Ervin, Sweat, and more:
Rookie starter Jake Irvin, who came out of the All-Star break after a few solid games after being out of rotation, struggled in command, threw a lot of pitches in three innings (79) and dropped early in the aftermath of last week’s 9-6 loss to the Cardinals in St. Louis.
“[Irvin] Nationals manager Davey Martinez said of his decision to drop the starting pitcher relatively early on. “And for me he was part of our big future and I thought that was enough for him.”
The sixth-grade captain said the freshman starter struggled to grip the sweat and curve grips on the shortened expedition.
“Don’t give him excuses because he has to get over it,” Martinez said. I think he walked out with a little rag and we discussed it with the referee and the umpire allowed him to use the rag there and we had to get him through the moment because he has a good one. But like I said, when he throws almost 25-27 pitches per inning in three innings, that’s too much. ”
Martinez said he and his staff would discuss wearing a sleeve with Ervin or doing something to combat any dampness, but said the overall message was for Ervin to put the start back and go into the next turn in his rotation.
“I said, ‘Hey, get ready, I’ll be back in five days.’ And he’s pitching good. I don’t want him to be disappointed by today.
“There was another rain delay and he had to sit and wait, but in five days he should be ready to leave again.”
Irvin briefly summarized the struggle in St. Louis.
“The lack of execution has created some situations where players have been counted deeper,” he said. As quoted by Mark Zuckerman of MASN.
Irvin actually hit JD Davis with a 2-1 fastball (95.4 mph) on the outside in last night’s series opener against San Francisco, but the Giants’ 3-hole hitter reversed it and hit a 384-foot solo homer to the right field bullpen to give the Visitors a 1-0 lead early at Nationals Park.
In his second outing, Irvin took the Giants out on 15 balls and held a 2-1 lead, but when he returned to the mound and took two outs in the third, he made it 3-1, but was singled by Lamonte Wade Jr. and Joc Pederson hit a towering homer on the third deck to tie the score at 3-3 on his ninth 429-foot monster shot of the year. .
With 13 balls and 1-2-3 No. 4, Irvin had a total of 61 balls, and in the fifth time, the Giants were dropped in order with the 14-ball frame. [checks math] He remained with a total of 75 points.
Irvin struck out in the sixth and looked like he was going for 10 straight outs after Pederson hit a home run in the third. His 18-ball frame went up to 93 that night.
Martinez sent Irvin off in the top of the seventh, and Michael Confort’s leadoff single ended the batting streak. Conforto hit a triple on Irvine’s 111th and final pitch with Blake Sabo hitting left front.
Jake Irvin quotes: 6.2 IP, 5H, 3R, 3ER, 1BB, 9K, 2HR, 111P, 75S, 4/3GO/FO.
As quoted by MASN’s Bobby Blanco, Martinez said after the 5-3 win, “Jake set the tone today and we followed his lead.”
“We scored. He was really good. He played 25 hitters. He trailed six of them. …
“That was amazing. He used a changeup. He threw an 18-20 changeup. They started looking for his breaking ball. He threw a changeup, which was very effective and threw a good ball.”
“It was definitely a growing moment to spend today with him,” Martinez added at another point.
Key moments:
• Lane Thomas came out swinging in the bottom of the first inning, catching the first fastball off Giants lefty Alex Wood 413 feet left of center and hitting a tying homer on first base. This is the 16th run of the season, just one more than last season’s record. Thomas had 17 overs and 548 hits in 146 games last year. He hit No. 16 in his 95th game of the year and 413th PA game.
• Keibert Ruiz trailed 0-2 with back-to-back walks by Jaymer Candelario and Joey Meneses following Thomas’ tying home run with runners on first and second base. Wood threw a decent changeup low and out of the zone to the nut catcher, but Lewis came down to retrieve it and RBI lined up left to make it 2-1 to his nut.
• Wood took the Nationals’ first two outs on just seven pitches, but fell 1-0 behind CJ Abrams in his next at-bat, throwing a fastball into the zone and over the middle of the plate, where Abrams hit his ninth right-hander 414 feet to make the Nationals 3-1.
