Washington Nationals offense fails to get going in loss to the Braves

The Washington Nationals offense is really struggling, especially against starting pitchers

After a win last night, we hoped this could be the start of a solid winning streak for the Nats. However, those hopes were dashed in a 5-2 defeat to the Braves. It looked a lot like many other recent losses. The Nats were in the game for the most part, but always a step behind and unable to generate much offense.

The offense has been especially poor against starting pitchers. In their last seven games, the starting pitcher completed at least six innings in six of those outings. Miles Mikolas was the only one who did not, and he had a quick hook, leaving after 5.1 innings and 69 pitches. He did not leave because he was done, rather the Cardinals played the matchups with a bullpen that was ultra-fresh.

On the broadcast, Bob said that the Nats have fallen behind in 20 of their last 21 games, which is just not a way to consistently win games. You need to have the same fire you have in the eight inning early in the game.

In the second inning, the Nationals had the bases loaded with one out, but squandered that golden opportunity when Jacob Young hit into a double play. As has been the case for years, the Nationals are hitting too many ground balls, especially in situations where they need to elevate. Young swung at the first pitch because it was a hittable offering you could elevate, he just failed to execute.

The lack of execution on offense has been a big problem, as well as some key bats being ice cold. After red hot starts to the season, Nathaniel Lowe and Keibert Ruiz both have OPS’ in the .600’s. The Nats really need Lowe to get going because he was that big bat that was supposed to stabilize the lineup. When he was hot, the lineup was so much deeper. Now there is not a whole lot to worry about beyond Wood and Abrams.

Speaking of Abrams, he is the lone hot bat in the lineup right now. He had yet another multi-hit day, with a single and a solo homer. Abrams is now hitting .317 with a .927 OPS. He is trending towards being an All-Star again.

However, this was not enough. It was one of two runs the Nats scored on the day. While the pitching was not amazing today, this loss is on the offense. Trevor Williams was solid in his first four innings, before running into trouble in the fifth and faltering.

While the bullpen was not perfect today, they did their job for the most part. The Nats had chances, but just hit too many balls on the ground and hit into too many double plays.

Now we are on to the battle of the beltway. Before the season, this would look like an interesting matchup. However, it is now a battle of two bottom feeders who can’t get their seasons going. The O’s rotation has melted down, and the vibes there seem very low.

Hopefully, the Nats can get going against the struggling Baltimore squad. They need to because this season is starting to spiral out of control. This needs to be a step forward season, and if they don’t get going, sniffing .500 could be out the window early.