Soto now putting up better numbers than as rookie (Nats up 6-4)

MIAMI - Juan Soto had one of the great seasons by a teenager in major league history, and it was only natural to question whether it was possible for the young slugger to be any better this season.

Halfway through the 2019 campaign, the answer is: Yes, it is possible.

There's a long way yet to go, but heading into tonight's series finale against the Marlins (the Nationals' 80th game of the season) Soto is sporting a higher batting average (.302), slugging percentage (.525) and OPS (.925) than he did as a rookie (.292, .517, .923).

"It's hard to say it, but when I view him and look at his numbers, he has gotten better," manager Davey Martinez said. "And I'm not just talking about his hitting, but his overall play."

Martinez pointed to Soto's improvement in left field. He's far from a Gold Glove outfielder at this point, but he's less prone to costly mistakes than he was as a rookie. He's been much better going back on balls hit to the wall. And he nearly pulled off an impressive diving catch of a sinking liner Wednesday night, unable only to hang onto the ball after it hit his glove.

"I don't think last year ... one, he might not have gotten to that ball, and two, I don't think he would've dove for it," Martinez said. "I told him: 'You had it. It's just when you hit the ground, the ball popped out. That's OK.' He's definitely getting better all around."

Soto's real calling card, of course, is at the plate. And in spite of a sluggish start to his season, he has completely turned it around and then some.

On May 16, Soto was slashing .228/.345/.415. In 36 games since, he's slashing .371/.452/.629.

The key to that turnaround?

"The biggest thing for him is taking his walks," Martinez said. "We say this all the time, but he's got a really good eye at the plate. And when he takes his walks, he's able to square balls up really well.

"We constantly tell him when we've got guys in scoring position: 'You're going to hit home runs, but we're not looking for you to (do it here). Just make good solid contact. Doubles are good. Singles are good. Know the situation of the game.' "

Martinez and the Nationals coaching staff never doubted Soto would get himself back on track. They saw more than enough last season to know he possesses both the natural talent and the work ethic to battle out of slumps.

"He's actually been a student of the game," the manager said. "I've said this before, but sometimes before he goes up, he'll make a comment to me like: 'This guy is pitching me backwards,' or 'I really got to get the ball up,' or 'With two strikes, I'm going to speak out and do this.' For a 20-year-old to really hone in on what he needs to do to be successful - not every day, but every pitch of every at-bat - it's pretty impressive."

Update: The Nationals are swinging at everything Sandy Alcantara has to offer early on tonight, and it's not working. The Marlins right-hander has not allowed a hit through three innings, his lone mistake a four-pitch walk of Stephen Strasburg. Strasburg also has been effective, but he was plagued by a really ugly sequence in the bottom of the third that led to three runs crossing the plate. Miami managed only two singles (one that doinked off second base, another that was a cue-shot into shallow right field). But Strasburg plunked Alcantara while the latter was trying to bunt. And Adam Eaton butchered that cue-shot single to right, ultimately allowing an unearned run to score and the batter to race all the way to third base (allowing him to score on a groundout). So it's 3-0 Marlins after three.

Update II: The good news: Soto drove an outside fastball from Alcantara to left field and into the Clevelander for his 13th homer of the season (and the Nats' first hit of the night). The bad news: That's pretty much all they've done at the plate so far tonight. And Strasburg gave the run back in the bottom of the fifth via three straight two-out singles. So they trail 4-1 heading to the sixth.

Update III: Well, things have taken a major turn around here. Just like last night, the Nationals just needed to see the opposing starter a third time to get going. They did it to Zac Gallen in the top of the sixth last night. And they just did it to Alcantara in the top of the sixth tonight. They scored five runs in the inning, with big-time blasts from Matt Adams (three-run homer to right) and Victor Robles (two-run homer to left). And so what had been a 4-1 deficit has now become a 6-4 lead for the Nats.