• Stone Garrett got the 2-1 slider at his feet and came to base in the bottom of the fourth for the Nationals before Michael Chavis hit a low 0-1 changeup with an RBI double into left field to put the Nationals back on top 4-3 after the Giants tied the game one inning. Luis Garcia sent Chavis to third base on a grounder in the first infield right field. Chavis was backpicked to third base with the second out, and Alex Cole popped out to end the inning.
• CJ Abrams singled in the bottom of the fifth for the Nationals to end the night for Alex Wood. The nation’s capital’s quick-footed shortstop was soon on the mound with new pitcher Ryan Walker in an attempt to extend his streak of 15 consecutive stolen bases that began on May 3.
Abrams was initially called on this play, with Brett Weisley tagging in a second behind after reviewing a ball thrown into the corner of the bag by Giants catcher Patrick Bailey (CS%41% until tonight). Abrams was ruled safe, then got one out on Joey Meneses’ liner (103.1 at bat) to make it 5-3.
Bullpen action:
In the Giants’ seventh inning, Jordan Weems replaced Jake Irvin with two outs and second base, then walked Wilmer Flores, the first hitter they faced, and loaded the bases in front of Casey Schmidt. He hit No. 3 1-2 with a 96 mph fastball. The Nationals are still 5-3.
In the top of the eighth inning, Jose A. Ferrer struck out two batters in a 1-2-3 frame.
In the top of the ninth, Kyle Finnegan got a chance to save, and the right-hander threw in a drama-free 1-2-3 frame. ball game. Final Score: 5-3 Nationals.
Back Page – Next Steps for Hunters:
Given his injury history, which included Tommy John surgery in 2016 and an oblique and latissimus dorsi injury in 2021, the Nationals paid close attention to 28-year-old Hunter Harvey, but after the Washington, D.C. closer experienced a slowdown in his last game against the St. Louis Cardinals and noted discomfort, the club sent him back to D.C. for an MRI of his right elbow, which revealed a mild right elbow strain. Harvey was admitted to IL, where his manager said his diagnosis was relatively good given his initial concerns.
Manager Davey Martinez told reporters last week that he was “very concerned about his career and how he’s feeling in particular.”
Photo by Mark Goldman/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
“It’s a minor contusion on his right elbow. Best-case scenario for us. I’m going to put him in isolation for 10 days and then I’ll start pitching again. But I’d like to calm him down a bit and build strength and bring him back as soon as possible.”
It’s been a breakthrough season for Harvey, as he posted a 3.12 ERA, 3.63 FIP, 12 walks (2.68 BB/9), 45 Ks (10.04 K/9), .196/.258/.336 batting average in 39 games and 40 1/3 IPs, and had 9 saves in 14 opportunities.
Harvey told reporters on Friday that the above injury history is actually useful in that it can tell the difference between normal pain and pain that needs to be addressed.
“You kind of know the difference between normal pain and pain you don’t want to feel,” he explained. Quoted by MASN’s Bobby Blanco.
“This is something that we were able to work on early on, and last year we didn’t work on it early and it took months, so that’s good. So the next few weeks should work.”
The next step, explained Friday night by his manager, is to strengthen his arms and now rest.
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Photo by Tony Quinn/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
“He’s just going to rehab and get stronger, but I’ve talked to him,” Martinez said. “He says he’s feeling a lot better, which is great. Knowing his background, we want to make sure he’s completely fine when he comes back, but it’s nice to hear that he’s feeling a lot better.”
“I think they were worried,” Harvey told reporters, citing his background.
“Before having TJ in 2016, when I was having all these things, now it was the worst, now that’s what worried me, that feeling.
“We knew this was just an anomaly and could lead to something bad, but we just acted on it early.”
The club is currently without a closer and the bullpen has been an issue in recent losses, but Harvey said he sees an opportunity for someone to step up in his absence.
“It’s a great opportunity for a lot of guys to get innings and get innings when it matters. It’s time for someone to step up and hopefully run together.”
