Washington Nationals news & notes: Nats snap 5-game skid with 12-3 win over Twins; Tanner Rainey Project…

Off the road:

After Joey Meneses singled in the first inning and Mitchell Parker gave up a run in the top of the second, Luis Garcia Jr. hit a home run to put the Nationals up 2-1. And Jesse Winker hit his sixth solo shot of the season in the home half of the fourth inning. In the fifth inning, Jacob Young singled to score two runs at 5-1, Meneses put Young up 6-1, and Garcia Jr.’s RBI single put Washington ahead at 7-1.

In the sixth for the Nats, Eddie Rosario singled and the home team went up 7-3, with Rosario and Young scoring on a throwing error. minnesota twinsCatcher Christian Vazquez tried to steal base from the 32-year-old outfielder for a 10-3 lead, and Rosario added two runs with a single in the eighth inning to make it 12-3.

Mitchell Parker also pitched well, giving up three runs on seven hits and one walk, with seven strikeouts on a 94-pitch, 64-strike rotation, with the left-handed pitcher giving up 13 whiffs and 17 called strikes. , 10 on his fastball.

Derek Roe (2.0 scoreless, 1 hit) and Dylan Floro (1.0 scoreless, 0 hits) rounded out the Nationals, who won the series opener in the nation’s capital.

Coach Davey Martinez and the club needed this after losing five straight and ending the trip with a record of 2 wins and 7 losses, so they won five games with 14 hits and 12 RBIs. He had eight at-bats with runners in scoring position, and his 14 total hits tied the club’s season record.

“Things are starting to settle down early on, we’re starting to relax a little bit, we’re hitting the plate better,” manager Davey Martinez told reporters after the series-opening win.

“We stayed in the middle of the field,” he said. “That’s a big thing today. I hit some home runs, too, but for the most part, if you look at all the hits, they went to the middle of the field. We talk about that all the time, so If you understand that, you can have good things again.” Outing from Mitchell [Parker] And it’s going to be a good day. ”

The manager was excited by the fact that his club had a good offense with two home runs, two doubles, two stolen bases, and five singles.

“I love it,” Martinez said.

“I love the energy. I love the style of play we have. We’re going to get our players together in the base and make things happen. We have the players that can do it, and we’re going to bring them into the game. It’s a lot of fun to see him go out there and run the bases correctly.”

Project Rainey:

Tanner Rainey had been out for 15 days and 12 games, but when he returned to the mound Sunday afternoon, he walked several batters and got two outs before hitting a double and hitting a 403-foot 3-run hit. He struggled, hitting a home run. A -0 fastball was hit by Alec Bohm, and Bohm smashed it (165 mph exit velocity).

Good news?

Rainey’s velo was down from last season, but it went up on the road trip at Citizens Bank Park (from 93.3 mph so far this season to an average of 95 mph at night) and his slider went up (from 85.8 mph to 88.2 mph). ).

“He hasn’t pitched in a while. He walked the first two guys and then it settled down,” manager Davey Martinez said after losing his third straight game. phillies And the Nats have lost five straight overall.

“His velo was up again and I thought he threw the ball well, but when you get behind these good hitters and leave your fastball in the middle of the plate, things happen. But overall his I thought he was much better. Vero was there, it’s important now to throw strikes, hit consistent strikes, so other than the two walks and the home run, that might be a positive for him. Now he needs to understand that he has to throw the ball in the strike zone.

“He doesn’t have the 97-98 record he used to have,” the captain said early in the series against the Phillies. He can throw for strikes, which is very good.”

So Martinez said the tough challenge he faces is finding a spot that gives Rainey a chance to solve problems.

“We’ve got to find a way to get him back in the field. It’s tough because all our games have been relatively close. We have guys who throw the ball very well. But he’s a great addition to our bullpen. He’s a part of it and I have to get him out there.”

As Martinez pointed out earlier this month, it’s also a matter of Rainey adjusting to post-surgery.

“I’m still hoping he can utilize his lower body a little bit better, but [the velo will] Come on up,” Martinez said. “I have to make him understand that sometimes it’s going to be 94-95, but that’s not the case right now. It’s more about pitch selection. It’s more about location. “Throwing a fastball up the middle doesn’t work, especially against good hitters.”

Photo credit: Tim Heitman/Getty Images

“We’re just tinkering with his mechanics a little bit,” he explained.

“It’s about being able to throw strikes consistently to get him a little more foothold. When he’s around the strike zone, he does pretty well. When his slider is in the zone, it’s It’s a good pitch for him, so we have to get him forward, we have to make him understand that strike one is still his best pitch, and he’s a good pitch for strike one. We have to attack the zone. We’ll continue to work with him and see where we are. I’m not going to give up on him. We’re trying to ease his path and hopefully put him in a situation where he starts to feel a little bit better. But he’s a big part of the bullpen and we need him. right.”

Though he’s clearly struggling to get back to where he was before Tommy John surgery, Martinez said he knows Rainey has the right mentality.

“He’s a Bulldog. He really is. He’s resilient, he’s ready, he wants to get back on the mound and play baseball, and I love that about him.”

This includes:

and this Woooooo! ! ! ! :

Plus this:

Davey Martinez on Cade Cavalli’s competitive return after Tommy John surgery in 2023:

“It’s great. It’s a process and he’s done it really well. I know he feels he’s ahead of the game, but we’re not sure about this Tommy John thing. We need to stay with what we know and we want to make sure his progress is what we think it is. And he’s done that really well.”