Abrams Carries Nationals Past D-backs in Third-Inning Slugfest

Sometimes a game is decided in a single inning, and Saturday’s matchup between the Arizona Diamondbacks and Washington Nationals at Nationals Park was precisely that kind of affair. The Nationals exploded for four runs in the bottom of the third and never looked back, holding off a late Arizona surge to secure a 5-3 victory. It wasn’t pretty, it wasn’t a pitching duel, but it was effective, and that’s all that matters in the win column.

Foster Griffin, the Nationals’ starter, wasn’t dominant by any stretch, allowing six hits and three earned runs while walking five over 6.2 innings. By traditional standards, that’s a pedestrian outing. But Griffin made his pitches count when it mattered most, striking out two and pitching around trouble to earn the decision. The Nationals’ offense bailed him out before he needed bailing, which is the easiest way to get a W in baseball.

The third inning told the entire story. Gabriel Moreno led off with a two-run single that scored both Ryan Waldschmidt and Corbin Carroll. Moreno’s opportunity to extend the rally evaporated when center fielder Jacob Young delivered a strike to second base that caught him in a rundown. Then CJ Abrams, who would carry this game on his considerable shoulders, doubled sharply to center to plate Curtis Mead and Andrés Chaparro. Before Arizona could blink, Daylen Lile crushed a triple down the line that scored Dylan Crews and Jacob Young. In one inning, the Nationals had manufactured four runs on timely hitting and Arizona mistakes.

Abrams was the star of this show, plain and simple. The 25-year-old shortstop finished 3-for-4 with a double, a solo home run in the fifth inning, and three RBIs total. His two-run double came in that explosive third frame, and his solo shot in the fifth was the dagger, extending Washington’s advantage. This is what you expect from a young star entering his prime, and Abrams is delivering in spades.

The Diamondbacks refused to go quietly into the night. Mitch Bratt lasted only five innings, departing after allowing five runs on seven hits while walking five and striking out three. Arizona’s relief corps kept the game respectable down the stretch, but the early damage proved insurmountable. James McCann added an RBI single in the seventh to give the Nationals an insurance run, pushing the lead to two.

Clayton Beeter locked down the save with a scoreless ninth, a routine task when you’re protecting a two-run margin. The Nationals’ bullpen was efficient when called upon, which is all you can ask for in July.

This game belonged to the team that struck early and struck often. The Nationals executed the fundamental baseball formula: get runners in scoring position, put the barrel on the ball, and let the other team chase your lead. The Diamondbacks had their moments and their opportunities, but they were playing from behind from the moment Lile’s triple cleared the outfield. In baseball, that position is a losing one more often than not.