two-run homer with two outs to give the home team a 6-0 lead and an eventual 7-5 victory.
Irvin allowed nine hits overall (Two home runs), 2 walks, 6 runs allowed (all unearned), 94 pitches, 64 strikes, 7 strikeouts, 14 strikeouts, (Eight of those were on his sinker.), and 18 balls were foul.
“His pitches weren’t as sharp as they were, his curveball wasn’t as sharp, he was late on a couple of batters, he made some mistakes with location issues,” Martinez said after the game.
“But overall, he gave us the innings we needed and today was just one of those days.”
“He just couldn’t get those big outs,” the manager added in summing up Irvin’s struggles.
“He’s a hard worker for us so he’ll be back with one more game. [All-Star] If he gets a break, he’s going to score it and get back out there and compete.”
ADON FOR HERZ:
Manager Davey Martinez told reporters after three of four innings against the Cardinals in Washington that the bullpen was fatigued and needed help, and the team made moves ahead of Monday’s series finale, demoting DJ Hurts to Triple-A Rochester and recalling right-hander Joan Adon to add length to the bullpen.
“As we know, the bullpen has been pretty tough,” Martinez explained.
“[Adon] We’ll have another pitcher in the bullpen for the next five days until we decide what to do next. We’re hopeful he can help us out.”
Adon, 25, has appeared in 29 major league games, including 26 starts. The right-hander appeared in five games as a Triple-A reliever in the weeks before the Nationals called him up for the series finale against the Cardinals at Nationals Park.
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“I talked to him today and we just wanted to stay on our feet,” Martinez said before the game. “We’re going to get them out one batter at a time. That doesn’t change as a team.” [reliever]Make sure you give him enough time to get ready, because the routine will be a little different. [at Triple-A] He’s been working hard to get himself ready to play and I think he’s ready now.”
According to Martinez, Adon’s pitching has improved a bit in relief appearances, and he believes this will be a good move for the pitcher, who has struggled to improve his slugging percentage as a starter in the majors, sometimes doing well and sometimes struggling against opposing batting lineups.
“I think moving him to the bullpen definitely helps him, I really do,” Martinez said.
“He’s a fastball pitcher, we know he’s got a good changeup and slider, and I think that’s going to be a positive for him. In the past when he’s been here, he’s usually pitched two or three great innings and then he seemed to drop off a little bit around the fourth or fifth inning. So this could be a positive for his career and for us.”
Adon certainly pitched well when he took the mound in Monday’s game, but he allowed three hits and two earned runs during his time on the mound.